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Cissé YM, Montgomery KR, Zierden HC, Hill EM, Kane PJ, Huang W, Kane MA, Bale TL. Maternal preconception stress produces sex-specific effects at the maternal:fetal interface to impact offspring development and phenotypic outcomes†. Biol Reprod 2024; 110:339-354. [PMID: 37971364 PMCID: PMC10873277 DOI: 10.1093/biolre/ioad156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Entering pregnancy with a history of adversity, including adverse childhood experiences and racial discrimination stress, is a predictor of negative maternal and fetal health outcomes. Little is known about the biological mechanisms by which preconception adverse experiences are stored and impact future offspring health outcomes. In our maternal preconception stress (MPS) model, female mice underwent chronic stress from postnatal days 28-70 and were mated 2 weeks post-stress. Maternal preconception stress dams blunted the pregnancy-induced shift in the circulating extracellular vesicle proteome and reduced glucose tolerance at mid-gestation, suggesting a shift in pregnancy adaptation. To investigate MPS effects at the maternal:fetal interface, we probed the mid-gestation placental, uterine, and fetal brain tissue transcriptome. Male and female placentas differentially regulated expression of genes involved in growth and metabolic signaling in response to gestation in an MPS dam. We also report novel offspring sex- and MPS-specific responses in the uterine tissue apposing these placentas. In the fetal compartment, MPS female offspring reduced expression of neurodevelopmental genes. Using a ribosome-tagging transgenic approach we detected a dramatic increase in genes involved in chromatin regulation in a PVN-enriched neuronal population in females at PN21. While MPS had an additive effect on high-fat-diet (HFD)-induced weight gain in male offspring, both MPS and HFD were necessary to induce significant weight gain in female offspring. These data highlight the preconception period as a determinant of maternal health in pregnancy and provides novel insights into mechanisms by which maternal stress history impacts offspring developmental programming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmine M Cissé
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kristen R Montgomery
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hannah C Zierden
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Elizabeth M Hill
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Patrick J Kane
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Weiliang Huang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Maureen A Kane
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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2
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Montgomery KR, Bridi MS, Folts LM, Marx-Rattner R, Zierden HC, Wulff AB, Kodjo EA, Thompson SM, Bale TL. Chemogenetic activation of CRF neurons as a model of chronic stress produces sex-specific physiological and behavioral effects. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024; 49:443-454. [PMID: 37833589 PMCID: PMC10724197 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-023-01739-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Revised: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023]
Abstract
Trauma and chronic stress exposure are the strongest predictors of lifetime neuropsychiatric disease presentation. These disorders often have significant sex biases, with females having higher incidences of affective disorders such as major depression, anxiety, and PTSD. Understanding the mechanisms by which stress exposure heightens disease vulnerability is essential for developing novel interventions. Current rodent stress models consist of a battery of sensory, homeostatic, and psychological stressors that are ultimately integrated by corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) neurons to trigger corticosteroid release. These stress paradigms, however, often differ between research groups in the type, timing, and duration of stressors utilized. These inconsistencies, along with the variability of individual animals' perception and response to each stressor, present challenges for reproducibility and translational relevance. Here, we hypothesized that a more direct approach using chemogenetic activation of CRF neurons would recapitulate the effects of traditional stress paradigms and provide a high-throughput method for examining stress-relevant phenotypes. Using a transgenic approach to express the Gq-coupled Designer Receptor Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs (DREADD) receptor hM3Dq in CRF-neurons, we found that the DREADD ligand clozapine-N-oxide (CNO) produced an acute and robust activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, as predicted. Interestingly, chronic treatment with this method of direct CRF activation uncovered a novel sex-specific dissociation of glucocorticoid levels with stress-related outcomes. Despite hM3Dq-expressing females producing greater corticosterone levels in response to CNO than males, hM3Dq-expressing males showed significant typical physiological stress sensitivity with reductions in body and thymus weights. hM3Dq-expressing females while resistant to the physiological effects of chronic CRF activation, showed significant increases in baseline and fear-conditioned freezing behaviors. These data establish a novel mouse model for interrogating stress-relevant phenotypes and highlight sex-specific stress circuitry distinct for physiological and limbic control that may underlie disease risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen R Montgomery
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Morgan S Bridi
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Lillian M Folts
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Ruth Marx-Rattner
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Hannah C Zierden
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Andreas B Wulff
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Emmanuela A Kodjo
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Scott M Thompson
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
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Robertson CD, Davis P, Richardson RR, Iffland PH, Vieira DCO, Steyert M, McKeon PN, Romanowski AJ, Crutcher G, Jašarević E, Wolff SBE, Mathur BN, Crino PB, Bale TL, Dick IE, Poulopoulos A. Rapid modeling of an ultra-rare epilepsy variant in wild-type mice by in utero prime editing. bioRxiv 2023:2023.12.06.570164. [PMID: 38106154 PMCID: PMC10723435 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.06.570164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Generating animal models for individual patients within clinically-useful timeframes holds great potential toward enabling personalized medicine approaches for genetic epilepsies. The ability to rapidly incorporate patient-specific genomic variants into model animals recapitulating elements of the patient's clinical manifestations would enable applications ranging from validation and characterization of pathogenic variants to personalized models for tailoring pharmacotherapy to individual patients. Here, we demonstrate generation of an animal model of an individual epilepsy patient with an ultra-rare variant of the NMDA receptor subunit GRIN2A, without the need for germline transmission and breeding. Using in utero prime editing in the brain of wild-type mice, our approach yielded high in vivo editing precision and induced frequent, spontaneous seizures which mirrored specific elements of the patient's clinical presentation. Leveraging the speed and versatility of this approach, we introduce PegAssist, a generalizable workflow to generate bedside-to-bench animal models of individual patients within weeks. The capability to produce individualized animal models rapidly and cost-effectively will reduce barriers to access for precision medicine, and will accelerate drug development by offering versatile in vivo platforms to identify compounds with efficacy against rare neurological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin D Robertson
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Patrick Davis
- Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ryan R Richardson
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Philip H Iffland
- Department of Neurology, and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Daiana C O Vieira
- Department of Physiology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Marilyn Steyert
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Paige N McKeon
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Andrea J Romanowski
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Garrett Crutcher
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Eldin Jašarević
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Current affiliations: MS: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California San Francisco; EJ: Department Computational and Systems Biology, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine; TB: Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine
| | - Steffen B E Wolff
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Brian N Mathur
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Peter B Crino
- Department of Neurology, and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Current affiliations: MS: Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California San Francisco; EJ: Department Computational and Systems Biology, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine; TB: Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine
| | - Ivy E Dick
- Department of Physiology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Alexandros Poulopoulos
- Department of Pharmacology and UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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Rock KD, Folts LM, Zierden HC, Marx-Rattner R, Leu NA, Nugent BM, Bale TL. Developmental transcriptomic patterns can be altered by transgenic overexpression of Uty. Sci Rep 2023; 13:21082. [PMID: 38030664 PMCID: PMC10687263 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47977-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The genetic material encoded on X and Y chromosomes provides the foundation by which biological sex differences are established. Epigenetic regulators expressed on these sex chromosomes, including Kdm6a (Utx), Kdm5c, and Ddx3x have far-reaching impacts on transcriptional control of phenotypic sex differences. Although the functionality of UTY (Kdm6c, the Y-linked homologue of UTX), has been supported by more recent studies, its role in developmental sex differences is not understood. Here we test the hypothesis that UTY is an important transcriptional regulator during development that could contribute to sex-specific phenotypes and disease risks across the lifespan. We generated a random insertion Uty transgenic mouse (Uty-Tg) to overexpress Uty. By comparing transcriptomic profiles in developmental tissues, placenta and hypothalamus, we assessed potential UTY functional activity, comparing Uty-expressing female mice (XX + Uty) with wild-type male (XY) and female (XX) mice. To determine if Uty expression altered physiological or behavioral outcomes, adult mice were phenotypically examined. Uty expression masculinized female gene expression patterns in both the placenta and hypothalamus. Gene ontology (GO) and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) consistently identified pathways including immune and synaptic signaling as biological processes associated with UTY. Interestingly, adult females expressing Uty gained less weight and had a greater glucose tolerance compared to wild-type male and female mice when provided a high-fat diet. Utilizing a Uty-overexpressing transgenic mouse, our results provide novel evidence as to a functional transcriptional role for UTY in developing tissues, and a foundation to build on its prospective capacity to influence sex-specific developmental and health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kylie D Rock
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, 29634, USA
| | - Lillian M Folts
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Hannah C Zierden
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20740, USA
| | - Ruth Marx-Rattner
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Nicolae Adrian Leu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Bridget M Nugent
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA.
