Vulnerability and Adaptation in Brain Development

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Developmental Neuroscience".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (25 November 2023) | Viewed by 4301

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Studies in Neuroscience/Zoology, Jiwaji University, Gwalior, India
Interests: early life stress; perinatal exposure; glial cell; neurodevelopment

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Guest Editor
School of Studies in Neuroscience, Jiwaji University, Gwalior, India
Interests: early life stress; exposure in early life; perinatal exposure; neuroscience; brain

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Guest Editor
National Brain Research Centre, Manesar, Haryana, India
Interests: neurosurgery; neurological disorders; developmental defects; head injury; sub-arachnoid hemorrhage; experimental foetal neural transplant

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Multiple factors influence the development and maintenance of the nervous system. Stresses at critical windows during brain development are detrimental as the deficits are severe, irreversible and long lasting, leading to later life disorders. The consequences of stress are dependent upon the time at which an individual encounters it.

Prenatal stressors (such as maternal immune activation, malnourishment, obesity, smoking, alcoholism, drug/toxin exposures, diabetes, HIV, hepatitis and more), post-natal stressors (such as defective childbirth, injury, poor hygiene, infections, malnourishment, parental separation, violence, etc.) contribute to compromised brain development, abnormal cellular networking, cellular degeneration, inflammation and more. Such changes may lead to the development of mood and anxiety disorders, depression and poor cognitive development: the hallmarks of neurological disorders like Schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s, bipolar disorders and even accelerated aging.

We need to identify the factors that influence the functional and structural plasticity of the developing brain influencing its adaptability to perinatal challenges.

Prof. Dr. Ishan Kumar Patro
Dr. Nisha Patro
Prof. Dr. Prakash Narain Tandon
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • brain development
  • perinatal environment
  • early life stress
  • vulnerability of developing brain
  • adaptations during development
  • plasticity
  • neuroinflammation
  • neurodevelopmental disorders
  • neurogenesis
  • gliogenesis
  • perinatal brain injury
  • epigenetic mechanisms

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 839 KiB  
Article
Screen Media Use Affects Subcortical Structures, Resting-State Functional Connectivity, and Mental Health Problems in Early Adolescence
by Xu He, Jiaxin Hu, Mengyun Yin, Wei Zhang and Boyu Qiu
Brain Sci. 2023, 13(10), 1452; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13101452 - 12 Oct 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2796
Abstract
The association between excessive screen media use and mental health problems has attracted widespread attention. The literature to date has neglected the biological mechanisms underlying such a relationship and failed to distinguish between different types of screen media activities. A sample from the [...] Read more.
The association between excessive screen media use and mental health problems has attracted widespread attention. The literature to date has neglected the biological mechanisms underlying such a relationship and failed to distinguish between different types of screen media activities. A sample from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study was used in the present study to elucidate the longitudinal associations between specific types of screen media use, brain development, and diverse mental health problems. The results showed that different types of screen media use have differentiated associations with mental health problems, subcortical volume, and cortical–subcortical connectivity. Specifically, more passive media use was associated with increased rule-breaking behavior, while more video game playing was associated with increased withdrawn/depressed symptoms. In addition, more social media use was associated with a reduced volume of the hippocampus, caudate, and thalamus proper. More research is needed to examine the differential effects of screen media use on neurodevelopmental processes and mental health problems across adolescence. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vulnerability and Adaptation in Brain Development)
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28 pages, 6817 KiB  
Article
Multiple Early Life Stressors as Risk Factors for Neurodevelopmental Abnormalities in the F1 Wistar Rats
by Syed Mujtaba, Ishan Kumar Patro and Nisha Patro
Brain Sci. 2023, 13(10), 1360; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci13101360 - 22 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1197
Abstract
Cumulative exposure to multiple early life stressors is expected to affect behavioral development, causing increased susceptibility to neuropsychiatric disorders. The present study was designed to mimic such conditions in a rat model to study behavioral impairments during adolescence and adulthood. Female Wistar rats [...] Read more.
Cumulative exposure to multiple early life stressors is expected to affect behavioral development, causing increased susceptibility to neuropsychiatric disorders. The present study was designed to mimic such conditions in a rat model to study behavioral impairments during adolescence and adulthood. Female Wistar rats (n = 32; 140–150 gm) were switched to a low protein (LP; 8% protein) or control (20% protein) diet 15 days prior to conception, and then the diet regime was maintained throughout the experimental period. Pups born to control and LP dams were intraperitoneally injected with deltamethrin (DLT—pyrethroid insecticide; 0.7 mg/kg body weight; PND 1 to 7), lipopolysaccharide (LPS—bacterial endotoxin; 0.3 mg/kg body weight; PND 3 and 5), or DLT+LPS, on designated days forming eight experimental groups (Control, LP, Control+LPS, LP+LPS, Control+DLT, LP+DLT, Control+DLT+LPS and LP+DLT+LPS). Neurobehavioral assessments were performed in F1 rats (1, 3, 6 months) by open field, elevated plus maze, light and dark box, and rotarod tests. LP rats were found to be highly susceptible to either singular or cumulative exposure as compared to their age-matched control counterparts, showing significantly severe behavioral abnormalities, such as hyperactivity, attention deficits and low anxiety, the hallmark symptoms of neuropsychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and ADHD, suggesting thereby that early life multi-hit exposure may predispose individuals to developmental disorders. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Vulnerability and Adaptation in Brain Development)
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