Reduction of the volume of the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the preoptic area by in utero ethanol exposure in male rats.

Ethanol consumption during pregnancy has been demonstrated to result in alterations in central nervous system structure and function. Albino female rats were given either a liquid diet containing ethanol (5% w/v), a liquid diet which contained maltose-dextrin substituted isocalorically for the alcohol, or laboratory chow and water throughout pregnancy and for 14 days following birth. The volumes of the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the preoptic area (SDN-POA) and the nucleus accumbens septi (ACN) were measured in adult male rats exposed in utero and postnatally to these diets. Adult male rats exposed to ethanol in utero exhibit significantly smaller SDN-POA volumes (P less than 0.02) when compared to those of animals which received the control diets during the gestational period and postnatally. Ethanol treatment did not significantly influence the volume of the ACN. The results indicate that maternal ethanol consumption during pregnancy retards or inhibits SDN-POA development in fetal ethanol exposed male rats when compared to the nuclear volume in rats whose mothers were not exposed to ethanol during pregnancy.