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- University of Colorado School of Medicine, CU Anschutz Medical Campus, 12800 E. 19th Avenue, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
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Herb BR, Glover HJ, Bhaduri A, Colantuoni C, Bale TL, Siletti K, Hodge R, Lein E, Kriegstein AR, Doege CA, Ament SA. Single-cell genomics reveals region-specific developmental trajectories underlying neuronal diversity in the human hypothalamus. Sci Adv 2023; 9:eadf6251. [PMID: 37939194 PMCID: PMC10631741 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adf6251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 11/10/2023]
Abstract
The development and diversity of neuronal subtypes in the human hypothalamus has been insufficiently characterized. To address this, we integrated transcriptomic data from 241,096 cells (126,840 newly generated) in the prenatal and adult human hypothalamus to reveal a temporal trajectory from proliferative stem cell populations to mature hypothalamic cell types. Iterative clustering of the adult neurons identified 108 robust transcriptionally distinct neuronal subtypes representing 10 hypothalamic nuclei. Pseudotime trajectories provided insights into the genes driving formation of these nuclei. Comparisons to single-cell transcriptomic data from the mouse hypothalamus suggested extensive conservation of neuronal subtypes despite certain differences in species-enriched gene expression. The uniqueness of hypothalamic neuronal lineages was examined developmentally by comparing excitatory lineages present in cortex and inhibitory lineages in ganglionic eminence, revealing both distinct and shared drivers of neuronal maturation across the human forebrain. These results provide a comprehensive transcriptomic view of human hypothalamus development through gestation and adulthood at cellular resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian R. Herb
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hannah J. Glover
- Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center, Columbia Stem Cell Initiative, Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Aparna Bhaduri
- Department of Biological Chemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Carlo Colantuoni
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Kimberly Siletti
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Rebecca Hodge
- Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA 98109
| | - Ed Lein
- Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, WA 98109
| | - Arnold R. Kriegstein
- Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- The Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Claudia A. Doege
- Naomi Berrie Diabetes Center, Columbia Stem Cell Initiative, Department of Pathology and Cell Biology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Seth A. Ament
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- UM-MIND, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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Abstract
Compelling epidemiological and animal experimental data demonstrate that cardiometabolic and neuropsychiatric diseases originate in a suboptimal intrauterine environment. Here, we review evidence suggesting that altered placental function may, at least in part, mediate the link between the maternal environment and changes in fetal growth and development. Emerging evidence indicates that the placenta controls the development and function of several fetal tissues through nutrient sensing, modulation of trophoblast nutrient transporters and by altering the number and cargo of released extracellular vesicles. In this Review, we discuss the development and functions of the maternal-placental-fetal interface (in humans and mice) and how cross-talk between these compartments may be a mechanism for in utero programming, focusing on mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR), adiponectin and O-GlcNac transferase (OGT) signaling. We also discuss how maternal diet and stress influences fetal development and metabolism and how fetal growth restriction can result in susceptibility to developing chronic disease later in life. Finally, we speculate how interventions targeting placental function may offer unprecedented opportunities to prevent cardiometabolic disease in future generations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Avery C. Kramer
- Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Thomas Jansson
- Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
| | - Theresa L. Powell
- Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO 80045, USA
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Zierden HC, Marx-Rattner R, Rock KD, Montgomery KR, Anastasiadis P, Folts L, Bale TL. Extracellular vesicles are dynamic regulators of maternal glucose homeostasis during pregnancy. Sci Rep 2023; 13:4568. [PMID: 36941297 PMCID: PMC10027885 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-31425-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 03/11/2023] [Indexed: 03/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Homeostatic regulation of the maternal milieu during pregnancy is critical for maternal and fetal health. The placenta facilitates critical communication between maternal and fetal compartments, in part, through the production of extracellular vesicles (EVs). EVs enable tissue synchrony via cell-cell and long-distance communication and are at their highest circulating concentration during pregnancy. While much work has been done investigating how physiological challenges in pregnancy affect the fetus, the role of placental communication in maternal health has not been well examined. We previously identified placental O-glycosyl transferase (OGT), a glucose-sensing enzyme, as a target of maternal stress where OGT levels and activity affected the O-glycosylation of proteins critical for EV cargo loading and secretion. Here, we hypothesized that placental OGT plays an essential role in maternal homeostatic regulation during pregnancy via its regulation of maternal circulating EV concentrations. Our studies found that changes to key metabolic factors over the circadian cycle, including glucocorticoids, insulin, and glucose, were significantly associated with changes in circulating EV concentration. Targeting placental OGT in mice, we found a novel significant positive relationship between placental OGT and maternal circulating EV concentration that was associated with improving maternal glucose tolerance during pregnancy. Finally, an intravenous elevation in EVs, matching the concentration of EVs during pregnancy, shifted non-pregnant female glucose sensitivity, blunted glucose variance, and improved synchrony of glucose uptake. These data suggest an important and novel role for circulating EVs as homeostatic regulators important in maternal health during pregnancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah C Zierden
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20740, USA
| | - Ruth Marx-Rattner
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Kylie D Rock
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA
| | - Kristen R Montgomery
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Pavlos Anastasiadis
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Lillian Folts
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- The Anschutz Foundation Endowed Chair in Women's Integrated Mental and Physical Health Research at the Ludeman Center, Aurora, CO, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, CU Anschutz Medical Campus, 12800 E. 19th Avenue, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
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Duffy KA, Sammel MD, Johnson RL, Kim DR, Wang EY, Ewing G, Hantsoo L, Kornfield SL, Bale TL, Epperson CN. Maternal adverse childhood experiences impact fetal adrenal volume in a sex-specific manner. Biol Sex Differ 2023; 14:7. [PMID: 36803442 PMCID: PMC9936707 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-023-00492-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 02/19/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The mechanisms by which parental early life stress can be transmitted to the next generation, in some cases in a sex-specific manner, are unclear. Maternal preconception stress may increase susceptibility to suboptimal health outcomes via in utero programming of the fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. METHODS We recruited healthy pregnant women (N = 147), dichotomized into low (0 or 1) and high (2+) adverse childhood experience (ACE) groups based on the ACE Questionnaire, to test the hypothesis that maternal ACE history influences fetal adrenal development in a sex-specific manner. At a mean (standard deviation) of 21.5 (1.4) and 29.5 (1.4) weeks gestation, participants underwent three-dimensional ultrasounds to measure fetal adrenal volume, adjusting for fetal body weight (waFAV). RESULTS At ultrasound 1, waFAV was smaller in high versus low ACE males (b = - 0.17; z = - 3.75; p < .001), but females did not differ significantly by maternal ACE group (b = 0.09; z = 1.72; p = .086). Compared to low ACE males, waFAV was smaller for low (b = - 0.20; z = - 4.10; p < .001) and high ACE females (b = - 0.11; z = 2.16; p = .031); however, high ACE males did not differ from low (b = 0.03; z = .57; p = .570) or high ACE females (b = - 0.06; z = - 1.29; p = .196). At ultrasound 2, waFAV did not differ significantly between any maternal ACE/offspring sex subgroups (ps ≥ .055). Perceived stress did not differ between maternal ACE groups at baseline, ultrasound 1, or ultrasound 2 (ps ≥ .148). CONCLUSIONS We observed a significant impact of high maternal ACE history on waFAV, a proxy for fetal adrenal development, but only in males. Our observation that the waFAV in males of mothers with a high ACE history did not differ from the waFAV of females extends preclinical research demonstrating a dysmasculinizing effect of gestational stress on a range of offspring outcomes. Future studies investigating intergenerational transmission of stress should consider the influence of maternal preconception stress on offspring outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Korrina A. Duffy
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA ,grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Colorado – Anschutz Medical Campus, 1890 N. Revere Court, Aurora, CO 80045 USA
| | - Mary D. Sammel
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA ,grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Biostatistics and Informatics, University of Colorado School of Public Health – Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA
| | - Rachel L. Johnson
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Biostatistics and Informatics, University of Colorado School of Public Health – Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA
| | - Deborah R. Kim
- grid.25879.310000 0004 1936 8972Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Eileen Y. Wang
- grid.25879.310000 0004 1936 8972Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Grace Ewing
- grid.266826.e0000 0000 9216 5478University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, Biddeford, ME USA
| | - Liisa Hantsoo
- grid.21107.350000 0001 2171 9311Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD USA
| | - Sara L. Kornfield
- grid.25879.310000 0004 1936 8972Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA
| | - C. Neill Epperson
- grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA ,grid.430503.10000 0001 0703 675XDepartment of Family Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine – Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO USA
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Morgan CP, Meadows VE, Marx-Rattner R, Cisse YM, Bale TL. HA-tag CD63 is a novel conditional transgenic approach to track extracellular vesicle interactions with sperm and their transfer at conception. Sci Rep 2023; 13:707. [PMID: 36639735 PMCID: PMC9839718 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-27898-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a unique mode of intercellular communication capable of specificity in transmitting signals and cargo to coordinate local and distant cellular functions. A key example of this is the essential role that EVs secreted by epithelial cells lining the lumen of the male reproductive tract play in post-spermatogenic sperm maturation. We recently showed in a preclinical mouse model that this fundamental process had a causal role in somatic-to-germline transmission of biological information regarding prior stress experience capable of altering the rate of fetal development. However, critical mechanistic questions remain unanswered as to the processes by which signaling occurs between EVs and sperm, and whether EVs or their cargo are delivered at conception and are detectable in the early embryo. Unfortunately, notable methodological limitations shared across EV biology, particularly in the isolation and labeling of EVs, complicate efforts to answer these important questions as well as questions on EV targeting specificity and mechanisms. In our current studies, we developed a novel approach to track EVs using a conditional transgenic construct designed to label EVs via conditional Cre-induced hemagglutinin (HA) tagging of the EV endogenous tetraspanin, CD63. In our exhaustive validation steps, this internal small molecular weight tag did not affect EV secretion or functionality, a common problem found in the previous design of EV tags using larger molecular weight proteins, including fluorescent proteins. Utilizing a stably transfected immortalized epididymal epithelial cell line, we first validated key parameters of the conditional HA-tagged protein packaged into secreted EVs. Importantly, we systematically confirmed that expression of the CD63-HA had no impact on the production, size distribution, or surface charge of secreted EVs, nor did it alter the tetraspanin or miRNA composition of these EVs. We also utilized the CD63-HA EVs to verify physical interactions with sperm. Finally, using in vitro fertilization we produced some of the first images confirming sperm delivered EV cargo at conception and still detectable in the early-stage embryo. As such, this construct serves as a methodological advance and as a valuable tool, with applications in the study of EV function across biomedical research areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher P Morgan
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Victoria E Meadows
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Ruth Marx-Rattner
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Yasmine M Cisse
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, CU Anschutz Medical Campus, 12800 E. 19th Avenue, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
- The Anschutz Foundation Endowed Chair in Women's Integrated Mental and Physical Health Research at the Ludeman Center, Aurora, USA.
