Effect of isoflurane anesthesia during early pregnancy on cognitive function of offspring rats

Objective To investigate the effect of isoflurane anesthesia during early pregnancy on the cognitive function of offspring rats.Methods Thirty SD rats at 5-7 day gestation were randomly divided into 3 groups ( n =10 each):control group (group C) and 2 isoflurane groups (groups Ⅰ1,Ⅰ2).Groups Ⅰ1 and Ⅰ2 inhaled 1.4％ isoflurane in O2 for 4 and 8 h respectively while group C inhaled 95 ％ O2 for 8 h.At 20 and 30 days after birth,offspring rats from 5 pregnant rats were tested for learning and memory abilities using Morris water maze.The offsprings were sacrificed at 7 days after test and their hippocampi were isolated for determination of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor subunit 2B (NR2B) mRNA and protein expression.Results There were no significant differences in the results of Morris water maze test and NR2B mRNA and protein expression among the three groups.Conclusion Isoflurane anesthesia during early pregnancy has no effect on the cognitive function of the offspring rats. Key words: Isoflurane; Pregnancy trimester,first; Cognition disorders