| First Author | Matsui F | Year | 2018 |
| Journal | Neuroscience | Volume | 371 |
| Pages | 407-419 | PubMed ID | 29288796 |
| Mgi Jnum | J:258096 | Mgi Id | MGI:6121315 |
| Doi | 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2017.12.029 | Citation | Matsui F, et al. (2018) DHA Mitigates Autistic Behaviors Accompanied by Dopaminergic Change in a Gene/Prenatal Stress Mouse Model. Neuroscience 371:407-419 |
| abstractText | Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is characterized by impairments in social interaction, social communication, and repetitive and stereotyped behaviors. Recent work has begun to explore genexenvironmental interactions in the etiology of ASD. We previously reported that prenatal stress exposure in stress-susceptible heterozygous serotonin transporter (SERT) KO pregnant dams in a mouse model resulted in autism-like behavior in the offspring (SERT/S mice). The association between prenatal stress and ASD appears to be affected by maternal SERT genotype in clinical populations as well. Using the mouse model, we examined autistic-like behaviors in greater detail, and additionally explored whether diet supplementation with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) may mitigate the behavioral changes. Only male SERT/S mice showed social impairment and stereotyped behavior, and DHA supplementation ameliorated some of these behaviors. We also measured monoamine levels in the SERT/S mice after three treatment paradigms: DHA-rich diet continuously from breeding (DHA diet), DHA-rich diet only after weaning (CTL/DHA diet) and control diet only (CTL diet). The dopamine (DA) content in the striatum was significantly increased in the SERT/S mice compared with wild-type (WT) mice, whereas no difference was observed with noradrenaline and serotonin content. Moreover, DA content in the striatum was significantly reduced in the SERT/S mice with the DHA-rich diet provided continuously from breeding. The results indicate that autism-associated behaviors and changes in the dopaminergic system in this setting can be mitigated with DHA supplementation. |
