Effects of in utero ethanol exposure and maternal treatment with a 5-HT1A agonist on S100B-containing glial cells

This laboratory previously showed that in utero ethanol exposure severely impairs the development of the cell bodies and projections of serotonin (5-HT) neurons, and that maternal treatment with a 5-HT1A agonist prevents many of these abnormalities. Others demonstrated that stimulation of fetal astroglial 5-HT1A receptors increases production and release of S100B, a glial trophic factor that is essential for the development of 5-HT neurons. The present study investigated a potential mechanism by which ethanol hinders development of 5-HT neurons, and by which maternal 5-HT1A agonist treatment prevents this damage. This study tested the hypothesis that in utero ethanol exposure reduces the number of S100B immunopositive glia and that maternal 5-HT1A agonist treatment prevents ethanol-associated changes in S100B. To test our hypothesis, we determined the effects of in utero ethanol exposure and maternal treatments with the 5-HT1A agonists ipsapirone and buspirone on S100B immunopositive glial cells. On gestation day 20 (G20), S100B immunopositive cells were quantified in the midline raphe glial structure (MRGS), a large transient structure that contains substantial numbers of S100B-positive glial cells and that spans the dorsal raphe, median raphe, and B9 complex of 5-HT neurons. S100B immunopositive glial cells were also determined in an area proximal to the dorsal raphe in postnatal day 2 (PN2) rats. In utero ethanol exposure significantly reduced S100B immunopositive glial cells in the MRGS at G20 and in the dorsal raphe at PN2. In addition, treatment of pregnant rats with a 5-HT1A agonist between G13 and G20 prevented the ethanol-associated reduction in S100B immunopositive glial cells. These studies demonstrated that part of ethanol's damaging effects on developing 5-HT neurons is mediated by a reduction of S100B and that some of the protective effects of maternal 5-HT1A agonist treatment are related to the actions of these drugs on glial cells. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.