, 2008, 2011), probably mediated by increased brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression and cortical and hippocampal 5-HT levels (Vines et al., 2012). Considering the effects of FO in an early and important phase for the developing brain, the aim of this study was to confirm the antidepressant-like and cognitive-enhancing properties of ω-3 PUFA supplementation in the Obx model. To this end, we investigated the effects of FO supplementation (from conception to weaning) on behavioral impairments induced by Obx in adult rats in the

open field (OF) test, MFST, elevated plus maze (EPM) test, and object location task (OLT). After the behavioral tests, neurochemical analysis was carried out in 102-day-old offspring in order to quantify hippocampal levels of BDNF and 5-HT and its metabolite, Erlotinib 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-HIAA).

Male and female Selleckchem Ceritinib Wistar rats were kept under a 12-h light/12-h dark cycle (lights on at 07:00 h) in a controlled-temperature room (21 ± 2 °C), with food (rat chow, Nuvital Nuvilab CR1; Nuvital Nutrientes S/A, Colombo, Paraná, Brazil) and water available ad libitum. All experiments were approved by the Animal Experimentation Ethics Committee of the Universidade Federal do Paraná (protocol number 512), and were carried out in accordance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Experimental Animals of the European Communities Council Directive of 24 November 1986 (86/609/EEC) and the Brazilian Society of Neuroscience and Behavior guidelines for the care and use of laboratory animals. The drugs used to minimise the suffering of animals are listed below. Ten-week-old virgin female Wistar rats were randomly distributed in two experimental groups: control (n = 20) and FO supplementation (n = 20). Females in the FO group were fed with regular chow, and provided with daily supplementation of 3.0 g/kg FO containing 12% EPA and 18% DHA (kindly donated by Laboratório Herbarium Botânico S/A, Colombo, Paraná, Brazil), administered by gavage; those in the control group received only the

regular chow Depsipeptide molecular weight diet and the same volume of water, also by gavage. The fatty acid composition of chow diet was the same as that reported previously (Ferraz et al., 2011). The FO group was supplemented during an adaptation period (14 days), mating (8 days), pregnancy (21 days), and nursing (21 days). The adaptation period was used to avoid possible stress generated by the gavage method. After weaning, 10 pups (five from control dams and five from FO-treated dams) were decapitated, and their hippocampi were removed for determination of lipid profiles. The remaining male offspring were kept under the same environmental conditions as described above, until adulthood (80 days), and did not receive further supplementation by any means.