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We aimed first to assess associations between maternal health characteristics and newborn metabolite concentrations and second to assess associations between metabolites associated with maternal health characteristics and child body mass index (BMI). This study included 3492 infants enrolled in three birth cohorts with linked newborn screening metabolic data. Maternal health characteristics were ascertained from questionnaires, birth certificates, and medical records. Child BMI was ascertained from medical records and study visits. We used multivariate analysis of variance, followed by multivariable linear/proportional odds regression, to determine maternal health characteristic-newborn metabolite associations. Significant associations were found in discovery and replication cohorts of higher pre-pregnancy BMI with increased C0 and higher maternal age at delivery with increased C2 (C0: discovery: aβ 0.05 [95% CI 0.03, 0.07]; replication: aβ 0.04 [95% CI 0.006, 0.06]; C2: discovery: aβ 0.04 [95% CI 0.003, 0.08]; replication: aβ 0.04 [95% CI 0.02, 0.07]). Social Vulnerability Index, insurance, and residence were also associated with metabolite concentrations in a discovery cohort. Associations between metabolites associated with maternal health characteristics and child BMI were modified from 1–3 years (interaction: p < 0.05). These findings may provide insights on potential biologic pathways through which maternal health characteristics may impact fetal metabolic programming and child growth patterns.

Background Severe wasting affects 16 million under 5’s and carries an immediate risk of death. Prevalence remains unacceptably high in sub-Saharan Africa and early infancy is a high-risk period. We aimed to explore risk factors for severe wasting in rural Gambian infants. Methods We undertook a case-control study from November 2014 to June 2015, in rural Gambia. Cases had WHO standard weight-for-length z-scores (WLZ) < −3 on at least 1 occasion in infancy. Controls with a WLZ > −3 in the same interval, matched on age, gender, village size and distance from the clinic were selected. Standard questionnaires were used to assess maternal socioeconomic status, water sanitation and hygiene and maternal mental health. Conditional logistic regression using a multivariable model was used to determine the risk factors for severe wasting. Qualitative in depth interviews were conducted with mothers and fathers who were purposively sampled. A thematic framework was used to analyse the in-depth interviews. Results Two hundred and eighty (77 cases and 203 controls) children were recruited. In-depth interviews were conducted with 16 mothers, 3 fathers and 4 research staff members. The mean age of introduction of complementary feeds was similar between cases and controls (5.2 [SD 1.2] vs 5.1 [SD 1.3] months). Increased odds of severe wasting were associated with increased frequency of complementary feeds (range 1–8) [adjusted OR 2.06 (95%: 1.17–3.62), p  = 0.01]. Maternal adherence to the recommended infant care practices was influenced by her social support networks, most importantly her husband, by infant feeding difficulties and maternal psychosocial stressors that include death of a child or spouse, recurrent ill health of child and lack of autonomy in child spacing. Conclusion In rural Gambia, inappropriate infant feeding practices were associated with severe wasting in infants. Additionally, adverse psychosocial circumstances and infant feeding difficulties constrain mothers from practising the recommended child care practices. Interventions that promote maternal resilience through gender empowerment, prioritising maternal psychosocial support and encouraging the involvement of fathers in infant and child care promotion strategies, would help prevent severe wasting in these infants.

Prenatal maternal exposure to air pollution may cause adverse health effects in offspring, potentially through altered immune responses. Maternal psychosocial distress can also alter immune function and may increase gestational vulnerability to air pollution exposure. We investigated whether prenatal exposure to air pollution is associated with altered immune responses in cord blood mononuclear cells (CBMCs) and potential modification by maternal depression in 463 women recruited in early pregnancy (1999–2001) into the Project Viva longitudinal cohort. We estimated black carbon (BC), fine particulate matter (PM2.5), residential proximity to major roadways, and near-residence traffic density, averaged over pregnancy. Women reported depressive symptoms in mid-pregnancy (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale) and depression history by questionnaire. Immune responses were assayed by concentrations of three cytokines (IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α), in unstimulated or stimulated (phytohemagglutinin (PHA), cockroach extract (Bla g 2), house dust mite extract (Der f 1)) CBMCs. Using multivariable linear or Tobit regression analyses, we found that CBMCs production of IL-6, TNF-a, and IL-10 were all lower in mothers exposed to higher levels of PM2.5 during pregnancy. A suggestive but not statistically significant pattern of lower cord blood cytokine concentrations from ever (versus never) depressed women exposed to PM2.5, BC, or traffic was also observed and warrants further study.

