Background: Studies in clinical populations and preclinical models have shown that prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) is associated with impairments in the acquisition, consolidation and recall of information, with deficits in hippocampal formation-dependent learning and memory being a common finding. The glucocorticoid receptor (GR), mineralocorticoid receptor (MR), and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 2 (ERK2) are key regulators of hippocampal formation development, structure and functioning and, thus, are potential mediators of PAE's effects on this brain region. In the present studies, we employed a well-characterized mouse model of PAE to identify biochemical mechanisms that may underlie activity-dependent learning and memory deficits associated with PAE. Methods: Mouse dams consumed either 10% (w/v) ethanol in 0.066% (w/v) saccharin (SAC) or 0.066% (w/v) SAC alone using a limited (4-h) access, drinking-in-the-dark paradigm. Male and female offspring (similar to 180-days of age) were trained using a delay conditioning procedure and contextual fear responses (freezing behavior) were measured 24 h later. Hippocampal formation tissue and blood were collected from three behavioral groups of animals: 20 mm following conditioning (conditioning only group), 20 min following the re-exposure to the context (conditioning plus re-exposure group), and behaviorally naive (naive group) mice. Plasma corticosterone levels were measured by enzyme immunoassay. Immunoblotting techniques were used to measure protein levels of the GR, MR, ERK1 and ERK2 in nuclear and membrane fractions prepared from the hippocampal formation. Results: Adult SAC control male and female mice displayed similar levels of contextual fear. However, significant sex differences were observed in freezing exhibited during the conditioning session. Compared to same-sex SAC controls, male and female PAE mice demonstrated context fear deficits While plasma corticosterone concentrations were elevated in PAE males and females relative to their respective SAC naive controls, plasma corticosterone concentrations in the conditioning only and conditioning plus re-exposure groups were similar in SAC and PAE animals. Relative to the respective naive group, nuclear GR protein levels were increased in SAC, but not PAE, male hippocampal formation in the conditioning only group. In contrast, no difference was observed between nuclear GR levels in the naive and conditioning plus re-exposure groups. In females, nuclear GR levels were significantly reduced by PAE but there was no effect of behavioral group or interaction between prenatal treatment and behavioral group. In males, nuclear MR levels were significantly elevated in the SAC conditioning plus re-exposure group compared to SAC naive mice. In PAE females, nuclear MR levels were elevated in both the conditioning only and conditioning plus re-exposure groups relative to the naive group. Levels of activated ERK2 (phospho-ERK2 expressed relative to total ERK2) protein were elevated in SAC, but not PAE, males following context re-exposure, and a significant interaction between prenatal exposure group and behavioral group was found. No main effects or interactions of behavioral group and prenatal treatment on nuclear ERK2 were found in female mice. These findings suggest a sex difference in which molecular pathways are activated during fear conditioning in mice. Conclusions: In PAE males, the deficits in contextual fear were associated with the loss of responsiveness of hippocampal formation nuclear GR, MR and ERK2 to signals generated by fear conditioning and context re-exposure. In contrast, the contextual fear deficit in PAE female mice does not appear to be associated with activity-dependent changes in GR and MR levels or ERK2 activation during training or memory recall, although an overall reduction in nuclear GR levels may play a role. These studies add to a growing body of literature demonstrating that, at least partially, different mechanisms underlie learning, memory formation and memory recall in males and females and that these pathways are differentially affected by PAE.
