EFFECT OF COCAINE, 95-PERCENT OXYGEN AND ELLAGIC ACID ON THE DEVELOPMENT AND ANTIOXIDANT STATUS OF CULTURED RAT EMBRYOS

Prenatal exposure to cocaine has been associated with adverse developm ental effects and current data suggest cocaine induced malformations a re caused by ischemic-reperfusion injury. This study was undertaken to assess a new in vitro model which uses a routine rat whole embryo cul ture system that incorporates a change in oxygen status, and to examin e the effects of altered oxygen status and pretreatment with ellagic a cid (EA), an anti-oxidant, after cocaine exposure. Embryos were evalua ted by determining a developmental score and by measuring tissue reduc ed glutathione (GSH) levels. Following re-oxygenation with 95% O-2 for the last 6 h of culture, embryos treated with cocaine had reduced dev elopmental scores and GSH levels. Embryos treated with cocaine and not re-oxygenated with 95% O-2 did not have reduced developmental scores. EA blocked the effects of cocaine on developmental score and GSH leve l. These data support ischemia-reperfusion injury as the mechanism of cocaine developmental toxicity. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.