{
  "id": 16331034,
  "title": "Live-cell imaging of fetal microglia reveals time-dependent sex differences in their responsiveness to prenatal maternal stress",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/24/live-cell-imaging-of-fetal-microglia-reveals-time-dependent-sex",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-10-24T00:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "bioRxiv",
    "slug": "biorxiv",
    "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.23.761383v1?rss=1"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A recent study using live-cell imaging in a mouse model of prenatal maternal stress reveals sex-dependent differences in fetal microglia's responsiveness. Prenatal maternal cold stress was applied to pregnant mice from embryonic day 11.5 to 15.5. Researchers examined microglial morphology, motility, and phagocytic behavior in real-time within the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of E15.5 embryos.\n\nFemale microglia exhibited increased branch complexity throughout the live-cell video, while male microglia only showed this response early on. Moreover, male microglia displayed reduced completed phagocytic events, whereas female microglia showed heightened phagocytic activity without changes in completed phagocytic events.\n\nFemale embryos also displayed altered microglial motility early in response to prenatal maternal cold stress, a change not observed in males. These findings suggest that fetal microglia display sex differences in key physiological aspects both at baseline and in response to prenatal maternal cold stress. The time-resolved assessment of microglial dynamics implies that these microglial responsiveness differences between males and females could provide a cellular basis for sex differences observed in various neurodevelopmental disorders.",
  "summary": "Prenatal maternal stress is increasingly being linked to neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), and across diverse maternal stressors, immune dysregulation is emerging as a common feature. This suggests that fetal microglia may influence neurodevelopment by detecting changes in signaling from the intrauterine environment. Using a mouse model of prenatal maternal stress, where pregnant mice were…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}