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Krol KM, Monakhov M, Lai PS, Ebstein RP, Heinrichs M, Grossmann T. Genetic Variation in the Maternal Oxytocin System Affects Cortisol Responsiveness to Breastfeeding in Infants and Mothers. ADAPTIVE HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND PHYSIOLOGY 2018. [DOI: 10.1007/s40750-018-0090-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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52
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Hibel LC, Mercado E. Marital Conflict Predicts Mother-to-Infant Adrenocortical Transmission. Child Dev 2017; 90:e80-e95. [PMID: 29266194 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Employing an experimental design, mother-to-infant transmission of stress was examined. Mothers (N = 117) were randomized to either have a positive or conflictual discussion with their marital partners, after which infants (age = 6 months) participated in a fear and frustration task. Saliva samples were collected to assess maternal cortisol responses to the discussion and infant cortisol responses to the challenge task. Results indicate maternal cortisol reactivity and recovery to the conflict (but not positive) discussion predicted infant cortisol reactivity to the infant challenge. Mothers' positive affect during the discussion buffered, and intrusion during the free-play potentiated, mother-to-infant adrenocortical transmission. These findings advance our understanding of the social and contextual regulation of adrenocortical activity in early childhood.
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53
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Guardini G, Bowen J, Mariti C, Fatjó J, Sighieri C, Gazzano A. Influence of Maternal Care on Behavioural Development of Domestic Dogs (Canis Familiaris) Living in a Home Environment. Animals (Basel) 2017; 7:ani7120093. [PMID: 29206131 PMCID: PMC5742787 DOI: 10.3390/ani7120093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2017] [Revised: 11/29/2017] [Accepted: 12/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary Maternal care in dogs and its impact on the behavioural development of puppies has become the subject of growing research interest. In order to determine the effects of maternal care on the behaviour of family dog puppies, maternal care during the first three weeks after birth was observed in 12 litters of puppies reared in a home environment (72 puppies). The behavioural responses of the puppies were assessed at two months of age, in an arena and an isolation test. In both tests, the amount of maternal care was found to be positively associated with some stress behaviours and, in the arena test, also with the puppies’ interest in an unfamiliar person who was present during the test. These behaviours are similar to those observed during the separation of other young mammals from an attachment figure with which they have a high quality of bond. Amount of maternal care was also found to be negatively associated with exploration and play. The difference in results between the present study and our previous study involving laboratory dogs reared in relative social isolation suggests that the developmental trajectory of puppies is influenced by a combination of maternal behaviour and social and physical environmental enrichment. Abstract Maternal care has been shown to affect the development of the brain, behaviour, social skills and emotional systems of the young of many mammalian species including dogs. The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of maternal care on the behavioural responses of family dog puppies towards environmental and social stimuli. In order to do this, maternal care (licking puppy’s ano-genital area, licking the puppy, nursing and mother-puppy contact) during the first three weeks after birth was assessed in 12 litters of domestic dog puppies reared in home environments (total = 72 puppies). The behavioural responses of puppies were assessed in an arena and an isolation test, which were performed when the puppies were two-month old. Data were analysed using principal components analysis and projection to latent structures regression. A systematic relationship was found between maternal care and behaviour in both tests. In the arena test, maternal care was found to be positively associated with approach to the stranger, attention oriented to the stranger, time spent near the enclosure, yawning, whining and yelping (R2Y = 0.613, p = 8.2 × 10−9). Amount of maternal care was negatively associated with the number of squares crossed and the time spent individually playing with the rope. In the isolation test, the amount of maternal care was positively associated with standing posture, paw lifting, and howling, and it was negatively associated with yawning, lying down and nose licking (R2Y = 0.507, p = 0.000626). These results suggest that the amount of maternal care received during early life influences the pattern of behavioural responses and coping strategies of puppies at two-months of age. On the basis of these findings it could be speculated that early maternal care contributes to adaption to the environment in which family puppies are developing, with particular regard to social relationships with people.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanna Guardini
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge, 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy.
| | - Jon Bowen
- Queen Mother Hospital for Small Animals, Royal Veterinary College, Hawkshead Lane, North Mymms, Hertfordshire AL9 7TA, UK.
- Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Chiara Mariti
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge, 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy.
| | - Jaume Fatjó
- Department of Psychiatry and Forensic Medicine, Autonomous University of Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Claudio Sighieri
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge, 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy.
| | - Angelo Gazzano
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge, 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy.
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54
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Thompson LA, Morgan G, Unger CA, Covey LA. Prenatal maternal cortisol measures predict learning and short-term memory performance in 3- but not 5-month-old infants. Dev Psychobiol 2017; 59:723-737. [PMID: 28691735 PMCID: PMC5561452 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2016] [Accepted: 05/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Little is known about relations between maternal prenatal stress and specific cognitive processes-learning and memory-in infants. A modified crib-mobile task was employed in a longitudinal design to test relations between maternal prenatal cortisol, prenatal subjective stress and anxiety, psychosocial variables, and learning and memory in 3- and 5-month-old infants. Results revealed that maternal prenatal cortisol was affected by particular psychosocial variables (e.g., maternal age, whether or not the infant's grandmother provided childcare, financial status), but was unrelated to measures of maternal depression, anxiety, and stress. Although maternal prenatal cortisol was not predictive of learning or memory performance in 5-month-old infants, higher levels of basal maternal cortisol and reduced prenatal cortisol response was predictive of some learning and short-term memory measures in 3-month-old infants. These results suggest an influence of maternal neuroendocrine functioning on fetal neurological development, and the importance of separate examination of subjective and biological measures of stress.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gin Morgan
- New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico
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55
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Beijers R, Riksen-Walraven M, Sebesta K, de Weerth C. Differential associations between behavioral and cortisol responses to a stressor in securely versus insecurely attached infants. Behav Brain Res 2017; 325:147-155. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2016.10.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2016] [Revised: 09/15/2016] [Accepted: 10/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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56
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Tarullo AR, St John AM, Meyer JS. Chronic stress in the mother-infant dyad: Maternal hair cortisol, infant salivary cortisol and interactional synchrony. Infant Behav Dev 2017; 47:92-102. [PMID: 28391126 PMCID: PMC5493894 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2017.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2016] [Revised: 03/29/2017] [Accepted: 03/29/2017] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Stress physiology is shaped by early experience, with enduring effects on health. The relation of chronic maternal physiological stress, as indexed by hair cortisol, to infants' stress systems and to mother-infant interaction quality has not been established. We examined maternal hair and salivary cortisol, six-month-old infants' salivary cortisol, and mother-infant interaction in 121 mother-infant dyads. High maternal hair cortisol was related to higher infant average salivary cortisol concentration. Maternal hair cortisol and bedtime salivary cortisol were both uniquely related to infant bedtime salivary cortisol. Mothers with higher hair cortisol were more intrusive and had lower positive engagement synchrony with their infants. Maternal intrusiveness moderated the association of maternal hair cortisol and infant salivary cortisol, such that maternal hair and infant average salivary cortisol were related only when mothers were more intrusive. Maternal chronic physiological stress may upregulate infants' developing stress systems, particularly in the context of lower mother-infant interaction quality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda R Tarullo
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, United States.
| | - Ashley Moore St John
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, United States
| | - Jerrold S Meyer
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, United States
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57
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Fearon RMP, Tomlinson M, Kumsta R, Skeen S, Murray L, Cooper PJ, Morgan B. Poverty, early care, and stress reactivity in adolescence: Findings from a prospective, longitudinal study in South Africa. Dev Psychopathol 2017; 29:449-464. [PMID: 28401838 PMCID: PMC5659183 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579417000104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
A considerable body of evidence suggests that early caregiving may affect the short-term functioning and longer term development of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis. Despite this, most research to date has been cross-sectional in nature or restricted to relatively short-term longitudinal follow-ups. More important, there is a paucity of research on the role of caregiving in low- and middle-income countries, where the protective effects of high-quality care in buffering the child's developing stress regulation systems may be crucial. In this paper, we report findings from a longitudinal study (N = 232) conducted in an impoverished periurban settlement in Cape Town, South Africa. We measured caregiving sensitivity and security of attachment in infancy and followed children up at age 13 years, when we conducted assessments of hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenocortical axis reactivity, as indexed by salivary cortisol during the Trier Social Stress Test. The findings indicated that insecure attachment was predictive of reduced cortisol responses to social stress, particularly in boys, and that attachment status moderated the impact of contextual adversity on stress responses: secure children in highly adverse circumstances did not show the blunted cortisol response shown by their insecure counterparts. Some evidence was found that sensitivity of care in infancy was also associated with cortisol reactivity, but in this case, insensitivity was associated with heightened cortisol reactivity, and only for girls. The discussion focuses on the potentially important role of caregiving in the long-term calibration of the stress system and the need to better understand the social and biological mechanisms shaping the stress response across development in low- and middle-income countries.
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58
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Abstract
This review provides a broad overview of my research group's work on social buffering in human development in the context of the field. Much of the focus is on social buffering of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) system, one of the two major arms of the mammalian stress system. This focus reflects the centrality of the HPA system in research on social buffering in the fields of developmental psychobiology and developmental science. However, buffering of the cardiovascular and autonomic nervous system is also discussed. The central developmental question in this area derives from attachment theory, which argues that the infant's experience of stress and arousal regulation in the context of her early attachment relationships is not an immature form of social buffering experienced in adulthood but rather the foundation out of which individual differences in the capacity to gain stress relief from social partners emerges. The emergence of social buffering in infancy, changes in social buffering throughout childhood and adolescence, the influence of early experience on later individual differences in social buffering, and critical gaps in our knowledge are described.
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59
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Piccolo LDR, Salles JFD, Falceto OG, Fernandes CL, Grassi-Oliveira R. Can reactivity to stress and family environment explain memory and executive function performance in early and middle childhood? TRENDS IN PSYCHIATRY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY 2017; 38:80-9. [PMID: 27409133 DOI: 10.1590/2237-6089-2015-0085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2015] [Accepted: 12/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION According to the literature, children's overall reactivity to stress is associated with their socioeconomic status and family environment. In turn, it has been shown that reactivity to stress is associated with cognitive performance. However, few studies have systematically tested these three constructs together. OBJECTIVE To investigate the relationship between family environment, salivary cortisol measurements and children's memory and executive function performance. METHOD Salivary cortisol levels of 70 children aged 9 or 10 years were measured before and after performing tasks designed to assess memory and executive functions. Questionnaires on socioeconomic issues, family environment and maternal psychopathologies were administered to participants' families during the children's early childhood and again when they reached school age. RESULTS Data were analyzed by calculating correlations between variables and conducting hierarchical regression. High cortisol levels were associated with poorer working memory and worse performance in tasks involving executive functions, and were also associated with high scores for maternal psychopathology (during early childhood and school age) and family dysfunction. Family environment variables and changes in cortisol levels explain around 20% of the variance in performance of cognitive tasks. CONCLUSION Family functioning and maternal psychopathology in early and middle childhood and children's stress levels were associated with children's working memory and executive functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luciane da Rosa Piccolo
- Departamento de Psicologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | | | - Olga Garcia Falceto
- Departamento de Psiquiatria e Medicina Legal, UFRGS, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
| | | | - Rodrigo Grassi-Oliveira
- Departamento de Psicologia, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil
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60
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Pratt M, Apter-Levi Y, Vakart A, Kanat-Maymon Y, Zagoory-Sharon O, Feldman R. Mother-child adrenocortical synchrony; Moderation by dyadic relational behavior. Horm Behav 2017; 89:167-175. [PMID: 28131596 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2016] [Revised: 11/11/2016] [Accepted: 01/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Mother-child adrenocortical synchrony, the coupling of cortisol (CT) secretion in mother and child, has been associated with shared parent-child experiences and maladaptive familial contexts. Yet, few studies tested adrenocortical synchrony in diurnal CT patterns. Guided by the bio-behavioral synchrony model, we examined whether mother-child relational behavior and maternal psychopathology may moderate the degree of concordance between mother and child's diurnal CT. Ninety-seven mothers and their six-year old children participated in two groups; mothers diagnosed with major depression disorder (N=28) and non-depressed controls (N=69). Mother-child interactions were observed and coded for dyadic reciprocity and dyadic tension and diurnal cortisol was collected from mother and child over two consecutive weekend days. Concordance between maternal and child's diurnal CT was found, significant above and beyond time of measurement. Maternal depression, while associated with attenuated child diurnal CT variability, was unrelated to adrenocortical synchrony. Higher child diurnal CT production predicted a stronger linkage between maternal and child's diurnal CT, suggesting that greater child physiological stress is associated with increased susceptibility to the influences of maternal stress physiology. Mother-child reciprocity was related to lower adrenocortical synchrony. Findings suggest that higher adrenocortical synchrony is associated with greater physiological stress and less adaptive dyadic relational patterns. Results raise the possibility that diurnal adrenocortical synchrony taps a unique aspect of HPA-axis functioning whose role in the cross-generational transfer of stress physiology requires further research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maayan Pratt
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Sciences Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | - Yael Apter-Levi
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Sciences Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | - Adam Vakart
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Sciences Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | - Yaniv Kanat-Maymon
- Department of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Orna Zagoory-Sharon
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Sciences Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Department of Psychology and the Gonda Brain Sciences Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel; Yale University, Child Study Center, United States.
