A Fatty Acids Mixture Reduces Anxiety-Like Behaviors in Infant Rats Mediated by GABAA Receptors

Fatty acids (C6-C18) found in human amniotic fluid, colostrum, and maternal milk reduce behavioral indicators of experimental anxiety in adult Wistar rats. Unknown, however, is whether the anxiolytic-like effects of fatty acids provide a natural mechanism against anxiety in young offspring. The present study assessed the anxiolytic-like effect of a mixture of lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, elaidic acid, and linoleic acid in Wistar rats on postnatal day 28. Infant rats were subjected to the elevated plus maze, defensive burying test, and locomotor activity test. Diazepam was used as a reference anxiolytic drug. A group that was pretreated with picrotoxin was used to explore the participation of γ-aminobutyric acid-A (GABAA) receptors in the anxiolytic-like effects. Similar to diazepam, the fatty acid mixture significantly increased the frequency of entries into and time spent on the open arms of the elevated plus maze and decreased burying behavior in the defensive burying test, without producing significant changes in spontaneous locomotor activity. These anxiolytic-like effects were blocked by picrotoxin. Results suggest that these fatty acids that are contained in maternal fluid may reduce anxiety-like behavior by modulating GABAergic neurotransmission in infant 28-day-old rats.