Periodic Reporting for period 1 - NEUROPREG (Eating patterns in pregnancy: unraveling the underlying neurocircuits and its deleterious metabolic consequences)
Reporting period: 2021-03-01 to 2023-02-28
NEUROPREG aimed to uncover the connectome of critical brain regions underlying eating disturbances during pregnancy and its transgenerational metabolic impact. Specifically, it (a) addressed the neuronal circuits altered during pregnancy leading to abnormal eating patterns and highly palatable food preference; and (b) investigated whether recurrent food cravings during pregnancy causes detrimental neuropsychological and metabolic regulation in the offspring.
With the results carried out during this project, we were able to show that pregnancy is associated with a functional brain connectivity reorganization affecting key components of the dopaminergic mesolimbic circuitry, mainly through accumbal dopamine receptor type 2 (D2R) neurons, that directly mediate food craving-like episodes (Haddad-Tóvolli et al., 2022; Nature Metabolism). In addition, the research shows that the neurological adjustments taking place during pregnancy provide a time-window of susceptibility to increase emotional eating that, when persistent, likely lead to intergenerational effects thus deteriorating offspring neuropsychological and metabolic health of both mother and the offspring (Haddad-Tóvolli et al., 2022; Nature Metabolism).
Ultimately, and in line with the current European research trends and societal needs, the scientific advances encountered by the research proposal contributed to generate knowledge of extremely value to target eating-disorders-related neurocircuits and generate preventing strategies for pregnant-specific differential feeding behaviours. The identified link between pregnancy and reward-inducible feeding behaviours and its metabolic and neuropsychological consequences also leading to maternal and offspring predisposition to eating disorders and obesity can be easily applicable to improve quality of life of women and the future generations, and used as guidelines for disease prevention and nutritional care.
The results obtained throughout its development show that the maternal brain suffer a dynamic connectivity reorganization that affects key components of the dopaminergic mesolimbic circuitry, driving motivated appetitive behaviours and facilitates the perception of rewarding stimuli. I found that pregnancy engages a dynamic modulation of dopaminergic signalling through neurons expressing dopamine D2 receptors in the nucleus accumbens, which directly modulate food craving-like events. Importantly, persistent maternal food craving-like behaviour has long-lasting effects on the offspring, leading to glucose intolerance, increased body weight and increased susceptibility to develop eating disorders and anxiety-like behaviours during adulthood.
These findings have provided novel insights on how the maternal brain its plastic reshaped during gestation and induce emotional eating with transgenerational metabolic and neuropsychiatric consequences. This novel research has unravelled novel nutritional and preventive strategies for the rising incidences of eating disturbances and metabolic impairments. Moreover, it has opened new innovative research opportunities for the experienced researcher to consolidate herself as a reference in the field of maternal programming and maternal feeding behaviours.
The publication of the project results has received an enormous attention both in the scientific community and the general public, which highlights the innovative and highly relevant potential of my research.
For my career advance, as a Junior Researcher, I am now involved in the organization of meetings, writing of proposals for funding and in the supervision and monitoring the exploitation and dissemination of the project results. The action has also contributed to I increase my collaborations and continuous communication between different groups, thus building innovative and high-quality science. This can be translated by my broad network of collaborations with renowned researchers.
In terms of the measures to exploit and disseminate the project results, I have participated in several scientific meetings. My current research has called a remarkable attention from both the scientific community and the general public (headlines in specialized and non-specialized media) which highlights the innovative and highly relevant potential of my research. An overview of its impact is listed below:
- The Altmetrics of the article is high (322), showing its record of attention, dissemination and impact in both the scientific, news and social media. It has reached the position #7 in the Altmetrics of Nature Metabolism in 2022.
- Research Highlight in different Nature group Journals: Nature Reviews Neuroscience and Nature Metabolism.
- TV headlines (Spain): Telediario Televisión Española (RTVE); Telediario Televisión Catalunya (TV3); Telediario Televisión Madrid (TeleMadrid)
- News and blogs (over 10 countries worldwide): El Mundo; La Vanguardia; Antena 3; Science Alert; Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News; El Popular; Noticias ABC; Infobae; BioTech; El diario New York; El Español; Women´s; etc.
- Radio (Spain): Radio Nacional de España; Onda Cero; Rac1; Cadena SER; etc.
NEUROPREG has used original and innovative approaches through constant training and collaborative strategies to understand how specific female state (pregnancy) alters the maternal neurocircuit that directly influences feeding behaviours (i.e. food cravings) and induces metabolic and neuropsychiatric dysfunctions in the offspring. The outcomes of the action have generated highly relevant scientific, social and personal career impact.
I will continue to exploit and disseminate the results of NEUROPREG after the conclusion of this action due to its high relevance in the society.