1. Biomedical researchers have long appreciated that maternal stressors can induce preparative and adaptive programming in offspring via exposure to maternal Glucocorticoids (GCs). However, few ecologists are aware of the capacity for maternal GC exposure to translate ecological and environmental stressors into preparative and adaptive programmed offspring responses in free-living systems. We review a growing body of experimental work indicating that circulating maternal GCs link ecological stressors with adaptive programming of the stress axis. Throughout, we emphasise that natural and human-induced ecological stressors play a fundamental role in programming the capacity of individuals, populations and communities to respond to both predictable and unpredictable ecological change via translating maternal adversity into responsive programming of the vertebrate stress axis. 2. To encourage rigorous testing of this paradigm in a broad range of ecological systems, we introduce the principal extrinsic stressors with a recognised potential to alter maternal circulating GC levels. We then review from the biomedical literature regarding the underlying physiological and epigenetic mechanisms of stress-induced programming of individual phenotypes to predict how variation in ecological stressors can produce individual variation in stress axis management. 3. To appreciate the potential evolutionary inertia (i.e. adaptive value) of maternally programmed individual variation, we review key recent studies in free-living systems that test its adaptive function, and then discuss how variation in stress-axis programming may scale up to influence populations and ecological communities. 4. Given the huge potential of this field, it is encouraging that ecologists are beginning to examine how and why maternal GCs translate ecological and environmental stressors into preparative stress axis programming in free-living systems.

Background The improvement of maternal and child health (MCH) outcomes is an important part of the sustainable development goals (SDGs). MCH remains an important issue globally as the SDGs have not yet been achieved in most countries. Young women in universities are likely to experience unintended pregnancy due to risky sexual behaviors in tertiary institutions which is characterized by lack of condom and/or contraceptive use and coercion. Pregnant young women in an academic environment are susceptible to stressors associated with unintended pregnancy and academic demands of universities. However, very little is known about the stress and coping among young people in tertiary institutions who get pregnant during the course of their studies and choose to keep the pregnancy. Methods Participants were purposively selected among pregnant students and those in the puerperal period at the time of the study. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were undertaken to explore the experiences of pregnancy and early motherhood, with particular focus on the various stressors experienced and possible coping strategies employed by students. The data were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim, then analysed using thematic analysis. Results The findings show that pregnancy and early motherhood was an experience that came with a lot of stress emanating from fear of parents’ reactions, academic pressure, financial constraints, relationship problems with male partners and experiences of social stigma. Participants used emotion-focused and problem-focused coping strategies to deal with the stressors confronting them during and after their pregnancy. Conclusion The experiences of pregnant students are multifaceted and generally characterised by financial crisis, academic challenges, shame, strenuous relationships and transitioning into a new identity. A multipronged approach to healthcare for pregnant students that focus on comprehensive antenatal services, health education, health promotion, psychosocial interventions including academic counselling will have positive outcomes for young mothers and their children.

Background Postpartum depression (PPD) is a significant community issue impacting maternal health, child growth and development and family life. In Pakistan, its prevalence is notably high, particularly in socioeconomically disadvantaged settings, however, there is still limited community-based research done in examining its multiple contributing factors. Objective To estimate the point prevalence of PPD among three groups of mothers at 1, 3, and 6 months postpartum and to identify maternal, socioeconomic, and psychosocial correlates in low-income peri-urban communities of Karachi, Pakistan. Methods A cross-sectional analysis was conducted among 268 mothers of infants with ages of 1, 3, and 6 months, in the low socioeconomic districts of Karachi. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) with a country specific cut-off of 14 and above being the symptoms of clinically significant importance. Structured questionnaires were used to gather data on sociodemographic and obstetric and psychosocial characteristics. Data collected between July 2022 and December 2024. Poisson regression models were used to estimate crude prevalence ratios, adjusted prevalence ratios (aPR) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Results The overall prevalence of possible PPD was 29.1% (95% CI: 23.7–34.5). Multivariable analysis identified significant associations of PPD with child’s male gender (aPR = 1.474, 95% CI:1.003–2.167), middle-born children (aPR = 2.104, 95% CI:1.119–3.956), intimate partner violence (aPR = 3.430, 95% CI:1.566–7.509), maternal employment (aPR = 2.706, 95% CI:1.468–4.987), household income (aPR = 0.259, 95% CI:0.088–0.761), and previously breastfeeding of two children (aPR = 0.413, 95% CI: (0.205–0.830) and three children (aPR = 0.181, 95% CI: (0.082–0.396). Additionally, significant intimate partner violence and household income interaction was observed (aPR = 7.049, 95% CI:1.714–28.982). Conclusion This paper examined maternal and infant predictors of postpartum depression among low socioeconomic groups in Karachi, Pakistan. Our results highlight the necessity of context-based solutions to postpartum mental health in resource-constrained appropriations. Screening in communities, better houses, economical support and violence prevention helps are essential to decrease PPD load in resource constrained peri-urban environment.

