TY - JOUR
T1 - Prenatal stress disrupts social behavior, cortical neurobiology and commensal microbes in adult male offspring
AU - Gur, Tamar L.
AU - Palkar, Aditi Vadodkar
AU - Rajasekera, Therese
AU - Allen, Jacob
AU - Niraula, Anzela
AU - Godbout, Jonathan
AU - Bailey, Michael T.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2019/2/1
Y1 - 2019/2/1
N2 - In utero and early neonatal exposure to maternal stress is linked with psychiatric disorders, and the underlying mechanisms are currently being elucidated. We used a prenatal stressor in pregnant mice to examine novel relationships between prenatal stress exposure, changes in the gut microbiome, and social behavior. Here, we show that males exposed to prenatal stress had a significant reduction in social behavior in adulthood, with increased corticosterone release following social interaction. Male offspring exposed to prenatal stress also had neuroinflammation, decreased oxytocin receptor, and decreased serotonin metabolism in their cortex in adulthood, which are linked to decreased social behavior. Finally, we found a significant difference in commensal microbes, including decreases in Bacteroides and Parabacteroides, in adult male offspring exposed to prenatal stress when compared to non-stressed controls. Our findings indicate that gestation is a critical window where maternal stress contributes to the development of aberrant social behaviors and alterations in cortical neurobiology, and that prenatal stress is sufficient to disrupt the male gut-brain axis into adulthood.
AB - In utero and early neonatal exposure to maternal stress is linked with psychiatric disorders, and the underlying mechanisms are currently being elucidated. We used a prenatal stressor in pregnant mice to examine novel relationships between prenatal stress exposure, changes in the gut microbiome, and social behavior. Here, we show that males exposed to prenatal stress had a significant reduction in social behavior in adulthood, with increased corticosterone release following social interaction. Male offspring exposed to prenatal stress also had neuroinflammation, decreased oxytocin receptor, and decreased serotonin metabolism in their cortex in adulthood, which are linked to decreased social behavior. Finally, we found a significant difference in commensal microbes, including decreases in Bacteroides and Parabacteroides, in adult male offspring exposed to prenatal stress when compared to non-stressed controls. Our findings indicate that gestation is a critical window where maternal stress contributes to the development of aberrant social behaviors and alterations in cortical neurobiology, and that prenatal stress is sufficient to disrupt the male gut-brain axis into adulthood.
KW - Microbiome
KW - Neuroinflammation
KW - Prenatal stress
KW - Social behavior
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85049069062&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85049069062&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.bbr.2018.06.025
DO - 10.1016/j.bbr.2018.06.025
M3 - Article
C2 - 29949734
AN - SCOPUS:85049069062
SN - 0166-4328
VL - 359
SP - 886
EP - 894
JO - Behavioural Brain Research
JF - Behavioural Brain Research
ER -