Host: The Japanese Society of Toxicology
Name : The 50th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Toxicology
Date : June 19, 2023 - June 21, 2023
It has been reported that developmental exposure to harmful chemicals affects the development of cognitive function. In mouse models of neurodevelopmental disorders, it has been reported that ultrasonic vocalization (USV), an indicator of social communication exhibited by pups to their mothers, is abnormal, and our previous studies evaluating the effects of dioxin exposure suggest that USV may be useful in assessing the developmental neurotoxicity of toxic chemicals. Our previous studies on the exposure effects of dioxins suggest that they may be useful in assessing the developmental neurotoxicity of toxic chemicals. In the present study, we examined the effects of fetal and lactational exposure to 2-chloro-3,7,8-tribromodibenzofuran (TeXDF) or 1,2,3,7,8-pentabromodibenzofuran (PeBDF) on the USV. USV of pups born to dams exposed to TeXDF (8 or 40 µg/kg body weight) on gestational day 12.5 showed that the duration and frequency of USV vocalizations were significantly lower in the 40 µg/kg body weight exposure group than in the control group on days 3-9 postnatal period. By contrast, USV of pups born to mothers who received PeBDF (35 or 175 µg/kg body weight) were not affected. To examine whether developmental exposure leads to behavioral deficits in adults, we analyzed exploratory behavior in a novel environment using the IntelliCage, a fully automated testing device, and found no significant differences in either TeXDF or PeBDF. Other behavioral impact metrics that can be analyzed with the IntelliCage are currently under investigation.
