Maternal stress reprograms stress-related behavior and hippocampal gene expression in prepubertal male and female offspring?

JAZMIN GRILLO BALBOA; BROCCO, MA.; MELISA C MONTELEONE; MARTA C. ANTONELLI; MARÍA EUGENIA PALLARÉS; PASTOR, VERÓNICA

Glasgow

Congreso; Federation of European Neuroscience Societies. FENS 2020 Virtual Forum.; 2020

Aims: Prenatal stress (PS) is linked with high rates of psychopathologies in adulthood, which may be mediated by altered stress system response. In addition, the quality of mother-infant interactions represent an important adaptive pathway that influences stress system constitution. Here, we assessed gestational stress consequences on maternal care and on prepubertal offspring stress-related behaviors. Also, we evaluated possible induced molecular changes in the hippocampus, a brain structure with a major role in stress regulation. Methods: Wistar rats were subjected to restraint stress during the third week of gestation or left undisturbed (control, C). Elevated plus maze, light/dark box and stress-reactivity to an acute stress were used to evaluate stress-related behaviors on offspring. Hippocampi were dissected to assess the expression of candidate genes related to plasticity, stress-system regulation and DNA methylation pathways.Results: Stressed dams showed enhanced pup licking-grooming behavior. PS reduced offspring anxiety-like behaviors in comparison with C rats. Female PS rats also show increased risk behaviors and reduced corticosterone response to an acute stress. PS increased the expression of plasticity-related genes bdnf-iv and crhr1, and induced several sex differences changes on glucocorticoids and BDNF receptors expression. In males, PS increased mRNA levels of chromatin remodeler genes and reduced global methylated DNA content. Conclusions: Our results suggest that both PS and enhanced maternal care induce dynamic neurobehavioral alterations that manifest differently depending on the age and sex of the animal, highlighting the importance of using both sexes and including an ontogenetic approach when investigating the effects of early-life stress.