Effect of Medium Intensity Noise Exposure on Emotional Learning and Memory of Young Mice

To study the effect of medium intensity noise exposure on emotional learning and memory of young mice and unravel its underlying mechanism, the emotional learning and memory were detected by step-down test and the contents of malondialdehyde (MDA) and the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) were measured in this study. Kunming mice were divided into 2 groups (n=11 for each group): control group and noise group (were exposed to 80 dB white noise for 2 hours every day and it lasted 7 days). The results showed that after 7 days' exposure, the error times increased and step down latency decreased obviously in step-down test in noise group. As the indicators of oxidative stress, an increase of MDA contents and a decrease of SOD/MDA were found in noise group compared with control. The data suggested that the medium intensity noise exposure could reduce the ability of emotional learning and memory of young mice, which might involve the oxidative damage of hippocampus.