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Moon N, Morgan C, Bale TL. Cross Talk proposal: The kids will be fine: parental stress rodent models are good for assessing influences on human neurobiology. J Physiol 2022; 600:4409-4411. [PMID: 36184259 PMCID: PMC10091642 DOI: 10.1113/jp282409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Nickole Moon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
| | | | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
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11
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Affiliation(s)
- Nickole Moon
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
| | | | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO, USA
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Cole AB, Montgomery K, Bale TL, Thompson SM. What the hippocampus tells the HPA axis: Hippocampal output attenuates acute stress responses via disynaptic inhibition of CRF+ PVN neurons. Neurobiol Stress 2022; 20:100473. [PMID: 35982732 PMCID: PMC9379952 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2022.100473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Revised: 07/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The hippocampus exerts inhibitory feedback on the release of glucocorticoids. Because the major hippocampal efferent projections are excitatory, it has been hypothesized that this inhibition is mediated by populations of inhibitory neurons in the hypothalamus or elsewhere. These regions would be excited by hippocampal efferents and project to corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) cells in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN). A direct demonstration of the synaptic responses elicited by hippocampal outputs in PVN cells or upstream GABAergic interneurons has not been provided previously. Here, we used viral vectors to express channelrhodopsin (ChR) and enhanced yellow fluorescent protein (EYFP) in pyramidal cells in the ventral hippocampus (vHip) in mice expressing tdTomato in GABA- or CRF-expressing neurons. We observed dense innervation of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) by labeled vHip axons and sparse labeling within the PVN. Using whole-cell voltage-clamp recording in parasagittal brain slices containing the BNST and PVN, photostimulation of vHip terminals elicited rapid excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) and longer-latency inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) in both CRF+ and GAD + cells. The ratio of synaptic excitation and inhibition was maintained in CRF + cells during 20 Hz stimulus trains. Photostimulation of hippocampal afferents to the BNST and PVN in vivo inhibited the rise in blood glucocorticoid levels produced by acute restraint stress. We thus provide functional evidence suggesting that hippocampal output to the BNST contributes to a net inhibition of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis, providing further mechanistic insights into this process using methods with enhanced spatial and temporal resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony B. Cole
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Departments of University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Kristen Montgomery
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Scott M. Thompson
- Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 655 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, USA
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13
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Morrison KE, Stenson AF, Marx-Rattner R, Carter S, Michopoulos V, Gillespie CF, Powers A, Huang W, Kane MA, Jovanovic T, Bale TL. Developmental Timing of Trauma in Women Predicts Unique Extracellular Vesicle Proteome Signatures. Biol Psychiatry 2022; 91:273-282. [PMID: 34715991 PMCID: PMC9219961 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2021.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2021] [Revised: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Exposure to traumatic events is a risk factor for negative physical and mental health outcomes. However, the underlying biological mechanisms that perpetuate these lasting effects are not known. METHODS We investigated the impact and timing of sexual trauma, a specific type of interpersonal violence, experienced during key developmental windows of childhood, adolescence, or adulthood on adult health outcomes and associated biomarkers, including circulating cell-free mitochondrial DNA levels and extracellular vesicles (EVs), in a predominantly Black cohort of women (N = 101). RESULTS Significant changes in both biomarkers examined, circulating cell-free mitochondrial DNA levels and EV proteome, were specific to developmental timing of sexual trauma. Specifically, we identified a large number of keratin-related proteins from EVs unique to the adolescent sexual trauma group. Remarkably, the majority of these keratin proteins belong to a 17q21 gene cluster, which suggests a potential local epigenetic regulatory mechanism altered by adolescent trauma to impact keratinocyte EV secretion or its protein cargo. These results, along with changes in fear-potentiated startle and skin conductance detected in these women, suggest that sexual violence experienced during the specific developmental window of adolescence may involve unique programming of the skin, the body's largest stress organ. CONCLUSIONS Together, these descriptive studies provide novel insight into distinct biological processes altered by trauma experienced during specific developmental windows. Future studies will be required to mechanistically link these biological processes to health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen E Morrison
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Anaïs F Stenson
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
| | - Ruth Marx-Rattner
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Sierra Carter
- Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Vasiliki Michopoulos
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Charles F Gillespie
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Abigail Powers
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Weiliang Huang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Maureen A Kane
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Tanja Jovanovic
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
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Jašarević E, Hill EM, Kane PJ, Rutt L, Gyles T, Folts L, Rock KD, Howard CD, Morrison KE, Ravel J, Bale TL. The composition of human vaginal microbiota transferred at birth affects offspring health in a mouse model. Nat Commun 2021; 12:6289. [PMID: 34725359 PMCID: PMC8560944 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26634-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Newborns are colonized by maternal microbiota that is essential for offspring health and development. The composition of these pioneer communities exhibits individual differences, but the importance of this early-life heterogeneity to health outcomes is not understood. Here we validate a human microbiota-associated model in which fetal mice are cesarean delivered and gavaged with defined human vaginal microbial communities. This model replicates the inoculation that occurs during vaginal birth and reveals lasting effects on offspring metabolism, immunity, and the brain in a community-specific manner. This microbial effect is amplified by prior gestation in a maternal obesogenic or vaginal dysbiotic environment where placental and fetal ileum development are altered, and an augmented immune response increases rates of offspring mortality. Collectively, we describe a translationally relevant model to examine the defined role of specific human microbial communities on offspring health outcomes, and demonstrate that the prenatal environment dramatically shapes the postnatal response to inoculation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eldin Jašarević
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA
| | - Elizabeth M Hill
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Patrick J Kane
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Lindsay Rutt
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Trevonn Gyles
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Lillian Folts
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Kylie D Rock
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Christopher D Howard
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Kathleen E Morrison
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Jacques Ravel
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
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15
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Duffy KA, Bale TL, Epperson CN. Germ Cell Drivers: Transmission of Preconception Stress Across Generations. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:642762. [PMID: 34322003 PMCID: PMC8311293 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.642762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Exposure to stress can accelerate maturation and hasten reproduction. Although potentially adaptive, the trade-off is higher risk for morbidity and mortality. In humans, the intergenerational effects of stress have been demonstrated, but the precise mechanisms are unknown. Strikingly, even if parental stress occurs prior to conception, as adults, their offspring show worse mental and physical health. Emerging evidence primarily from preclinical models suggests that epigenetic programming may encode preconception stress exposures in germ cells, potentially impacting the phenotype of the offspring. In this narrative review, we evaluate the strength of the evidence for this mechanism across animals and humans in both males and females. The strongest evidence comes from studies of male mice, in which paternal preconception stress is associated with a host of phenotypic changes in the offspring and stress-induced changes in the small non-coding RNA content in sperm have been implicated. Two recent studies in men provide evidence that some small non-coding RNAs in sperm are responsive to past and current stress, including some of the same ones identified in mice. Although preliminary evidence suggests that findings from mice may map onto men, the next steps will be (1) considering whether stress type, severity, duration, and developmental timing affect germ cell epigenetic markers, (2) determining whether germ cell epigenetic markers contribute to disease risk in the offspring of stress-exposed parents, and (3) overcoming methodological challenges in order to extend this research to females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Korrina A. Duffy
- Colorado Center for Women’s Behavioral Health and Wellness, Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, United States
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology and Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - C. Neill Epperson
- Colorado Center for Women’s Behavioral Health and Wellness, Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, United States
- Department of Family Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, United States
- Center for Women’s Health Research, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, United States
- Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, United States
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16
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Hill EM, Howard CD, Bale TL, Jašarević E. Perinatal exposure to tetracycline contributes to lasting developmental effects on offspring. Anim Microbiome 2021; 3:37. [PMID: 33975649 PMCID: PMC8111738 DOI: 10.1186/s42523-021-00099-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND For more than 30 years, the tetracycline on/off system of inducible gene expression has been leveraged to study disease mechanisms across many research areas, especially that of metabolism and neuroscience. This system requires acute or chronic exposure to tetracycline derivatives, such as doxycycline, to manipulate gene expression in a temporal and tissue-specific manner, with exposure often being restricted to gestational and early developmental windows. Despite evidence showing that early life antibiotic exposure has adverse effects on gut microbiota, metabolism, physiology, immunity and behavior, little is known regarding the lasting impact of doxycycline treatment on relevant outcomes in experimental offspring. RESULTS To examine the hypothesis that early life doxycycline exposure produces effects on offspring growth, behavior, and gut microbiota, we employed the most commonly used method for tetracycline on/off system by administering a low dose of doxycycline (0.5 mg/ml) in the drinking water to C57Bl/6J and C57BL/6J:129S1/SvImJ dams from embryonic day 15.5 to postnatal day 28. Developmental exposure to low dose doxycycline resulted in significant alterations to growth trajectories and body weight in both strains, which persisted beyond cessation of doxycycline exposure. Developmental doxycycline exposure influenced offspring bacterial community assembly in a temporal and sex-specific manner. Further, gut microbiota composition failed to recover by adulthood, suggesting a lasting imprint of developmental antibiotic exposure. CONCLUSIONS Our results demonstrated that early life doxycycline exposure shifts the homeostatic baseline of prior exposed animals that may subsequently impact responses to experimental manipulations. These results highlight the gut microbiota as an important factor to consider in systems requiring methods of chronic antibiotic administration during pregnancy and critical periods of postnatal development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth M Hill
- Center for Epigenetics Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Christopher D Howard
- Center for Epigenetics Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Center for Epigenetics Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Eldin Jašarević
- Center for Epigenetics Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA.
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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17
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Morgan CP, Shetty AC, Chan JC, Berger DS, Ament SA, Epperson CN, Bale TL. Repeated sampling facilitates within- and between-subject modeling of the human sperm transcriptome to identify dynamic and stress-responsive sncRNAs. Sci Rep 2020; 10:17498. [PMID: 33060642 PMCID: PMC7562703 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-73867-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Epidemiological studies from the last century have drawn strong associations between paternal life experiences and offspring health and disease outcomes. Recent studies have demonstrated sperm small non-coding RNA (sncRNA) populations vary in response to diverse paternal insults. However, for studies in retrospective or prospective human cohorts to identify changes in paternal germ cell epigenetics in association with offspring disease risk, a framework must first be built with insight into the expected biological variation inherent in human populations. In other words, how will we know what to look for if we don't first know what is stable and what is dynamic, and what is consistent within and between men over time? From sperm samples from a 'normative' cohort of healthy human subjects collected repeatedly from each subject over 6 months, 17 healthy male participants met inclusion criteria and completed donations and psychological evaluations of perceived stress monthly. sncRNAs (including miRNA, piRNA, and tRNA) isolated from mature sperm from these samples were subjected to Illumina small RNA sequencing, aligned to subtype-specific reference transcriptomes, and quantified. The repeated measures design allowed us to define both within- and between-subject variation in the expression of 254 miRNA, 194 tRNA, and 937 piRNA in sperm over time. We developed screening criteria to identify a subset of potential environmentally responsive 'dynamic' sperm sncRNA. Implementing complex modeling of the relationships between individual dynamic sncRNA and perceived stress states in these data, we identified 5 miRNA (including let-7f-5p and miR-181a-5p) and 4 tRNA that are responsive to the dynamics of prior stress experience and fit our established mouse model. In the current study, we aligned repeated sampling of human sperm sncRNA expression data with concurrent measures of perceived stress as a novel framework that can now be applied across a range of studies focused on diverse environmental factors able to influence germ cell programming and potentially impact offspring development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher P Morgan
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Amol C Shetty
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Jennifer C Chan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Dara S Berger
- Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Perelman School of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Seth A Ament
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - C Neill Epperson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, CU-Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Departments of Pharmacology and Psychiatry, Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, HSF3, Room 9-171, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 670 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
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18
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Arumugasaamy N, Rock KD, Kuo CY, Bale TL, Fisher JP. Microphysiological systems of the placental barrier. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 2020; 161-162:161-175. [PMID: 32858104 DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2020.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Revised: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 08/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Methods to evaluate maternal-fetal transport across the placental barrier have generally involved clinical observations after-the-fact, ex vivo perfused placenta studies, or in vitro Transwell assays. Given the ethical and technical limitations in these approaches, and the drive to understand fetal development through the lens of transport-induced injury, such as with the examples of thalidomide and Zika Virus, efforts to develop novel approaches to study these phenomena have expanded in recent years. Notably, within the past 10 years, placental barrier models have been developed using hydrogel, bioreactor, organ-on-a-chip, and bioprinting approaches. In this review, we discuss the biology of the placental barrier and endeavors to recapitulate this barrier in vitro using these approaches. We also provide analysis of current limitations to drug discovery in this context, and end with a future outlook.
