brain expression data from adult mice exposed to ethanol at postnatal day 4 and 7

The developing brain is particularly sensitive to ethanol during the brain growth spurt or synaptogenesis (third human trimester equivalent). This has been shown to lead to abnormal brain development and behavioural changes in the adult mouse that are relevant to those seen in humans with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). We evaluated the long-term (postnatal day 60 young adult) gene expression changes that occur in the brain due to ethanol exposure during synaptogenesis. We used microarray analyses to evaluate the changes in brain gene expression at postnatal day 60 that occur due to ethanol treatment at postnatal days 4 and 7 (synaptogenesis). To generate samples, C57BL/6J pups were injected with ethanol (experimental) or saline (control) at postnatal days 4 and 7. Pups were weaned at postnatal day 25 and sacrificed at postnatal day 60. Total RNA was extracted from whole brain tissue and RNA from three male mice from three different litters were pooled as one biological replicate. Each male ethanol-treated mouse represented in a sample was matched by a control littermate present in a control sample. This study consists of two biological replicates for each experimental group (total mice used was n=12).