Long-lasting Effects of Prozac Exposure during Adolescence on Anxiety-inducing Situations in Adulthood

RM 215-218

There is preclinical evidence indicating that exposure to traditional “antidepressant” medications during early development results in long-lasting mood-related behavioral alterations in adulthood. Because Fluoxetine (FLX), commonly known as Prozac, is the most prescribed antidepressant for the treatment of pediatric depression, we examined whether exposure to this pharmaceutical agent during adolescence would result in increased sensitivity to anxiety-inducing situations in adulthood. To do this, we administered FLX (20mg/kg) to separate groups of C57BL/6 adolescent male mice for 15 consecutive days (postnatal days 35-49). Three weeks after antidepressant treatment, when mice reach adulthood (postnatal day 70), they were tested on the elevated plus maze (EPM) or the novelty-induced hypophagia (NIH) behavioral assays. Adult mice pretreated with FLX during adolescence spent significantly less time in the open arms, while spending significantly more time in the closed arms, of the EPM. Also, FLX pretreated mice tested on the NIH test displayed a significantly increased latency to feed in a novel environment-a behavioral response that is traditionally described as an anxiogenic-like effect. Collectively, our behavioral data suggests that adult male C57BL/6 mice pretreated with FLX during adolescence display increased sensitivity to anxiety-inducing