Comment on "Maternal Oxytocin Triggers a Transient Inhibitory Switch in GABA Signaling in the Fetal Brain During Delivery"
Lionel Carbillon
Tyzio et al. (Reports, 15 December 2006, p. 1788) reported that maternal oxytocin triggers a transient excitatory-to-inhibitory switch of
-aminobutyric acid (GABA) signaling during labor, thus protecting the fetal rat brain from anoxic injury. However, a body of evidence supports the possibility that oxytocin is released from the fetal pituitary during delivery, not only from the mother, particularly under conditions of hypoxic stress.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Paris 13 University, Hôpital Jean Verdier, Avenue du 14 Juillet, 93143 Bondy Cedex, France. E-mail: lionel.carbillon{at}jvr.aphp.fr