Effects of prenatal morphine on adult sexual behavior and brain catecholamines in rats

Female rats exposed to morphine in utero (5-10 mg/kg twice a day on days 11-18 of gestation) were significantly inhibited in their sexual behavior when compared to saline-exposed controls. In contrast, males exposed prenatally to morphine had shorter post-ejaculatory intromission latencies and, after the first test, exhibited increased mounting and intromitting activity relative to controls. Examination of the brain catecholamine content revealed that morphine in utero may permanently alter adult hypothalamic norepinephrine levels in male and female rats. The morphine-induced alterations in hypothalamic norepinephrine levels were sexually dimorphic. In the hypothalamus of male rats, norepinephrine content was increased 95%, whereas in the hypothalamus of female rats it was decreased 57% relative to controls. These results suggest that prenatal morphine exposure, which differentially affects adult male and female sexual behavior, also alters hypothalamic norepinephrine content in a sexually dimorphic fashion.