Anxiety, chronical stress, and depression during pregnancy are considered to affect the offspring, presumably through placental dysregulation. We have studied the term placentae of pregnancies clinically monitored with the Beck’s Anxiety Inventory (BAI) and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). A cutoff threshold for BAI/EPDS of 10 classed patients into an Index group (>10, n = 23) and a Control group (<10, n = 23). Cortisol concentrations in hair (HCC) were periodically monitored throughout pregnancy and delivery. Expression differences of main glucocorticoid pathway genes, i.e., corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD11B2), glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1), as well as other key stress biomarkers (Arginine Vasopressin, AVP and O-GlcNAc transferase, OGT) were explored in medial placentae using real-time qPCR and Western blotting. Moreover, gene expression changes were considered for their association with HCC, offspring, gender, and birthweight. A significant dysregulation of gene expression for CRH, AVP, and HSD11B2 genes was seen in the Index group, compared to controls, while OGT and NR3C1 expression remained similar between groups. Placental gene expression of the stress-modulating enzyme 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD11B2) was related to both hair cortisol levels (Rho = 0.54; p < 0.01) and the sex of the newborn in pregnancies perceived as stressful (Index, p < 0.05). Gene expression of CRH correlated with both AVP (Rho = 0.79; p < 0.001) and HSD11B2 (Rho = 0.45; p < 0.03), and also between AVP with both HSD11B2 (Rho = 0.6; p < 0.005) and NR3C1 (Rho = 0.56; p < 0.03) in the Control group but not in the Index group; suggesting a possible loss of interaction in the mechanisms of action of these genes under stress circumstances during pregnancy.

中文翻译：

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慢性自我感知焦虑和抑郁女性足月胎盘中压力介导基因的表达增加

怀孕期间的焦虑、长期压力和抑郁被认为会影响后代，大概是通过胎盘失调。我们研究了使用贝克焦虑量表 (BAI) 和爱丁堡产后抑郁量表 (EPDS) 进行临床监测的足月胎盘。BAI/EPDS 的截止阈值将 10 名患者分为指数组（>10，n = 23）和对照组（<10，n = 23）。在整个怀孕和分娩过程中定期监测头发 (HCC) 中的皮质醇浓度。主要糖皮质激素途径基因的表达差异，即促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素（CRH）、11β-羟基类固醇脱氢酶（HSD11B2）、糖皮质激素受体（NR3C1）以及其他关键应激生物标志物（精氨酸加压素、AVP和O-GlcNAc转移酶，OGT) 使用实时 qPCR 和蛋白质印迹在内侧胎盘中进行了探索。此外，还考虑了基因表达变化与 HCC、后代、性别和出生体重的关联。与对照组相比，在索引组中观察到 CRH、AVP 和 HSD11B2 基因的基因表达显着失调，而 OGT 和 NR3C1 表达在组间保持相似。压力调节酶 11β-羟基类固醇脱氢酶 (HSD11B2) 的胎盘基因表达与头发皮质醇水平 (Rho = 0.54; p < 0.01) 和被认为有压力的怀孕新生儿的性别有关 (指数，p < 0.05) . CRH 的基因表达与 AVP (Rho = 0.79; p < 0.001) 和 HSD11B2 (Rho = 0.45; p < 0.03) 以及 AVP 与 HSD11B2 (Rho = 0.6; p < 0.005) 和 NR3C1 (Rho = 0.56; p < 0.03）在对照组中，但不在索引组中；表明在怀孕期间的压力环境下，这些基因的作用机制可能会失去相互作用。