Cited by 213Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and PostpartumStress Responses and CortisolGut microbiota and health

Prenatal stress affects placental cytokines and neurotrophins, commensal microbes, and anxiety-like behavior in adult female offspring

Gur, Tamar L., Shay, Lena, Palkar, Aditi Vadodkar, Fisher, Sydney, Varaljay, Vanessa A., Dowd, Scot, Bailey, Michael T.·2017·Brain, Behavior, and Immunity

Abstract

Recent studies demonstrate that exposure to stress changes the composition of the intestinal microbiota, which is associated with development of stress-induced changes to social behavior, anxiety, and depression. Stress during pregnancy has also been related to the emergence of these disorders; whether commensal microbes are part of a maternal intrauterine environment during prenatal stress is not known. Here, we demonstrate that microbiome changes are manifested in the mother, and also found in female offspring in adulthood, with a correlation between stressed mothers and female offspring. Alterations in the microbiome have been shown to alter immune responses, thus we examined cytokines in utero. IL-1β was increased in placenta and fetal brain from offspring exposed to the prenatal stressor. Because IL-1β has been shown to prevent induction of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), we examined BDNF and found a reduction in female placenta and adult amygdala, suggesting in utero impact on neurodevelopment extending into adulthood. Furthermore, gastrointestinal microbial communities were different in adult females born from stressed vs. non-stressed pregnancies. Adult female offspring also demonstrated increased anxiety-like behavior and alterations in cognition, suggesting a critical window where stress is able to influence the microbiome and the intrauterine environment in a deleterious manner with lasting behavioral consequences. The microbiome may be a key link between the intrauterine environment and adult behavioral changes.

Integrity signals

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.bbi.2016.12.021

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  • Female offspring displayed increased cognitive deficits and anxiety-like behavior following prenatal stress, which were associated with gut microbiota alterations in pregnant females and increased IL-1β and decreased BDNF levels in utero.

    “Female offspring displayed increased cognitive deficits and anxiety-like behavior following prenatal stress, which were associated with GM alterations in the pregnant females and increased IL-1β and decreased BDNF levels in utero (381).”

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Authors
Gur, T. L., Shay, L., Palkar, A. V., Fisher, S., Varaljay, V. A., Dowd, S., & Bailey, M. T.
Affiliations
  • The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center (US)
  • Nationwide Children's Hospital (US)
Corresponding author
Gur, Tamar L.
Venue
Brain, Behavior, and Immunity
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2017-08
Volume
64
Pages
50-58
ISSN
0889-1591 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2561533004
Cited by
213
References
68
Citations by year
2026: 17 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 25 · 2022: 23 · 2021: 27 · 2020: 22 · 2019: 23 · 2018: 22 · 2017: 7
FWCI
17.19
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Brain Behavior and Immunity (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression
  • March of Dimes Prematurity Research Center Ohio Collaborative
  • Brain and Behavior Research Foundation
  • Ohio State University
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Gut microbiota and health
Keywords
prenatal stress, placenta, cytokines, IL-1β, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, neurotrophins, gut microbiota, commensal microorganisms, anxiety-like behavior, maternal stress, female offspring, amygdala, brain development, cognition, mother-to-child transmission
MeSH terms
Gastrointestinal Microbiome, Animals, Anxiety, Encephalitis, Female, Inflammation, Mice, Inbred C57BL, Nerve Growth Factors, Placenta, Pregnancy, Pregnancy Complications, Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects, Stress, Psychological, Symbiosis, Cytokines, Inflammation Mediators, Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, Interleukin-1beta

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