[The mediating effect of perceived social support in the relationship between maternal personality traits and pregnancy-related anxiety].

Objective: Exploring the mediating effect of perceived social support between the maternal personality traits and pregnancy-related anxiety. Methods: Singleton pregnant women who underwent antenatal checkups in the obstetrics department of general hospital affiliated to Ningxia Medical University from July to December 2021 were enrolled in this study to investigate perceived social support, pregnancy-related anxiety and conscious personality traits. Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the association between the maternal personality traits, perceived social support, and pregnancy-related anxiety, and the mediating effect of perceived social support was analyzed using Bootstrap method. Results: A total of 1 259 subjects were included in the study, of which 170 (13.50%) pregnant women felt introverted. The total score of perceived social support was (46.37±8.38), and 31.45% of pregnant women had high perceived social support. The total score of pregnancy-related anxiety was (21.48±5.53). The score of worry about fetal health was (10.09±3.24), and 368 (29.23%) of pregnant women had pregnancy-related anxiety. Maternal personality traits and pregnancy-related anxiety were negatively correlated (r=-0.076, P<0.05) and positively correlated with perceived social support during pregnancy (r= 0.127, P<0.05). Perceived social support during pregnancy and pregnancy-related anxiety were negatively correlated (r=-0.236, P<0.05). Perceived social support partially mediated the relationship between the maternal personality traits and pregnancy-related anxiety, with a relative effect value of 37.50%. Conclusion: The maternal personality traits, level of perceived social support and pregnancy-related anxiety are all related. Perceived social support could mediate the relationship between the maternal personality traits and pregnancy-related anxiety.

[Improvement effect of Lycium barbarum polysaccharide on the intestinal flora of pregnant rats and their offspring under chronic stress].

Objective: To understand the improvement effect of Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP) on the intestinal flora of mother mice during pregnancy and their offspring who experienced chronic stress, and provide new ideas for improving the effect of stress on the intestinal tract. Methods: From July to October 2019, 24 SPF-grade female SD rats were selected and divided into control group, stress group, and stress+LBP group, with 8 rats in each group. A chronic unpredictable mild stimulation model during pregnancy was established (21 days) , and 40 mg/kg LBP solution was administered by gavage on the 8th day of stress. Venous blood from the medial canthus of the female mice was collected on the 1st day before stress and on the 1st, 7th, 14th and 21st days, respectively. Cortisol was measured and corticosterone concentration was calculated. The fresh feces of famale mice after stress and 20-day postnatal offspring mice were collected, and Illumina Miseq sequencing technology, alpha diversity and community composition were used to analyze the diversity and structure of intestinal flora. Results: On the 7th and 14th days of stress, the plasma corticosterone concentration of female mice in the stress group and stress+LBP group was higher than that in the control group (P<0.05) . In the Alpha diversity of female mice, the Ace index of the stress group was lower than that of the control group (P<0.05) . The analysis of intestinal flora structure showed that at the species level, the proportions of Lachnospiraceae and Lactobacillus in the stress+LBP group were higher than those in the stress group and control group. At the order level, the proportion of Clostridiales in the stress+LBP group was higher than that in the stress group and lower than that in the control group, while the proportion of Lactobacillales was higher than that in the stress group and control group. In the Alpha diversity of the offspring group, the Shannon index, Ace index and Chao index of the stress+LBP offspring group were higher than those of the stress offspring group (P<0.05) . The proportion of Lactobacillus in the stress+LBP offspring group was higher than that in the control offspring group and stress offspring group, and the proportions of Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcaceae in the stress+LBP offspring group were higher than those in the stress offspring group, the proportion of Bacteroidales in the stress+LBP offspring group was lower than that in the stress offspring group, and the proportion of Clostridiales in the stress+LBP offspring group was higher than that in the stress and control offspring groups. Conclusion: The intervention of LBP may improve the changes in the intestinal flora diversity, abundance and flora structure of mother mice and offspring caused by pregnancy stress, thereby maintaining the balance of intestinal flora.

The dynamic metabolomic changes throughout mouse epididymal lumen fluid potentially contribute to sperm maturation.

Epididymal lumen fluids are directly responsible for sperm maturation. However, very little is known about the molecular details of small molecule metabolites in the epididymal lumen fluids until now. Here we identified and compared the metabolic profiles of mouse caput and cauda epididymal lumen fluids using GC-MS technique. Among 236 metabolites identified in caput and cauda epididymis, 36 were significantly enriched in caput epididymis while 18 were significantly enriched in cauda epididymis. Pathway analysis identified ascorbate and aldarate metabolism and beta-alanine metabolism as most relevant pathways in caput and cauda epididymis, respectively. Ascorbate, dehydroascorbic acid and beta-alanine associated with these two pathways were firstly reported in mouse epididymal lumen fluids and might play important roles in sperm maturation.