Prenatal Exposure to Drugs of Abuse. Delayed Effects and Imprinting (Cell Deprogramming)

Abstract

The use of drugs of abuse is a serious health and social problem through all the world. The effects of acute and chronic exposure of drugs of abuse on health are well known. They also cause direct effects on placenta o the developing embryo organs, causing congenital malformations. There is however very scarce information on the delayed effects of exposure to these agents during the last stages of fetal development or the early stages of postnatal development. These agents cause irreversible alterations in differentiation and programming, that could be considered as biochemical and functional malformations, responsible of functional organic or neurobehavioral alterations that favors the development of diseases later in life. The present report describes persistent effects of prenatal exposure to illicit drugs of abuse (opiates, cocaine, ketamine, toluene, cannabinoids, and amphetamine derivates) and to legal drugs of abuse (ethyl alcohol; nicotine and tobacco smoking are not reviewed since they were analyzed in a previous publication in Cuadernos). Exposure to these agents favors the development of a myriad of diseases and behavioral alterations later in life. In addition, evidence is presented that prenatal exposure to various chemicals (lead, the pesticide malathion, bisphenol) and several drugs of abuse (opioids, ethanol, cannabinoids) determine persistent changes that favor the development of addictions to drugs of abuse later in life. It is concluded that, besides the known health and social problems derived by adults use of drugs of abuse, fetal exposure causes changes that determine the development of various diseases later in life, including drug addiction. Therefore, the dictation of Governmental regulations to decrease access to and use of these drugs, including the “softest” drugs such as cannabinoids, is fundamental to protect future generations health. In addition, evidence is presented that environmental pollutant prenatal exposure is a condition increasing for life sensibility to become addicted to drugs of abuse, which stress the importance of measures controlling environmental pollution as a tool in the fight against use of drugs of abuse.