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Cissé YM, Chan JC, Nugent BM, Banducci C, Bale TL. Brain and placental transcriptional responses as a readout of maternal and paternal preconception stress are fetal sex specific. Placenta 2020; 100:164-170. [PMID: 32980048 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2020.06.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Revised: 06/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Despite a wealth of epidemiological evidence that cumulative parental lifetime stress experiences prior to conception are determinant of offspring developmental trajectories, there is a lack of insight on how these previous stress experiences are stored and communicated intergenerationally. Preconception experiences may impact offspring development through alterations in transcriptional regulation of the placenta, a major determinant of offspring growth and sex-specific developmental outcomes. We evaluated the lasting influence of maternal and paternal preconception stress (PCS) on the mid-gestation placenta and fetal brain, utilizing their transcriptomes as proximate readouts of intergenerational impact. METHODS To assess the combined vs. dominant influence of maternal and paternal preconception environment on sex-specific fetal development, we compared transcriptional outcomes using a breeding scheme of one stressed parent, both stressed parents, or no stressed parents as controls. RESULTS Interestingly, offspring sex affected the directionality of transcriptional changes in response to PCS, where male tissues showed a predominant downregulation, and female tissues showed an upregulation. There was also an intriguing effect of parental sex on placental programming where paternal PCS drove more effects in female placentas, while maternal PCS produced more transcriptional changes in male placentas. However, in the fetal brain, maternal PCS produced overall more changes in gene expression than paternal PCS, supporting the idea that the intrauterine environment may have a larger overall influence on the developing brain than it does on shaping the placenta. DISCUSSION Preconception experiences drive changes in the placental and the fetal brain transcriptome at a critical developmental timepoint. While not determinant, these altered transcriptional states may underlie sex-biased risk or resilience to stressful experiences later in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmine M Cissé
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
| | - Jennifer C Chan
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
| | - Bridget M Nugent
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
| | - Caitlin Banducci
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States.
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Ramsteijn AS, Jašarević E, Houwing DJ, Bale TL, Olivier JDA. Antidepressant treatment with fluoxetine during pregnancy and lactation modulates the gut microbiome and metabolome in a rat model relevant to depression. Gut Microbes 2020; 11:735-753. [PMID: 31971855 PMCID: PMC7524305 DOI: 10.1080/19490976.2019.1705728] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Up to 10% of women use selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants during pregnancy and postpartum. Recent evidence suggests that SSRIs are capable of altering the gut microbiota. However, the interaction between maternal depression and SSRI use on bacterial community composition and the availability of microbiota-derived metabolites during pregnancy and lactation is not clear. We studied this using a rat model relevant to depression, where adult females with a genetic vulnerability and stressed as pups show depressive-like behaviors. Throughout pregnancy and lactation, females received the SSRI fluoxetine or vehicle. High-resolution 16S ribosomal RNA marker gene sequencing and targeted metabolomic analysis were used to assess the fecal microbiome and metabolite availability, respectively. Not surprisingly, we found that pregnancy and lactation segregate in terms of fecal microbiome diversity and composition, accompanied by changes in metabolite availability. However, we also showed that fluoxetine treatment altered important features of this transition from pregnancy to lactation most clearly in previously stressed dams, with lower fecal amino acid concentrations. Amino acid concentrations, in turn, correlated negatively with the relative abundance of bacterial taxa such as Prevotella and Bacteroides. Our study demonstrates an important relationship between antidepressant use during the perinatal period and maternal fecal metabolite availability in a rat model relevant to depression, possibly through parallel changes in the gut microbiome. Since microbial metabolites contribute to homeostasis and development, insults to the maternal microbiome by SSRIs might have health consequences for mother and offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anouschka S Ramsteijn
- Department of Neurobiology, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands,Center for Host-Microbial Interactions,Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Eldin Jašarević
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions,Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Pharmacology, Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Danielle J Houwing
- Department of Neurobiology, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions,Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Pharmacology, Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jocelien DA Olivier
- Department of Neurobiology, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands,CONTACT Jocelien DA Olivier Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, Groningen9747 AG, The Netherlands
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21
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Morrison KE, Cole AB, Kane PJ, Meadows VE, Thompson SM, Bale TL. Pubertal adversity alters chromatin dynamics and stress circuitry in the pregnant brain. Neuropsychopharmacology 2020; 45:1263-1271. [PMID: 32045935 PMCID: PMC7297802 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-020-0634-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2019] [Revised: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Women who have experienced adverse childhood events (ACEs) around puberty are at the greatest risk for neuropsychiatric disorders across the lifespan. This population is exceptionally vulnerable to neuropsychiatric disease presentation during the hormonally dynamic state of pregnancy. We previously established that chronic adversity around puberty in female mice significantly altered their HPA axis function specifically during pregnancy, modeling the effects of pubertal ACEs we also reported in women. We hypothesized that the pregnancy hormone, allopregnanolone, was involved in presentation of the blunted stress response phenotype by its interaction with the molecular programming that had occurred during pubertal adversity experience. Here, in adult mice previously stressed during puberty, allopregnanolone administration was sufficient to reproduce the decreased corticosterone response after acute stress. Examination of neuronal activation and the electrophysiological properties of CRF neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) found no significant changes in synaptic function that corresponded with the blunted HPA axis reactivity. However, at the chromatin level, utilization of ATAC-Seq profiling demonstrated a dramatic remodeling of DNA accessibility in the PVN following pubertal adversity. Altogether, these data establish a potential molecular mechanism whereby adversity during puberty can enact lasting transcriptional control that manifests only during a unique period of the lifespan where dynamic hormonal changes occur. These results highlight a biological process that may impart an increased risk for a highly vulnerable population, whereby pubertal programming of the PVN results in aberrant HPA axis responsiveness when exposed to the hormonal changes unique to pregnancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen E Morrison
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Anthony B Cole
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, Medical Scientist Training Program, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Patrick J Kane
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Victoria E Meadows
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Scott M Thompson
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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22
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Chan JC, Morgan CP, Adrian Leu N, Shetty A, Cisse YM, Nugent BM, Morrison KE, Jašarević E, Huang W, Kanyuch N, Rodgers AB, Bhanu NV, Berger DS, Garcia BA, Ament S, Kane M, Neill Epperson C, Bale TL. Reproductive tract extracellular vesicles are sufficient to transmit intergenerational stress and program neurodevelopment. Nat Commun 2020; 11:1499. [PMID: 32198406 PMCID: PMC7083921 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-15305-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2018] [Accepted: 02/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a unique mode of intercellular communication capable of incredible specificity in transmitting signals involved in cellular function, including germ cell maturation. Spermatogenesis occurs in the testes, behind a protective barrier to ensure safeguarding of germline DNA from environmental insults. Following DNA compaction, further sperm maturation occurs in the epididymis. Here, we report reproductive tract EVs transmit information regarding stress in the paternal environment to sperm, potentially altering fetal development. Using intracytoplasmic sperm injection, we found that sperm incubated with EVs collected from stress-treated epididymal epithelial cells produced offspring with altered neurodevelopment and adult stress reactivity. Proteomic and transcriptomic assessment of these EVs showed dramatic changes in protein and miRNA content long after stress treatment had ended, supporting a lasting programmatic change in response to chronic stress. Thus, EVs as a normal process in sperm maturation, can also perform roles in intergenerational transmission of paternal environmental experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer C Chan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Christopher P Morgan
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - N Adrian Leu
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Amol Shetty
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Yasmine M Cisse
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Bridget M Nugent
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Kathleen E Morrison
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Eldin Jašarević
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Weiliang Huang
- Department of Pharmaceutical Science, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Nickole Kanyuch
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Ali B Rodgers
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Natarajan V Bhanu
- Epigenetics Institute, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Dara S Berger
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Benjamin A Garcia
- Epigenetics Institute, Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Seth Ament
- Institute for Genome Sciences, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Maureen Kane
- Department of Pharmaceutical Science, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - C Neill Epperson
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
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23
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Morrison KE, Jašarević E, Howard CD, Bale TL. It's the fiber, not the fat: significant effects of dietary challenge on the gut microbiome. Microbiome 2020; 8:15. [PMID: 32046785 PMCID: PMC7014620 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-020-0791-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/19/2020] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Dietary effects on the gut microbiome play key roles in the pathophysiology of inflammatory disorders, metabolic syndrome, obesity, and behavioral dysregulation. Often overlooked in such studies is the consideration that experimental diets vary significantly in the proportion and source of their dietary fiber. Commonly, treatment comparisons are made between animals fed a purchased refined diet that lacks soluble fiber and animals fed a standard vivarium-provided chow diet that contains a rich source of soluble fiber. Despite the well-established critical role of soluble fiber as the source of short chain fatty acid production via the gut microbiome, the extent to which measured outcomes are driven by differences in dietary fiber is unclear. Further, the interaction between sex and age in response to dietary transition is likely important and should also be considered. RESULTS We compared the impact of transitioning young adult and 1-year aged male and female mice from their standard chow diet to a refined low soluble fiber diet on gut microbiota community composition. Then, to determine the contribution of dietary fat, we also examined the impact of transitioning a subset of animals from refined low-fat to refined high-fat diet. We used a serial sampling strategy coupled with 16S rRNA marker gene sequencing to examine consequences of recurrent dietary switching on gut microbiota community dynamics. Analysis revealed that the transition from a chow diet to a refined diet that lacks soluble fiber accounted for most of the variance in community structure, diversity, and composition across all groups. This dietary transition was characterized by a loss of taxa within the phylum Bacteroidetes and expansion of Clostridia and Proteobacteria in a sex- and age-specific manner. Most notably, no changes to gut microbiota community structure and composition were observed between mice consuming either refined low- or high-fat diet, suggesting that transition to the refined diet that lacks soluble fiber is the primary driver of gut microbiota alterations, with limited additional impact of dietary fat on gut microbiota. CONCLUSION Collectively, our results show that the choice of control diet has a significant impact on outcomes and interpretation related to diet effects on gut microbiota. As the reduction of soluble fiber may influence synthesis of microbial metabolites that are important for regulating metabolic, immune, behavioral, and neurobiological outcomes, additional studies are now needed to fully delineate the contribution of fat and fiber on the gut microbiome. Video Abtract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen E Morrison
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, HSF3, room 9-171, 670 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Eldin Jašarević
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, HSF3, room 9-171, 670 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Christopher D Howard
