Prenatal Stress Rewires the Gut-Brain Axis: Long-Term, Sex-Specific Effects on Microbiota, Intestinal Barrier, and Hippocampal Inflammation.

ABSTRACT: Background: The gut microbiota and the gut epithelium play a central role in maintaining systemic and brain homeostasis from early life. Stressful experiences during sensitive developmental windows can disrupt this balance, increasing long-term susceptibility to psychiatric disorders. However, the mechanisms through which early-life alterations in the microbiota influence brain development and function remain poorly understood. Here, the sex-specific impact of prenatal stress (PNS) on gut integrity and microbial composition in adult offspring was explored. Methods: Thirty dams were mated and randomly assigned to PNS or control. Offspring microbiota was analysed through 16S rRNA sequencing, intestinal morphology with morphometric analyses, and tight junctions using qPCR and im

SUBMITTER: De Cillis F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12429922 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature