Motherhood and Structural Plasticity in the Hippocampus

描述(申请人提供)：产后伴随着对生殖成功至关重要的荷尔蒙和行为的剧烈变化。除了照料方面的变化，怀孕和产后期还与非生殖行为的变化有关，包括某些类型的学习和记忆。尽管有这些报道，但人们对母亲的神经后果知之甚少，特别是与认知功能相关的大脑区域。海马体就是这样一个大脑区域，它的结构可塑性也是众所周知的。具体地说，各种荷尔蒙和经验因素影响树突结构、突触的数量和成年后海马区新神经元的产生。然而，到目前为止，还没有研究调查产后期间海马体结构可塑性发生变化的可能性。因此，拟议的研究将探索以下具体目标：1)确定海马体的结构可塑性在产后期间是否发生变化2)评估与产后期间相关的激素和经验变化是否导致海马体结构可塑性的变化。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The postpartum period is accompanied by dramatic changes in hormones and behavior that are critical for reproductive success. In addition to changes in caregiving, pregnancy and the postpartum period are associated with alterations in non-reproductive behaviors, including certain types of learning and memory. Despite these reports, very little, if anything, is known about the neural consequences of motherhood, particularly for brain regions associated with cognitive function. The hippocampus is one such brain region that is also well-recognized for its capacity for structural plasticity. Specifically, various hormonal and experiential factors affect dendritic structure, the number of synapses and the production of new neurons in the hippocampus throughout adulthood. However, no studies to date have investigated the possibility that alterations in structural plasticity occur in the hippocampus during the postpartum period. Thus, the proposed studies will explore the following specific aims: 1) To determine whether structural plasticity in the hippocampus is altered during the postpartum period 2) To evaluate whether hormonal and experiential changes associated with the postpartum period underlie changes in structural plasticity in the hippocampus.