TY - JOUR
T1 - Early life social stress and resting state functional connectivity in postpartum rat anterior cingulate circuits
AU - Nephew, Benjamin C.
AU - Febo, Marcelo
AU - Huang, Wei
AU - Colon-Perez, Luis M.
AU - Payne, Laurellee
AU - Poirier, Guillaume L.
AU - Greene, Owen
AU - King, Jean A.
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by a National Institutes of Health award ( NICHD R00 HD059943 ) and a Brain and Behavior Research Foundation NARSAD Young Investigator Award to BCN, NIH S10 OD018132-01 to the UMass CCNI, and a McKnight Brain Foundation postdoctoral fellowship for LCP.
Funding Information:
This work was supported by a National Institutes of Health award (NICHD R00 HD059943) and a Brain and Behavior Research Foundation NARSAD Young Investigator Award to BCN, NIH S10 OD018132-01 to the UMass CCNI, and a McKnight Brain Foundation postdoctoral fellowship for LCP.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2018/3/15
Y1 - 2018/3/15
N2 - Introduction Continued development and refinement of resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) fMRI techniques in both animal and clinical studies has enhanced our comprehension of the adverse effects of stress on psychiatric health. The objective of the current study was to assess both maternal behavior and resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) changes in these animals when they were dams caring for their own young. It was hypothesized that ECSS exposed dams would express depressed maternal care and exhibit similar (same networks), yet different specific changes in RSFC (different individual nuclei) than reported when they were adult females. Methods We have developed an ethologically relevant transgenerational model of the role of chronic social stress (CSS) in the etiology of postpartum depression and anxiety. Initial fMRI investigation of the CSS model indicates that early life exposure to CSS (ECSS) induces long term changes in functional connectivity in adult nulliparous female F1 offspring. Results ECSS in F1 dams resulted in depressed maternal care specifically during early lactation, consistent with previous CSS studies, and induced changes in functional connectivity in regions associated with sensory processing, maternal and emotional responsiveness, memory, and the reward pathway, with robust changes in anterior cingulate circuits. Limitations The sample sizes for the fMRI groups were low, limiting statistical power. Conclusion This behavioral and functional neuroanatomical foundation can now be used to enhance our understanding of the neural etiology of early life stress associated disorders and test preventative measures and treatments for stress related disorders.
AB - Introduction Continued development and refinement of resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) fMRI techniques in both animal and clinical studies has enhanced our comprehension of the adverse effects of stress on psychiatric health. The objective of the current study was to assess both maternal behavior and resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) changes in these animals when they were dams caring for their own young. It was hypothesized that ECSS exposed dams would express depressed maternal care and exhibit similar (same networks), yet different specific changes in RSFC (different individual nuclei) than reported when they were adult females. Methods We have developed an ethologically relevant transgenerational model of the role of chronic social stress (CSS) in the etiology of postpartum depression and anxiety. Initial fMRI investigation of the CSS model indicates that early life exposure to CSS (ECSS) induces long term changes in functional connectivity in adult nulliparous female F1 offspring. Results ECSS in F1 dams resulted in depressed maternal care specifically during early lactation, consistent with previous CSS studies, and induced changes in functional connectivity in regions associated with sensory processing, maternal and emotional responsiveness, memory, and the reward pathway, with robust changes in anterior cingulate circuits. Limitations The sample sizes for the fMRI groups were low, limiting statistical power. Conclusion This behavioral and functional neuroanatomical foundation can now be used to enhance our understanding of the neural etiology of early life stress associated disorders and test preventative measures and treatments for stress related disorders.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85040375283&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jad.2017.12.089
DO - 10.1016/j.jad.2017.12.089
M3 - Article
C2 - 29324369
AN - SCOPUS:85040375283
SN - 0165-0327
VL - 229
SP - 213
EP - 223
JO - Journal of Affective Disorders
JF - Journal of Affective Disorders
ER -