Effects of bisphenol A exposure during early development on behavior and anatomy of the prefrontal cortex in adult male and female rats

Previous work has shown that exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) during early development can affect behavior and sexual differentiation of the brain in rodents, although few studies have examined effects on cognitive behavior and associated areas of the brain. The current study examined if exposure to BPA during early development alters general measures of growth and development, cognitive behavior, and anatomy of medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) in adulthood. Long-Evans hooded rats were orally exposed to corn oil (vehicle), 4µg/kg, 40µg/kg, or 400µg/kg throughout pregnancy and during the early postnatal period. Measures of general growth and development, such as body weight, puberty onset, and levels of thyroxine (T4) were assessed at weaning age. One male and one female from each litter were trained on the 17-arm radial arm maze in adulthood. Several weeks following completion of training, brains were removed from these rats to stereologically assess neuron and glia number in the medial prefrontal cortex. Results indicated that levels of T4 at weaning age were significantly altered by exposure to BPA. Additionally, there were also minor indications for learning impairments in the radial arm maze task in males, although these were only seen in late in training and most comparisons revealed only non-significant trends. For neuroanatomical measures, males exposed to 400ug/kg/day BPA displayed a significantly larger number of neurons and glia in layers 5-6 of the mPFC. In conclusion, exposure to BPA leads to alterations in T4 levels at weaning age and significant changes in anatomy of the prefrontal cortex in males only. The changes in neuroanatomy of the prefrontal cortex may be indicative of a particular susceptibility of males to exposure of BPA.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ph.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Neuroscience

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2013

Author dc:creator

• Sadowski, Renee

Contributors dc:contributor

• Juraska, Janice M.
• Schantz, Susan L.
• Gulley, Joshua M.
• Flaws, Jodi A.
• Mahoney, Megan M.

• bisphenol A (BPA)
• prefrontal cortex
• radial arm maze
• neuron number
• glia number
• Neuroanatomy
• neurotoxicology
• development
• thyroxine

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2013 Renee Sadowski

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/44423

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/44423