Abstract
Serotonin, like many neurotransmitters, plays a role in modulating the development of the mammalian brain largely through interactions with the 5-HT1a receptor. We have studied the effects of treating developing rat pups during critical periods of postnatal development (PD 3–10 or PD 10–17) with the 5-HT1a agonist, 8-OH-DPAT (1 mg/kg). Interestingly, the results on behavioral, anatomical and neurochemical development of these groups appears to be, in many cases, completely opposite.
Treatment with the agonist at the earlier timepoint accelerates development - the animals opened their eyes sooner, had earlier incisor eruption and gained weight more rapidly than their saline littermates. As adults, the animals showed significant anxiety and decreased serotonin innervation of the caudate and hippocampus. Animals treated at the later time (PD 10–17) gained weight normally and performed better on learning models as adults and showed loss of serotonin terminals in the cortex.
Our work has also shown that many of the effects of serotonin in development are still operative in the adult brain and play a role in synaptic stabilization. Changes in the 5-HT1a receptor in adults or the immature brain, such as through the influence of glucocorticoids on this receptor, could thus have profound effects on brain function.
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Whitaker-Azmitia, P. The 5-HT1a Receptor in Development in Adult Brain: Modulation of Brain Function. Neuropsychopharmacol 11, 262 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.npp.1380125
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.npp.1380125