Philadelphia, PA, Jan. 24, 2017 – Maternal infection during pregnancy increases the risk for psychiatric disorders in the child, but the path between the two is something of a mystery. In a study published in Biological Psychiatry, senior author Professor Urs Meyer of the University of Zurich-Vetsuisse in Zurich, Switzerland and colleagues use a mouse model to show that activation of the mother's immune system may cause long-term alterations in the programming of the offspring's genome, known as epigenetic modifications, which lead to behavioral abnormalities in adulthood.
"This study suggests that immunologic activation may be the connection between maternal infection to epigenetic changes that produce lasting changes in brain development," said Dr. John Krystal, Editor of Biological Psychiatry.
The findings provide new insight into the molecular mechanisms behind the risk factor. The alterations were found in a specific type of epigenetic modification called DNA methylation, which has been increasingly implicated in the origin of neurodevelopmental disorders. Altered DNA methylation appeared throughout the offspring's genome, and differed based on the timing of infection.
First author Dr. Juliet Richetto and colleagues induced a viral-like infection in pregnant mouse mothers at two important time points during brain development of the offspring, in early and late gestation. Immune activation at both time points produced alterations in a few common genes associated with neurodevelopment, but most were distinct. For example, late prenatal infection altered methylation of genes related to the development and function of GABA cells, whereas earlier exposure disrupted genes important for Wnt signaling, a pathway fundamental to early developmental events during embryogenesis. The findings indicate the importance of the timing of prenatal immune activation, and suggest that earlier infection may lead to more serious effects on neurodevelopment.
"Another intriguing finding of our study is that the pattern of DNA methylation in prenatally infected offspring changes over time," said Meyer, noting that alterations that were present when the mice reached adulthood were not observed when the mice were born. According to Meyer, the findings suggest that the modifications are dynamic and are likely influenced by activity-dependent events as the mice age.
"The adult emergence of multiple epigenetic modifications also raises the clinically relevant question as to whether some of these anomalies could be attenuated or even prevented by early interventions targeting the epigenetic machinery," said Meyer.
This would have important implications because the researchers found that the infection-induced modifications had functional consequences. The mRNA levels of genes showing differential methylation were altered in the offspring, indicating the epigenetic changes were modulating gene expression. Further, the offspring exhibited cognitive and behavioral abnormalities present in animal models of neurodevelopmental disorders, such as schizophrenia and autism, suggesting that prenatal infection may cause genome-wide methylation abnormalities in these disorders. Thus, the possibility of targeting these modifications could open a potential avenue for preventative treatments in people exposed to prenatal infection.
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Notes for editors
The article is "Genome-wide DNA Methylation Changes in a Mouse Model of Infection-Mediated Neurodevelopmental Disorders," by Juliet Richetto, Renaud Massart, Ulrike Weber-Stadlbauer, Moshe Szyf, Marco A. Riva, and Urs Meyer (doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.08.010). It appears in Biological Psychiatry, volume 81, issue 3 (2017), published by Elsevier.
Copies of this paper are available to credentialed journalists upon request; please contact Rhiannon Bugno at +1 214 648 0880 or [email protected]. Journalists wishing to interview the authors may contact Urs Meyer, Ph.D., at [email protected].
The authors' affiliations, and disclosures of financial and conflicts of interests are available in the article.
John H. Krystal, M.D., is Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine, Chief of Psychiatry at Yale-New Haven Hospital, and a research psychiatrist at the VA Connecticut Healthcare System. His disclosures of financial and conflicts of interests are available here.
About Biological Psychiatry
Biological Psychiatry is the official journal of the Society of Biological Psychiatry, whose purpose is to promote excellence in scientific research and education in fields that investigate the nature, causes, mechanisms and treatments of disorders of thought, emotion, or behavior. In accord with this mission, this peer-reviewed, rapid-publication, international journal publishes both basic and clinical contributions from all disciplines and research areas relevant to the pathophysiology and treatment of major psychiatric disorders.
The journal publishes novel results of original research which represent an important new lead or significant impact on the field, particularly those addressing genetic and environmental risk factors, neural circuitry and neurochemistry, and important new therapeutic approaches. Reviews and commentaries that focus on topics of current research and interest are also encouraged.
Biological Psychiatry is one of the most selective and highly cited journals in the field of psychiatric neuroscience. It is ranked 5th out of 140 Psychiatry titles and 11th out of 256 Neurosciences titles in the Journal Citations Reports® published by Thomson Reuters. The 2015 Impact Factor score for Biological Psychiatry is 11.212.
About Elsevier
Elsevier is a world-leading provider of information solutions that enhance the performance of science, health, and technology professionals, empowering them to make better decisions, deliver better care, and sometimes make groundbreaking discoveries that advance the boundaries of knowledge and human progress. Elsevier provides web-based, digital solutions — among them ScienceDirect, Scopus, Research Intelligence and ClinicalKey — and publishes over 2,500 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and more than 35,000 book titles, including a number of iconic reference works. Elsevier is part of RELX Group, a world-leading provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries. http://www.elsevier.com
Media contact
Rhiannon Bugno
Editorial Office, Biological Psychiatry
1-214-648-0880
[email protected]
Media Contact
Rhiannon Bugno
[email protected]
214-648-0880
@elseviernews
http://www.elsevier.com
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