Examinando por Autor "Morales, Lidia"

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    Intermittent-Excessive and Chronic-Moderate Ethanol Intake during Adolescence Impair Spatial Learning, Memory and Cognitive Flexibility in the Adulthood
    (ELSEVIER, 2019-10-15) Contreras, Ana; Polín Alía, Eduardo; Miguéns, Miguel; Pérez García, Carmen; Pérez Fernández, Vicente; Ruiz Gayo, Mariano; Morales, Lidia; Del Olmo, Nuria; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2185-0851; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3292-211X; https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7320-822X; https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4441-0071
    Intermittent and excessive ethanol consumption over very short periods of time, known as binge drinking, is common in the adolescence, considered a vulnerable period to the effects of alcohol in terms of cognitive performance. One of the brain functions most drastically affected by ethanol in adolescent individuals seems to be spatial learning and memory dependent on the hippocampus. In the current study we have focused on the long-lasting effects on spatial learning and memory of intermittent and excessive alcohol consumption compared to chronic and moderate alcohol exposure during adolescence. Five-week old male Wistar rats consumed ethanol for 24 days following two different self-administration protocols that differed in the intake pattern. Spatial learning and memory were evaluated in the radial arm maze. Hippocampal synaptic plasticity was assessed by measuring field excitatory postsynaptic potentials. Hippocampal expression of AMPA and NMDA receptor subunits as well as levels of phosphorylated Ser9-GSK3β (the inactive form of GSK3β) were also quantified. Our results show that both patterns of ethanol intake during adolescence impair spatial learning, memory and cognitive flexibility in the adulthood in a dosedependent way. Nevertheless, changes in synaptic plasticity, gene expression and levels of inactive GSK3β depended on the pattern of ethanol intake.
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    Publicación
    Schedule-induced alcohol intake during adolescence sex dependently impairs hippocampal synaptic plasticity and spatial memory
    (Elsevier, 2023-07-10) Sanz Martos, Ana Belén; Fuentes Verdugo, Esmeralda; Merino, Beatriz; Morales, Lidia; Pérez, Vicente; Capellán, Roberto; Pellón, Ricardo; Miguéns, Miguel; Olmo Izquierdo, Nuria Del
    In a previous study, we demonstrated that intermittent ethanol administration in male adolescent animals impaired hippocampus-dependent spatial memory, particularly under conditions of excessive ethanol administration. In this current study, we subjected adolescent male and female Wistar rats an alcohol schedule-induced drinking (SID) procedure to obtain an elevated rate of alcohol self-administration and assessed their hippocampus-dependent spatial memory. We also studied hippocampal synaptic transmission and plasticity, as well as the expression levels of several genes involved in these mechanisms. Both male and female rats exhibited similar drinking patterns throughout the sessions of the SID protocol reaching similar blood alcohol levels in all the groups. However, only male rats that consumed alcohol showed spatial memory deficits which correlated with inhibition of hippocampal synaptic plasticity as long-term potentiation. In contrast, alcohol did not modify hippocampal gene expression of AMPA and NMDA glutamate receptor subunits, although there are differences in the expression levels of several genes relevant to synaptic plasticity mechanisms underlying learning and memory processes, related to alcohol consumption as Ephb2, sex differences as Pi3k or the interaction of both factors such as Pten. In conclusion, elevated alcohol intake during adolescence seems to have a negative impact on spatial memory and hippocampal synaptic plasticity in a sex dependent manner, even both sexes exhibit similar blood alcohol concentrations and drinking patterns.