Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33301421›Full record

ArticleJCI insight2021

Identifying a biological signature of prenatal maternal stress.

James M Keane, Ali S Khashan, Fergus P McCarthy, Louise C Kenny, James M Collins, Sarah O'Donovan, Jillian Brown, John F Cryan, Timothy G Dinan, Gerard Clarke and 1 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JCI insight, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
19citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
4.9field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
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

19 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 27 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Seasonal moderators of maternal CRP levels during pregnancy.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2026
    Article
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  12. Maternal stress during the third trimester of pregnancy and the neonatal microbiome.The journal of maternal-fetal & neonatal medicine : the official journal of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Federation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Societies, the International Society of Perinatal Obstetricians · 2023
    Article
  13. Importance of human milk for infants in the clinical setting: Updates and mechanistic links.Nutrition in clinical practice : official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition · 2023
    Review
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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

11 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

James M KeaneAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
Ali S KhashanSchool of Public Health, University College Cork, Ireland.
Fergus P McCarthyThe Irish Centre for Maternal and Child Health Research (INFANT), Cork University Maternity Hospital, Cork, Ireland.
Louise C KennyDepartment of Women's and Children's Health, Institute of Translational Medicine, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom.
James M CollinsAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
Sarah O'DonovanAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
Jillian BrownAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
John F CryanAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
Timothy G DinanAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
Gerard ClarkeAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
Siobhain M O'MahonyAPC Microbiome Ireland and.
APC Microbiome Institute · IEUniversity College Cork · IEUniversity of Liverpool · GB

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Psychological stress affects maternal gastrointestinal (GI) permeability, leading to low-grade inflammation, which can negatively affect fetal development. We investigated a panel of circulating markers as a biological signature of this stress exposure in pregnant women with and without the stress-related GI disorder irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Markers of GI permeability and inflammation were measured in plasma from healthy and IBS cohorts of women at 15 and 20 weeks' gestation. Biomarkers were evaluated with respect to their degree of association to levels of stress, anxiety, and depression as indicated by responses from the Perceived Stress Scale, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. High levels of stress were associated with elevations of soluble CD14, lipopolysaccharide binding protein (LBP), and tumor necrosis factor-α, while anxiety was associated with elevated concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP) in otherwise healthy pregnancies. Prenatal depression was associated with higher levels of soluble CD14, LBP, and CRP in the healthy cohort. High levels of prenatal anxiety and depression were also associated with lower concentrations of tryptophan and kynurenine, respectively, in the IBS cohort. These markers may represent a core maternal biological signature of active prenatal stress, which can be used to inform intervention strategies via stress reduction techniques or other lifestyle approaches. Such interventions may need to be tailored to reflect underlying GI conditions, such as IBS.

Indexed as

AnxietyBiomarkersChemokinesCohort StudiesCytokinesDepressionFemaleFetal DevelopmentHumansInfant, NewbornInflammation MediatorsIrritable Bowel SyndromePregnancyPregnancy ComplicationsPregnancy OutcomeStress, PsychologicalBiomarkersChemokinesCytokinesInflammation MediatorsTryptophanInflammationNeuroscienceObstetrics/gynecology

Identifiers

PMID33301421
PMCPMC7934857
OpenAlexW3112593813

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

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 Socratic graph.