Exposure to music and noise during pregnancy influences neurogenesis and thickness in motor and somatosensory cortex of rat pups. 


Author: Kim CH, Lee SC, Shin JW, Chung KJ, Lee SH, Shin MS, Baek SB, Sung YH, Kim CJ, Kim KH.

Affiliation: Department of Urology, Gachon University Gil Medical Center, Gachon University, Incheon, Korea. 
Conference/Journal: Int Neurourol J. 
Date published: 2013 Sep
Other:
 Volume ID: 17   ,  Issue ID: 3   ,  Pages: 107-13   ,  Special Notes: doi: 10.5213/inj.2013.17.3.107   ,  Word Count: 188  
    

PURPOSE:

Prenatal environmental conditions affect the development of the fetus. In the present study, we investigated the effects of exposure to music and noise during pregnancy on neurogenesis and thickness in the motor and somatosensory cortex of rat pups.

METHODS:

The pregnant rats in the music-applied group were exposed to 65 dB of comfortable music for 1 hour, once per day, from the 15th day of pregnancy until delivery. The pregnant rats in the noise-applied group were exposed to 95 dB of sound from a supersonic sound machine for 1 hour, once per day, from the 15th day of pregnancy until delivery. After birth, the offspring were left undisturbed together with their mother. The rat pups were sacrificed at 21 days after birth.

RESULTS:

Exposure to music during pregnancy increased neurogenesis in the motor and somatosensory cortex of rat pups. In contrast, rat pups exposed to noise during pregnancy showed decreased neurogenesis and thickness in the motor and somatosensory cortex.

CONCLUSIONS:

Our study suggests that music and noise during the developmental period are important factors influencing brain development and urogenital disorders.

KEYWORDS:

Motor cortex, Music, Neurogenesis, Noise, Somatosensory cortex



PMID: 24143288 [PubMed] PMCID: PMC3797889