Sex‐specific neurobehavioural outcomes and brain stimulation pattern in adult offspring paternally exposed to methamphetamine

Paternal methamphetamine (METH) exposure results in long‐term behavioural deficits in the sub‐generations with a sex difference. Here, we aim to investigate the sex‐specific neurobehavioural outcomes in the first‐generation offspring mice (F1 mice) paternally exposed to METH prior to conception and explore the underlying brain mechanisms. We found that paternal METH exposure increased anxiety‐like behaviours and spatial memory deficits only in female F1 mice and caused depression‐like behaviours in the offspring without sex‐specific differences. In parallel, METH‐sired F1 mice exhibited sex‐specific brain activity pattern in response to mild stimulus (in water at room temperature for 3 min). Overall, paternal METH exposure caused a blunting phenomenon of prelimbic cortex (PrL), infralimbic cortex (IL) and nucleus accumbens (NAc) core in both male and female F1 mice, as indicated by the decreased c‐Fos levels under mild stimulus. Of note, the activity of central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) by mild stimulus was triggered in male but suppressed in female F1 mice, whereas the neurons of orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), cingulate cortex (Cg1), NAc shell, medial habenula (mHb), dorsal hippocampal CA1 (dCA1) and ventral hippocampal CA1 (vCA1) were only blunted in female F1 mice. Taken together, the distinct brain stimulation patterns between male and female F1 mice might contribute to the sex‐specific behavioural outcomes by paternal METH exposure, which indicate that sex differences should be considered in the treatment of offspring paternally exposed drugs. Paternal METH exposure results in sex‐specific behavioral deficits in the offspring, as indicated by obviously anxiety‐like behavior and spatial memory deficits in female F1 mice. The sex‐specific neurobehavioral outcomes in offspring might be associated with the distinct patterns of brain stimulation triggered by stimulus.