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, HSF3, room 9-171, 670 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, HSF3, room 9-171, 670 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, HSF3, room 9-171, 670 W. Baltimore St., Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
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24
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Abstract
On March 19, 2019, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Zulresso (brexanolone) for intravenous use for the treatment of postpartum depression (PPD) in adult women. The decision was based on three recent clinical trials following an FDA priority review and breakthrough therapy designation. Brexanolone is now available through a restricted process called the Zulresso Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy Program that requires the drug to be administered by a healthcare provider in a certified healthcare facility. Brexanolone represents an important new treatment option to address treatment-resistant depressive symptoms. In this article, we discuss the current critical need for PPD treatments, the mechanisms of brexanolone action, and the efficacy and drug safety studies that led to FDA approval. Additionally, we discuss some limitations of the current formulation, specific populations of women that might benefit from this treatment, and how new drugs on the horizon may increase the ability to treat PPD in a variety of patient populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- K E Morrison
- Departments of Pharmacology and Psychiatry and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - A B Cole
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - S M Thompson
- Department of Physiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - T L Bale
- Departments of Pharmacology and Psychiatry and Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
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25
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Bale TL. Parental stress delivery: Somatic signals impacting development. Placenta 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2019.06.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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26
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Morgan CP, Chan J, Bale TL. Driving the Next Generation: Paternal Lifetime Experiences Transmitted via Extracellular Vesicles and Their Small RNA Cargo. Biol Psychiatry 2019; 85:164-171. [PMID: 30580777 PMCID: PMC6309802 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2018.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2018] [Revised: 08/29/2018] [Accepted: 09/17/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Epidemiological studies provide strong evidence for the impact of diverse paternal life experiences on offspring neurodevelopmental disease risk. While these associations are well established, the molecular mechanisms underlying these intergenerational transmissions remain elusive, though recent studies focusing on the influence of paternal experience before conception have implicated germ cell epigenetic programming. Any model accounting for the germline transfer of nongenetic information from sire to offspring must include certain components, such as 1) a vector to carry any signal from the paternal compartment to the maternal reproductive tract and future embryo; 2) a molecular signal, encoded by a paternal experience, to carry this memory and enact downstream responses; and 3) a target cell or tissue to receive the signal and convert it into an effect on embryonic development. We explore the current understanding of the potential processes and candidate factors that may serve as these components. We specifically discuss the growing appreciation for the importance of extracellular vesicles in these processes, beginning with their known role in delivering potential signals, including small RNAs, to sperm, the prototypical vector, during their posttesticular maturation. Finally, we explore the possibility that paternal extracellular vesicles could themselves serve as vectors, delivering signals not only to gametes or the zygote but also to tissues of the maternal reproductive tract to influence fetal development.
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27
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Jašarević E, Howard CD, Morrison K, Misic A, Weinkopff T, Scott P, Hunter C, Beiting D, Bale TL. The maternal vaginal microbiome partially mediates the effects of prenatal stress on offspring gut and hypothalamus. Nat Neurosci 2018; 21:1061-1071. [PMID: 29988069 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-018-0182-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 124] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/23/2018] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Early prenatal stress disrupts maternal-to-offspring microbiota transmission and has lasting effects on metabolism, physiology, cognition, and behavior in male mice. Here we show that transplantation of maternal vaginal microbiota from stressed dams into naive pups delivered by cesarean section had effects that partly resembled those seen in prenatally stressed males. However, transplantation of control maternal vaginal microbiota into prenatally stressed pups delivered by cesarean section did not rescue the prenatal-stress phenotype. Prenatal stress was associated with alterations in the fetal intestinal transcriptome and niche, as well as with changes in the adult gut that were altered by additional stress exposure in adulthood. Further, maternal vaginal transfer also partially mediated the effects of prenatal stress on hypothalamic gene expression, as observed after chronic stress in adulthood. These findings suggest that the maternal vaginal microbiota contribute to the lasting effects of prenatal stress on gut and hypothalamus in male mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eldin Jašarević
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA.,Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Christopher D Howard
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kathleen Morrison
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA.,Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Ana Misic
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Tiffany Weinkopff
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Phillip Scott
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Christopher Hunter
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Daniel Beiting
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.,Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Center for Host-Microbial Interactions, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. .,Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. .,Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA. .,Center for Epigenetic Research in Child Health and Brain Development, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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28
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Chan JC, Nugent BM, Bale TL. Parental Advisory: Maternal and Paternal Stress Can Impact Offspring Neurodevelopment. Biol Psychiatry 2018; 83:886-894. [PMID: 29198470 PMCID: PMC5899063 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 130] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2017] [Revised: 09/07/2017] [Accepted: 10/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Parental stress exposures are implicated in the risk for offspring neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders, prompting critical examination of preconception and prenatal periods as vulnerable to environmental insults such as stress. Evidence from human studies and animal models demonstrates the influence that both maternal and paternal stress exposures have in changing the course of offspring brain development. Mechanistic examination of modes of intergenerational transmission of exposure during pregnancy has pointed to alterations in placental signaling, including changes in inflammatory, nutrient-sensing, and epigenetic pathways. Transmission of preconception paternal stress exposure is associated with changes in epigenetic marks in sperm, with a primary focus on the reprogramming of DNA methylation, histone posttranslational modifications, and small noncoding RNAs. In this review, we discuss evidence supporting the important contribution of intergenerational parental stress in offspring neurodevelopment and disease risk, and the currently known epigenetic mechanisms underlying this transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer C Chan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Perelman School of Medicine University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Bridget M Nugent
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland.
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29
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Hudecova AM, Hansen KEA, Mandal S, Berntsen HF, Khezri A, Bale TL, Fraser TWK, Zimmer KE, Ropstad E. A human exposure based mixture of persistent organic pollutants affects the stress response in female mice and their offspring. Chemosphere 2018; 197:585-593. [PMID: 29407821 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2018.01.085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2017] [Revised: 01/15/2018] [Accepted: 01/16/2018] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are found in the food chain of both humans and animals and exert a wide spectrum of potentially adverse effects. The present experiment aimed to investigate whether a defined mixture of 29 POPs, based on the dietary intake of Scandinavians, could affect the stress response in female mice exposed through ingestion, and in their offspring. Female mice 129:C57BL/6F0 hybrids were exposed from weaning, throughout pregnancy, and up until necropsy, to either 5000 × or 100 000 × the estimated daily intake for Scandinavians. The offspring were fed a reference diet containing no POPs. Both the mothers and their offspring were tested for basal and stress responsive corticosterone levels, and in an open field test to measure locomotor activity and anxiety-like behaviours. We found mothers to have elevated basal corticosterone levels, as well as a prolonged stress response following POP exposure. In the offspring, there was no effect of POPs on the stress response in females, but the exposed males had an over-sensitised stress response. There was no effect on behaviour in either the mothers or the offspring. In conclusion, we found a human relevant POP mixture can lead to subtle dysregulation of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis in mice. As HPA axis dysregulation is commonly associated with neurological disorders, further studies should explore the relevance of this outcome for humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M Hudecova
- Section for Experimental Biomedicine, Department of Production Animal Clinical Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway
| | - Kristine E A Hansen
- Section for Experimental Biomedicine, Department of Production Animal Clinical Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway
| | - Siddhartha Mandal
- Center for Environmental Health, Public Health Foundation of India, New Delhi, India
| | - Hanne F Berntsen
- Section for Experimental Biomedicine, Department of Production Animal Clinical Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway; Department of Administration, Lab Animal Unit, National Institute of Occupational Health, Oslo, Norway
| | - Abdolrahman Khezri
- Section for Biochemistry and Physiology, Department of Basic Sciences and Aquatic Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Pereleman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Thomas W K Fraser
- Section for Experimental Biomedicine, Department of Production Animal Clinical Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway.
| | - Karin E Zimmer
- Section for Biochemistry and Physiology, Department of Basic Sciences and Aquatic Medicine, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway
| | - Erik Ropstad
- Section for Experimental Biomedicine, Department of Production Animal Clinical Sciences, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway
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30
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Lee AG, Hagenauer M, Absher D, Morrison KE, Bale TL, Myers RM, Watson SJ, Akil H, Schatzberg AF, Lyons DM. Stress amplifies sex differences in primate prefrontal profiles of gene expression. Biol Sex Differ 2017; 8:36. [PMID: 29096718 PMCID: PMC5667444 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-017-0157-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2017] [Accepted: 10/23/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Stress is a recognized risk factor for mood and anxiety disorders that occur more often in women than men. Prefrontal brain regions mediate stress coping, cognitive control, and emotion. Here, we investigate sex differences and stress effects on prefrontal cortical profiles of gene expression in squirrel monkey adults. METHODS Dorsolateral, ventrolateral, and ventromedial prefrontal cortical regions from 18 females and 12 males were collected after stress or no-stress treatment conditions. Gene expression profiles were acquired using HumanHT-12v4.0 Expression BeadChip arrays adapted for squirrel monkeys. RESULTS Extensive variation between prefrontal cortical regions was discerned in the expression of numerous autosomal and sex chromosome genes. Robust sex differences were also identified across prefrontal cortical regions in the expression of mostly autosomal genes. Genes with increased expression in females compared to males were overrepresented in mitogen-activated protein kinase and neurotrophin signaling pathways. Many fewer genes with increased expression in males compared to females were discerned, and no molecular pathways were identified. Effect sizes for sex differences were greater in stress compared to no-stress conditions for ventromedial and ventrolateral prefrontal cortical regions but not dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. CONCLUSIONS Stress amplifies sex differences in gene expression profiles for prefrontal cortical regions involved in stress coping and emotion regulation. Results suggest molecular targets for new treatments of stress disorders in human mental health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex G Lee
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 1201 Welch Rd MSLS Room P104, Stanford, CA, 94305-5485, USA
| | - Megan Hagenauer
- Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Devin Absher
- HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL, USA
| | - Kathleen E Morrison
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Richard M Myers
- HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, Huntsville, AL, USA
| | - Stanley J Watson
- Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Huda Akil
- Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Alan F Schatzberg
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 1201 Welch Rd MSLS Room P104, Stanford, CA, 94305-5485, USA
| | - David M Lyons
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 1201 Welch Rd MSLS Room P104, Stanford, CA, 94305-5485, USA.
