Neurobehavioral changes in mice offspring exposed to green tea during fetal and early postnatal development
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Ajarem et al. Behav Brain Funct (2017) 13:10 DOI 10.1186/s12993-017-0128-1
Open Access
RESEARCH
Neurobehavioral changes in mice offspring exposed to green tea during fetal and early postnatal development Jamaan Ajarem1, Gawaher Al Rashedi2, Mohamed Mohany1* and Ahmed Allam1,3*
Abstract Background: Green tea extract (GTE) has various health promoting effects on animals and humans. However, the effects of perinatal exposure to GTE on the behavioral aspects of offspring have not been elucidated thus far. GTE was provided for pregnant female mice at concentrations of either 20 or 50 g/L, beginning the day of conception until the third week after delivery, postnatal day 22 (PD 22). Mice pups were subjected to behavioral testing to assess sensory motor reflexes, locomotion, anxiety, and learning on various postnatal days. Results: Perinatal exposure to GTE resulted in a significant reduction in body weight, as well as earlier body hair appearance and opening of the eyes. Sensory motor reflexes exhibited faster responses and significant stimulatory effects in pups exposed to GTE. During the adolescent period, male and female offspring exhibited increased locomotor activity (on PD 22), reduced anxiety and fear (on PD 25), and enhanced memory and learning abilities (on PD 30), all in both GTE treated groups. All blood counts (RBCs, WBCs, Hb, and platelets), and glucose, cholesterol, triglyceride, and low density lipoprotein concentrations were significantly lower in the GTE-treated pups; however, there was no effect on high density lipoprotein levels. Conclusion: Our data provide evidence that the high dose of GTE (50 g/L) had higher anxiolytic properties and positive effects on locomotor activities and sensory motor reflexes, as well as learning and memory of the offspring than the low dose of GTE (20 g/L). Keywords: Green tea, Sensory motor reflexes, Offspring, Anxiety, Mice Background Green tea (GT) is a beverage that is widely consumed worldwide. It can be prepared from the dried leaves of the plant Camellia sinensis [1]. People in some countries in Asia and the Middle East prefer to drink green tea. Numerous research studies have elucidated its benefits [2], and over the last few decades, substantial attention has been paid to GT drinkers in these countries because of its considerable health significance. GT leaves are rich in different polyphenols, including flavonols and flavonoids [3]. In addition, GT contains a group of catechins, *Correspondence: [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected]; [email protected] 1 Department of Zoology, College of Sciences, Faculty of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia Full list of author information is available at the end of the article
including epicatechin, epicatechin-3-gallate, epigallocatechin, and epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG). A substantial number of studies have demonstrated the various health benefits of GT, such as reduction of cancer risk [4], treatment of obesity [5], treatment of diabetes [6], in
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