Toxicological Research

  • 제40권3호
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  • Pages.441-448
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  • 2024
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  • 1976-8257(pISSN)
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  • 2234-2753(eISSN)
한국독성학회 (Korean Society of Toxicology & Korea Environmental Mutagen Society)
권호 표지
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Methylmercury exposure at dosage conditions that do not affect growth can impair memory in adolescent mice

  • Ryota Yamagata (Division of Environmental and Health Sciences, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University) ;
  • Ai Saito (Division of Environmental and Health Sciences, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University) ;
  • Ryoko Fukushima (Division of Environmental and Health Sciences, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University) ;
  • Osamu Nakagawasai (Division of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University) ;
  • Naoya Yamashita (Division of Environmental and Health Sciences, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University) ;
  • Koichi Tan‑No (Division of Pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University) ;
  • Gi‑Wook Hwang (Division of Environmental and Health Sciences, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Tohoku Medical and Pharmaceutical University)
  • 투고 : 2024.03.05
  • 심사 : 2024.04.09
  • 발행 : 2024.07.15
⟨ 이전 논문 다음 논문 ⟩

초록

Methylmercury is an environmental pollutant that can induce serious central nervous system damage. Its ubiquitous presence in the environment in trace amounts has raised concerns about potential adverse effects on human health. Although many studies have evaluated the effects of methylmercury on neural development in fetal and neonatal mice, there has been less focus on studies using adolescent mice. Therefore, in this study, the effects of methylmercury on brain neurodevelopment and maturation were evaluated by various neurobehavioral trials using adolescent mice exposed to 30 ppm methylmercuric chloride (approximately 24 ppm methylmercury) for up to 8 weeks. Under these administration conditions, weight gain in adolescent mice was unaffected by methylmercury exposure. Furthermore, methylmercury exposure in adolescent mice had no effect on sociability as assessed by the social interaction test, impulsivity as assessed by the cliff avoidance reaction test, depressive behavior as assessed by the tail-suspension test, or locomotor activity as assessed using the Supermex system. In contrast, short-term memory assessed by the Y-maze test, as well as long-term memory assessed by novel object recognition and passive avoidance tests, revealed impairments induced by methylmercury exposure in adolescent mice. These results suggest that long-term exposure to methylmercury during adolescence potentially impairs memory function, and the nervous pathway of brain areas involved in learning and memory are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of methylmercury.

키워드

과제정보

We thank Edanz (https://jp.edanz.com/ac) for editing a draft of this manuscript.

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