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61
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Thomas JC, Letourneau N, Bryce CI, Campbell TS, Giesbrecht GF. Biological embedding of perinatal social relationships in infant stress reactivity. Dev Psychobiol 2017; 59:425-435. [PMID: 28220490 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2016] [Revised: 01/05/2017] [Accepted: 01/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Whereas significant advances have been made in understanding how exposure to early adversity "gets under the skin" of children to result in long term changes in developmental outcomes, the processes by which positive social relationships become biologically embedded remain poorly understood. The aim of this study was to understand the pathways by which maternal and infant social environments become biologically embedded in infant cortisol reactivity. Two hundred seventy-two pregnant women and their infants were prospectively assessed during pregnancy and at 6 months postpartum. In serial mediation analyses, higher perceived social support from partners during pregnancy was associated with lower infant cortisol reactivity or larger decreases in cortisol in response to a stressor at 6 months of age via lower self-reported prenatal maternal depression and higher mother-infant interaction quality. The findings add to our understanding of how perinatal social relationships become biologically embedded in child development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenna C Thomas
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Nicole Letourneau
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Faculties of Nursing and Medicine (Pediatrics and Psychiatry), University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Department of Pediatrics and Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Crystal I Bryce
- T. Denny Sanford School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona
| | - Tavis S Campbell
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Gerald F Giesbrecht
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.,Faculties of Nursing and Medicine (Pediatrics and Psychiatry), University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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62
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Easter A, Taborelli E, Bye A, Zunszain PA, Pariante CM, Treasure J, Schmidt U, Micali N. Perinatal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis regulation among women with eating disorders and their infants. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2017; 76:127-134. [PMID: 27914245 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2016.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2016] [Revised: 10/31/2016] [Accepted: 11/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Psychiatric illness is associated with heightened hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity during pregnancy which may have long term effects on infant stress regulation. HPA axis regulation has not previously been investigated in women with eating disorders (ED) or their infants during the perinatal period. METHODS Women were recruited to a prospective longitudinal study in three groups: 1) current or active ED (C-ED=31), 2) past ED (P-ED=29) and healthy control (HC=57). Maternal psychopathology, diurnal cortisol levels, corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and CRH binding protein (CRH-BP) were measured during the third trimester of pregnancy. At eight weeks postpartum infant cortisol was obtained before and after routine immunisations to determine infant hormonal response to a stressful situation. RESULTS Women with current ED had a significantly lower cortisol decline throughout the day compared to HC, in both adjusted and unadjusted analyses. Lower cortisol decline among women with a current ED were associated with higher levels of psychopathology during pregnancy. Women's cortisol awakening response, CRH and CRH-BP levels did not differ across the three groups. Infants' stress response was also significantly higher among those in the C-ED group, although this effect was attenuated after controlling for confounders. CONCLUSIONS During pregnancy women with ED have lower cortisol declines, suggestive of blunted diurnal cortisol rhythms. Postnatally, their infants also have a heightened response to stress. This is the first study to identify HPA axis dysfunction in pregnancy in women with ED, and to show an intergenerational effect. Since dysfunctions in HPA activity during childhood may represent a risk factor for psychological and physical health problems later in life, further investigation of the potential long-term implications of these findings is crucial.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Easter
- Behavioural and Brain Sciences Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK; Department of Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry, Section of Eating Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK; Health Services Research Department, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK.
| | - E Taborelli
- Behavioural and Brain Sciences Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK; Department of Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry, Section of Eating Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK
| | - A Bye
- Behavioural and Brain Sciences Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK; Department of Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry, Section of Eating Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK; Health Services Research Department, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK
| | - P A Zunszain
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Section of Perinatal Psychiatry and Stress, Psychiatry and Immunology (SPI-lab), King's College London, London, UK
| | - C M Pariante
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Section of Perinatal Psychiatry and Stress, Psychiatry and Immunology (SPI-lab), King's College London, London, UK
| | - J Treasure
- Department of Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry, Section of Eating Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK
| | - U Schmidt
- Department of Psychological Medicine and Psychiatry, Section of Eating Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, London, UK
| | - N Micali
- Behavioural and Brain Sciences Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA; Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA
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63
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Bernard NK, Kashy DA, Levendosky AA, Bogat GA, Lonstein JS. Do different data analytic approaches generate discrepant findings when measuring mother-infant HPA axis attunement? Dev Psychobiol 2016; 59:174-184. [DOI: 10.1002/dev.21474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2016] [Accepted: 08/26/2016] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Nicola K. Bernard
- Department of Psychology; Michigan State University; East Lansing Michigan
| | - Deborah A. Kashy
- Department of Psychology; Michigan State University; East Lansing Michigan
| | | | - G. Anne Bogat
- Department of Psychology; Michigan State University; East Lansing Michigan
| | - Joseph S. Lonstein
- Department of Psychology; Michigan State University; East Lansing Michigan
- Neuroscience Program; Michigan State University; East Lansing Michigan
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64
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Sethna V, Pote I, Wang S, Gudbrandsen M, Blasi A, McCusker C, Daly E, Perry E, Adams KPH, Kuklisova-Murgasova M, Busuulwa P, Lloyd-Fox S, Murray L, Johnson MH, Williams SCR, Murphy DGM, Craig MC, McAlonan GM. Mother-infant interactions and regional brain volumes in infancy: an MRI study. Brain Struct Funct 2016; 222:2379-2388. [PMID: 27915378 PMCID: PMC5504257 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-016-1347-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 11/25/2016] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
It is generally agreed that the human brain is responsive to environmental influences, and that the male brain may be particularly sensitive to early adversity. However, this is largely based on retrospective studies of older children and adolescents exposed to extreme environments in childhood. Less is understood about how normative variations in parent–child interactions are associated with the development of the infant brain in typical settings. To address this, we used magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the relationship between observational measures of mother–infant interactions and regional brain volumes in a community sample of 3- to 6-month-old infants (N = 39). In addition, we examined whether this relationship differed in male and female infants. We found that lower maternal sensitivity was correlated with smaller subcortical grey matter volumes in the whole sample, and that this was similar in both sexes. However, male infants who showed greater levels of positive communication and engagement during early interactions had smaller cerebellar volumes. These preliminary findings suggest that variations in mother–infant interaction dimensions are associated with differences in infant brain development. Although the study is cross-sectional and causation cannot be inferred, the findings reveal a dynamic interaction between brain and environment that may be important when considering interventions to optimize infant outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vaheshta Sethna
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK.
