Gastrointestinal nematode infection during pregnancy and lactation enhances spatial reference memory and reduces indicators of anxiety-like behaviour in uninfected adult female mouse offspring.

Maternal bacterial and viral infections that induce neuroinflammation in the developing brain are associated with impaired cognitive function and increased anxiety in the offspring. In contrast, maternal infection with the immunoregulatory murine gastrointestinal (GI) nematode, , appears to benefit neurodevelopment as juvenile 2- and 3-week-old male and female offspring had enhanced spatial memory, which may be due to a Th2/Treg biased neuroimmune environment. Here, the impact of maternal infection during pregnancy and lactation on the spatial and anxiety-like behaviours of adult, 3-month-old uninfected male and female offspring was explored for the first time.

Parasite load, rather than parasite presence, decreases upstream movement in Trinidadian guppies Poecilia reticulata.

Several factors influence whether an organism remains in its local habitat. Parasites can, for example, influence host movement by impacting their behavior, physiology, and morphology. In rivers, fish that swim efficiently against the current are able to maintain their position without being displaced downstream, a behavior referred to as positive rheotaxis.

Preschool child growth attainment and velocity during an agriculture intervention in rural Panama may be diminished by soil-transmitted helminths.

Background: Agricultural interventions are often recommended to address undernutrition in subsistence farming communities. However, intensified agriculture exposure can increase soil transmitted helminth (STH) infections, which are linked with poor child growth. This study examined impacts of the VERASAN public health and agricultural intervention program on preschool child growth attainment (HAZ and WAZ) and relative growth velocity over 7 months [change in height-for-age (∆HAD) and weight-for-age (∆WAD) difference].

Putative chemical cue from infected guppies subtly alters behaviour but prior exposure decreases parasite intensity.

The reliance on chemical communication is well established for evading predation in aquatic systems. Only a few studies have found evidence that chemical cues released from aquatic animals infected with parasites alter behaviour. Furthermore, the link between putative chemical cues and susceptibility to infection has not been studied.

Multiple Indicators of Undernutrition, Infection, and Inflammation in Lactating Women Are Associated with Maternal Iron Status and Infant Anthropometry in Panama: The MINDI Cohort.

Maternal infections, nutrient deficiencies, and inflammation (MINDI) co-exist in lactating indigenous women in Panama, but their impact on maternal iron status and infant growth is unknown. For this secondary analysis of cross-sectional data of lactating mothers from our MINDI cohort, we investigated associations of MINDI variables with maternal anemia, elevated serum transferrin receptor (sTfR), low serum iron, hepcidin, ferritin, and infant weight-for-age (WAZ), length-for-age (LAZ), and head-circumference-for-age (HCAZ) Z-scores in 99 mother-infant dyads. A bootstrapping resampling procedure preselected covariates for inclusion in multivariable regressions models from chronic maternal infections and nutritional status [folate, vitamins A, D, retinol-binding protein (RBP), insulin-growth factor-1 (IGF-1)] and inflammation [C-reactive protein (CRP), cytokines, platelet indices] indicators.

Maternal gastrointestinal nematode infection enhances spatial memory of uninfected juvenile mouse pups.

The developing brain is particularly vulnerable to factors including maternal infection during pregnancy. Establishment of neural networks critical for memory and cognition begins during the perinatal period, when Heligmosomoides bakeri, a gastrointestinal (GI) nematode restricted to the maternal mouse intestine, has been shown to upregulate expression of long-term potentiation genes in the young rodent pup brain. We explored the impact of maternal infection during pregnancy and early lactation on the spatial behavior of uninfected male and female juvenile mice.

Maternal and cord blood parameters are associated with placental and newborn outcomes in indigenous mothers: A case study in the MINDI cohort.

Background: Multiple infections, nutrient deficiencies and inflammation (MINDI) occur in indigenous communities, but their associations with perinatal outcomes have not been described.

Objective: To assess maternal and cord blood micronutrient and inflammation status in peripartum mothers from the Ngäbe-Buglé comarca in Panama, and their associations with placental and infant outcomes.

Methods: In 34 mother-newborn dyads, placental weight and diameter were measured, and maternal and cord blood were processed for complete cell counts, serum C-reactive protein, ferritin, serum transferrin receptor (sTfR), vitamins A and D.

Maternal nematode infection upregulates expression of Th2/Treg and diapedesis related genes in the neonatal brain.

Intestinal nematode infections common during pregnancy have recently been shown to have impacts that extend to their uninfected offspring including altered brain gene expression. If maternal immune signals reach the neonatal brain, they might alter neuroimmune development. We explored expression of genes associated with four distinct types of T cells (Th1, Th2, Th17, Treg) and with leukocyte transendothelial migration and endocytosis transport across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) in the postnatal brain of offspring of nematode-infected mice, through secondary analysis of a whole brain gene expression database.

