Unraveling the Triad: A Bioinformatics Analysis of the Interplay between Prenatal Depression, Inflammation, and the Gut Microbiota

Prenatal depression is a prevalent mental disorder that affects women during pregnancy. Alterations in the maternal microbiota have been linked to changes in the composition of the intestinal microbiota of foetus, which can have long-term consequences for the child's health. The gut-brain axis, which involves bidirectional communication between the gut and the brain, is believed to play a role in the development of depression.

This study aimed to gather evidence for both the influence of microbiota and immunity on depression during pregnancy, using integrated bioinformatics analysis. A set of 219 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with prenatal depression was established to correlate with gut inflammation. DEG data were collected from different bibliographic sources with fold change >1 and adjusted p-value <0.05. Moreover, 205 DEGs were annotated using String software.

The protein-protein interaction networks of DEGs obtained were determined by 16 main genes: IL6, IFNG, IL1B, IL10, CD4, CXCL8, CCL2, IL2, CCL5, IL4, TGFB1, IL13, IL17A, TLR4, CRP, and BDNF. The enrichment analysis of Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways was conducted using SRplot and clusterProfiler. They were significantly involved in prenatal depression and associated with inflammation and gut microbiota.

The identified genes highlight key molecular interactions between the immune system, microbiota, and brain function during pregnancy. These findings support the involvement of

inflammatory and microbial pathways in the development of prenatal depression.

This study identified core genes that contribute to the understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in the development of prenatal depression, which may serve as targets for early diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.