ArticleNature communications2020
Reproductive tract extracellular vesicles are sufficient to transmit intergenerational stress and program neurodevelopment.
Article in Nature communications, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 128 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
128 citing papers in PubMed, 206 citations in OpenAlex.
- Dietary restriction induces persistent multigenerational phenotypic effects in Phytoseiulus persimilis.Pest management science · 2026Article
- Epididymosome-Supplemented Extender Induces Changes in Morpho-Functional Traits and microRNA Levels of Post-Thaw Sperm and Improves Embryo Developmental Potential.Molecular reproduction and development · 2026Article
- Psychosocial stress-associated alterations in microRNAs and their relevance for metabolic diseases: A systematic review.Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology · 2026Review
- Paternal Caffeine Exposure Programs Offspring Stress Vulnerability via Sperm Dlk1-Dio3 Imprinting-Directed Remodeling of a Novel Neural Circuit.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- The impact of pregestational stress on neurodevelopment: Implications for autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.The Journal of physiology · 2026Review
- Male reproductive biology was reshaped during placental mammal diversification through epididymal secretome expansion.EMBO reports · 2026Article
- Elevated zygotic let-7f-5p alters developmental trajectories and sex-specific somatic growth.iScience · 2026Article
- Review
- Paternal Sertoli cell-derived extracellular vesicles transfer mtDNA and microRNA cargo to trigger germ cell oxidative stress and induce metabolic risks in offspring.Cell communication and signaling : CCS · 2026Article
- Sperm sncRNA networks are synchronized by a coordination between adverse childhood experiences (ACE) and current stress.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Article
- Investigating milk-derived extracellular vesicles as mediators of maternal stress and environmental intervention.Molecular psychiatry · 2026Article
- Epigenetic Legacy: The Role of Sperm miRNAs in the Paternal Inheritance of Diabetes and Obesity Development.Diabetes/metabolism research and reviews · 2026Review
- Article
- Environmental influences on seminal plasma: Molecular and functional insights.The Journal of reproduction and development · 2026Review
- Epigenetic regulation in early embryogenesis: mechanisms, developmental programming, and transgenerational implications.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2026Review
- Environmental and Genetic Perturbations of the Sperm Epigenome.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026Review
- Silent regulators of trauma: the microRNA blueprint underlying post-traumatic stress disorder biology.Environmental epigenetics · 2026Review
- Epididymosomes: Composition and Functions for Sperm Maturation.Advances in anatomy, embryology, and cell biology · 2026Review
- Extracellular Vesicles, Nutrient Balance, and Redox Metabolism During Epididymal Sperm Maturation: A Perspective on the Complexity of Intercellular Interplay.Advances in anatomy, embryology, and cell biology · 2026Review
68 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
18 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are a unique mode of intercellular communication capable of incredible specificity in transmitting signals involved in cellular function, including germ cell maturation. Spermatogenesis occurs in the testes, behind a protective barrier to ensure safeguarding of germline DNA from environmental insults. Following DNA compaction, further sperm maturation occurs in the epididymis. Here, we report reproductive tract EVs transmit information regarding stress in the paternal environment to sperm, potentially altering fetal development. Using intracytoplasmic sperm injection, we found that sperm incubated with EVs collected from stress-treated epididymal epithelial cells produced offspring with altered neurodevelopment and adult stress reactivity. Proteomic and transcriptomic assessment of these EVs showed dramatic changes in protein and miRNA content long after stress treatment had ended, supporting a lasting programmatic change in response to chronic stress. Thus, EVs as a normal process in sperm maturation, can also perform roles in intergenerational transmission of paternal environmental experience.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.