PMID: 8594491Jan 1, 1995Paper

Effects of prenatal morphine and cocaine on postnatal behaviors and brain neurotransmitters

NIDA Research Monograph
I Vathy

Abstract

There are several possible mechanisms that may explain how psychoactive drugs affect brain and behavioral development. During early development of the CNS, neurotransmitters are thought to act as signals for growth and synaptogenesis (Lauder 1990; Lauder and Krebs 1978; Whitaker-Azmitia et al. 1987). Fetal or early neonatal exposure to opiates or cocaine may cause an overall inhibition of brain growth and development due to inappropriate neural response to hormones and neurotrophic signals during this critical period of CNS development. Because exposure to opiates and cocaine prenatally can alter opioid and catecholamine receptor density and distribution, this in turn could affect the development of neural connections by delaying or accelerating neural outgrowth during fetal and/or postnatal periods (Bardo et al. 1982; Hammer et al. 1989; Spear et al. 1989a, 1989b; Tempel et al. 1988; Tsang and Ng 1980). Another possibility may be alterations in monoamine neurotransmitter levels during gestation. Alterations in levels or distribution of these neurotransmitters may interfere with the mechanisms involved in the establishment of neural connections and behavior patterns. From this and other studies examining the impact of prenatal ...Continue Reading

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