Effect of lamotrigine on fetal rat brain.

ABSTRACT

Studies on the effect of lamotrigine on fetal brain are limited. The present experimental study was conducted to explore any macroscopic or microscopic changes in fetal brain induced by lamotrigine. Pregnant albino wistar rats received 1.5 mg oral lamotrigine on day 9 to 11 of pregnancy and the pups were harvested on day 20. The mean body weight and length were lower and brain weight and volume were higher of the pups exposed to lamotrigine. However, the differences were not statistically significant. Some of the experimental pups had exencephaly and haemorrhages over the body. Histology of the brain revealed that in lamotrigine treated group, the lateral ventricles were dilated and the plexiform layer of the cerebral cortex was relatively less differentiated.