Select Publications
Below are publications from the last few years that best exemplify present research interests.
Developmental Programming
Korgan, AC, Foxx, CL, Hashmi, H, Sago, SA, Stamper, CE, Heinze, JD, O’Leary, ME, King, JL, Perrot, TS, Lowry, CA, Weaver, ICG (2022). Effects of paternal high-fat diet and maternal rearing environment on the microbiota-gut-brain axis and behavior. Scientific Reports, 12(1):10179. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-14095-z.
Korgan, A, O’Leary, E, King, J, Weaver, I, Perrot, TS (2018) Effects of paternal high-fat diet and rearing environment on maternal investment and development of defensive responses in the offspring. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 91, 20-30.
Green, A, Esser, MJ, Perrot, TS (2018) Developmental expression of anxiety and depressive behaviours after prenatal predator exposure and early life home cage enhancement. Behavioural Brain Research, S0166-4328(17)31465-1.
Korgan, A, O’Leary, E, Bauer, J, Fortier, A, Weaver, ICG, Perrot, TS (2016) Effects of paternal predation risk and rearing environment on maternal investment and development of long-term defensive responses in the offspring. eNeuro, 3(6) e0231-16.2016, 1–14.
Korgan, A, Vonkeman, J, Esser, MJ, Perrot, TS (2015) An enhanced home cage modulates hypothalamic CRH-ir labeling in juvenile rats, with and without sub-threshold febrile convulsions. Developmental Psychobiology, 57(3), 374-81.
Korgan, A, Green, AD, Perrot, TS, Esser, MJ (2013) Limbic system activation is affected by prenatal predator exposure and postnatal environmental enrichment and further moderated by dam and sex. Behavioural Brain Research, 259C, 106-118.
Mashoodh, R, Sinal, CJ, Perrot-Sinal, TS (2009; Epub 2009 Jan 13) Predation threat exerts specific effects on rat maternal behaviour and anxiety-related behaviour of male and female offspring. Physiology & Behavior, 96, 693-702
​Gut-Brain Axis
Myles, EM, Hamm, SI, Allden, SN, Romkey, ID, O’Leary, ME, Perrot, TS (2022) A comparative study of Western, high-carbohydrate, and standard lab diet consumption throughout adolescence on metabolic- and anxiety-related outcomes in young adult male and female Long Evans rats. Behavioural Brain Research, 438; 114184 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114184)
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Munroe, CA, Gonzalez, BC, Tompkins, TA, Neyedli, HF, Perrot, TS (September 2021) Investigating the effect of probiotic supplementation on cognition and related health outcomes among video gamers: Background and protocol. Presentation at the Atlantic Mobility Action Project Meeting.
Myles, EM, O’Leary, ME, Smith, R, MacPherson, CW, Oprea, A, Melanson, EH, Thompkins, TA, Perrot, TS. (2020) Supplementation with combined Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175 across development reveals sex differences in physiological and behavioural effects of Western diet in Long-Evans rats. Microorganisms, 8(10), 1527 (doi: 10.3390/microorganisms8101527)
O’Leary, ME, Myles, E, Tompkins, TA, & Perrot, TS (August 2020) Probiotic treatment affects maternal care quality and offspring wean weight in Long-Evans rats. Presentation at the International Behavioral Neuroscience Online Poster Session.
Myles, EM, O’Leary, ME, Tompkins, TA, Perrot, TS (February 2020) Effects of early life probiotic on adult anxiety, weight, and systemic inflammation after exposure to western diet. Poster presented at Developmental Origins of Health and Disease - Canadian Chapter conference, Banff, AB.
O’Leary, ME, Myles, EM, Tompkins, TA, Perrot, TS (February 2020) Probiotic treatment affects maternal care quality, maternal feeding behaviour and offspring wean weight in Long-Evans rats. Poster presented at Developmental Origins of Health and Disease - Canadian Chapter conference, Banff, AB.
Myles, EM*, O’Leary, ME*, Romkey, ID, Piano, A, de Carvalho, V, Tompkins, TA, Perrot, TS (2020) Guidelines for best practice in placebo-controlled experimental studies on probiotics in rodent animal models. Beneficial Microbes, 11(3), 245-254 (doi: 10.3920/BM2019.0144) (*contributed equally to this work).
Effects of paternal high-fat diet and maternal rearing environment on the microbiota-gut-brain axis and behavior.
These results came out of the research of PhD student, Austin Korgan, whose objective it was to examine the effects of paternal stress prior to conception and maternal positive housing on offspring. This work bridges our early life stress programming and gut-brain axis research areas.
Supplementation with combined Lactobacillus helveticus R0052 and Bifidobacterium longum R0175 across development reveals sex differences in physiological and behavioural effects of Western diet in Long-Evans rats.
The results included in this paper comprise most of Libby Myles' MSc thesis. They show distinct effects of probiotic early in life. This study is part of an ongoing and active collaboration with Rosell Institute (Lallemand Health Solutions). Stay tuned for more interesting and important findings as a result of this collaboration that is supported by Mitacs.
Effects of paternal predation risk and rearing environment on maternal investment and development of long-term defensive responses in the offspring.
This paper was the first of a pair of studies that were part of Austin Korgan's PhD work, the objectives of which were to examine the effects of stress to rat dads prior to conception on offspring. Importantly, this study demonstrated that housing the rat mom in a more positive environment had many beneficial effects on her behaviour, which in turn, has positive effects on her offspring. PhD student, Elizabeth O'Leary was an undergraduate in the lab for this study and contributed extensively to this work.