Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42141775›Full record

ArticleGut microbes2026

Antenatal depressive symptoms impair offspring neurodevelopment by inducing maternal gut microbiota dysbiosis during pregnancy.

Fangyue Zhou, Lulu Wang, Yi Zhao, Chuqiao Hu, Yicong Meng, Jianxia Fan, William D Fraser, Jean-Patrice Baillargeon, Fengxiu Ouyang, Stephen James Lye and 4 more

Abstract readMulticenter Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Gut microbes, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Fangyue ZhouInstitute of Reproduction and Development, Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Lulu WangInstitute of Reproduction and Development, Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Yi ZhaoCollege of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China.
Chuqiao HuCollege of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China.
Yicong MengShanghai Key Laboratory of Embryo Original Diseases, The International Peace Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Jianxia FanShanghai Key Laboratory of Embryo Original Diseases, The International Peace Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
William D FraserDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbrooke, University of Sherbrooke, QC, Canada.
Jean-Patrice BaillargeonDivision of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC, Canada.
Fengxiu OuyangMinistry of Education-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Stephen James LyeLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Cindy-Lee DennisLunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Jian ShenCollege of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai, China.
Yanting WuInstitute of Reproduction and Development, Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
Hefeng HuangShanghai Key Laboratory of Embryo Original Diseases, The International Peace Maternity and Child Health Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The effects of maternal antenatal depression (AND) across different stages of pregnancy on offspring neurodevelopment remain poorly understood, and the underlying microbiota-related mechanisms are largely unknown. In a multicenter prospective cohort of 2053 pregnant women, we found that elevated depressive symptoms at any trimester were significantly associated with delayed infant neurodevelopment. Using a nested case‒control design with 16S rRNA sequencing of 504 maternal fecal samples, we identified a consistent reduction of butyrate-producing bacteria and disruption of amino acid metabolism in women with AND symptoms - features that correlated with poorer infant cognitive outcomes. To establish causality, fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) from women with AND symptoms was administered to germ-free dams, resulting in impaired intestinal barrier integrity, heightened neuroinflammatory signaling, and altered polyunsaturated fatty acid and amino acid metabolism in fetal brains at E18.5, leading to postnatal cognitive deficits in the offspring. Remarkably, maternal butyrate supplementation partially rescued these molecular and neurodevelopmental abnormalities. Together, these findings reveal a mechanistic link between maternal mood, gut microbial ecology, and fetal brain development, and identify the maternal gut microbiota and its metabolites as potential therapeutic targets to prevent the intergenerational effects of antenatal depression.

Indexed as

DepressionDysbiosisGastrointestinal MicrobiomePregnancy ComplicationsPrenatal Exposure Delayed EffectsAdultAnimalsBacteriaBrainButyratesCase-Control StudiesFecal Microbiota TransplantationFecesFemaleHumansNeurodevelopmentButyratesRNA, Ribosomal, 16SAntenatal depressionbutyrate supplementationfetal braingut microbiotaneurodevelopment

Identifiers

PMID42141775
PMCPMC13182969

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC
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Registered trials

None linked

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.