Figure 1. Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) potentiates allodynia in adult rats following Chronic Constriction Injury (CCI).
Absolute threshold behavioral responses for (a) ipsilateral and (b) contralateral hindpaws are shown. At baseline (BL), responses to low threshold mechanical stimuli were similar in all groups (ipsilateral, F1,36= 1.877, P =0.179; contralateral, F1,36= 1.228, P = 0.275), regardless of PAE or saccharin (Sac) treatment. Statistics show a main effect of alcohol exposure from data collected from the ipsilateral hindpaw [F1,36 = 12.009, P = 0.001] but not in the contralateral hindpaw [F1,36 = 4.169, P = 0.049]. There was a main effect of CCI surgery [ipsilateral, F1,36 = 311.943, P < 0.001; contralateral, F1,36 = 54.554, P < 0.001]. In addition, an interaction between alcohol exposure and CCI surgery only in the ipsilateral hindpaw [ipsilateral, F1,36 = 5.246, P = 0.028; contralateral, F1,36 = 1.383, P = 0.247] is observed. Comparison of treatment groups post-surgery demonstrate a larger increase in sensitivity following CCI in PAE animals compared to their Sac-CCI counterparts where a main effect of alcohol exposure in the ipsilateral hindpaw [ipsilateral, F1,36 = 12.938, P = 0.001; contralateral, F1,36 = 4.003, P = 0.053] is observed. In addition, a main effect of CCI surgery [ipsilateral, F1,36 = 347.595, P < 0.001; contralateral, F1,36 = 58.406, P < 0.001] and an interaction of alcohol exposure and CCI surgery in the ipsilateral paw [ipsilateral, F1,36 = 8.312, P = 0.007; contralateral, F1,36 = 1.928, P = 0.174] was revealed. N=10 rats in each group.