Lifetime Consequences of Combined Maternal Pb and Stress

DEBORAH A. CORY-SLECHTA, MIRIAM VIRGOLINI, ALBA ROSSI-GEORGE, MONA THIRUCHELVAM, RENATA LISEK, DOUGLAS WESTON.

Basic and Clinical Phamacology and Toxicology

WILEY

Año: 2008 vol. 102 p. 218 - 218

1742-7835

Elevated lead (Pb) exposure and high stress both target low socio-economic status populations. Both also act onthe hypothalamic?pituitary?adrenal (HPA) axis. Pb disrupts cognition through effects on the mesocorticolimbic dopaminepathway. Stress hormones act on this same pathway via the HPA axis. The fact that Pb and stress are likely interactive riskfactors served as the rationale for a series of studies in our laboratory. These demonstrate that stress can modify Pb effects,that Pb can modify stress responsivity, and, notably, that Pb + stress effects can occur in the absence of an effect of eitheralone in rats. Furthermore, maternal only Pb exposure can permanently alter basal corticosterone levels, stress responsivity(i.e. permanent modification of HPA axis function) and brain catecholamines in offspring of both genders. Interactiveeffects of Pb + stress are not limited to early development: even Pb exposures initiated post-weaning alter ba