Category
Basic
Description
The field of maternal dietary impacts on offspring neurodevelopment has been established over the past 30 years, and since its establishment it has grown rapidly. The research shows that maternal diet significantly impacts offspring neurodevelopment, with those effects lasting until adulthood. Most research in this field focuses on the detrimental impacts of a Western Diet (WD), but little research exists on the beneficial impacts of a healthy diet. This research aims to close that gap by assessing a healthy diet and its impact on adult offspring. We hypothesize that a maternal Mediterranean diet (MD) will have positive impacts on the neurological outcomes of the adult offspring. We hypothesize that the MD will reduce anxiety-like and depressive-like behaviors and increase dendritic arbor and spine density in adult offspring. This research is a pre-clinical model conducted in C57BL/6J mice in a 4x2 factorial design. We assessed four different maternal diets (MD, WD, and two control diets) and their impact on male and female offspring. Behavioral tasks were run on the offspring to assess anxiety- and depressive-like behavior. Following behavioral assessments, offspring brain tissue was collected to assess brain morphology differences between the offspring. Neuron morphology was assessed through histological staining, and qPCR was done to assess genetic changes. This research will provide evidence to support clinicians as they recommend how mothers take care of their bodies during pregnancy. While there is lots of research conducted on what a mother should avoid during pregnancy, there is less evidence supporting healthy options that have beneficial impacts on the offspring.
Impacts of Maternal Diet on Offspring Affective Behavior and Brain Morphology
Basic
The field of maternal dietary impacts on offspring neurodevelopment has been established over the past 30 years, and since its establishment it has grown rapidly. The research shows that maternal diet significantly impacts offspring neurodevelopment, with those effects lasting until adulthood. Most research in this field focuses on the detrimental impacts of a Western Diet (WD), but little research exists on the beneficial impacts of a healthy diet. This research aims to close that gap by assessing a healthy diet and its impact on adult offspring. We hypothesize that a maternal Mediterranean diet (MD) will have positive impacts on the neurological outcomes of the adult offspring. We hypothesize that the MD will reduce anxiety-like and depressive-like behaviors and increase dendritic arbor and spine density in adult offspring. This research is a pre-clinical model conducted in C57BL/6J mice in a 4x2 factorial design. We assessed four different maternal diets (MD, WD, and two control diets) and their impact on male and female offspring. Behavioral tasks were run on the offspring to assess anxiety- and depressive-like behavior. Following behavioral assessments, offspring brain tissue was collected to assess brain morphology differences between the offspring. Neuron morphology was assessed through histological staining, and qPCR was done to assess genetic changes. This research will provide evidence to support clinicians as they recommend how mothers take care of their bodies during pregnancy. While there is lots of research conducted on what a mother should avoid during pregnancy, there is less evidence supporting healthy options that have beneficial impacts on the offspring.
