Abstract
Background: Alcohol consumption during pregnancy and lactation induces detrimental consequences, that are not limited to the direct in utero effects of the drug on fetuses, but extend to maternal care. However, the occurrence and severity of alcohol toxicity are related to the drinking pattern and the time of exposure. The present study investigated in female rats long-term alcohol drinking trajectories, by a continuous and intermittent free-choice paradigm, during pre-gestational time, pregnancy, and lactation; moreover, the consequences of long-term alcohol consumption on the response to natural reward and maternal behavior were evaluated.Methods: Virgin female rats were exposed to home-cage two-bottle continuous- or intermittent “alcohol (20% v/v) vs. water” choice regimen along 12 weeks and throughout pregnancy and lactation. Animals were tested for saccharin preference, and maternal behavior was assessed by recording dams' undisturbed spontaneous home-cage behavior in the presence of their offspring.Results: Our results show that the intermittent alcohol drinking-pattern induced an escalation in alcohol intake during pre-gestational time and lactation more than the continuous access, while a reduction in alcohol consumption was observed during pregnancy, contrarily to the drinking trajectories of the continuous access-exposed rats. Long-term voluntary alcohol intake induced a decreased saccharin preference in virgin female rats and a significant reduction in maternal care, with respect to control dams, although the intermittent drinking produced a greater impairment than the continuous-access paradigm.Conclusion: The present data indicate that both alcohol-drinking patterns are associated to modifications in the drinking trajectories of female rats, in pre-gestational time, during pregnancy and lactation. Moreover, long-lasting alcohol intake can affect sensitivity to natural rewarding stimuli and maternal behavior and sensitivity to natural rewarding stimuli in a pattern–related manner. This study underlies the importance of modeling human alcohol habit and its consequences on the mother-infant dyad, in order to prevent detrimental effects on offspring development and maturation.
Highlights
Recent official reports have described a marked increase in binge drinking among young women in Europe (Sassi, 2015)
Women often continue alcohol drinking into the early weeks of an unplanned pregnancy, a period in which the fetus is vulnerable to alcohol toxicity
Few studies have reported on alterations in maternal care induced by gestational alcohol intake and they were limited to alcohol administration to dams during pregnancy and/or after parturition (Pepino et al, 2002; McMurray et al, 2008; Pueta et al, 2008)
Summary
Recent official reports have described a marked increase in binge (heavy episodic) drinking among young women in Europe (Sassi, 2015). The drinking pattern represents a determining factor for the development of specific neuronal and behavioral adaptations (Stuber et al, 2008; Hopf et al, 2010) that may discretely influence reward processing and gestational and postnatal events Given these preliminary remarks, in the present study, we investigated long-term alcohol intake by a continuous and intermittent free-choice paradigm from pre-gestational - to pre-weaning time, in order to measure alcohol drinking trajectories in different physiological conditions such as virginity, pregnancy, and lactation. The present study investigated in female rats long-term alcohol drinking trajectories, by a continuous and intermittent free-choice paradigm, during pre-gestational time, pregnancy, and lactation; the consequences of long-term alcohol consumption on the response to natural reward and maternal behavior were evaluated
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