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Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring?
Mc Donald, C. H. 2025. Does Exposure to Sexual Defeat and Prenatal Stress Result in an Inherited Predisposition to PTSD in rat Offspring? Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/ae7d220f-e2cf-4231-818a-ff684af63737
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2025
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| _version_ | 1867614007399022592 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Mc Donald, Chloe Helen |
| author2 | Qulu-Appiah, Lihle |
| author_browse | Mc Donald, Chloe Helen Qulu-Appiah, Lihle |
| author_facet | Qulu-Appiah, Lihle Mc Donald, Chloe Helen |
| author_sort | Mc Donald, Chloe Helen |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Mc Donald, C. H. 2025. Does Exposure to Sexual Defeat and Prenatal Stress Result in an Inherited Predisposition to PTSD in rat Offspring? Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/ae7d220f-e2cf-4231-818a-ff684af63737 |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/132620 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:45:11.659Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/132620 Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? Mc Donald, Chloe Helen Qulu-Appiah, Lihle Blignaut, Marguerite Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Biomedical Sciences. Division of Medical Physiology. Generational trauma Epigenetics Gene expression Diathesis-stress model (Psychology) UCTD Mc Donald, C. H. 2025. Does Exposure to Sexual Defeat and Prenatal Stress Result in an Inherited Predisposition to PTSD in rat Offspring? Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/ae7d220f-e2cf-4231-818a-ff684af63737 Thesis (MSc)--Stellenbosch University, 2025. ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Background: Sexual violence is a critical worldwide issue with increasing prevalence in third world countries. In sub-Saharan Africa the rates of sexual violence reached 64% in 2018. These acts potentially lead to long-lasting psychological trauma such as anxiety and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), with detrimental consequences. PTSD is a debilitating disorder caused by the experience of a traumatic event and can result in epigenetic changes to gene expression. These epigenetic alterations can be inherited by the offspring of trauma-exposed individuals, thereby resulting in transgenerational propagation of psychopathological predispositions. The genes NTN5, FZD9 and ZNFR3 are examples of such genes with altered expression in PTSD. As the functions of these genes are associated with neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity in neuroplastic regions of the brain, such as the hippocampus, their disruption can result in the symptomology of PTSD. The inheritance of altered gene expression can therefore potentially predispose the offspring to the development of PTSD in later life. Therefore, the aim of this study is to determine whether exposure to sexual defeat and/or prenatal stress predisposes the offspring to the development of PTSD-like symptomology in a Wistar rat model. Aims: The study analysed female defensive behaviour during a four-day sexual defeat paradigm. Additionally, the study investigated maternal behaviour after exposure to prenatal stress during the third trimester of pregnancy. Furthermore, an HPA-axis linked neurochemical stress marker, corticosterone, was assessed to confirm HPA-axis dysregulation in the dams. Thereafter, the intergenerational inheritance of NTN5, FZD9 and ZNRF3 protein levels were analysed. Conclusions: This study revealed that female rodents exposed to either sexual defeat or prenatal stress developed a blunted HPA-axis. Additionally, those who underwent the combined stress insult of both sexual defeat and prenatal stress, showed PTSD-like symptom development. PTSD-like development was evidenced by increased corticosterone levels, erratic maternal care behaviour, and increased NTN5 levels, whose levels match those previously observed in dendritic spine density alterations in human PTSD patients. Furthermore, the protein level trends for the three genes were partially conserved in the offspring thus indicating that the altered protein levels in the dams may have been inherited. AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Geen opsomming beskikbaar. Masters 2025-06-12T05:52:07Z 2025-06-12T05:52:07Z 2025-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/132620 en Stellenbosch University 129 pages : illustrations application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Generational trauma Epigenetics Gene expression Diathesis-stress model (Psychology) UCTD Mc Donald, Chloe Helen Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? |
| title | Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? |
| title_full | Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? |
| title_fullStr | Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? |
| title_short | Does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to PTSD in rat offspring? |
| title_sort | does exposure to sexual defeat and prenatal stress result in an inherited predisposition to ptsd in rat offspring |
| topic | Generational trauma Epigenetics Gene expression Diathesis-stress model (Psychology) UCTD |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/132620 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mcdonaldchloehelen doesexposuretosexualdefeatandprenatalstressresultinaninheritedpredispositiontoptsdinratoffspring |