Journal
NEUROPHARMACOLOGY
Volume 118, Issue -, Pages 175-187Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2017.03.021
Keywords
Autism spectrum disorder; Propofol; Social approach; Repetitive behaviors
Categories
Funding
- National Nature Science Foundation of China [31571069]
- Natural Science Foundation [CQ CSTC 2013jjB10028]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder that is characterized by symptoms of impaired social interactions, restricted interests and repetitive behaviors. Recent studies in humans and animal-models suggest that reduced GABAergic neurotransmission in the brain may underlie autism related behavioral symptoms. It has been shown that propofol, a commonly used anesthetic, facilitates gamma-aminobutyric acid-mediated inhibitory synaptic transmission. The present study investigated whether propofol improved autistic phenotypes in BTBR T + Itpr3tfl/J (BTBR) mice, a model of idiopathic autism. We found that i.p. injection of propofol in BTBR mice significantly improved aspects of social approach and repetitive behaviors without affecting reciprocal social interactions and without any detrimental effects in C57BL/6J mice. The ability of propofol to improve autistic phenotypes in BTBR mice through GABAergic neurotransmission suggests a potential pharmacological target for interventions to treat symptoms of autism. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available