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Hippocampal neuron populations are reduced in vervet monkeys with fetal alcohol exposure
Author(s) -
Burke Mark W.,
Ptito Maurice,
Ervin Frank R.,
Palmour Roberta M.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
developmental psychobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.055
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1098-2302
pISSN - 0012-1630
DOI - 10.1002/dev.21311
Subject(s) - hippocampal formation , offspring , pregnancy , fetal alcohol syndrome , hippocampus , psychology , physiology , juvenile , endocrinology , medicine , neuroscience , biology , genetics
ABSTRACT Prenatal exposure to beverage alcohol is a major cause of mild mental retardation and developmental delay. In nonendangered alcohol‐preferring vervet monkeys, we modeled the most common nondysmorphic form of fetal alcohol syndrome disorder with voluntary drinking during the third trimester of pregnancy. Here, we report significant numerical reductions in the principal hippocampal neurons of fetal alcohol‐exposed (FAE) offspring, as compared to age‐matched, similarly housed conspecifics with isocaloric sucrose exposure. These deficits, particularly marked in CA1 and CA3, are present neonatally and persist through infancy (5 months) and juvenile (2 years) stages. Although the volumes of hippocampal subdivisions in FAE animals are not atypical at birth, by age 2, they are only 65–70% of those estimated in age‐matched controls. These data suggest that moderate, naturalistic alcohol consumption during late pregnancy results in a stable loss of hippocampal neurons and a progressive reduction of hippocampal volume. © 2015 The Authors. Developmental Psychobiology Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc . Dev Psychobiol 57:470485, 2015.