Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure
The clinical use and abuse of opioids during human pregnancy have been widely reported. Several studies have demonstrated that opioids cross the placenta in rats during late gestation, and prenatal morphine exposure has been shown to have negative outcomes in cognitive function. The medial prefronta...
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Elsevier
2023-11-01
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| Series: | Brain Research Bulletin |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361923023002289 |
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| author | Elham Alaee Narges Pachenari Fatemeh Khani Saeed Semnanian Amir Shojaei Hossein Azizi |
| author_facet | Elham Alaee Narges Pachenari Fatemeh Khani Saeed Semnanian Amir Shojaei Hossein Azizi |
| author_sort | Elham Alaee |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The clinical use and abuse of opioids during human pregnancy have been widely reported. Several studies have demonstrated that opioids cross the placenta in rats during late gestation, and prenatal morphine exposure has been shown to have negative outcomes in cognitive function. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is believed to play a crucial role in cognitive processes, motivation, and emotion, integrating neural information from several brain areas and sending converted information to other structures. Dysfunctions in this area have been observed in numerous psychiatric and neurological disorders, including addiction. This current study aimed to compare the electrophysiological properties of mPFC neurons in rat offspring prenatally exposed to morphine. Pregnant rats were injected with morphine or saline twice a day from gestational days 11–18. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were performed in male offspring on postnatal days 14–18. All recordings were obtained in current-clamp configuration from mPFC pyramidal neurons to assess their electrophysiological properties. The results revealed that prenatal exposure to morphine shifted the resting membrane potential (RMP) to less negative voltages and increased input resistance and duration of action potentials. However, the amplitude, rise slope, and afterhyperpolarization (AHP) amplitude of the first elicited action potentials were significantly decreased in rats prenatally exposed to morphine. Moreover, the sag voltage ratio was significantly decreased in the prenatal morphine group. Our results suggest that the changes observed in the electrophysiological properties of mPFC neurons indicate an elevation in neuronal excitability following prenatal exposure to morphine. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T07:35:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e52eed4877ea421bbecc5563e886d941 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1873-2747 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T07:35:22Z |
| publishDate | 2023-11-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain Research Bulletin |
| spelling | doaj.art-e52eed4877ea421bbecc5563e886d9412023-11-17T05:25:01ZengElsevierBrain Research Bulletin1873-27472023-11-01204110803Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposureElham Alaee0Narges Pachenari1Fatemeh Khani2Saeed Semnanian3Amir Shojaei4Hossein Azizi5Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, IranSchool of Cognitive Sciences, Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (IPM), Tehran, IranDepartment of Physiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, IranDepartment of Physiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran; Institute for Brain Sciences and Cognition, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, IranDepartment of Physiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran; Institute for Brain Sciences and Cognition, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, IranDepartment of Physiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran; Institute for Brain Sciences and Cognition, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran; Corresponding author at: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran.The clinical use and abuse of opioids during human pregnancy have been widely reported. Several studies have demonstrated that opioids cross the placenta in rats during late gestation, and prenatal morphine exposure has been shown to have negative outcomes in cognitive function. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is believed to play a crucial role in cognitive processes, motivation, and emotion, integrating neural information from several brain areas and sending converted information to other structures. Dysfunctions in this area have been observed in numerous psychiatric and neurological disorders, including addiction. This current study aimed to compare the electrophysiological properties of mPFC neurons in rat offspring prenatally exposed to morphine. Pregnant rats were injected with morphine or saline twice a day from gestational days 11–18. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings were performed in male offspring on postnatal days 14–18. All recordings were obtained in current-clamp configuration from mPFC pyramidal neurons to assess their electrophysiological properties. The results revealed that prenatal exposure to morphine shifted the resting membrane potential (RMP) to less negative voltages and increased input resistance and duration of action potentials. However, the amplitude, rise slope, and afterhyperpolarization (AHP) amplitude of the first elicited action potentials were significantly decreased in rats prenatally exposed to morphine. Moreover, the sag voltage ratio was significantly decreased in the prenatal morphine group. Our results suggest that the changes observed in the electrophysiological properties of mPFC neurons indicate an elevation in neuronal excitability following prenatal exposure to morphine.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361923023002289In utero exposureMorphineCortical excitabilityPrefrontal cortexOffspring |
| spellingShingle | Elham Alaee Narges Pachenari Fatemeh Khani Saeed Semnanian Amir Shojaei Hossein Azizi Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure Brain Research Bulletin In utero exposure Morphine Cortical excitability Prefrontal cortex Offspring |
| title | Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure |
| title_full | Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure |
| title_fullStr | Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure |
| title_full_unstemmed | Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure |
| title_short | Enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure |
| title_sort | enhancement of neuronal excitability in the medial prefrontal cortex following prenatal morphine exposure |
| topic | In utero exposure Morphine Cortical excitability Prefrontal cortex Offspring |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361923023002289 |
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