Infant Anthropometry and Growth Velocity Before 6 Months are Associated with Breastfeeding Practices and the Presence of Subclinical Mastitis and Maternal Intestinal Protozoa in Indigenous Communities in Guatemala.

Background: The possibility that maternal health status and breastfeeding practices contribute to growth faltering before 6 mo is underexplored.

Objectives: This longitudinal study investigated whether indicators of subclinical mastitis (SCM) and breast inflammation, maternal fecal-oral contamination, and/or breastfeeding practices were associated with infant anthropometry or growth velocity before 6 mo.

Methods: Indigenous -Mayan mother-infant dyads (= 140) were recruited.

A gastrointestinal nematode in pregnant and lactating mice alters maternal and neonatal microbiomes.

The maternal microbiome is understood to be the principal source of the neonatal microbiome but the consequences of intestinal nematodes on pregnant and lactating mothers and implications for the neonatal microbiome are unknown. Using pregnant CD1 mice infected with Heligmosomoides bakeri, we investigated the microbiomes in maternal tissues (intestine, vagina, and milk) and in the neonatal stomach using MiSeq sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes. Our first hypothesis was that maternal nematode infection altered the maternal intestinal, vaginal, and milk microbiomes and associated metabolic pathways.

Human Milk Microbiota in an Indigenous Population Is Associated with Maternal Factors, Stage of Lactation, and Breastfeeding Practices.

Background: Human milk contains a diverse community of bacteria that are modified by maternal factors, but whether these or other factors are similar in developing countries has not been explored. Our objective was to determine whether the milk microbiota was modified by maternal age, BMI, parity, lactation stage, subclinical mastitis (SCM), and breastfeeding practices in the first 6 mo of lactation in an indigenous population from Guatemala.

Methods: For this cross-sectional study, -Mayan indigenous mothers nursing infants aged <6 mo were recruited.

INTERGROWTH-21 Identifies High Prevalence of Low Symphysis-Fundal Height in Indigenous Pregnant Women Experiencing Multiple Infections, Nutrient Deficiencies, and Inflammation: The Maternal Infections, Nutrient Deficiencies, and Inflammation (MINDI) Cohort.

Background: In the absence of ultrasound, symphysis-fundal height (SFH) can assess maternal-fetal well-being as it is associated with gestational age, fetal weight, and amniotic fluid volume. However, other modifiers of SFH, including maternal infections, nutrient deficiencies, and inflammation (MINDI), have not been widely explored.

Objectives: Our objectives were 2-fold: ) to assess prevalence of low SFH in indigenous Panamanian women using both Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) and INTERGROWTH-21 standards and ) to explore associations of SFH with maternal health indicators: infections (oral, skin, urogenital, nematode infections), nutrient deficiencies [protein and iron indicators (ferritin, serum iron, serum transferrin receptor, hepcidin), folate, and vitamins A, D, and B-12], and inflammation [leukocytes, C-reactive protein (CRP), cytokines].

Distinct Changes Occur in the Human Breast Milk Microbiome Between Early and Established Lactation in Breastfeeding Guatemalan Mothers.

Human breast milk contains a diverse community of bacteria, but as breast milk microbiome studies have largely focused on mothers from high income countries where few women breastfeed to 6 months, the temporal changes in the breast milk microbiome that occur during later lactation stages have not been explored. For this cross-sectional study, microbiota from breast milk samples of -Mayan mothers living in eight remote rural communities in the Western Highlands of Guatemala were analyzed. All mothers delivered vaginally and breastfed their infants for 6 months.

A Multi-Sectoral Approach Improves Early Child Development in a Disadvantaged Community in Peru: Role of Community Gardens, Nutrition Workshops and Enhanced Caregiver-Child Interaction: Project "Wawa Illari".

Multi-dimensional monitoring evaluation and learning strategies are needed to address the complex set of factors that affect early child development in marginalized populations, but few studies have explored their effectiveness. To compare improvement of health and development of children 0-3 years between intervention communities (IC) and control communities (CC) from peripheral settlements of Lima. Sequential interventions included: (1) home and community gardens, (2) conscious nutrition, and (3) parenting workshops following the International Child Development Program (ICDP).

Associations of History of Displacement, Food Insecurity, and Stress With Maternal-Fetal Health in a Conflict Zone: A Case Study.

In populations with a history of conflict, early identification of pregnant women who are at risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes is challenging, especially if sonography is not available. We evaluated the performance of symphysis-fundal height (SFH) for identification of high-risk pregnancies and investigated if food security and diet quality, clinical biomarkers, and stress were associated with SFH and two known indicators of maternal-fetal well-being, sonography-estimated fetal weight and amniotic fluid index (AFI). For this cross-sectional study, 61 women with high-risk pregnancies were recruited after referral to the obstetrics and gynecology unit at San José Hospital in Popayán, Colombia.

Demonstration gardens improve agricultural production, food security and preschool child diets in subsistence farming communities in Panama.

