Basal DA levels in prepubescent and adult male progeny prenatally exposed to fluoxetine
| Treatment Group | DA Level | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hypothalamus | Striatum | Midbrain | |
| pmol/mg protein | |||
| Prepubescent | |||
| Saline | 26.2 ± 1.7 (8) | 389.9 ± 12.1 (7) | 8.7 ± 0.3 (7) |
| Fluoxetine | 25.1 ± 1.5 (6) | 400.1 ± 25.0 (8) | 7.8 ± 0.4 (7) |
| Adult | |||
| Saline | 28.1 ± 1.1 (7) | 741.4 ± 25.1 (7)* | 7.8 ± 0.8 (7) |
| Fluoxetine | 27.0 ± 1.9 (8) | 718.7 ± 42.4 (8)* | 8.1 ± 0.4 (7) |
Data represent the means ± S.E.M. from six to eight saline-challenged rats per group, with each rat within a group being obtained from a different litter. The number of rats per group is shown in parentheses. DA levels were beyond the detection limits of the assay in the cortex and hippocampus. Prenatal exposure to fluoxetine (10 mg/kg/2 ml s.c., to dams from GD 13 to GD 20) did not alter basal DA content in the hypothalamus, striatum or midbrain of prepubescent male progeny. Likewise, DA content was not altered in adult male progeny across any of the brain regions examined. Data from each brain region were analyzed separately, using two-way analysis of variance, followed by Newman-Keuls post hoc test.
* Significantly different from the respective values obtained in prepubescent progeny (P < .05).