Prenatal pregabalin exposure alters postnatal pain sensitivity and some behavioral responses in adult offspring rats

Abstract

Background: Prenatal antiepileptic drug exposure could demonstrate both congenital malformations and behavioral impairments in offspring. Objective: This study was performed to assess the effects of prenatal exposure to pregabalin (PGB) on pain response, anxiety, motor activity and some behavior of adult offspring rats. Methods: Pregnant Wistar rats received PGB (7.5, 15 and 30 mg/kg/ip) during embryonic days 9.5-15.5. The pain response, anxiety-like behaviors, locomotor activity, motor balance and coordination and anhedonia of adult offspring were examined by tail-flick and hot plate test, open field test, ele-vated plus maze (EPM), beam balance test and sucrose preference test in their 60th day of life, re-spectively. Results: Prenatal exposure to PGB revealed significant dose-dependent reduction in pain sensitivity (increase in pain latency response) in the hot plate test, especially in females, while anxiety-like behavior assessed in EPM and open field significantly reduced in males. In the open field, locomotor activity reduced significantly after exposure to PGB 30 mg/kg and motor coordination decreased dose-dependently, especially in males. Anhedonia, as an indication of sucrose preference or pleas-ure response, was not changed. Conclusion: These findings suggest that prenatal PGB exposure could be associated with significant changes in pain response, anxiety, locomotor activity and coordination in adult offspring rats. © 2020 Bentham Science Publishers