| | - Inês Pote
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Siying Wang
- Department of Engineering Science, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Maria Gudbrandsen
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Anna Blasi
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK
| | - Caroline McCusker
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Eileen Daly
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Emily Perry
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Kerrie P H Adams
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Maria Kuklisova-Murgasova
- Division of Imaging Sciences and Biomedical Engineering, Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Paula Busuulwa
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK.,GKT School of Medical Education, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Sarah Lloyd-Fox
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK
| | - Lynne Murray
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK.,Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa
| | - Mark H Johnson
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, UK
| | - Steven C R Williams
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.,NIHR Biomedical Research Centre for Mental Health at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and King's College London, London, UK
| | - Declan G M Murphy
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Michael C Craig
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
| | - Grainne M McAlonan
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences, Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, PO 50, 16 De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8A, UK
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Vergara-Lopez C, Chaudoir S, Bublitz M, O'Reilly Treter M, Stroud L. The influence of maternal care and overprotection on youth adrenocortical stress response: a multiphase growth curve analysis. Stress 2016; 19:567-575. [PMID: 27556727 PMCID: PMC5292779 DOI: 10.1080/10253890.2016.1222608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2016] [Accepted: 06/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
We examined the association between two dimensions of maternal parenting style (care and overprotection) and cortisol response to an acute laboratory-induced stressor in healthy youth. Forty-three participants completed the Parental Bonding Instrument and an adapted version of the Trier Social Stress Test-Child (TSST-C). Nine cortisol samples were collected to investigate heterogeneity in different phases of youth's stress response. Multiphase growth-curve modeling was utilized to create latent factors corresponding to individual differences in cortisol during baseline, reactivity, and recovery to the TSST-C. Youth report of maternal overprotection was associated with lower baseline cortisol levels, and a slower cortisol decline during recovery, controlling for maternal care, puberty, and gender. No additive or interactive effects involving maternal care emerged. These findings suggest that maternal overprotection may exert a unique and important influence on youth's stress response.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Margaret Bublitz
- Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University & The Miriam Hospital
| | | | - Laura Stroud
- Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University & The Miriam Hospital
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66
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Schoorl J, Rijn SV, Wied MD, van Goozen S, Swaab H. The role of anxiety in cortisol stress response and cortisol recovery in boys with oppositional defiant disorder/conduct disorder. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2016; 73:217-223. [PMID: 27521740 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2016.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2016] [Revised: 08/02/2016] [Accepted: 08/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Children with antisocial and aggressive behaviors have been found to show abnormal neurobiological responses to stress, specifically impaired cortisol stress reactivity. The role of individual characteristics, such as comorbid anxiety, in the stress response is far less studied. Furthermore, this study extended previous studies in that not only baseline and reactivity to a psychosocial stressor were examined, but also recovery from a stressor. These three phases of cortisol could be impacted differentially in boys with oppositional defiant disorder/conduct disorder (ODD/CD) with (+ANX) and without anxiety (-ANX). The results revealed that cortisol patterns in response to psychosocial stress were different for boys with ODD/CD+ANX (n=32), ODD/CD-ANX (n=22) and non-clinical controls (NC) (n=34), with age range of 7.8-12.9 years. The ODD/CD-ANX group showed lower overall cortisol levels than the NC group. When considering the three phases of cortisol separately, the ODD/CD-ANX group had lower baseline cortisol levels relative to the other groups, whereas the ODD/CD+ANX showed an impaired cortisol recovery response. Within those with ODD/CD, callous-unemotional traits were predictive of high baseline cortisol levels. Also, anxiety predicted high baseline and recovery cortisol levels, whereas a high number of CD symptoms predicted reduced cortisol stress reactivity. These results clearly indicate that comorbid anxiety is an important factor in explaining differences in stress response profiles in boys with ODD/CD; although boys with CD/ODD are generally characterized by an impaired cortisol stress response, we found that those with comorbid anxiety showed impaired cortisol recovery, whereas those without anxiety showed reduced baseline cortisol levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jantiene Schoorl
- Department of Clinical Child and Adolescent Studies, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - Sophie van Rijn
- Department of Clinical Child and Adolescent Studies, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Minet de Wied
- Department of Adolescent Development, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80140, 3508 TC Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Stephanie van Goozen
- Department of Clinical Child and Adolescent Studies, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands; School of Psychology, Cardiff University, P.O. Box 901, Cardiff CF10 3AT, United Kingdom
| | - Hanna Swaab
- Department of Clinical Child and Adolescent Studies, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC, Leiden, The Netherlands
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67
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Oppenheimer CW, Ladouceur CD, Waller JM, Ryan ND, Allen KB, Sheeber L, Forbes EE, Dahl RE, Silk JS. Emotion Socialization in Anxious Youth: Parenting Buffers Emotional Reactivity to Peer Negative Events. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 2016; 44:1267-78. [PMID: 26783026 PMCID: PMC4955624 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-015-0125-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Anxious youth exhibit heightened emotional reactivity, particularly to social-evaluative threat, such as peer evaluation and feedback, compared to non-anxious youth. Moreover, normative developmental changes during the transition into adolescence may exacerbate emotional reactivity to peer negative events, particularly for anxious youth. Therefore, it is important to investigate factors that may buffer emotional reactivity within peer contexts among anxious youth. The current study examined the role of parenting behaviors in child emotional reactivity to peer and non-peer negative events among 86 anxious youth in middle childhood to adolescence (Mean age = 11.29, 54 % girls). Parenting behavior and affect was observed during a social-evaluative laboratory speech task for youth, and ecological momentary assessment (EMA) methods were used to examine youth emotional reactivity to typical daily negative events within peer and non-peer contexts. Results showed that parent positive behaviors, and low levels of parent anxious affect, during the stressful laboratory task for youth buffered youth negative emotional reactivity to real-world negative peer events, but not non-peer events. Findings inform our understanding of parenting influences on anxious youth's emotional reactivity to developmentally salient negative events during the transition into adolescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline W Oppenheimer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 121 Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA.
| | - Cecile D Ladouceur
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 121 Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA
| | - Jennifer M Waller
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, 210 S. Bouquet St., Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Neal D Ryan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 121 Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA
| | - Kristy Benoit Allen
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 121 Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA
| | - Lisa Sheeber
- Oregon Research Institute, 1715 Franklin Blvd., Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Erika E Forbes
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 121 Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA
| | - Ronald E Dahl
- School of Public Health, University of California, 50 University Hall, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jennifer S Silk
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 121 Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15260, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, 210 S. Bouquet St., Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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68
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Kim S, Kwok S, Mayes LC, Potenza MN, Rutherford HJV, Strathearn L. Early adverse experience and substance addiction: dopamine, oxytocin, and glucocorticoid pathways. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2016; 1394:74-91. [PMID: 27508337 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.13140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Revised: 05/12/2016] [Accepted: 05/20/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Substance addiction may follow a chronic, relapsing course and critically undermine the physical and psychological well-being of the affected individual and the social units of which the individual is a member. Despite the public health burden associated with substance addiction, treatment options remain suboptimal, with relapses often seen. The present review synthesizes growing insights from animal and human research to shed light upon developmental and neurobiological pathways that may increase susceptibility to addiction. We examine the dopamine system, the oxytocin system, and the glucocorticoid system, as they are particularly relevant to substance addiction. Our aim is to delineate how early adverse experience may induce long-lasting alterations in each of these systems at molecular, neuroendocrine, and behavioral levels and ultimately lead to heightened vulnerability to substance addiction. We further discuss how substance addiction in adulthood may increase the risk of suboptimal caregiving for the next generation, perpetuating the intergenerational cycle of early adverse experiences and addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sohye Kim
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.,Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.,Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.,Attachment and Neurodevelopment Laboratory, Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
| | - Stephanie Kwok
- Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
| | - Linda C Mayes
- Yale Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut
| | - Marc N Potenza
- Yale Child Study Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.,Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience and the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASAColumbia), Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.,Connecticut Mental Health Center, New Haven, Connecticut
| | | | - Lane Strathearn
- Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.,Department of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.,Attachment and Neurodevelopment Laboratory, Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.,Stead Family Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa
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69
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Atkinson L, Jamieson B, Khoury J, Ludmer J, Gonzalez A. Stress Physiology in Infancy and Early Childhood: Cortisol Flexibility, Attunement and Coordination. J Neuroendocrinol 2016; 28. [PMID: 27344031 DOI: 10.1111/jne.12408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2015] [Revised: 06/24/2016] [Accepted: 06/24/2016] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Research on stress physiology in infancy has assumed increasing importance due to its lifelong implications. In this review, we focus on measurement of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) function, in particular, and on complementary autonomic processes. We suggest that the measure of HPA function has been overly exclusive, focusing on individual reactivity to single, pragmatically selected laboratory challenges. We advocate use of multiple, strategically chosen challenges and within-subject designs. By administering one challenge that typically does not provoke reactivity and another that does, it is possible to represent allostatic load in terms of "flexibility," the capacity to titrate response to challenge. We also recommend assessing infant reactivity in the context of the primary caregiver's physiological function. Infant-mother "attunement" is central to developmental psychology, permeating diverse developmental domains with varied consequences. A review of adrenocortical attunement suggests that attunement is a reliable process, manifest across varied populations. However, attunement appears stronger in the context of more highly stressful circumstances, such that administration of multiple, selected challenges may help evaluate the degree to which individuals titrate attunement to challenge and determine the correlates of this differential attunement. Finally, we advocate studying the "coordination" of HPA function with other aspects of stress physiology and variation in the degree of this coordination. The use of multiple stressors is important here because each stress system is differentially sensitive to different types of challenge. Therefore, use of single stressors in between-subject designs impedes full recognition of the role played by each system. Overall, we recommend measure of flexibility, attunement, and coordination in the context of multiple challenges to capture allostasis in environmental and physiological context. The simultaneous use of such inclusive and integrative metrics may yield more reliable findings than has hitherto been the case. The interrelation of these metrics can be understood in the context of the adaptive calibration model..
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Affiliation(s)
- L Atkinson
- Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada
| | - B Jamieson
- Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada
| | - J Khoury
- Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada
| | - J Ludmer
- Department of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada
| | - A Gonzalez
- Departments of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences and Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
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70
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Philbrook LE, Teti DM. Associations between bedtime and nighttime parenting and infant cortisol in the first year. Dev Psychobiol 2016; 58:1087-1100. [PMID: 27363863 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2016] [Accepted: 06/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
We examined how maternal care within the bedtime and nighttime contexts influences infant cortisol levels and patterning. Eighty-two mothers (Mage = 29.4 years) and infants participated in a longitudinal study when infants were 3, 6, and 9 months old. At each time point, bedtime and nighttime parenting were recorded and infant cortisol at bedtime and the following morning was analyzed. Multilevel model analyses showed that infants had lower cortisol levels when mothers were more emotionally available at bedtime, and infants whose mothers responded more often to their non-distressed cues had lower cortisol levels on average. Less co-sleeping and more maternal responses to infant distress were linked to healthier cortisol patterning. By shedding light on parenting qualities and behaviors that influence infant cortisol, these results indicate avenues for intervention and suggest the utility of studying parenting in infant sleep contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren E Philbrook
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama
| | - Douglas M Teti
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
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71
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Lippold MA, McHale SM, Davis KD, Almeida DM, King RB. Experiences With Parents and Youth Physical Health Symptoms and Cortisol: A Daily Diary Investigation. JOURNAL OF RESEARCH ON ADOLESCENCE : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR RESEARCH ON ADOLESCENCE 2016; 26:226-240. [PMID: 27231418 PMCID: PMC4876874 DOI: 10.1111/jora.12186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
Using daily diary data, this study examined the associations between positive and negative parent-youth experiences and youth cortisol and physical health symptoms among a sample of adolescents (N=132, Mean Age = 13.39). On days when girls reported more negative experiences than usual, they exhibited more physical health symptoms and flatter evening cortisol slopes than usual. Negative experiences with mothers were associated with higher dinner and bedtime youth cortisol levels (between-person). Daily positive experiences with fathers were linked with lower dinner cortisol levels. Youth with high levels of negative experiences, on average, were less sensitive to daily variation in negative experiences than youth who experienced lower parental negativity. We discuss the benefits of a daily diary approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa A. Lippold
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Tate-Turner-Kuralt Building, 325 Pittsboro St CB#3550, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3550
| | - Susan M. McHale
- The Pennsylvania State University, 114 Henderson (North), University Park PA 16802
| | - Kelly D. Davis
- Clearinghouse for Military Family Readiness, The Pennsylvania State University, 135 E. Nittany Avenue, Suite 402, State College, PA 16801
| | - David M. Almeida
- The Pennsylvania State University, 403 BBH Building, University Park, PA 16802
| | - Rosalind B. King
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Health Scientist Administrator Population Dynamics Branch, 6100 Executive Blvd., Room 8B07, MSC 7510, Bethesda, MD 20892-7510
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72
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Janevski MR, Vujičić AĐ, Đukić SM. Salivary Cortisol as a Biomarker of Stress in Mothers and their Low Birth Weight Infants and Sample Collecting Challenges. J Med Biochem 2016; 35:118-122. [PMID: 28356870 PMCID: PMC5346787 DOI: 10.1515/jomb-2015-0015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 08/08/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Salivary cortisol measurement is a non-invasive method suitable for use in neonatal research. Mother-infant separation after birth represents stress and skin-to-skin contact (SSC) has numerous benefits. The aim of the study was to measure salivary cortisol in mothers and newborns before and after SSC in order to assess the effect of SSC on mothers’ and infants’ stress and to estimate the efficacy of collecting small saliva samples in newborns. Methods Salivary cortisol was measured in 35 mother-infant pairs before and after the first and the fifth SSC in small saliva samples (50 μL) using the high sensitivity Quantitative ELISA-Kit (0.0828 nmol/L) for low cortisol levels detection. Samples were collected with eye sponge during 3 to 5 minutes. Results Cortisol level in mothers decreased after SSC: the highest levels were measured before and the lowest after SSC and the differences in values were significant during both the first (p<0.001) and the fifth SSC (p<0.001). During the first SSC the cortisol level decrease was detected in 14 (40%) and an increase in 21 (60%) newborns, and during the fifth SSC a decrease was detected in 16 (45.7%) and an increase in 19 (54.3%) newborns, without confirmed significance of the difference. Saliva sampling efficacy using eye sponge was 75%. Conclusions Cortisol level decrease in mothers proves the stress reduction during SSC, while variable cortisol levels in infants do not indicate stress reduction and imply the need for further research. The used sampling method appeared to be one of the most optimal considering the sample volume, sampling time and efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Svjetlana Maglajić Đukić
- University Children's Hospital, Belgrade, Serbia; Faculty of Medicine, University of Belgrade, Serbia
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73
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Mooney-Leber SM, Brummelte S. Neonatal pain and reduced maternal care: Early-life stressors interacting to impact brain and behavioral development. Neuroscience 2016; 342:21-36. [PMID: 27167085 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2016.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2015] [Revised: 03/22/2016] [Accepted: 05/02/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Advances in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) have drastically increased the survival chances of preterm infants. However, preterm infants are still exposed to a wide range of stressors during their stay in the NICU, which include painful procedures and reduced maternal contact. The activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, in response to these stressors during this critical period of brain development, has been associated with many acute and long-term adverse biobehavioral outcomes. Recent research has shown that Kangaroo care, a non-pharmacological analgesic based on increased skin-to-skin contact between the neonate and the mother, negates the adverse outcomes associated with neonatal pain and reduced maternal care, however the biological mechanism remains widely unknown. This review summarizes findings from both human and rodent literature investigating neonatal pain and reduced maternal care independently, primarily focusing on the role of the HPA axis and biobehavioral outcomes. The physiological and positive outcomes of Kangaroo care will also be discussed in terms of how dampening of the HPA axis response to neonatal pain and increased maternal care may account for positive outcomes associated with Kangaroo care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean M Mooney-Leber
- Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States
| | - Susanne Brummelte
- Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, United States.
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74
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Beijers R, Cillessen L, Zijlmans MAC. An experimental study on mother-infant skin-to-skin contact in full-terms. Infant Behav Dev 2016; 43:58-65. [PMID: 27130955 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2016.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2015] [Revised: 11/06/2015] [Accepted: 01/28/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
In premature infants, daily skin-to-skin contact (SSC) has various beneficial effects on the health of the infant and the mother. These beneficial effects might extend to full-term infants. This experimental within-subject study examines the immediate effects of SSC on full-terms' cortisol physiology during SSC and subsequent physiological and behavioral reactions to a mild stressor (a bathing session). Additionally, the effects of SSC on the quality of maternal behavior are examined. Between 5 and 7 weeks postpartum, 17 full-term infant-mother dyads were visited at home twice. During one home visit, a bathing session was proceeded by 50min of mother-infant SSC, while during the other visit the bathing session was proceeded by 50min of the infant resting alone. The order of the home visits was counterbalanced. Infant salivary cortisol measures were taken to measure the cortisol response to the experimental condition (SSC versus solitary resting) and the bathing session. Furthermore, infant behavioral distress and the quality of maternal behavior during the bathing session were scored from videotapes. Two-way within-subject repeated measures ANOVA's showed that, when compared to solitary resting, full-terms' cortisol concentrations significantly decreased during SSC, followed by higher cortisol reactivity in response to the subsequent bathing session. No effects of SSC on infant behavioral distress and maternal caregiving behavior were found. Apparently, a single session of mother-infant SSC can affect infant cortisol physiology in full-term infants. Future SSC research is needed to investigate the neurobiological mechanisms and dose-response relations in full-term infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roseriet Beijers
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| | - Linda Cillessen
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Maartje A C Zijlmans
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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75
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Spratt EG, Marsh C, Wahlquist AE, Papa CE, Nietert PJ, Brady KT, Herbert TL, Wagner C. Biologic effects of stress and bonding in mother-infant pairs. Int J Psychiatry Med 2016; 51:246-57. [PMID: 27284117 PMCID: PMC5221760 DOI: 10.1177/0091217416652382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Maternal stress in humans influences behavior of children and can be assessed using biological markers. Mothers and their one-month-old infants were recruited from an existing study to examine baseline maternal serum oxytocin and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis response to infant blood heel stick stress as measured by salivary cortisol in the dyads. Objectives were to explore (1) relationships between mother and infant cortisol levels, (2) gender differences in infant biologic cortisol response, and (3) the association of cortisol levels in the dyads and maternal oxytocin levels METHODS Forty-two mother-infant dyads provided biologic samples and self-report data. Maternal oxytocin samples were obtained. Initial salivary cortisol was assessed in both the mother and infant, followed by a heel stick blood draw. Twenty minutes later, salivary cortisol was collected again from dyads. RESULTS Self-report measures were negative for depression and risk for childhood neglect. Although oxytocin and baseline cortisol in the infants was higher in mothers that did some breast-feeding, there was no statistically significant difference (p = 0.2 and p = 0.1, respectively). Analyses showed (a) higher baseline cortisol in mothers was related to higher baseline cortisol in infants (p ≤ 0.0001), (b) following the stressor, female infants had a larger positive change in cortisol, after adjusting for baseline cortisol (p = 0.045), and (c) there was no relationship between dyad cortisol levels and maternal oxytocin. CONCLUSIONS Maternal and infant biologic stress measures are related. Female infants have a larger hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal response to a blood draw stressor as measured by salivary cortisol than male infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eve G. Spratt
- Division of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
| | - Courtney Marsh
- School of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
| | - Amy E. Wahlquist
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
| | - Carrie E. Papa
- Division of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
| | - Paul J Nietert
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
| | - Kathleen T. Brady
- Division of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
| | | | - Carol Wagner
- Department of Pediatrics, Medical University of South Carolina, SC
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76
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Albers EM, Beijers R, Riksen-Walraven JM, Sweep FCGJ, de Weerth C. Cortisol levels of infants in center care across the first year of life: links with quality of care and infant temperament. Stress 2016; 19:8-17. [PMID: 26455788 DOI: 10.3109/10253890.2015.1089230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cortisol concentrations of older children in childcare centers have been found to be higher than at home. This study focuses on infant cortisol in childcare centers throughout the first year of life, and aims to investigate whether inter-individual differences can be explained by temperament, the quality of maternal behavior, and the quality of center care. Sixty-four infants were followed for 9 months after entering care at 3 months of age. Salivary samples were taken at 10.00 h and 16.00 h in center care (in post-entry weeks 1, 2, 3, 4, 8, 12, 16, 24, and 36) and at home (in post-entry weeks 1, 24, and 36). Prior to entry, mothers completed a temperament questionnaire and the quality of maternal behavior (sensitivity and cooperation) was observed during routine bathing sessions. Subsequently, the infants were visited three times at center care to observe the quality of infant's interactive experiences with their professional caregiver. Longitudinal regression models showed that both morning and afternoon cortisol were higher in center care compared to home. Longitudinal regression models showed that infants receiving higher quality of maternal behavior displayed higher morning cortisol in center care, compared to infants receiving lower quality of maternal behavior. Higher quality of maternal behavior was also related to higher afternoon cortisol in center care, but only in infants high in negative emotionality. Center care quality was not related to cortisol. In sum, young infants show higher cortisol concentrations in center care that are related to infant temperament and quality of maternal behavior at home.
