Neonatal Exposure to Brominated Flame Retardant BDE-47 Reduces Long-Term Potentiation and Postsynaptic Protein Levels in Mouse Hippocampus

BACKGROUND: Increasing environmental levels of brominated flame retardants raise concern about possible adverse effects, particularly through early developmental exposure. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research was to investigate neurodevelopmental mechanisms underlying previously observed behavioral impairments observed after neonatal exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs). METHODS: C57Bl/6 mice received a single oral dose of 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) on postnatal day (PND) 10 (i.e., during the brain growth spurt). On PND17–19, effects on synaptic plasticity, levels of postsynaptic proteins involved in long-term potentiation (LTP), and vesicular release mechanisms were studied ex vivo. We investigated possible acute in vitro effects of BDE-47 on vesicular catecholamine release and intracellular Ca(2+) in rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells. RESULTS: Field-excitatory postsynaptic potential (f-EPSP) recordings in the hippocampal CA1 area demonstrated reduced LTP after exposure to 6.8 mg (14 μmol)/kg body weight (bw) BDE-47, whereas paired-pulse facilitation was not affected. Western blotting of proteins in the postsynaptic, triton-insoluble fraction of hippocampal tissue revealed a reduction of glutamate receptor subunits NR2B and GluR1 and autophosphorylated-active Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (αCaMKII), whereas other proteins tested appeared unaffected. Amperometric recordings in chromaffin cells from mice exposed to 68 mg (140 μmol)/kg bw BDE-47 did not reveal changes in catecholamine release parameters. Modest effects on vesicular release and intracellular Ca(2+) in PC12 cells were seen following acute exposure to 20 μM BDE-47. The combined results suggest a post-synaptic mechanism in vivo. CONCLUSION: Early neonatal exposure to a single high dose of BDE-47 causes a reduction of LTP together with changes in postsynaptic proteins involved in synaptic plasticity in the mouse hippocampus.