Table 2.
Summary of the main molecular, cellular and behavioral alterations reported after perinatal stress exposure in rodents.
| Stressor | Stress Protocol | Molecular/Cellular | Behavior | References | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment | Age | Assessment | Age | |||
| Bad caregiving conditions | Limited bedding (P1–P9) + 60 min immobilization (P10) or restraint (P20) | ↑ spine density, ↑ spine number and ↑ excitability (pyramidal neurons BLA) ↑ BLA volume |
P10, P20, P18 to P22 | ↑ anxiety ↓ social contact |
P60 to P78 | [66] |
| Caregiver maltreatment (stressed dam) outside the home cage (30 min/day from P1 to P7) | ↑ DNA methylation Bdnf exon IV (amygdala females) ↓ 5-hmC levels in (amygdala males) |
P8, P30, P90 | ↑anxiety | P1 to P7 | [67,68,69] | |
| Insufficient bedding (from P8 to P12) | ↑ amygdala neuronal activity | P20, P45 | ↓ social behavior, depressive-like symptoms | P20, P45 | [70] | |
| Maternal separation | 3 h/day from P2 to P12 in the home cage (dam removed) | ↓ CB1-R binding sites in the amygdala (P40, P70), ↓ AEA content (P12, P14), ↑ 2-AG content (P12, P14) | P2, P12, P14, P40, P70 | [71,72] | ||
| 30 min/day on P5, P16 and P21 outside the home cage (pups removed) | ↑ BDNF protein levels in the amygdala | adult | ↓ anxiety | Infant, Adult | [73] | |
| 180 min/day from P2 to P14 outside the home cage (pups removed) | ↑ BDNF expression in the CeA ↑ TrkB expression in the CeA |
adult | [74] | |||
| 3 h/day from P5 to P10 outside the home cage (pups removed) | ↑ DNA methyltransferases in the amygdala (P31) ↓ BDNF in the amygdala (P31, P86) |
P31, P86 | ↓ social interaction | P30 to P31, P85 to P86 | [75] | |
| 1 h/day from P1 to P21 outside the home cage (pups removed and placed individually) | ↓ spine density in apical dendrites (pyramidal neurons MeA) | P21 | [76] | |||
| Drug administration (Δ9-THC) | 5 mg/kg (oral in mothers) from G5 to weaning age (P24) | ↓ density μ-opioid-R in posteromedial cortical amygdala (males) ↑ density μ-opioid-R in posteromedial cortical amygdala (females) |
P70 | [77] | ||
Symbols and abbreviations: ↑ (increase), ↓ (decrease), G (gestational day), P (postnatal day), BLA (basolateral nuclei of the amygdala), LA (lateral nuclei of the amygdala), CB1-R (cannabinoid receptor 1), Bdnf (brain derived neurotrophic factor, gene), BDNF (brain derived neurotrophic factor, protein), 5hmC (5-Hydroxymethylcytosine), BLA (basolateral nucleus of the amygdala), CeA (central nucleus of the amygdala), TrKB (tropomyosin receptor kinase B), Δ9-THC (Δ9 tetrahydrocannabinol), AEA (anandamide), 2-AG (2-arachidonoyl glycerol), MeA (medial nucleus of the amygdala).