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31
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Abstract
Prenatal insults, such as maternal stress, are associated with an increased neurodevelopmental disease risk and impact males significantly more than females, including increased rates of autism, mental retardation, stuttering, dyslexia, and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Sex differences in the placenta, which begin with sex chromosomes, are likely to produce sex-specific transplacental signals to the developing brain. Our studies and others have identified X-linked genes that are expressed at higher levels in the female placenta. Through a genome-wide screen after maternal stress in mice, we identified the X-linked gene O-linked N-acetylglucosamine transferase (OGT) and demonstrated its causality in neurodevelopmental programming producing a male-specific stress phenotype. Elucidating the sex-specific molecular mechanisms involved in transplacental signals that impact brain development is key to understanding the sex bias in neurodevelopmental disorders and is expected to yield novel insight into disease risk and resilience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine and Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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Morgan CP, Bale TL. Sex differences in microRNA-mRNA networks: examination of novel epigenetic programming mechanisms in the sexually dimorphic neonatal hypothalamus. Biol Sex Differ 2017; 8:27. [PMID: 28810930 PMCID: PMC5558756 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-017-0149-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2017] [Accepted: 08/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Sexual differentiation of the male brain, and specifically the stress circuitry in the hypothalamus, is primarily driven by estrogen exposure during the perinatal period. Surprisingly, this single hormone promotes diverse programs of sex-specific development that vary widely between different cell types and across the developing male brain. The complexity of this phenomenon suggests that additional layers of gene regulation, including microRNAs (miRNAs), must act downstream of estrogen to mediate this specificity. METHODS To identify noncanonical mediators of estrogen-dependent sex-specific neural development, we assayed the miRNA complement of the mouse PN2 hypothalamus by microarray following an injection of vehicle or the aromatase inhibitor, formestane. Initially, multivariate analyses were used to test the influence of sex and experimental group on the miRNA environment as a whole. Then, we utilized traditional hypothesis testing to identify individual miRNA with significantly sex-biased expression. Finally, we performed a transcriptome-wide mapping of Argonaute footprints by high-throughput sequencing of RNA isolated by cross-linking immunoprecipitation (Ago HITS-CLIP) to empirically characterize targeting relationship between estrogen-responsive miRNAs and their messenger RNA (mRNA) targets. RESULTS In this study, we demonstrated that the neonatal hypothalamic miRNA environment has robust sex differences and is dynamically responsive to estrogen. Analyses identified 162 individual miRNAs with sex-biased expression, 92 of which were estrogen-responsive. Examining the genomic distribution of these miRNAs, we found three miRNA clusters encoded within a 175-kb region of chromosome 12 that appears to be co-regulated by estrogen, likely acting broadly to alter the epigenetic programming of this locus. Ago HITS-CLIP analysis uncovered novel miRNA-target interactions within prototypical mediators of estrogen-driven sexual differentiation of the brain, including Esr1 and Cyp19a1. Finally, using Gene Ontology annotations and empirically identified miRNA-mRNA connections, we identified a gene network regulated by estrogen-responsive miRNAs that converge on biological processes relevant to sexual differentiation of the brain. CONCLUSIONS Sexual differentiation of the perinatal brain, and that of stress circuitry in the hypothalamus specifically, seems to be particularly susceptible to environmental programming effects. Integrating miRNA into our conceptualization of factors, directing differentiation of this circuitry could be an informative next step in efforts to understand the complexities behind these processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher P Morgan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, 380 South University Ave, 410F Hill Pavilion, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, 380 South University Ave, 410F Hill Pavilion, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA.
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Bronson SL, Chan JC, Bale TL. Sex-Specific Neurodevelopmental Programming by Placental Insulin Receptors on Stress Reactivity and Sensorimotor Gating. Biol Psychiatry 2017; 82:127-138. [PMID: 28168960 PMCID: PMC5483189 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.12.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2016] [Revised: 11/22/2016] [Accepted: 12/09/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Diabetes, obesity, and overweight are prevalent pregnancy complications that predispose offspring to neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and schizophrenia. Although male individuals are three to four times more likely than female individuals to develop these disorders, the mechanisms driving the sex specificity of disease vulnerability remain unclear. Because defective placental insulin receptor (InsR) signaling is a hallmark of pregnancy metabolic dysfunction, we hypothesized that it may be an important contributor and novel mechanistic link to sex-specific neurodevelopmental changes underlying disease risk. METHODS We used Cre/loxP transgenic mice to conditionally target InsRs in fetally derived placental trophoblasts. Adult offspring were evaluated for effects of placental trophoblast-specific InsR deficiency on stress sensitivity, cognitive function, sensorimotor gating, and prefrontal cortical transcriptional reprogramming. To evaluate molecular mechanisms driving sex-specific outcomes, we assessed genome-wide expression profiles in the placenta and fetal brain. RESULTS Male, but not female, mice with placental trophoblast-specific InsR deficiency showed a significantly increased hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis stress response and impaired sensorimotor gating, phenotypic effects that were associated with dysregulated nucleotide metabolic processes in the male prefrontal cortex. Within the placenta, InsR deficiency elicited changes in gene expression, predominantly in male mice, reflecting potential shifts in vasculature, amino acid transport, serotonin homeostasis, and mitochondrial function. These placental disruptions were associated with altered gene expression profiles in the male fetal brain and suggested delayed cortical development. CONCLUSIONS Together, these data demonstrate the novel role of placental InsRs in sex-specific neurodevelopment and reveal a potential mechanism for neurodevelopmental disorder risk in pregnancies complicated by maternal metabolic disorders, including diabetes and obesity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie L Bronson
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Jennifer C Chan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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Freeman A, Stanko P, Berkowitz LN, Parnell N, Zuppe A, Bale TL, Ziolek T, Epperson CN. Inclusion of sex and gender in biomedical research: survey of clinical research proposed at the University of Pennsylvania. Biol Sex Differ 2017; 8:22. [PMID: 28649317 PMCID: PMC5480171 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-017-0139-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2017] [Accepted: 05/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The 2015 National Institutes of Health (NIH) policy that sex be considered as a biological variable (SABV) is now a critical part of the peer-review process for NIH funding as well as publication in several high-impact scientific journals. We sought to determine the degree to which biomedical researchers at the University of Pennsylvania already consider SABV or gender in their research. METHODS We reviewed 240 research protocols approved by the University of Pennsylvania Investigational Review Board (IRB) consecutively submitted between January and July 2016. Each protocol was searched for the terms sex, gender, male, female, man, and woman and justifications related to the population under study. A PubMed search was conducted to determine the current state of knowledge regarding potential sex and/or gender differences with respect to protocol topic. Data were summarized using descriptive statistics. RESULTS Of the 165 (68.8%) protocols that included one of the search terms, only 24 (14.5%) provided justification for the choice of the sex/gender of the population studied. Sixty-three percent (n = 151) of the protocols focused on topics for which the extant literature supports at least a moderate degree of sex/gender differences in some aspect of the disorder/condition being studied. Of these, only three (2.0%) indicated that the investigator would consider sex or gender impact on their primary outcomes. CONCLUSIONS Review of a subset of IRB protocols submitted at a major research institution suggests that very few investigators are considering sex or gender as important variables in their clinical research at the stage of protocol development. IRBs are in an excellent position to encourage investigators to consider SABV and gender in order to enhance the rigor of research design, maximize the importance of the resulting knowledge, and ensure that subject selection is equitable. These findings serve as the basis for developing an intervention at the level of IRB protocol development and submission that will promote consideration of SABV and/or gender, factors with critical import to patient safety and efficacy of interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Freeman
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Patrick Stanko
- Institutional Review Board, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Lily N. Berkowitz
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Neanta Parnell
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Anastasia Zuppe
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
- Neuroscience Center, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Tracy Ziolek
- Institutional Review Board, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - C. Neill Epperson
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA USA
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market Street, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA
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Morrison KE, Epperson CN, Sammel MD, Ewing G, Podcasy JS, Hantsoo L, Kim DR, Bale TL. Preadolescent Adversity Programs a Disrupted Maternal Stress Reactivity in Humans and Mice. Biol Psychiatry 2017; 81:693-701. [PMID: 27776734 PMCID: PMC5326692 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.08.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2016] [Revised: 08/04/2016] [Accepted: 08/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are one of the greatest predictors of affective disorders for women. Periods of dynamic hormonal flux, including pregnancy, exacerbate the risk for affective disturbance and promote hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis dysregulation, a key feature of affective disorders. Little is understood as to how stress experienced in late childhood, defined as preadolescence, alters the programming unique to this period of brain maturation and its interaction with the hormonal changes of pregnancy and postpartum. METHODS Preadolescent female mice were exposed to chronic stress and examined for changes in their HPA axis during pregnancy and postpartum, including assessment of maternal-specific stress responsiveness and transcriptomics of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Translationally, pregnant women with low or high ACEs were examined for their maternal stress responsiveness. RESULTS As predicted, preadolescent stress in mice resulted in a significant blunting of the corticosterone response during pregnancy. Transcriptomic analysis of the paraventricular nucleus revealed widespread changes in expression of immediate early genes and their targets, supporting the likely involvement of an upstream epigenetic mechanism. Critically, in our human studies, the high ACE women showed a significant blunting of the HPA response. CONCLUSIONS This unique mouse model recapitulates a clinical outcome of a hyporesponsive HPA stress axis, an important feature of affective disorders, during a dynamic hormonal period, and suggests involvement of transcriptional regulation in the hypothalamus. These studies identify a novel mouse model of female ACEs that can be used to examine how additional life adversity may provoke disease risk or resilience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen E. Morrison
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - C. Neill Epperson
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Mary D. Sammel
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Grace Ewing
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jessica S. Podcasy
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Liisa Hantsoo
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Deborah R. Kim