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Affiliation(s)
- Esther M Albers
- a Department of Developmental Psychology , Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen , Nijmegen , The Netherlands , and
| | - Roseriet Beijers
- a Department of Developmental Psychology , Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen , Nijmegen , The Netherlands , and
| | - J Marianne Riksen-Walraven
- a Department of Developmental Psychology , Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen , Nijmegen , The Netherlands , and
| | - Fred C G J Sweep
- b Department of Laboratory Medicine , Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre , Nijmegen , The Netherlands
| | - Carolina de Weerth
- a Department of Developmental Psychology , Behavioral Science Institute, Radboud University Nijmegen , Nijmegen , The Netherlands , and
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A Longitudinal Study of the Effects of Child-Reported Maternal Warmth on Cortisol Stress Response 15 Years After Parental Divorce. Psychosom Med 2016; 78:163-70. [PMID: 26465217 PMCID: PMC4738014 DOI: 10.1097/psy.0000000000000251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The experience of parental divorce during childhood is associated with an increased risk of behavioral and physical health problems. Alterations in adrenocortical activity may be a mechanism in this relation. Parent-child relationships have been linked to cortisol regulation in children exposed to adversity, but prospective research is lacking. We examined maternal warmth in adolescence as a predictor of young adults' cortisol stress response 15 years after parental divorce. METHODS Participants included 240 youth from recently divorced families. Mother and child reports of maternal warmth were assessed at 6 time points across childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. Offspring salivary cortisol was measured in young adulthood before and after a social stress task. Structural equation modeling was used to predict cortisol response from maternal warmth across early and late adolescence. RESULTS Higher child-reported maternal warmth in early adolescence predicted higher child-reported maternal warmth in late adolescence (standardized regression = 0.45, standard error = 0.065, p < .01), which predicted lower cortisol response to a challenging interpersonal task in young adulthood (standardized regression = -0.20, standard error = 0.094, p = .031). Neither mother-reported warmth in early adolescence nor late adolescence was significantly related to offspring cortisol response in young adulthood. CONCLUSIONS Results suggest that for children from divorced families, a warm mother-child relationship after divorce and across development, as perceived by the child, may promote efficient biological regulation later in life. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01407120.
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78
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McLaughlin RJ, Verlezza S, Gray JM, Hill MN, Walker CD. Inhibition of anandamide hydrolysis dampens the neuroendocrine response to stress in neonatal rats subjected to suboptimal rearing conditions. Stress 2016; 19:114-24. [PMID: 26552023 DOI: 10.3109/10253890.2015.1117448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Exposure to stress during early development can exert profound effects on the maturation of the neuroendocrine stress axis. The endocannabinoid (ECB) system has recently surfaced as a fundamental component of the neuroendocrine stress response; however, the effect of early-life stress on neonatal ECB signaling and the capacity to which ECB enhancement may modulate neonatal stress responses is relatively unknown. The present study assessed whether exposure to early-life stress in the form of limited access to nesting/bedding material (LB) from postnatal (PND) day 2 to 9 alters neuroendocrine activity and hypothalamic ECB content in neonatal rats challenged with a novel immobilization stressor. Furthermore, we examined whether inhibition of fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH), the enzyme responsible for the degradation of anandamide (AEA) affects neuroendocrine responses in PND10 pups as a function of rearing conditions. Neonatal rats showed a robust increase in corticosterone (CORT) and adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) secretion in response to immobilization stress, which was significantly blunted in pups reared in LB conditions. Accordingly, LB pups exhibited reduced stress-induced Fos immunoreactivity in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, with no significant differences in hypothalamic ECB content. Administration of the FAAH inhibitor URB597 (0.3 mg/kg, ip) 90 min prior to immobilization stress significantly dampened stress-induced CORT release, but only in pups reared in LB conditions. These results suggest that rearing in restricted bedding conditions dampens the neuroendocrine response to stress, while augmenting AEA mitigates stress-induced alterations in glucocorticoid secretion preferentially in pups subjected to early-life stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan Joseph McLaughlin
- a Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University , Montreal , QC , Canada
- b Department of Integrative Physiology & Neuroscience , College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University , Pullman , WA , USA , and
| | - Silvanna Verlezza
- a Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University , Montreal , QC , Canada
| | - Jennifer Megan Gray
- c Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy and Psychiatry , Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary , AB , Canada
| | - Matthew Nicholas Hill
- c Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy and Psychiatry , Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary , Calgary , AB , Canada
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Kopala-Sibley DC, Dougherty LR, Dyson MW, Laptook RS, Olino TM, Bufferd SJ, Klein DN. Early childhood cortisol reactivity moderates the effects of parent-child relationship quality on the development of children's temperament in early childhood. Dev Sci 2015; 20. [PMID: 26689860 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 10/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Positive parenting has been related both to lower cortisol reactivity and more adaptive temperament traits in children, whereas elevated cortisol reactivity may be related to maladaptive temperament traits, such as higher negative emotionality (NE) and lower positive emotionality (PE). However, no studies have examined whether hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, as measured by cortisol reactivity, moderates the effect of the quality of the parent-child relationship on changes in temperament in early childhood. In this study, 126 3-year-olds were administered the Laboratory Temperament Assessment Battery (Lab-TAB; Goldsmith et al., 1995) as a measure of temperamental NE and PE. Salivary cortisol was collected from the child at 4 time points during this task. The primary parent and the child completed the Teaching Tasks battery (Egeland et al., 1995), from which the quality of the relationship was coded. At age 6, children completed the Lab-TAB again. From age 3 to 6, adjusting for age 3 PE or NE, a better quality relationship with their primary parent predicted decreases in NE for children with elevated cortisol reactivity and predicted increases in PE for children with low cortisol reactivity. Results have implications for our understanding of the interaction of biological stress systems and the parent-child relationship in the development of temperament in childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lea R Dougherty
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, USA
| | - Margret W Dyson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, USA
| | - Rebecca S Laptook
- Departments of Psychiatry and Pediatrics, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, USA
| | | | - Sara J Bufferd
- Department of Psychology, California State University, San Marcos, USA
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80
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DRD2 and SLC6A3 moderate impact of maternal depressive symptoms on infant cortisol. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2015; 62:243-51. [PMID: 26342565 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.08.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2015] [Revised: 08/25/2015] [Accepted: 08/26/2015] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Both maternal depressive symptoms and infants' dopamine-related genetic characteristics have been linked to infants' hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) functioning. This study investigated the interactive influence of maternal depressive symptoms and infant DRD2 and SLC6A3 genotypes on infant cortisol reactivity; whether this interaction reflects diathesis-stress or differential susceptibility; and whether this interaction influences the flexibility of the infant cortisol response across challenges known to exert differential effects on infant cortisol reactivity. A community sample of 314 mother-infant dyads participated in toy frustration (age 16 months) and maternal separation (age 17 months) challenges, and salivary cortisol was collected at baseline, +20, and +40min. Maternal depressive symptoms were assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory-II at infant age 16 months. Infant buccal cells were collected at both time points for genotyping. DRD2 and SLC6A3 genotypes moderated the relation between maternal depressive symptomatology and infant cortisol reactivity in a diathesis-stress manner in the context of toy frustration, and in a differential susceptibility manner in the context of maternal separation. Higher levels of maternal depressive symptoms predicted reduced cortisol flexibility across challenges for infants with at least one A1 allele of DRD2 and infants with the 10/10 genotype of SLC6A3. Results suggest that maternal depressive symptomatology is related to infants' cortisol reactivity and to the flexibility of that reactivity across psychosocial challenges, but this relation is dependent on the infant's genetic characteristics.
