The consequences of prenatal and/or postnatal methamphetamine exposure on neonatal development and behaviour in rat offspring

• Prenatal and/or postnatal MA administered at a dose commonly abused by pregnant females.
• Prenatal and/or postnatal MA have a profound effect on neonatal outcome.
• Impairments in pinna unfolding, surface righting, inclined plane test, forelimb grip.
• Cause for concern regarding the risk associated at a pharmacologically low MA dose.

Methamphetamine (MA) has become a popular drug of abuse in recent years not only in the general population but also amongst pregnant women. Although there is a growing body of preclinical investigations of MA exposure during pregnancy, there has been little investigation of the consequences of such exposure via the breast milk during the neonatal period. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the consequences of MA exposure during pregnancy and lactation on neurodevelopment and behaviour in the rat offspring. Pregnant Sprague–Dawley dams received MA (3.75 mg/kg) or control (distilled water) once daily via oral gavage from gestation day 7–21, postnatal day 1–21 or gestation day 7- postnatal day 21. A range of well-recognised neurodevelopmental parameters were examined in the offspring. Prenatal MA significantly reduced maternal weight gain, with a concomitant reduction in food intake. A significant increase in neonatal pup mortality was observed, being most marked in the prenatal/postnatal MA group. Significant impairments in neurodevelopmental parameters were also evident in all MA treatment groups including somatic development (e.g. pinna unfolding, fur appearance, eye opening) and behavioural development (e.g. surface righting, inclined plane test, forelimb grip). In conclusion, this study demonstrates that exposure to MA during any of these exposure periods (prenatal and/or postnatal) can have a profound effect on neonatal outcome, suggesting that regardless of the exposure period MA is associated with detrimental consequences in the offspring. These results indicate that in the clinical scenario, exposure during lactation needs to be considered when assessing the potential harmful effects of MA on offspring development.