Prenatal Restraint Stress Generates Two Distinct Behavioral and Neurochemical Profiles in Male and Female Rats
Figure 1
Changes in anxiety-like behavior and spatial learning induced by PRS in male and female rats.
The time spent by control and PRS rats in the open arms of the EPM is shown in (A). No changes in total locomotor activity were detected among groups (data not shown). There was a clear-cut gender effect of PRS in the EPM, ANOVA group×sex interaction: F (1,28) = 9.92, p<0.05. Values are expressed as means±S.E.M. (n = 8 rats per group). (#) p<0.05 control males vs control females; (*) p<0.05 PRS vs. control animals of each sex (ANOVA+Newman-Keul's post-hoc test). The latency in finding the hidden platform in the Morris water maze is shown in (B) All groups of animals (control and PRS rats of both genders) were able to learn the task through consecutive trials and days of testing (ANOVA for repeated measure: trials effect F (4-924) = 24.06, p<0.05; days effect: F (4-924) = 127.55, p<0.05). However, ANOVA also revealed that the performance of control female rats was poorer than that of control male rats (# p<0.05: ANOVA sex effect F (1-924) = 4.46 and Newman-Keul's post-hoc test). PRS improved learning in female rats (* p<0.05: ANOVA group effect F (1-924) = 4.46, control females vs all other groups, Newman-Keul's post-hoc test), but failed to affect learning in male rats.