title: Increased symptoms of illness following prenatal stress: Can it be prevented by fluoxetine?
abstract: Stress during pregnancy is associated with lifetime negative consequences for the offspring. The present study examined the effects of prenatal stress on symptoms of illness following an immune challenge in mice. Additionally, this study examined whether pretreatment with fluoxetine (FLX) could prevent the effects of maternal stress on illness symptoms. Mice prenatally exposed to stress, with or without FLX were administered with saline or endotoxin. In males, prenatal stress significantly augmented endotoxin-induced body-weight loss and reduced food consumption; prenatal FLX did not prevent these responses, and, in many cases, augmented them. In females, prenatal stress worsened endotoxin-induced suppression of sucrose intake, and prenatal FLX reversed this effect. These findings provide the first indication of altered response to an immune challenge following prenatal stress and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) treatment. These results may have implications for health and well-being of offspring exposed to stress during pregnancy.
authors.affiliation: School of Behavioral Sciences, The Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo, Tel Aviv, Israel. Electronic address: avitsur@mta.ac.il.
authors.forename: Ronit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Avitsur
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004435:Eating; D005260:Female; D005473:Fluoxetine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005518:Food Preferences / Q000187:drug effects / Q000523:psychology; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000633:toxicity; D008098:Litter Size / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D012737:Sex Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013395:Sucrose; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D005473:Fluoxetine; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; D013395:Sucrose
keywords: Fluoxetine; Prenatal environment; Prenatal stress; Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI); Sickness behavior