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Epperson CN, Sammel MD, Bale TL, Kim DR, Conlin S, Scalice S, Freeman K, Freeman EW. Adverse Childhood Experiences and Risk for First-Episode Major Depression During the Menopause Transition. J Clin Psychiatry 2017; 78:e298-e307. [PMID: 28394509 DOI: 10.4088/jcp.16m10662] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2016] [Accepted: 07/11/2016] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Stress exposures may have a differential impact on risk and resilience for depression depending on their timing across development. We sought to determine whether adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and their onset with respect to puberty contribute to the increased risk observed in first-episode major depressive disorder (MDD) during the menopause transition. METHODS Participants were from the Penn Ovarian Aging Study cohort, which is composed of women from Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, who underwent behavioral, cognitive, and endocrine evaluations approximately yearly from 1996 to 2012 and completed the Adverse Childhood Experiences Questionnaire at study end point (n = 243). ACEs that first occurred 2 or more years before menarche were considered prepubertal. Incident menopause MDD was defined as first observed onset of the disorder in the perimenopause to postmenopause transition using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R and the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders. RESULTS Incident menopause MDD occurred in 48% of the 100 women who reported lifetime MDD. Women reporting ≥ 2 total ACEs were at significantly greater risk for lifetime MDD (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 2.05, P = .034) and incident menopause MDD (aOR = 2.58, P = .03) compared to those reporting 0 ACEs; women with ≥ 2 postpubertal ACEs were 2.3 times more likely to experience incidence menopause MDD (P = .024) after controlling for race, smoking, body mass index, and employment. Experiencing only 1 ACE in the prepubertal window, regardless of additional ACEs in postpuberty, was associated with reduced risk for lifetime and incident menopause MDD. CONCLUSIONS Timing and number of adverse experiences with respect to puberty differentially impacted risk and resilience for MDD across the female life span and during the menopause transition in this community cohort.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Neill Epperson
- Professor of Psychiatry and Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 3535 Market St, Rm 3001, Philadelphia, PA 19104. .,Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Mary D Sammel
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Deborah R Kim
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Sarah Conlin
- Department of Counseling Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville
| | - Stephanie Scalice
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Katharine Freeman
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Ellen W Freeman
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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Abstract
The inclusion of sex as a biological variable in research is absolutely essential for improving our understanding of disease mechanisms contributing to risk and resilience. Studies focusing on examining sex differences have demonstrated across many levels of analyses and stages of brain development and maturation that males and females can differ significantly. This review will discuss examples of animal models and clinical studies to provide guidance and reference for the inclusion of sex as an important biological variable relevant to a Neuropsychopharmacology audience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry,Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - C Neill Epperson
- Penn PROMOTES Research on Sex and Gender in Health, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry,Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Abstract
The peripubertal period of development is a sensitive window, during which adverse experiences can increase the risk for presentation of cognitive and affective dysfunction throughout the lifespan, especially in women. However, such experiences in the context of a supportive social environment can actually ameliorate this risk, suggesting that resilience can be programmed in early life. Affective disorders and cognitive deficits commonly emerge during aging, with many women reporting increased difficulty with prefrontal cortex (PFC)-dependent executive functions. We have developed a mouse model to examine the interaction between peripubertal experience and age-related changes in cognition and stress regulation. Female mice were exposed to peripubertal chronic stress, during which they were either individually housed or housed with social interaction. One year after this stress experience, mice were examined in tasks to access their cognitive ability and flexibility in stress reactive measures. In a test of spatial memory acquisition and reversal learning where aged females normally display a decreased performance, the females that had experienced stress with social interaction a year earlier showed improved performance in reversal learning, a measure of cognitive flexibility. Because peripuberty is a time of major PFC maturation, we performed transcriptomic and biochemical analysis of the aged PFC, in which long-term changes in microRNA expression and in myelin proteins were found. These data suggest that stress in the context of social support experienced over the pubertal window can promote epigenetic reprogramming in the brain to increase the resilience to age-related cognitive decline in females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen E Morrison
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Sneha Narasimhan
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Ethan Fein
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
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Jašarević E, Morrison KE, Bale TL. Sex differences in the gut microbiome-brain axis across the lifespan. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 371:20150122. [PMID: 26833840 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 178] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/19/2015] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent years, the bidirectional communication between the gut microbiome and the brain has emerged as a factor that influences immunity, metabolism, neurodevelopment and behaviour. Cross-talk between the gut and brain begins early in life immediately following the transition from a sterile in utero environment to one that is exposed to a changing and complex microbial milieu over a lifetime. Once established, communication between the gut and brain integrates information from the autonomic and enteric nervous systems, neuroendocrine and neuroimmune signals, and peripheral immune and metabolic signals. Importantly, the composition and functional potential of the gut microbiome undergoes many transitions that parallel dynamic periods of brain development and maturation for which distinct sex differences have been identified. Here, we discuss the sexually dimorphic development, maturation and maintenance of the gut microbiome-brain axis, and the sex differences therein important in disease risk and resilience throughout the lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eldin Jašarević
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Kathleen E Morrison
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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Bronson SL, Bale TL. The Placenta as a Mediator of Stress Effects on Neurodevelopmental Reprogramming. Neuropsychopharmacology 2016; 41:207-18. [PMID: 26250599 PMCID: PMC4677129 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2015.231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 144] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2015] [Revised: 07/10/2015] [Accepted: 07/30/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Adversity experienced during gestation is a predictor of lifetime neuropsychiatric disease susceptibility. Specifically, maternal stress during pregnancy predisposes offspring to sex-biased neurodevelopmental disorders, including schizophrenia, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and autism spectrum disorders. Animal models have demonstrated disease-relevant endophenotypes in prenatally stressed offspring and have provided unique insight into potential programmatic mechanisms. The placenta has a critical role in the deleterious and sex-specific effects of maternal stress and other fetal exposures on the developing brain. Stress-induced perturbations of the maternal milieu are conveyed to the embryo via the placenta, the maternal-fetal intermediary responsible for maintaining intrauterine homeostasis. Disruption of vital placental functions can have a significant impact on fetal development, including the brain, outcomes that are largely sex-specific. Here we review the novel involvement of the placenta in the transmission of the maternal adverse environment and effects on the developing brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie L Bronson
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Rodgers AB, Bale TL. Germ Cell Origins of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Risk: The Transgenerational Impact of Parental Stress Experience. Biol Psychiatry 2015; 78:307-14. [PMID: 25895429 PMCID: PMC4526334 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.03.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2014] [Revised: 02/26/2015] [Accepted: 03/15/2015] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Altered stress reactivity is a predominant feature of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and may reflect disease vulnerability, increasing the probability that an individual will develop PTSD following trauma exposure. Environmental factors, particularly prior stress history, contribute to the developmental programming of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal stress axis. Critically, the consequences of stress experiences are transgenerational, with parental stress exposure impacting stress reactivity and PTSD risk in subsequent generations. Potential molecular mechanisms underlying this transmission have been explored in rodent models that specifically examine the paternal lineage, identifying epigenetic signatures in male germ cells as possible substrates of transgenerational programming. Here, we review the role of these germ cell epigenetic marks, including posttranslational histone modifications, DNA methylation, and populations of small noncoding RNAs, in the development of offspring stress axis sensitivity and disease risk.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- To whom correspondence should be addressed: Tracy L. Bale, Ph.D., Professor of Neuroscience, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, 3800 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6046, USA; ; Ph: +1 215 898 1369; Fax: +1 215 573 5187
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Jašarević E, Howerton CL, Howard CD, Bale TL. Alterations in the Vaginal Microbiome by Maternal Stress Are Associated With Metabolic Reprogramming of the Offspring Gut and Brain. Endocrinology 2015; 156:3265-76. [PMID: 26079804 PMCID: PMC4541625 DOI: 10.1210/en.2015-1177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 239] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The neonate is exposed to the maternal vaginal microbiota during parturition, providing the primary source for normal gut colonization, host immune maturation, and metabolism. These early interactions between the host and microbiota occur during a critical window of neurodevelopment, suggesting early life as an important period of cross talk between the developing gut and brain. Because perturbations in the prenatal environment such as maternal stress increase neurodevelopmental disease risk, disruptions to the vaginal ecosystem could be a contributing factor in significant and long-term consequences for the offspring. Therefore, to examine the hypothesis that changes in the vaginal microbiome are associated with effects on the offspring gut microbiota and on the developing brain, we used genomic, proteomic and metabolomic technologies to examine outcomes in our mouse model of early prenatal stress. Multivariate modeling identified broad proteomic changes to the maternal vaginal environment that influence offspring microbiota composition and metabolic processes essential for normal neurodevelopment. Maternal stress altered proteins related to vaginal immunity and abundance of Lactobacillus, the prominent taxa in the maternal vagina. Loss of maternal vaginal Lactobacillus resulted in decreased transmission of this bacterium to offspring. Further, altered microbiota composition in the neonate gut corresponded with changes in metabolite profiles involved in energy balance, and with region- and sex-specific disruptions of amino acid profiles in the developing brain. Taken together, these results identify the vaginal microbiota as a novel factor by which maternal stress may contribute to reprogramming of the developing brain that may predispose individuals to neurodevelopmental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eldin Jašarević
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6046
| | - Christopher L Howerton
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6046
| | - Christopher D Howard
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6046
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6046
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Abstract
The transgenerational epigenetic programming involved in the passage of environmental exposures to stressful periods from one generation to the next has been examined in human populations, and mechanistically in animal models. Epidemiological studies suggest that gestational exposures to environmental factors including stress are strongly associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, including attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, schizophrenia, and autism spectrum disorders. Both maternal and paternal life experiences with stress can be passed on to offspring directly during pregnancy or through epigenetic marks in the germ cell. Animal models of parental stress have examined relevant offspring phenotypes and transgenerational outcomes, and provided unique insight into the germ cell epigenetic changes associated with disruptions in neurodevelopment. Understanding germline susceptibility to exogenous signals during stress exposure and the identification of the types of epigenetic marks is critical for defining mechanisms underlying disease risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tracy L Bale
