The effects of environmental manipulation on the morphology of the neonate rat brain.

The intent of the present research endeavor was to determine the effect of differential environment on some morphological aspects of the immature rat brain. All litters of Long-Evans rats were reduced to three male pups per mother at birth. At six days of age three groups were formed: 1. One mother with her three pups remained in the standard colony cage (Unifamily Environment, UFE). 2. Three mothers with three pups each were placed together in a single large cage (Multifamily Environment, MFE). 3. Three mothers with three pups each were placed together in a single large cage with exploratory apparatus (Enriched Condition-Multifamily Environment, EC-MFE). The UFE vs. EC-MFE cohort was divided into three age groups to be sacrificed at 14,19, and 28 days of age. Cortical depth and neuronal nuclei from Nissl-stained histological preparations were measured in the somatosensory and occipital cortices. Neuronal measurements were also made in the lateral geniculate nucleus. A modified ‘hit’ method was employed t...

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