Taylor Jones

Introduction. Fetal alcohol syndrome is a congenital syndrome that is caused by excessive prenatal intake of alcohol during any trimester of pregnancy¹. The global prevalence of FASD among children and youth in the general population was estimated to be 7.7 per 1000 population³. Alcohol is a teratogen that can cause variable physical and behavioral effects on the fetus and there is no amount of reported alcohol that is safe for the fetus. The most severe condition in this spectrum of diseases is known as fetal alcohol syndrome². To properly combat this syndrome, we must first undercover the pathogenesis of the disease. Studies have shown that continuous ethanol exposure can lead to an upregulation in the endocannabinoid system which could possibly cause some of the negative effects seen with FAS^2,4-7. Methods. The model for fetal alcohol syndrome was replicated in the mouse animal model. Anandamide, 2-arachidonylglycerol, and ERK1/2 from the hippocampus and neocortex were measured and compared by either one-way analysis of variance ANOVA or a two way ANOVA with Bonferroni’s post hoc test⁷. Results. Ethanol induces apoptotic neurodegeneration and enhances AEA in the P7 (postnatal mice seven which are similar to human neonates during the third trimester) mouse brain⁷. They also found that pharmacological inhibition or genetic deletion of CB1Rs provides protection against ethanol-induced activation of caspase-3 in the neonatal mouse brain⁷. It was also found that ERK1/2 promotes neuron cell growth and division, however the combination of CB1R and ethanol suppress it⁷. This causes neurons to undergo apoptosis. Conclusion. A combination of the previously mentioned effects will lead to a decrease in neuronal communication in the fetal brain which negatively affects cognitive functions such as learning and memory.

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