Psychology Commons^™

The Effects Of Prenatal Stress On The Size Of The Corpus Callosum, Richard K. Rowe Ii

Master's Theses

The effects of prenatal stress on the size of the corpus callosum in rats was investigated using a prenatal heat, light, and restraint stress paradigm that influences the fetal hormonal milieu (Ward, 1972). Females were stressed thrice daily from Day 15 of pregnancy until parturition. Control females were left unstressed throughout their pregnancies. In adulthood (M = 223.16 days of age), male and female offspring from the two groups were sacrificed. Area, perimeter, and length of the corpus callosum were determined from sagittal sections of each brain. Results showed a sex difference for area, perimeter, and length of the corpus …