Persistent stress during pregnancy influences thymic development in murine offspring
Abstract
Persistent stress during pregnancy influences thymic development in murine offspring
Alex Schroeder1*, Cassandra M. Juran1,2, Carol Mitchell1, and Amber M. Paul1,2
1Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Department of Human Factors and Behavioral Neurobiology, Daytona Beach, FL
2Blue Marble Space Institute of Science, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
*Presenting Author
Thriving in spaceflight presents a unique challenge for humans. Exposure to extreme socioenvironmental stressors, such as altered gravity, ionizing radiation, and social isolation all can affect human biology. It is understood that physiological and psychological stress can disrupt gestation and reproduction processes in humans, as well. Using the mouse model, Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress (CUMS), we can assess the influence of socioenvironmental stress on various biological systems, including the relationship between immune and reproductive systems. The thymus is an important gland involved in early life immune development and is sensitive to external factors that can disrupt T cell receptor diversity and antigen specificity. Due to this, we assessed retrospective, open-sourced data from GeneLab Open Science Directory (OSD-287). These data consist of thymic transcriptomes of one-day old pups born to dams that were exposed to CUMS for three-weeks. We aim to identify thymic immune pathways and activities that are involved in T cell development. Therefore, we hypothesize that CUMS exposure in dams will impair antigen presentation pathways and T cell tolerance processes in the thymus of pups. In brief, this project will identify processes that engage T cell activity in pup thymic development and examine the consequences of socioenvironmental stress in gestation.
Persistent stress during pregnancy influences thymic development in murine offspring
Persistent stress during pregnancy influences thymic development in murine offspring
Alex Schroeder1*, Cassandra M. Juran1,2, Carol Mitchell1, and Amber M. Paul1,2
1Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Department of Human Factors and Behavioral Neurobiology, Daytona Beach, FL
2Blue Marble Space Institute of Science, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
*Presenting Author
Thriving in spaceflight presents a unique challenge for humans. Exposure to extreme socioenvironmental stressors, such as altered gravity, ionizing radiation, and social isolation all can affect human biology. It is understood that physiological and psychological stress can disrupt gestation and reproduction processes in humans, as well. Using the mouse model, Chronic Unpredictable Mild Stress (CUMS), we can assess the influence of socioenvironmental stress on various biological systems, including the relationship between immune and reproductive systems. The thymus is an important gland involved in early life immune development and is sensitive to external factors that can disrupt T cell receptor diversity and antigen specificity. Due to this, we assessed retrospective, open-sourced data from GeneLab Open Science Directory (OSD-287). These data consist of thymic transcriptomes of one-day old pups born to dams that were exposed to CUMS for three-weeks. We aim to identify thymic immune pathways and activities that are involved in T cell development. Therefore, we hypothesize that CUMS exposure in dams will impair antigen presentation pathways and T cell tolerance processes in the thymus of pups. In brief, this project will identify processes that engage T cell activity in pup thymic development and examine the consequences of socioenvironmental stress in gestation.