Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 16, 2026
Functional Interrogation of Adult Hypothalamic Neurogenesis with Focal Radiological Inhibition
Published on: November 14, 2013
An enhanced home cage modulates hypothalamic CRH-ir labeling in juvenile rats, with and without sub-threshold febrile
Austin C Korgan1, Janeske Vonkeman, Michael J Esser
1Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Insights
Early life environments impact offspring development and neurological disease risk, like epilepsy. Enhanced home cage (EHC) conditions may buffer stress effects, reducing seizure susceptibility in pups.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Environmental Health
Background:
- Early life environments significantly influence offspring neurodevelopment.
- Epilepsy, a common neurological disorder, may have origins in early environmental factors.
- Maternal stress and early housing conditions are potential risk factors for seizure susceptibility.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of prenatal stress and postnatal housing on seizure susceptibility.
- To determine if an enhanced home cage (EHC) environment can modulate neurodevelopmental responses to stress and seizures.
- To examine the expression of corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) in the hypothalamus as a marker of stress response.
Main Methods:
- Pregnant Long-Evans rats exposed to predator stress (PS).
- Offspring housed in standard cages (SC) or enhanced home cages (EHC) until postnatal day 14 (PD14).
- Febrile convulsion model used to assess seizure susceptibility; brain tissue analyzed for CRH immunoreactivity.
Main Results:
- Enhanced home cage (EHC) rearing buffered CRH immunoreactivity in offspring.
- Experiencing convulsions led to decreased CRH immunoreactivity.
- Postnatal environment influences neonatal programming and neurodevelopment related to seizure susceptibility.
Conclusions:
- Postnatal environmental factors, such as EHC conditions, can modulate neurodevelopment and influence seizure susceptibility.
- These findings highlight the plasticity of early neurodevelopment in response to environmental stimuli.
- EHC conditions may offer a protective effect against stress-induced alterations in seizure susceptibility.
Abstract:
Pre and postnatal environments can have a profound impact on offspring development. This is especially true when considering the origin of neurological diseases, including epilepsy, a relatively common and chronic neurological condition, affecting 1-2% of the population. Previously, we have used maternal stress and an enhanced home cage (EHC) in an effort to identify potential factors in the early environment that may increase the risk for experiencing seizures. First, pregnant Long-Evans rats were exposed to a predator stress (PS). Then, at birth, litters were divided into standard cage (SC) and EHC groups until postnatal Day 14 (PD14) when a model of febrile convulsions was used to determine convulsion susceptibility of the various groups. Twenty-four hours later, pup brains were processed for immunohistochemical detection of corticotrophic releasing hormone (CRH) in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Analysis of CRH immunoreactive (-ir) patterns revealed a buffering of CRH-ir in EHC reared offspring. Further, experiencing convulsions led to decreased CRH-ir. Our results support the concept that postnatal environmental influences affect neonatal programming and neurodevelopment of processes that could underlie seizure susceptibility, and that these effects can be modulated by EHC conditions.
More Related Videos
09:22A Method for Remotely Silencing Neural Activity in Rodents During Discrete Phases of Learning
Published on: June 22, 2015
08:07Simultaneous Detection of c-Fos Activation from Mesolimbic and Mesocortical Dopamine Reward Sites Following Naive Sugar and Fat Ingestion in Rats
Published on: August 24, 2016