Current concerns about climate change have led to intensive research attempting to understand how climate-driven stressors affect the performance of organisms, in particular the offspring of many invertebrates and fishes. Although stressors are likely to act on several stages of the life cycle, little is known about their action across life phases, for instance how multiple stressors experienced simultaneously in the maternal environment can modulate the responses to the same stressors operating in the offspring environment. Here, we study how performance of offspring of a marine invertebrate (shore crab Carcinus maenas ) changes in response to two stressors (temperature and salinity) experienced during embryogenesis in brooding mothers from different seasons. On average, offspring responses were antagonistic: high temperature mitigated the negative effects of low salinity on survival. However, the magnitude of the response was modulated by the temperature and salinity conditions experienced by egg-carrying mothers. Performance also varied among cohorts, perhaps reflecting genetic variation, and/or maternal conditions prior to embryogenesis. This study contributes towards the understanding of how anthropogenic modification of the maternal environment drives offspring performance in brooders.

Traumatic experiences in childhood can alter behavioural responses and increase the risk for psychopathologies across life, not only in the exposed individuals but also in their progeny. In some conditions, such experiences can however be beneficial and facilitate the appraisal of adverse environments later in life. Here we expose newborn mice to unpredictable maternal separation combined with unpredictable maternal stress (MSUS) for 2 weeks and assess the impact on behaviour in the offspring when adult. We show that MSUS in male mice favours goal-directed behaviours and behavioural flexibility in the adult offspring. This effect is accompanied by epigenetic changes involving histone post-translational modifications at the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) gene and decreased MR expression in the hippocampus. Mimicking these changes pharmacologically in vivo reproduces the behavioural phenotype. These findings highlight the beneficial impact that early adverse experiences can have in adulthood, and the implication of epigenetic modes of gene regulation. Traumatic events in one generation can affect the behaviour of their offspring. Here the authors subject male mouse pups to traumatic stress and find that their offspring display improved goal-directed behaviours associated with epigenetic changes of the mineralocorticoid receptor gene.

The developmental origins of psychopathology begin before birth and perhaps even prior to conception. Understanding the intergenerational transmission of psychopathological risk is critical to identify sensitive windows for prevention and early intervention. Prior research demonstrates that maternal trauma history, typically assessed retrospectively, has adverse consequences for child socioemotional development. However, very few prospective studies of preconception trauma exist, and the role of preconception symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) remains unknown. The current study prospectively evaluates whether maternal preconception PTSD symptoms predict early childhood negative affectivity, a key dimension of temperament and predictor of later psychopathology. One hundred and eighteen women were recruited following a birth and prior to conception of the study child and were followed until the study child was 3–5 years old. Higher maternal PTSD symptoms prior to conception predicted greater child negative affectivity, adjusting for concurrent maternal depressive symptoms and sociodemographic covariates. In exploratory analyses, we found that neither maternal prenatal nor postpartum depressive symptoms or perceived stress mediated this association. These findings add to a limited prospective literature, highlighting the importance of assessing the mental health of women prior to conception and providing interventions that can disrupt the intergenerational sequelae of trauma.

Maternal separation (MS) causes long-lasting epigenetic changes in the brain and increases vulnerability to traumatic events in adulthood. Of interest, there may be sex-specific differences in these epigenetic changes. In this study, the extent of histone acetylation in the hippocampus (HIP) and the expression of BDNF were measured to determine whether BDNF influences risk of PTSD following MS in early life. Rat offspring were separated from their dams (3 h/day or 6 h/day from PND2~PND14). Then, pups were treated with a single prolonged stress (SPS) procedure when they reached adulthood (PND80). In animals stressed with the SPS procedure in adulthood, those that had increased MS intensity in childhood demonstrated more significant changes in performance on tests of anxiety, depression, and contextual fear memory. Reduced levels of total BDNF mRNA and protein were observed after SPS treatment and further declined in groups with greater MS time in childhood. Interestingly, these changes were correlated with decreased H3K9ac levels and increased HDAC2 levels. Additional MS also led to more severe ultrastructural synaptic damage in rats that experienced the SPS procedure, particularly in the CA1 and CA3 region of the HIP, reflecting impaired synaptic plasticity in these regions. Interestingly, male rats in the MS3h-PTSD group showed decreased anxiety, but no similar changes were found in female rats, suggesting a degree of gender specificity in coping with stress after mild MS. In summary, this study suggests that the epigenetic signatures of the BDNF genes can be linked to HIP responses to stress, providing insights that may be relevant for people at risk of stress-related psychopathologies.