J Korean Biol Nurs Sci.  2016 Nov;18(4):274-279. 10.7586/jkbns.2016.18.4.274.

Effect of Environmental Enrichment on Cognitive Impairment-induced by Ethanol Exposure in Adolescent Rat

• Kim YJ
• Park JM
• Song MK
• Seong HH
• Kim YJ

• KMID: 2361642
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.7586/jkbns.2016.18.4.274

Abstract

PURPOSE
Adolescents who experienced the alcohol consumption have gradually increased. Adolescence is a critical period of the neural plasticity in the brain. Neural plasticity is mediated by neurotrophins and has an impact on cognitive function. Environmental enrichment ameliorates the cognitive function and increases neurotrophins. Thus, we investigated the neuroprotective effect of environmental enrichment on ethanol induced cognitive impairment in adolescent rats.
METHODS
The ethanol groups and the controls groups were injected with ethanol (0.5g/kg) and phosphate buffered saline, respectively, through intraperitoneal from 28th day of birth for 11 days. The environmental enrichment groups were provided larger cages containing toys than the standard cage . Passive avoidance test and Y-maze test were performed to evaluate the spatial memory.
RESULTS
Environmental enrichment+ethanol group showed higher alterations than the standard environment+ethanol group in Y-maze test (p<.05). In hippocampus, The environmental enrichment+ethanol group showed significantly higher level of the number of c-fos positive celsl and density of tropomyosin receptors kinase B receptor than the standard environment+ethanol group (p<.05).
CONCLUSION
So, we suggested that the environmental enrichment played a role as a prophylaxis for prevention of memory impairment induced by ethanol exposure in adolescence.

Keyword

Environmental enrichment; Ethanol; Cognition; Adolescent

MeSH Terms

Adolescent*
Alcohol Drinking
Animals
Brain
Cognition
Cognition Disorders
Critical Period (Psychology)
Ethanol*
Hippocampus
Humans
Memory
Nerve Growth Factors
Neuroprotective Agents
Parturition
Phosphotransferases
Plastics
Play and Playthings
Rats*
Spatial Memory
Tropomyosin
Ethanol
Nerve Growth Factors
Neuroprotective Agents
Phosphotransferases
Plastics
Tropomyosin