FETAL ALCOHOL EXPOSURE ATTENUATES LIPOPOLYSACCHARIDE-INDUCED FEVER INRATS

Exposure to alcohol in utero can lead to long-lasting impairments of i mmune functions and to decreased resistance to infectious agents. We s tudied the effects of fetal alcohol exposure (FAE) in rats on the core body temperature response to an exogenous challenge of the immune sys tem with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We report that FAE rats show marked ly decreased LPS-induced fever [i.e., they require a higher dose than control rats to show any LPS-induced hyperthermia (50 mug/kg vs. 10 mu g/kg)], and even with the higher LPS dose they manifest a weaker hyper thermia, which declines faster than in control animals. These results suggest that FAE produces an impairment in the release of endogenous p yrogens and/or in the neural substrate for body temperature regulation . This impairment may account for at least some of the decreased resis tance to infections observed in FAE animals and humans.