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Intergenerational Aspects of Immune and Endocrine Function in Perinatal Depression

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Perinatal Inflammation and Adult Psychopathology

Part of the book series: Progress in Inflammation Research ((PIR,volume 84))

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Abstract

Perinatal depression mediates a profound impact on maternal and offspring health. Alterations in endocrine and immune function in depressed mothers have been linked to altered stress responses in offspring and less optimal neurodevelopmental outcomes. This chapter reviews the important changes in immune function that have been documented in depressed mothers and seeks to link changes in immune regulatory and endocrine processes to ultimate outcome in offspring. We identify key interactions between the immune system, the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal axis and the oxytocin system that are relevant to understanding the dysregulated immune responses in depressed mothers. Additionally, we review how the above changes have been linked to an increased risk of aberrant development of offspring of depressed mothers, as well as the future manifestation of mental illness. Molecular mechanisms relevant to these processes are highlighted. Our work reinforces the potential importance of biomarkers that could be linked to both immune dysfunction and negative developmental outcomes in offspring in perinatal depression. Through improved screening and intervention protocols that incorporate the above approach, significant progress could be made in reducing the large morbidity associated with perinatal depression.

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Acknowledgments

AJP is the recipient of career development funding from the Province of British Columbia through the Clinician Investigator Program at the University of British Columbia (UBC), the Detweiler Travelling Fellowship from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the Friedman Award for Scholars in Health from UBC. CMP is supported by grants from Immunopsychiatry: A Consortium to Test the Opportunity for Immunotherapeutics in Psychiatry (MR/L014815/1) and the Medical Research Council (UK). Additional support has been provided by the National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre in Mental Health at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London.

Conflicts

AJP: none.

CMP: research funding from Janssen Pharmaceutical NV/Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson; speaker’s fees from Lundbeck and consultation fees from Eleusis Benefit Corporation.

PAZ: research funding from Janssen Pharmaceutical NV/Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stress, Psychiatry and Immunology Laboratory, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, UK

    Andrew J. Perrin, Carmine M. Pariante & Patricia A. Zunszain

  2. Clinician Investigator Program and Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Andrew J. Perrin

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  1. Andrew J. Perrin
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  2. Carmine M. Pariante
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Correspondence to Andrew J. Perrin .

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  1. Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UT Health Houston, Houston, TX, USA

    Antonio L. Teixeira

  2. Physiology and Pharmacology, Universidade Federal do Ceara, Fortaleza, Brazil

    Danielle Macedo

  3. Psychiatry, University of Munster, Munster, Germany

    Bernhard T. Baune

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Perrin, A.J., Pariante, C.M., Zunszain, P.A. (2020). Intergenerational Aspects of Immune and Endocrine Function in Perinatal Depression. In: Teixeira, A.L., Macedo, D., Baune, B.T. (eds) Perinatal Inflammation and Adult Psychopathology. Progress in Inflammation Research, vol 84. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39335-9_5

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