Objectives: To explore impacts of a demonstration garden-based agricultural intervention on agricultural knowledge, practices and production, food security and preschool child diet diversity of subsistence farming households.

Design: Observational study of households new to the intervention or participating for 1 or 5 years. Variables measured were agricultural techniques learned from the intervention and used, agricultural production, household food insecurity (FIS) and child diet diversity (DDS), over one agricultural cycle (during land preparation, growing and harvest months).

Identification of High-Risk Pregnancies in a Remote Setting Using Ambulatory Blood Pressure: The MINDI Cohort.

Ambulatory blood pressure is a potential tool for early detection of complications during pregnancy, but its utility in impoverished settings has not been assessed. This cross-sectional study aimed to determine whether maternal infections, nutrient deficiencies and inflammation (MINDI) were associated with four measures of maternal blood pressure (BP) and to determine their association with symphysis-fundal-height (SFH). Environmental and dietary factors, intake of iron and a multiple-nutrient supplement (MNS), markers of inflammation, protein, anemia, folate, vitamins B, A and D status, and urogenital, skin, oral and intestinal nematode infections were measured in indigenous pregnant Panamanian women.

Asymmetric Isolation and the Evolution of Behaviors Influencing Dispersal: Rheotaxis of Guppies above Waterfalls.

Populations that are asymmetrically isolated, such as above waterfalls, can sometimes export emigrants in a direction from which they do not receive immigrants, and thus provide an excellent opportunity to study the evolution of dispersal traits. We investigated the rheotaxis of guppies above barrier waterfalls in the Aripo and Turure rivers in Trinidad-the later having been introduced in 1957 from a below-waterfall population in another drainage. We predicted that, as a result of strong selection against downstream emigration, both of these above-waterfall populations should show strong positive rheotaxis.

Anthropometry before Day 46 and Growth Velocity before 6 Months of Guatemalan Breastfed Infants Are Associated with Subclinical Mastitis and Milk Cytokines, Minerals, and Trace Elements.

Background: Subclinical mastitis (SCM) is an inflammatory condition of the mammary gland, but its association with human milk composition and infant growth is not well described.

Objectives: We investigated whether SCM, milk cytokines, and/or estimated intakes of milk minerals and trace elements were associated with infant anthropometry or growth velocity before 6 mo.

Methods: Breast milk was collected from Mam-Mayan mothers (n = 114) at both early (2-46 d) and established (4-6 mo) lactation.

Household food insecurity in Panamanian subsistence farming communities is associated with indicators of household wealth and constraints on food production.

Objective: To determine if constraints on agricultural production were a novel construct in the Panama Food Security Questionnaire (FSQ) and to characterize agricultural and economic determinants of food insecurity during the planting, growing and harvesting time periods in subsistence farming communities.

Design: This longitudinal study followed households during land preparation, growing and harvest periods in one agricultural cycle. Agricultural production and economic variables were recorded and the Panama FSQ was administered.

Maternal Gastrointestinal Nematode Infection Up-regulates Expression of Genes Associated with Long-Term Potentiation in Perinatal Brains of Uninfected Developing Pups.

Establishment of neural networks critical for memory and cognition begins during the perinatal period but studies on the impact of maternal infection are limited. Using a nematode parasite that remains in the maternal intestine, we tested our hypothesis that maternal infection during pregnancy and early lactation would alter perinatal brain gene expression, and that the anti-inflammatory nature of this parasite would promote synaptic plasticity and long-term potentiation. Brain gene expression was largely unaffected two days after birth, but in seven-day old pups, long-term potentiation and four related pathways essential for the development of synaptic plasticity, cognition and memory were up-regulated in pups of infected dams.

Infant growth faltering linked to subclinical mastitis, maternal faecal-oral contamination, and breastfeeding.

Infant growth faltering occurs in breastfed infants <6 months of age. The possibility that maternal health status contributes to this growth faltering is underexplored. We investigated whether (a) subclinical mastitis (SCM), an asymptomatic inflammation of the breast, (b) maternal intestinal nematode and protozoan infections, indicators of faecal-oral contamination, or (c) poor breastfeeding practices increased the odds of stunting (length-for-age z-score < -2SD), underweight (weight-for-age z-score < -2SD), or low head circumference (head circumference-for-age z-score < -2SD) in breastfed infants in rural indigenous communities in Guatemala.

Microparasite dispersal in metapopulations: a boon or bane to the host population?

Although connectivity can promote host species persistence in a metapopulation, dispersal may also enable disease transmission, an effect further complicated by the impact that parasite distribution may have on host-parasite population dynamics. We investigated the effects of connectivity and initial parasite distribution (clustered or dispersed) on microparasite-host dynamics in experimental metapopulations, using guppies and We created metapopulations of guppies divided into four subpopulations and introduced either a low level of parasites to all subpopulations (dispersed) or a high level of parasites to one subpopulation (clustered). Controlled migration among subpopulations occurred every 10 days.