Maternal antibiotic administration during a critical developmental window has enduring neurobehavioural effects in offspring mice

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Files
1-s2.0-S0166432821000437-main.pdf(4.45 MB)
Published Version
Date
2021-04
Authors
O'Connor, Rory
Moloney, Gerard M.
Fulling, Christine
O'Riordan, Kenneth J.
Fitzgerald, Patrick
Bastiaanssen, Thomaz F. S.
Schellekens, Harriƫt
Dinan, Timothy G.
Cryan, John F.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Journal Issue
Abstract
Rates of perinatal maternal antibiotic use have increased in recent years linked to prophylactic antibiotic use following Caesarean section delivery. This antibiotic use is necessary and beneficial in the short-term; however, long-term consequences on brain and behaviour have not been studied in detail. Here, we endeavoured to determine whether maternal administration of antibiotics during a critical window of development in early life has lasting effects on brain and behaviour in offspring mice. To this end we studied two different antibiotic preparations (single administration of Phenoxymethylpenicillin at 31 mg/kg/day; and a cocktail consisting of, ampicillin 1 mg/mL; vancomycin 0.5 mg/mL; metronidazole 1 mg/mL; ciprofloxacin 0.2 mg/mL and imipenem 0.25 mg/mL). It was observed that early life exposure to maternal antibiotics led to persistent alterations in anxiety, sociability and cognitive behaviours. These effects in general were greater in animals treated with the broad-spectrum antibiotic cocktail compared to a single antibiotic with the exception of deficits in social recognition which were more robustly observed in Penicillin V exposed animals. Given the prevalence of maternal antibiotic use, our findings have potentially significant translational relevance, particularly considering the implications on infant health during this critical period and into later life.
Description
Keywords
Gut microbiota depletion , Intestinal microbiota , Mouse model , Brain , Life , Anxiety , Behavior , Metronidazole , Adulthood , Asthma , Development , Antibiotic , Behaviour , Cognition , Critical window
Citation
O'Connor, R., Moloney, G. M., Fulling, C., O'Riordan, K. J., Fitzgerald, P., Bastiaanssen, T. F. S., Schellekens, H., Dinan, T. G. and Cryan, J. F. (2021) 'Maternal antibiotic administration during a critical developmental window has enduring neurobehavioural effects in offspring mice', Behavioural Brain Research, 404, 113156 (13pp). doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113156