1
|
Otaru N, Kourouma L, Pugin B, Constancias F, Braegger C, Mansuy IM, Lacroix C. Transgenerational effects of early life stress on the fecal microbiota in mice. Commun Biol 2024; 7:670. [PMID: 38822061 PMCID: PMC11143345 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06279-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2023] [Accepted: 05/02/2024] [Indexed: 06/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Stress in early life can affect the progeny and increase the risk to develop psychiatric and cardiometabolic diseases across generations. The cross-generational effects of early life stress have been modeled in mice and demonstrated to be associated with epigenetic factors in the germline. While stress is known to affect gut microbial features, whether its effects can persist across life and be passed to the progeny is not well defined. Here we show that early postnatal stress in mice shifts the fecal microbial composition (binary Jaccard index) throughout life, including abundance of eight amplicon sequencing variants (ASVs). Further effects on fecal microbial composition, structure (weighted Jaccard index), and abundance of 16 ASVs are detected in the progeny across two generations. These effects are not accompanied by changes in bacterial metabolites in any generation. These results suggest that changes in the fecal microbial community induced by early life traumatic stress can be perpetuated from exposed parent to the offspring.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nize Otaru
- Nutrition Research Unit, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Laboratory of Food Biotechnology, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Lola Kourouma
- Department of Health Science and Technology of the ETH Zurich, Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Brain Research Institute, Medical Faculty of the University of Zurich, and Institute for Neuroscience, Zurich, Switzerland
- Center for Neuroscience Zürich, ETH and University Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Benoit Pugin
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Laboratory of Food Biotechnology, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Florentin Constancias
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Laboratory of Food Biotechnology, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Christian Braegger
- Nutrition Research Unit, University Children's Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Isabelle M Mansuy
- Department of Health Science and Technology of the ETH Zurich, Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Brain Research Institute, Medical Faculty of the University of Zurich, and Institute for Neuroscience, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Center for Neuroscience Zürich, ETH and University Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Christophe Lacroix
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Laboratory of Food Biotechnology, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Crean AJ, Senior AM, Freire T, Clark TD, Mackay F, Austin G, Pulpitel TJ, Nobrega MA, Barrès R, Simpson SJ. Paternal dietary macronutrient balance and energy intake drive metabolic and behavioral differences among offspring. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2982. [PMID: 38582785 PMCID: PMC10998877 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46782-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 04/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Paternal diet can influence the phenotype of the next generation, yet, the dietary components inducing specific responses in the offspring are not identified. Here, we use the Nutritional Geometry Framework to determine the effects of pre-conception paternal dietary macronutrient balance on offspring metabolic and behavioral traits in mice. Ten isocaloric diets varying in the relative proportion of protein, fats, and carbohydrates are fed to male mice prior to mating. Dams and offspring are fed standard chow and never exposed to treatment diets. Body fat in female offspring is positively associated with the paternal consumption of fat, while in male offspring, an anxiety-like phenotype is associated to paternal diets low in protein and high in carbohydrates. Our study uncovers that the nature and the magnitude of paternal effects are driven by interactions between macronutrient balance and energy intake and are not solely the result of over- or undernutrition.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Angela Jane Crean
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Alistair McNair Senior
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Therese Freire
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Thomas Daniel Clark
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Flora Mackay
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Gracie Austin
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Tamara Jayne Pulpitel
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | | | - Romain Barrès
- Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, DK, 2200, Denmark.
- Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, Université Côte d'Azur & Centre National pour la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Valbonne, 06560, France.
| | - Stephen James Simpson
- Charles Perkins Centre and School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Rice RC, Gil DV, Baratta AM, Frawley RR, Hill SY, Farris SP, Homanics GE. Inter- and transgenerational heritability of preconception chronic stress or alcohol exposure: Translational outcomes in brain and behavior. Neurobiol Stress 2024; 29:100603. [PMID: 38234394 PMCID: PMC10792982 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 12/18/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic stress and alcohol (ethanol) use are highly interrelated and can change an individual's behavior through molecular adaptations that do not change the DNA sequence, but instead change gene expression. A recent wealth of research has found that these nongenomic changes can be transmitted across generations, which could partially account for the "missing heritability" observed in genome-wide association studies of alcohol use disorder and other stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders. In this review, we summarize the molecular and behavioral outcomes of nongenomic inheritance of chronic stress and ethanol exposure and the germline mechanisms that could give rise to this heritability. In doing so, we outline the need for further research to: (1) Investigate individual germline mechanisms of paternal, maternal, and biparental nongenomic chronic stress- and ethanol-related inheritance; (2) Synthesize and dissect cross-generational chronic stress and ethanol exposure; (3) Determine cross-generational molecular outcomes of preconception ethanol exposure that contribute to alcohol-related disease risk, using cancer as an example. A detailed understanding of the cross-generational nongenomic effects of stress and/or ethanol will yield novel insight into the impact of ancestral perturbations on disease risk across generations and uncover actionable targets to improve human health.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rachel C. Rice
- Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Daniela V. Gil
- Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Annalisa M. Baratta
- Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Remy R. Frawley
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Shirley Y. Hill
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Human Genetics, School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Sean P. Farris
- Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Gregg E. Homanics
- Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Skinner MK. Epigenetic biomarkers for disease susceptibility and preventative medicine. Cell Metab 2024; 36:263-277. [PMID: 38176413 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2023.11.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2023] [Revised: 10/11/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
The development of molecular biomarkers for disease makes it possible for preventative medicine approaches to be considered. Therefore, therapeutics, treatments, or clinical management can be used to delay or prevent disease development. The problem with genetic mutations as biomarkers is the low frequency with genome-wide association studies (GWASs), generally at best a 1% association of the patients with the disease. In contrast, epigenetic alterations have a high-frequency association of greater than 90%-95% of individuals with pathology in epigenome-wide association studies (EWASs). A wide variety of human diseases have been shown to have epigenetic biomarkers that are disease specific and that detect pathology susceptibility. This review is focused on the epigenetic biomarkers for disease susceptibility, and it distinct from the large literature on epigenetics of disease etiology or progression. The development of efficient epigenetic biomarkers for disease susceptibility will facilitate a paradigm shift from reactionary medicine to preventative medicine.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael K Skinner
- Center for Reproductive Biology, School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-4236, USA.
| |
Collapse
|