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, and Department of Animal Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
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Abstract
The British epidemiologist Dr. David J. Barker documented the relationship between infant birth weight and later onset of hypertension, coronary heart disease, insulin resistance, and type II diabetes. A stressful in utero environment can cause long-term consequences for offspring through prenatal programming. Prenatal programming most commonly occurs through epigenetic mechanisms and can be dependent on the type and timing of exposure as well as the sex of the fetus. In this review, we highlight the most recent evidence that prenatal programming is implicated in the development of psychiatric disorders in offspring exposed to maternal stress during pregnancy. Methodological differences between studies contribute to unavoidable heterogeneity in study findings. Current data suggest that fetal exposure to maternal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis dysregulation, excessive glucocorticoids, and inflammation with resulting epigenetic changes at both the placental and fetal levels are important areas of continued investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deborah R. Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Penn Center for Women’s Behavioral Wellness, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Room 3050, 3535 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - C. Neill Epperson
- Department of Psychiatry, Penn Center for Women’s Behavioral Wellness, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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Jašarević E, Rodgers AB, Bale TL. A novel role for maternal stress and microbial transmission in early life programming and neurodevelopment. Neurobiol Stress 2015; 1:81-88. [PMID: 25530984 PMCID: PMC4267059 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2014.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 101] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2014] [Revised: 10/18/2014] [Accepted: 10/20/2014] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Perturbations in the prenatal and early life environment can contribute to the development of offspring stress dysregulation, a pervasive symptom in neuropsychiatric disease. Interestingly, the vertical transmission of maternal microbes to offspring and the subsequent bacterial colonization of the neonatal gut overlap with a critical period of brain development. Therefore, environmental factors such as maternal stress that are able to alter microbial populations and their transmission can thereby shape offspring neurodevelopment. As the neonatal gastrointestinal tract is primarily inoculated at parturition through the ingestion of maternal vaginal microflora, disruption in the vaginal ecosystem may have important implications for offspring neurodevelopment and disease risk. Here, we discuss alterations that occur in the vaginal microbiome following maternal insult and the subsequent effects on bacterial assembly of the neonate gut, the production of neuromodulatory metabolites, and the developmental course of stress regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tracy L. Bale
- Department of Animal Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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Goel N, Bale TL, Epperson CN, Kornstein SG, Leon GR, Palinkas LA, Stuster JW, Dinges DF. Effects of sex and gender on adaptation to space: behavioral health. J Womens Health (Larchmt) 2014; 23:975-86. [PMID: 25259837 DOI: 10.1089/jwh.2014.4911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This article is part of a larger body of work entitled, "The Impact of Sex and Gender on Adaptation to Space." It was developed in response to a recommendation from the 2011 National Academy of Sciences Decadal Survey, "Recapturing a Future for Space Exploration: Life and Physical Sciences for a New Era," which emphasized the need to fully understand sex and gender differences. In this article, our workgroup-consisting of expert scientists and clinicians from academia and the private sector-investigated and summarized the current body of published and unpublished human research performed to date related to sex- and gender-based differences in behavioral adaptations to human spaceflight. This review identifies sex-related differences in: (1) sleep, circadian rhythms, and neurobehavioral measures; (2) personality, group interactions, and work performance and satisfaction; and (3) stress and clinical disorders. Differences in these areas substantially impact the risks and optimal medical care required by space-faring women. To ensure the health and safety of male and female astronauts during long-duration space missions, it is imperative to understand the influences that sex and gender have on behavioral health changes occurring during spaceflight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Namni Goel
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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Boersma GJ, Bale TL, Casanello P, Lara HE, Lucion AB, Suchecki D, Tamashiro KL. Long-term impact of early life events on physiology and behaviour. J Neuroendocrinol 2014; 26:587-602. [PMID: 24690036 DOI: 10.1111/jne.12153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2013] [Revised: 03/14/2014] [Accepted: 03/25/2014] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
This review discusses the effects of stress and nutrition throughout development and summarises studies investigating how exposure to stress or alterations in nutrition during the pre-conception, prenatal and early postnatal periods can affect the long-term health of an individual. In general, the data presented here suggest that that anything signalling potential adverse conditions later in life, such as high levels of stress or low levels of food availability, will lead to alterations in the offspring, possibly of an epigenetic nature, preparing the offspring for these conditions later in life. However, when similar environmental conditions are not met in adulthood, these alterations may have maladaptive consequences, resulting in obesity and heightened stress sensitivity. The data also suggest that the mechanism underlying these adult phenotypes might be dependent on the type and the timing of exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- G J Boersma
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
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Epperson CN, Kim DR, Bale TL. Estradiol modulation of monoamine metabolism: one possible mechanism underlying sex differences in risk for depression and dementia. JAMA Psychiatry 2014; 71:869-70. [PMID: 24898065 PMCID: PMC4126841 DOI: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2014.729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- C. Neill Epperson
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia2Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Deborah R. Kim
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Tracy L. Bale
- School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
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Bronson SL, Bale TL. Prenatal stress-induced increases in placental inflammation and offspring hyperactivity are male-specific and ameliorated by maternal antiinflammatory treatment. Endocrinology 2014; 155:2635-46. [PMID: 24797632 PMCID: PMC4060181 DOI: 10.1210/en.2014-1040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 208] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Adverse experiences during gestation such as maternal stress and infection are known risk factors for neurodevelopmental disorders, including schizophrenia, autism, and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder. The mechanisms by which these distinct exposures may confer similar psychiatric vulnerability remain unclear, although likely involve pathways common to both stress and immune responses at the maternal-fetal interface. We hypothesized that maternal stress-induced activation of immune pathways within the placenta, the sex-specific maternal-fetal intermediary, may contribute to prenatal stress programming effects on the offspring. Therefore, we assessed for markers indicative of stress-induced placental inflammation, and examined the ability of maternal nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) treatment to ameliorate placental effects and thereby rescue the stress-dysregulation phenotype observed in our established mouse model of early prenatal stress (EPS). As expected, placental gene expression analyses revealed increased levels of immune response genes, including the proinflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IL-1β, specifically in male placentas. NSAID treatment partially ameliorated these EPS effects. Similarly, in adult offspring, males displayed stress-induced locomotor hyperactivity, a hallmark of dopaminergic dysregulation, which was ameliorated by maternal NSAID treatment. Fitting with these outcomes and supportive of dopamine pathway involvement, expression of dopamine D1 and D2 receptors was altered by EPS in males. These studies support an important interaction between maternal stress and a proinflammatory state in the long-term programming effects of maternal stress.
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MESH Headings
- Animals
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/immunology
- Anti-Inflammatory Agents, Non-Steroidal/pharmacology
- Blotting, Western
- Brain/drug effects
- Brain/immunology
- Brain/metabolism
- Female
- Gene Expression/drug effects
- Gene Expression/immunology
- Humans
- Interleukin-1beta/genetics
- Interleukin-1beta/immunology
- Interleukin-6/genetics
- Interleukin-6/immunology
- Male
- Maze Learning/drug effects
- Mice
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Motor Activity/drug effects
- Motor Activity/immunology
- Placenta/drug effects
- Placenta/immunology
- Placenta/metabolism
- Pregnancy
- Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/immunology
- Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects/psychology
- Receptors, Dopamine D1/genetics
- Receptors, Dopamine D1/immunology
- Receptors, Dopamine D2/genetics
- Receptors, Dopamine D2/immunology
- Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
- Sex Factors
- Stress, Psychological/immunology
- Stress, Psychological/psychology
- Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase/immunology
- Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase/metabolism
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie L Bronson
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
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Howerton AR, Roland AV, Fluharty JM, Marshall A, Chen A, Daniels D, Beck SG, Bale TL. Sex differences in corticotropin-releasing factor receptor-1 action within the dorsal raphe nucleus in stress responsivity. Biol Psychiatry 2014; 75:873-83. [PMID: 24289884 PMCID: PMC3997756 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.10.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2013] [Revised: 09/26/2013] [Accepted: 10/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Women are twice as likely as men to suffer from stress-related affective disorders. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) is an important link between stress and mood, in part through its signaling in the serotonergic dorsal raphe (DR). Development of CRF receptor-1 (CRFr1) antagonists has been a focus of numerous clinical trials but has not yet been proven efficacious. We hypothesized that sex differences in CRFr1 modulation of DR circuits might be key determinants in predicting therapeutic responses and affective disorder vulnerability. METHODS Male and female mice received DR infusions of the CRFr1 antagonist, NBI 35965, or CRF and were evaluated for stress responsivity. Sex differences in indices of neural activation (cFos) and colocalization of CRFr1 throughout the DR were examined. Whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology assessed sex differences in serotonin neuron membrane characteristics and responsivity to CRF. RESULTS Males showed robust behavioral and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responses to DR infusion of NBI 35965 and CRF, whereas females were minimally responsive. Sex differences were also found for both CRF-induced DR cFos and CRFr1 co-localization throughout the DR. Electrophysiologically, female serotonergic neurons showed blunted membrane excitability and divergent inhibitory postsynaptic current responses to CRF application. CONCLUSIONS These studies demonstrate convincing sex differences in CRFr1 activity in the DR, where blunted female responses to NBI 35965 and CRF suggest unique stress modulation of the DR. These sex differences might underlie affective disorder vulnerability and differential sensitivity to pharmacologic treatments developed to target the CRF system, thereby contributing to a current lack of CRFr1 antagonist efficacy in clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis R Howerton
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Alison V Roland
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Jessica M Fluharty
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Anikò Marshall
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, New York
| | - Alon Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Derek Daniels
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, New York
| | - Sheryl G Beck
- Department of Anesthesia, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Research Institute, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Tracy L Bale
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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