Longitudinal MRI shows differing hippocampal volumes in offspring due to maternal undernutrition during pregnancy, suggesting lasting impacts on brain aging.
Motivation: To study how baboon maternal undernutrition (MUN) during pregnancy impacts hippocampal size and structure in adult offspring across the lifespan. Goal(s): To evaluate changes to hippocampal volume MUN produces in offspring across the lifespan, due to fetal and post-partum nutritional deficits. Approach: Longitudinal MRI analysis of hippocampal volume in a baboon model compared MUN offspring and control groups at youth and middle age, assessing structural impacts of prenatal nutritional deficits on aging brains. Results: MUN was associated with reduced hippocampal volumes, especially in anterior regions, indicating that early MUN may lead to lasting neuroanatomical changes in offspring. Impact: These findings suggest early-life nutritional deficits can shape brain aging, offering a model to explore interventions that support healthy cognitive aging in individuals with prenatal and post-partum exposure to MUN.
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Yang et al. (2025) studied this question.
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