Experimental Factors in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

描述（由申请人提供）：乙醇对胎儿的影响是广泛的，破坏性的，通常是永久性的。根据不同的人口，乙醇影响多达2-5%的活产。乙醇最深刻的影响是对神经系统的影响。暴露于乙醇会导致行为改变，如多动症、注意力缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）、学习和记忆缺陷、社会行为改变和智力迟钝。这种行为变化也可以在产前暴露于乙醇的动物中看到，因此它们为检查这些变化的基础提供了良好的模型。对于社交行为和ADHD来说，一个特别重要的系统是躯体感觉系统。阻止该系统中的感官信息足以对社会行为产生负面影响。乙醇会导致这种结构和功能的改变， 区 我们将测试这一假设，即在发育过程中暴露于乙醇会导致体感皮层的结构改变，这将对行为（包括社会行为）产生负面影响，并改变该区域的神经化学。此外，我们将测试的假设，补充二十二碳六烯酸，ω-3脂肪酸，在产后期间将扭转乙醇诱导的行为，神经化学和大脑结构的缺陷。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The effects of ethanol on a fetus are extensive, devastating, and often permanent. Depending upon the population, ethanol affects as many as 2-5% of all live births. The most profound effects of ethanol are on the nervous system. Gestational ethanol exposure causes behavioral changes such as hyperactivity, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning and memory deficits, alterations in social behavior, and mental retardation. Such behavioral changes can also be seen in animals exposed to ethanol in the prenatal period, thus they provide good models for examining the underpinnings of the changes. One system that is particularly important for both social behavior and ADHD is the somatosensory system. Blocking sensory information within this system is sufficient to negatively affect social behavior. Ethanol causes alterations in the structure and function of this area. We will test the hypothesis that exposure to ethanol during development that causes structural alterations in somatosensory cortex will negatively affect behavior (including social behavior) and alter the neurochemistry of this region. Further, we will test the hypothesis that supplementation with docosahexaenoic acid, an omega-3 fatty acid, in the postnatal period will reverse ethanol-induced deficits in behavior, neurochemistry, and brain structure.