Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-t5tsf Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-09T16:15:42.637Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Effect of Group Housing and Oral Corticosterone Administration on Weight Gain and Locomotor Development in Neonatal Rats

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 January 2023

L A Young ,
G Pavlovska-Teglia ,
G Stodulski  and
J Hau
L A Young
Affiliation:
Laboratory Animal Science and Welfare, Department of Pathology and Infectious Diseases, The Royal Veterinary College, University of London, Royal College Street, London NW1 0TU
G Pavlovska-Teglia
Affiliation:
Laboratory Animal Science and Welfare, Department of Pathology and Infectious Diseases, The Royal Veterinary College, University of London, Royal College Street, London NW1 0TU
G Stodulski
Affiliation:
Laboratory Animal Science and Welfare, Department of Pathology and Infectious Diseases, The Royal Veterinary College, University of London, Royal College Street, London NW1 0TU
J Hau*
Affiliation:
Laboratory Animal Science and Welfare, Department of Pathology and Infectious Diseases, The Royal Veterinary College, University of London, Royal College Street, London NW1 0TU
*
† Contact for correspondence and requests for reprints
Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

To study the influence of maternal stress on neonatal locomotor development, rat pups of mothers housed singly and in groups were treated orally with corticosterone from 2 to 15 days of age. Control animals received almond oil vehicle only. The rat pups were subjected to swim-tests from 8 to 20 days of age to evaluate locomotor development. Swim-test performance demonstrated a retardation of locomotor development in pups treated with corticosterone (P <0.05). Retardation was most marked in the pups from group-housed mothers and between 13 and 15 days of age. Comparing pups not treated with hormones, the pups born to group-housed mothers showed significantly (P <0.05) better performance on swim-testing. The weight gain of pups from group-housed mothers was significantly (P < 0.05) higher than that of pups from individually caged mothers. Corticosteroid treatment had no effect on weight gain.

Keywords

animal modelanimal welfarecorticosterone administrationgroup housingneonatalratstressswim-testweight gain
Type
Research Article
Information
Animal Welfare , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , May 1996 , pp. 167 - 176
Copyright
© 1996 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare

References

Alexandrova, M and Macho, L 1983 Glucocorticoids in human, cow and rat milk. Endocrinologica Experimentalis 17: 183–189Google ScholarPubMed
Altman, J and Sudarshan, K 1975 Post-natal development of locomotion in the laboratory rat. Animal Behaviour 23: 896–920CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Benesova, O and Pavlik, A 1989 Perinatal treatment with glucocorticoids and the risk of maldevelopment of the brain. Neuropharmacology 28: 89–97CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Fox, M F 1986 Laboratory Animal Husbandry Ethology, Welfare and Experimental Variables. State University of New York Press: Albany, USA.Google Scholar
Fox, M W 1965 Reflex-ontogeny and behavioural development of the mouse. Animal Behaviour 15: 563–567Google Scholar
Gard, C, Hard, E, Larsson, K and Petersson, V A 1967 The relationship between sensory stimulation and locomotor behavior during post-natal development in the rat. Animal Behaviour 15: 563–567CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Henning, S J and Sims, J M 1979 Delineation of the glucocorticoid-sensitive period of intestinal development in the rat. Endocrinology 104: 1158–1163CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Henry, J P and Stephens, J P 1977 Monitoring behavioural disturbance in experimental social systems. In: Henry, J P and Stephens, P M (eds) Stress, Health and the Social Environment pp 69–91. Springer-Verlag: New York, USACrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kinsley, C and Svare, B 1988 Prenatal stress alters maternal behavior in mice. Physiology and Behavior 42: 7–13CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kinsley, C H, Mann, P E and Bridges, R S 1989 Alterations in stress-induced prolactin release in adult male and female rats exposed to stress in-utero. Physiology and Behavior 45: 1073–1076CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Manser, C E 1992 The Assessment of Stress in Laboratory Animals. Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA): Horsham, UKGoogle Scholar
McEwen, B S, Dekloet, E R and Rostene, W 1986 Adrenal steroid receptors and actions in the nervous system. Physiology Reviews 66: 1121–88CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McGrady, A V 1984 Effects of psychological stress on male reproduction: a review. Archives of Andrology 13: 1–7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pascual-Leone, A M, Escriva, F, Alvarez, C, Goya, L and Rodriguez, C 1985 Influence of hormones and undernutrition on brain development in newborn rats. Biology of the Neonate 48: 228–236CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pavlovska-Teglia, G, Stodulski, G, Svendsen, L, Dalton, K and Hau, J 1995 Effect of oral administration of corticosterone on neonatal and juvenile rat locomotor development. Experimental Physiology 80: 469–475CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schapiro, S, Salas, M and Vukovich, K 1970 Hormonal effects on ontogeny of swimming ability in the rat: assessment of CNS development. Science 168: 147–150CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Szuran, T, Zimmerman, E, Piiska, V, Pfister, H P and Welzl, H 1991 Prenatal stress effects on exploratory activity and stress-induced analgesia in rats. British Journal of Psychiatry 136: 498–508Google Scholar
Takahashi, L K, Haglin, C and Kalin, N H 1992 Pre-natal stress potentiates stress-induced behavior and reduces the propensity to play in juvenile rats. Physiology and Behavior 51: 319–23CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vom-Saal, F S, Quadagno, D M, Keisler, L W and Khan, S 1990 Paradoxical effects of maternal stress on foetal steroids and post-natal reproductive traits in mice from different intrauterine positions. Biology of Reproduction 43: 751–61CrossRefGoogle Scholar