Giving a good start to a new life via maternal brain allostatic adaptations in pregnancy

• Published in: Frontiers in neuroendocrinology Vol. 53; p. 100739
• Main Authors: Russell, John A., Brunton, Paula J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.04.2019
• Subjects: Adaptation, Physiological - physiology; Allopregnanolone; Allostasis; Animals; Brain - growth & development; Epigenetics; Female; Fetal Development - physiology; Fetal programming; Humans; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System - metabolism; Hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis; Neuropeptides; Neurosecretory Systems - metabolism; Obesity; Opioids; Oxytocin; Pituitary-Adrenal System - metabolism; Pregnancy; Social stress; Obesity; Oxytocin; Hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis; Opioids; Epigenetics; Neuropeptides; Social stress; Fetal programming; Allopregnanolone; Allostasis
• ISSN: 0091-3022; 1095-6808
• DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2019.02.003

•Maternal neuroendocrine allostatic adaptations promote a successful pregnancy.•Maternal obesity causes pregnancy problems and programs obesity in the offspring.•Molecular allostatic mechanisms reduce stress responses in pregnancy.•Maternal social stress programs anxiety and stress responses in the F1/F2 offspring. Successful pregnancy requires adjustments to multiple maternal homeostatic mechanisms, governed by the maternal brain to support and enable survival of the growing fetus and placenta. Such adjustments fit the concept of allostasis (stability through change) and have a cost: allostatic load. Allostasis is driven by ovarian, anterior pituitary, placental and feto-placental hormones acting on the maternal brain to promote adaptations that support the pregnancy and protect the fetus. Many women carry an existing allostatic load into pregnancy, from socio-economic circumstances, poor mental health and in ‘developed’ countries, also from obesity. These pregnancies have poorer outcomes indicating negative interactions (failing allostasis) between pre-pregnancy and pregnancy allostatic loads. Use of animal models, such as adult prenatally stressed female offspring with abnormal neuroendocrine, metabolic and behavioural phenotypes, to probe gene expression changes, and epigenetic mechanisms in the maternal brain in adverse pregnancies are discussed, with the prospect of ameliorating poor pregnancy outcomes.