Microglia and Neurodevelopment: Programming of Cognition throughout the Lifespan
Neuroimmune activation during prenatal or early postnatal development can have profound and long-lasting effects on the brain. This chapter provides an up-to-date review of the long-term effects of early-life immune activation on adult cognition, a current perspective on the long-term mechanisms by which these effects are propagated from development to adulthood, and a brief primer on the techniques and methodology by which the long-term consequences of early-life immune activation on later-life cognition can be investigated in a rodent model. The concept of perinatal programming of the immune system and the potential effects on brain and behavior in adulthood remains relatively unexplored, despite strong evidence that perinatal exposure to infectious agents has a number of influences on later life outcomes including disease susceptibility, and, increased vulnerability to cognitive and/or neuropsychiatric disorders. A minor yet significant shift in microglial function has significant negative consequences for cognition.
