Project: Neurobiological basis of resilience/vulnerability to prenatal stress in mice

Acronym	ResiPreS
Project Topic	Prenatal stress (PS), i.e. maternal stress during pregnancy, is associated with an increased risk to develop psychopathologies. In particular we have recently documented in a rodent model that PS leads to PTSD-like memory deficits in only a subset of mice, highlighting the suitability of this model to study the mechanisms underlying resilience/vulnerability to the deleterious effects of stress. Based on preliminary studies, we have identified that this phenotype may rely on abnormalities in the functional balance between developmentally-born and adult-born neurons in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, which is crucial for the control of emotional memory. The aim of this highly collaborative proposal is thus to investigate whether resilience/vulnerability to develop a PTSD-like phenotype in PS subjects is associated with differences in: i) the anatomical and functional properties of developmentally-born and adult-born dentate granule neurons, ii) their gene expression profile, iii) their activity in the hippocampal network, using state of the art transgenic, transcriptomic, and large-scale electrophysiological approaches. Once the relevant target populations of cells or genes are identified, we also plan to test causality by pharmacogenetic / gene targeting approaches using state of the art viral tools. Altogether, this project should unveil relevant therapeutic targets in preventing stress-related disorders.
Network	NEURON Cofund2
Call	Neuron Cofund2 Joint Call 2023

Project partner

Number	Name	Role	Country
1	INSERM	Coordinator	France
2	IP PAS	Partner	Poland
3	German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases	Partner	Germany