Effects of acute prenatal exposure to ethanol on microRNA expression are ameliorated by environmental manipulation.

In this study, we tested if miRNAs are altered in amygdala and ventral striatum as a consequence of prenatal ethanol exposure and/or social enrichment. miRNA samples from 72 male and female adolescent rats were analyzed by RNA-Seq analysis and Affymetrix miRNA arrays. Several miRNAs showed significant changes due to prenatal ethanol exposure or social enrichment in one or both brain regions. Some of the miRNA changes caused by ethanol were reversed by social enrichment. The top predicted gene targets of these miRNAs were mapped and subjected to pathway enrichment analysis. We also directly examined the evidence for modulation of target mRNAs in whole transcriptome microarray data from the same rats. Among the pathways most strongly affected were p53, CREB, Glutamate and GABA signaling. Together, our data suggest a number of novel epigenetic mechanisms for social enrichment to reverse the effects of ethanol exposure.

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Ignacio C, Mooney SM, Middleton FA