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Short- and long-term effects of chronic toluene exposure on recognition memory in adolescent and adult male Wistar rats

2022; Elsevier BV; Volume: 190; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.brainresbull.2022.09.016

1873-2747

Mzia G. Zhvania, Nino Pochkhidze, M. Dashniani, Yousef Tizabi, Nadezhda Japaridze, M. Burjanadze, L. Chilachava,

Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research

Abuse of toluene-containing volatile inhalants, particularly among youth, is of significant medical and social concern worldwide. Teenagers constitute the most abundant users of toluene and the majority of adult abusers of toluene started as teenagers. Although the euphoric and neurotoxic effects of acute toluene have been widely studied, lasting effects of chronic toluene exposure, especially in various age groups, have not been well investigated. In this study, we used adolescent and adult male Wistar rats to evaluate the short- and long-term effects of chronic toluene on various behaviors including cognitive function. Daily exposure to toluene (2000 ppm) for 40 days (5 min/day) resulted in age-dependent behavioral impairments. Specifically, adolescent animals showed recognition memory impairment the day after the last exposure, which had normalized by day 90 post- exposure, whereas such impairment in adult animals was still evident at day 90 post-exposure. Our data suggest that age-dependent responses should be taken into consideration in interventional attempts to overcome specific detrimental consequences of chronic toluene exposure.