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Abstract #3491

Prenatal Inflammation and Stress Impairs Neurodevelopmental Trajectories As Measured By T2-Relaxometry

J. Keiko McCreary 1 , L. Sorina Truica 1 , Ashlee Matkin 2 , Albert R. Cross 3 , David M. Olson 4 , and Gerlinde A. S. Metz 1

1 Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, 2 Faculty of Medicine, University of Alberta, Alberta, Canada, 3 Departments of Physics and Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, 4 Departments of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Pediatrics and Physiology, University of Alberta, Alberta, Canada

This study investigated the effects of maternal inflammation and stress on offspring neurodevelopmental trajectories. We used in vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to analyze maps of transverse relaxation times (T2) to provide a quantitative measure of brain tissue changes in an animal model of maternal stress and inflammation induced by IL-1B treatment. The MRI findings, confirmed by histology, indicate that exposure to IL-1B and stress during gestation causes an increase in neuronal density in cortical layers I-III. This could reflect disturbed neuronal pruning during brain development, which represents a prominent neuropathological finding in human neurodevelopmental disorders.

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