Neural mechanisms encoding gestational immune activation in the female brain

Gestational infection is considered as contributing factor for the development of psychopathologies later in life. The Maternal Immune Activation (MIA) mouse model, based on the systemic administration of the double-stranded RNA analogue Poly(I:C), is used to study the effects of gestational infection on offspring brain function and behavior.Previously, we demonstrated that stimulating pregnant mice with Poly(I:C) not only affects the developing brain in-utero, but also impacts on the structural and functional integrity of the maternal brain to disrupt maternal care behavior postpartum. However, which circuits in the brain are activated by systemic immune challenge during pregnancy and how they impact on the neural pathways underlying maternal behavior, is unknown. The objective of this study is to examine how MIA is persistently encoded in the female brain to disrupt the cellular and molecular mechanisms orchestrating maternal care behavior.