Elucidation of the pathophysiological mechanism of neurodevelopmental disorder by the early postnatal stress and its novel pharmacotherapeutic strategy

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26460637
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Applied pharmacology
• Research Institution: Nagasaki International University
• Principal Investigator: YAMAGUCHI Taku 長崎国際大学, 薬学部, 准教授 (80325563)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): FUKUMORI Ryo 長崎国際大学, 薬学部, 助教 (60713774) ; YAMAMOTO Tsuneyuki 長崎国際大学, 薬学部, 教授 (20091332)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 幼若期ストレス / 神経発達障害 / 自閉症 / 抑うつ行動 / 幼児・児童虐待 / HPA axis / 薬物治療 / 行動薬理学

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study aimed at elucidating the pathophysiological mechanisms and establishing its preclinical drug evaluation for novel pharmacotherapy in the neurodevelopmental disorder, by investigating the validity as an animal model in rats experienced with pharmacological stress (namely ACTH administration) during early postnatal period. The findings in this study suggest that the pharmacological stress during early postnatal period might produce the behavioral abnormalities such as cognitive impairments, anxiety-like and depressive-like behaviors in adulthood but not adolescent, with a critical developmental period. Those behavioral susceptibilities by pharmacological stress during early postnatal period after growth are possibly implicated in a dysregulation of the neuroendocrine system via hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis induced by adrenomegaly and dysfunction of the serotonergic/GABAergic neuronal systems in the raphe nuclei.

Free Research Field

神経精神薬理学・行動薬理学