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Neonatal hypoxia-ischemia (HI) is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in newborns, occurring in approximately 2% of live births. Neuroprotective actions of progesterone (PROG) have already been described in animal models of brain lesions. However, PROG actions on neonates are still controversial. Here, we treated male Wistar rats exposed to HI with PROG. Five experimental groups were defined (n = 6/group) according to the scheme of PROG administration (10 mg/kg): SHAM (animals submitted to a fictitious surgery, without ischemia induction, and maintained under normoxia), HI (animals undergoing HI), BEFORE (animals undergoing HI and receiving PROG immediately before HI), AFTER (animals undergoing HI and receiving PROG at 6 and 24 h after HI) and BEFORE/AFTER (animals undergoing HI and receiving PROG immediately before and 6 and 24 h after HI). At P14 (7 days following HI), the volumes of lesion of the cerebral hemisphere and the hippocampus ipsilateral to the cerebral ischemia were evaluated, along with p-Akt, cleaved caspase-3 and GFAP expression in the hippocampus. PROG reduces the loss of brain tissue caused by HI. Moreover, when administered after HI, PROG was able to increase p-Akt expression and reduce both cleaved caspase-3 and GFAP expression in the hippocampus. In summary, it was possible to observe a neuroprotective action of PROG on the brain of neonatal animals exposed to experimental HI. This is the first study suggesting PROG-dependent Akt activation is able to regulate negatively cleaved caspase-3 and GFAP expression protecting neonatal hypoxic-ischemic brain tissue from apoptosis and reactive gliosis.

Since the first evidence suggesting that maternal nutrition can impact the development of diseases in the offspring, much has been elucidated about its effects on the offspring’s nervous system. Animal studies demonstrated that maternal obesity can predispose the offspring to greater chances of metabolic and neurodevelopmental diseases. However, the mechanisms underlying these responses are not well established. In recent years, the role of the gut-brain axis in the development of anxiety and depression in people with obesity has emerged. Studies investigating changes in the maternal microbiota during pregnancy and also in the offspring demonstrate that conditions such as maternal obesity can modulate the microbiota, leading to long-term outcomes in the offspring. Considering that maternal obesity has also been linked to the development of psychiatric conditions (anxiety and depression), the gut-brain axis is a promising target to be further explored in these neuropsychiatric contexts. In the present study, we review the relationship between maternal obesity and anxious and depressive features, exploring the gut-brain axis as a potential mechanism underlying this relationship.

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Nowadays, the only treatment for human babies suffering from hypoxiaischemia (HI) is therapeutic hypothermia (TH). However, a better understanding of the specific effects of TH in males and females is important to improve its clinical application. The present study evaluated the short-term effects of TH on the brain injury and behavioral outcomes in male and female neonatal rats submitted to neonatal HI. Seven-day-old Wistar rats underwent a surgery for unilateral occlusion of the right common carotid artery and were exposed to a hypoxic atmosphere (8% oxygen) for 75 min. Then, the animals in the TH group were submitted to TH (scalp temperature of 32 C) for 5 h. In the behavioral tests, no remarkable differences triggered by HI or TH were observed relative to SHAM animals. Only females of the HI group presented lower latency to complete the righting reflex test. TH reduced the volume of brain injury in males, but not in females. The animals of the HI group showed a reduction in the number of neurons in the CA1 and dentate gyrus (DG) regions of the hippocampus and TH partially prevented neuronal death. In the CA1 region of the hippocampus, animals from the HI group showed more degenerating cells relative to the SHAM, which was reversed by TH. In the DG, animals from the HI group showed an increase in the number of degenerating neurons, which was partially reversed by TH only in males. Our data show that HI leads to a brain injury, which was attenuated by TH in a sex-dependent way and clarify the importance of the assessment of males and females in order to outline specific strategies for the treatment of each sex in newborns suffering from HI.

Since the first studies of the nervous system by the Nobel laureates Camillo Golgi and Santiago Ramon y Cajal using simple dyes and conventional light microscopes, microscopy has come a long way to the most recent techniques that make it possible to perform images in live cells and animals in health and disease. Many pathological conditions of the central nervous system have already been linked to inflammatory responses. In this scenario, several available markers and techniques can help imaging and unveil the neuroinflammatory process. Moreover, microscopy imaging How to cite this article: de Fraga LS, Tassinari ID, Jantsch J, Guedes RP, Bambini-Junior V. 'A picture is worth a thousand words': The use of microscopy for imaging neuroinflammation.

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