Long-term intravenous perinatal cocaine exposure on the mortality of rat offspring

To examine the effects of chronic perinatal cocaine exposure, cocaine was a dministered intravenously throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period to the rat. Pregnant rats were divided into five groups: nontreated (naive); normal saline control (saline); cocaine first generation (cocaine); saline in the first generation and cocaine in the second generation (Sal-2G); and cocaine in both first and second generations (Coc-2G). The rats receiving c ocaine in the second generation (Sal-2G and Coc-2G) were offspring of the s aline and cocaine group, respectively. All cocaine-treated groups received cocaine 2 mg/kg/day intravenously (IV), and the saline group received norma l saline 0.2 ml/day IV from GD 2 to the 21st day postpartum. Mean perinatal mortality was greater in all pups exposed to cocaine in utero during gesta tion; Cocaine (6.4%); Sal-2G (5.6%); Coc-2G (11.4%) groups than in the nonc ocaine groups (3.2%, 1.3%). Weight gain, physical, and neurological develop ments of the offspring were not affected. It was concluded that perinatal c ocaine exposure had an increased perinatal mortality even at doses approxim ately 10 times lower than those previously reported, which were administere d by extravascular routes. These findings indicate the importance of the ro ute of drug administration in perinatal cocaine research. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.