Transcriptomic effects of prenatal exposure to corticosteroids on synaptic transmission. Rattus norvegicus

Prenatal exposure to synthetic corticosteroids can significantly alter postnatal development through changes in neurotransmitters and their receptors, and thus having long-lasting behavioral effects. Some of these changes have been observed in animal experiments, others also in humans prenatally exposed to synthetic corticosteroids. Here, we focused on transcriptomic changes within the prefrontal cortex of female rats prenatally exposed to either betamethasone or saline. The transcriptome has been assessed by novel computational tools to determine complex changes that may have life-long effects on phenotype, i.e., behavior. We analyzed how composition, topology and modulatory networks of the genomic fabric of the dopaminergic, GABAergic, and glutamatergic synapse (the transcriptome of the most interconnected and stably expressed gene network responsible for specific transmission) are affected by prenatal exposure to corticosteroids and postnatal ketamine/saline treated NMDA-induced seizures. Overall design: One sex (F) x two prenatal exposures (B = betamethasone, S = saline) x two postnatal treatments (K = ketamine, S = saline). Biological replicates: 4 FSS, 4 FBS, 4 FBK.