Maternal Immune Activation with the Viral Mimetic Poly:IC in Pregnant Rats

Autor: Thaisa Sandini, Quentin Greba, Brittney Lins, John Howland
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Zdroj: Bio-Protocol, Vol 10, Iss 22 (2020)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2331-8325
DOI: 10.21769/BioProtoc.3817
Popis: Maternal immune activation (MIA) is increasingly well appreciated as an environmental risk factor for some psychiatric disorders. Administration of proinflammatory compounds such as the synthetic double-stranded RNA molecule polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (polyI:C) to pregnant rodents results in the release of proinflammatory cytokines in the maternal circulation. Various behavioural and brain changes are produced in the offspring that are associated with psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia. This protocol describes the steps necessary for inducing MIA in pregnant rat dams, which will allow for investigations into the mechanisms in the dam and offspring that mediate the long-term effects of exposure to inflammation while in utero. Increasing our understanding of these mechanisms may provide new insights for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of psychiatric disorders. This protocol has been developed and improved over the years by various researchers in Dr. Howland’s laboratory at the University of Saskatchewan.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals