1. Illustration of a hypothetic model for mechanisms that drive differences in brains between infants with vaginal birth and cesarean delivery.
Illustration of a hypothetic model for mechanisms that drive differences in brains between infants with vaginal birth and cesarean delivery. Under this model, birth mode–associated changes to the gut microbiome lead to alterations in signals to the brain that regulate normal remodeling processes. Because microglia are implicated in this process, the model emphasizes this cell type as a major player in cell-cell cross-talk (red arrows) that modifies overall brain structure and function during the neonatal period. The model provides a theoretic framework for how birth mode contributes to normal neonatal brain development. The figure was generated, in part, by using components from the Servier Medical Art Powerpoint image bank ( which is under an open-use Creative Commons license.
S.C. Deoni et al. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 2019;40:
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