Abstract
Our aim is to investigate the effects of prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) on the development of retinal bipolar and horizontal cells. The alterations of the retinal bipolar and horizontal cells in P7, P14 and P30 mice were observed after PAE, with immunofluorescent labeling and DiI diolistic assay. The retinal development of filial pups was affected by PAE in a dose-dependent and long-term manner. The number of bipolar cells of alcohol groups was significantly lower than that of the control, and the dendritic receptive field of horizontal cells was also significantly smaller than those of the control groups (P < 0.01). PAE was able to cause retarded development of pup retinal neural cells.
Highlights
Nowadays, widespread alcohol abuse poses significant threats to society and the health of humans
The most important interneurons among them are bipolar cells and horizontal cells, which are both located in the inner nuclear layer of the retina
Horizontal cells make synaptic contacts with both photosensory cells and bipolar cells. They could regulate the transmission of visual signals from bipolar cells to ganglion cells, which is a common form of feedback synapses in the retina
Summary
Widespread alcohol abuse poses significant threats to society and the health of humans. It is not unusual for pregnant women to consume alcohol excessively, which often leads to serious consequences, since alcohol can freely pass through the placenta and enter into the fetal blood circulation to damage various tissues and organs. Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can cause fetal miscarriage, stillbirth or developmental abnormalities, including facial and central nervous system (CNS) ones (Ikonomidou et al, 2000; Mukherjee et al, 2005; Sancho-Tello et al, 2008). The fetal and neonatal developmental abnormalities caused by PAE are called fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Some more widely accepted explanations include cellular oxidative damage, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor blockage, cytokine inhibition, etc (Kotch et al, 1995; Sancho-Tello et al, 2008)
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