The role of inflammation in neurodevelopment and childhood psychiatric disorders.

This review examines how inflammation during pregnancy may contribute to psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders in children. Research shows that maternal immune activation can cause lasting changes in brain development, gene expression, and immune cell activity. The review suggests that prenatal inflammation may make the brain more vulnerable to later stress and adversity. Interventions targeting inflammation or providing enriched environments may help reduce these effects. Preventing inflammation during pregnancy and reducing stress after birth may protect children's mental health.

Key points

• Inflammation during pregnancy is associated with changes in brain development and neurodevelopmental outcomes in children
• Maternal immune activation can cause long-lasting changes in gene expression, neural circuitry, and microglial activity
• Two-hit models suggest prenatal inflammation may prime microglia, making the brain more vulnerable to later stress, infections, or adversity
• Interventions targeting microglia, reducing inflammation, or providing enriched environments may reduce behavioral and neurodevelopmental effects
• Preventing inflammation during pregnancy and reducing post-birth stress and adversity may protect against later mental health problems

Limitations

This is a narrative review of animal and observational research examining biological mechanisms. It does not report on intervention studies with defined outcomes in human populations, so it cannot establish whether proposed preventive or therapeutic interventions actually reduce psychiatric disorders in children.