PRESENT PROJECT

FRRB Project 1749118 - Exposures to PRenatal and postnatal adverse stressful Experiences: Multimodal omics signatures underlying Stress vulnerability and resilience and as Novel Targets for preventive strategies

Name and Surname of PI

Annamaria Cattaneo

Project Acronym

PRESeNT

Project ID

1749118

Host Institution

IRCCS Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli - Brescia

Pathology of Interest

Depression

Research Area

Psychiatry

Project Start Date

3 June 2021

Project End Date

2 June 2024

Funding

€ 569.400,00

Type of Project

Individual

PROJECT SUMMARY

Motherhood is a pivotal experience in a woman's life, filled with big psychological, physical and environmental changes. However, it is also a time of great vulnerability, as the woman is faced with main shifts in her life. The PRESeNT project is aimed at identifying the biological profiles of women with, or at high risk of developing, depression during pregnancy. These profiles will allow the development of biomarkers for screening and early diagnosis, enabling the identification of women who would benefit from ad-hoc and preventive interventions. Furthermore, during the project, a smartphone App, entirely dedicated to these women, will be developed for monitoring some daily activities and symptoms. Finally, the effects produced by the exposure to depression in utero or postpartum will be studied in children and, by using an animal model, the mechanisms associated with the risk of the offspring to develop negative outcomes later in life.