Morphometric analysis of Macaca nemestrina exposed to ethanol during gestation

This study was part of a multidisciplinary investigation of the effects of gestational ethanol exposure in nonhuman primates. Thirty-one pregnant Macaca nemestrina were exposed to weekly ethanol doses of 0.0, 0.3, 0.6, 1.2, 1.8, 2.5, 3.3, or 4.1 g/kg maternal weight. Dose cohorts 0.0 through 1.8 were exposed to the initial ethanol dose within 10 days postconception. Dose cohorts 2.5 through 4.1 received their initial dose after the fifth week of gestation. Morphometric analyses performed on cranial radiographs showed that animals exposed to high doses of gestational ethanol had, on average, slightly smaller, distorted crania than control animals. A dysmorphic, flat face characteristic of fetal alcohol syndrome was recognized in one animal of the 1.8 g/kg cohort. The animal that received the highest doses of gestational ethanol was microcephalic. Similar malformations were not seen with low ethanol exposures or in controls. These data suggest a pattern of cranial distortion that may be recognizable and characteristic of ethanol teratogenesis.