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81
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Development of the cortisol circadian rhythm in the light of stress early in life. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2015; 62:292-300. [PMID: 26352482 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.08.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2015] [Revised: 08/10/2015] [Accepted: 08/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The secretion of the stress hormone cortisol follows a diurnal circadian rhythm. There are indications that this rhythm is affected by stress early in life. This paper addresses the development of the cortisol circadian rhythm between 1 and 6 years of age, and the role of maternal stress and anxiety early in the child's life on this (developing) rhythm. Participants were 193 healthy mother-child dyads from a community sample. Self-reported maternal stress and anxiety and physiological stress (saliva cortisol), were assessed prenatally (gestational week 37). Postnatally, self-reported maternal stress and anxiety were measured at 3, 6, 12, 30, and 72 months. Saliva cortisol samples from the children were collected on two days (four times each day) at 12, 30, and 72 months of age. The total amount of cortisol during the day and the cortisol decline over the day were determined to indicate children's cortisol circadian rhythm. Multilevel analyses showed that the total amount of cortisol decreased between 1 and 6 years. Furthermore, more maternal pregnancy-specific stress was related to higher total amounts of cortisol in the child. Higher levels of early postnatal maternal anxiety were associated with flatter cortisol declines in children. Higher levels of early postnatal maternal daily hassles were associated with steeper child cortisol declines over the day. These results indicated developmental change in children's cortisol secretion from 1 to 6 years and associations between maternal stress and anxiety early in children's lives and children's cortisol circadian rhythm in early childhood.
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82
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Interacting effects of maternal responsiveness, infant regulatory problems and dopamine D4 receptor gene in the development of dysregulation during childhood: A longitudinal analysis. J Psychiatr Res 2015; 70:83-90. [PMID: 26424426 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2015.08.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2014] [Revised: 08/13/2015] [Accepted: 08/28/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Recent longitudinal studies have indicated that affective and behavioral dysregulation in childhood is associated with an increased risk for various negative outcomes in later life. However, few studies to date have examined early mechanisms preceding dysregulation during early childhood. Aim of this study was to elucidate early mechanisms relating to dysregulation in later life using data from an epidemiological cohort study on the long-term outcome of early risk factors from birth to adulthood. At age 3 months, mothers and infants were videotaped during a nursing and playing situation. Maternal responsiveness was evaluated by trained raters. Infant regulatory problems were assessed on the basis of a parent interview and direct observation by trained raters. At age 8 and 11 years, 290 children (139 males) were rated on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Additionally, participants were genotyped for the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) exon 3 VNTR polymorphism. A significant three-way interaction between maternal responsiveness, DRD4 genotype and infant regulatory problems was detected predicting the CBCL-dysregulation profile (CBCL-DP). Carriers of the DRD4 7r allele with regulatory problems at age 3 months showed significantly more behavior problems associated with the CBCL-DP during childhood when exposed to less maternal responsiveness. In contrast, no effect of maternal responsiveness was observed in DRD4 7r carriers without infant regulatory problems and in non-carriers of the DRD4 7r allele. This prospective longitudinal study extends earlier findings regarding the association of the CBCL-DP with early parenting and later psychopathology, introducing both DRD4 genotype and infant regulatory problems as important moderators.
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83
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Ji J, Negriff S, Kim H, Susman EJ. A study of cortisol reactivity and recovery among young adolescents: Heterogeneity and longitudinal stability and change. Dev Psychobiol 2015; 58:283-302. [DOI: 10.1002/dev.21369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2015] [Accepted: 10/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Juye Ji
- Department of Social Work (EC-207); California State University; Fullerton, 800 N. State College Blvd Fullerton CA 92831
| | - Sonya Negriff
- School of Social Work; University of Southern California; Los Angeles CA
| | - Hansung Kim
- Department of Sociology; Hanyang University; Seoul South Korea
| | - Elizabeth J. Susman
- Department of Biobehavioral Health; The Pennsylvania State University; University Park PA
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85
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O'Mahony SM, Clarke G, Dinan TG, Cryan JF. Early-life adversity and brain development: Is the microbiome a missing piece of the puzzle? Neuroscience 2015; 342:37-54. [PMID: 26432952 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2015.09.068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 136] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2015] [Revised: 09/23/2015] [Accepted: 09/25/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The prenatal and postnatal early-life periods are both dynamic and vulnerable windows for brain development. During these important neurodevelopmental phases, essential processes and structures are established. Exposure to adverse events that interfere with this critical sequence of events confers a high risk for the subsequent emergence of mental illness later in life. It is increasingly accepted that the gastrointestinal microbiota contributes substantially to shaping the development of the central nervous system. Conversely, several studies have shown that early-life events can also impact on this gut community. Due to the bidirectional communication between the gut and the brain, it is possible that aberrant situations affecting either organ in early life can impact on the other. Studies have now shown that deviations from the gold standard trajectory of gut microbiota establishment and development in early life can lead not only to disorders of the gastrointestinal tract but also complex metabolic and immune disorders. These are being extended to disorders of the central nervous system and understanding how the gut microbiome shapes brain and behavior during early life is an important new frontier in neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- S M O'Mahony
- Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland; Laboratory of Neurogastroenterology, Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
| | - G Clarke
- Laboratory of Neurogastroenterology, Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland; Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioural Science, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
| | - T G Dinan
- Laboratory of Neurogastroenterology, Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland; Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioural Science, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
| | - J F Cryan
- Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland; Laboratory of Neurogastroenterology, Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland.
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86
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Cho J, Su X, Phillips V, Holditch-Davis D. Association of Maternal and Infant Salivary Testosterone and Cortisol and Infant Gender With Mother-Infant Interaction in Very-Low-Birthweight Infants. Res Nurs Health 2015; 38:357-68. [DOI: 10.1002/nur.21672] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/15/2015] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- June Cho
- Assistant Professor; School of Nursing; University of Alabama at Birmingham; NB 1019E 1720 2nd Ave. South Birmingham Alabama 35294
| | - Xiaogang Su
- Associate Professor; Department of Mathematical Sciences; University of Texas at El Paso; El Paso Texas
| | - Vivien Phillips
- Research Nurse Coordinator; Department of Pediatrics School of Medicine; Division of Neonatology; University of Alabama at Birmingham; Birmingham Alabama
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87
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Duffy A, Jones S, Goodday S, Bentall R. Candidate Risks Indicators for Bipolar Disorder: Early Intervention Opportunities in High-Risk Youth. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2015; 19:pyv071. [PMID: 26116493 PMCID: PMC4772266 DOI: 10.1093/ijnp/pyv071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2015] [Accepted: 06/16/2015] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Psychiatric illnesses like bipolar disorder are increasingly understood to be neurodevelopmental disorders with clinical, psychological, and biological indicators recognizable long before the emergence of the full-blown syndromes. METHODS This paper is a selective review of findings from studies of high-risk children of affected parents that inform the knowledge of illness risk and development markers of bipolar disorder. We specifically focus on candidate clinical, biological, and psychological risk indicators that could serve as targets for future early intervention and prevention studies. RESULTS There is convergent evidence from prospective studies that bipolar disorder typically debuts as depressive episodes after puberty. In some high-risk children, sleep and anxiety disorders precede mood disorders by several years and reflect an increased vulnerability. An association between early exposure to adversity (eg, exposure to parental illness, neglect from mother) and increased risk of psychopathology may be mediated through increased stress reactivity evident at both behavioral and biological levels. Inter-related psychological processes including reward sensitivity, unstable self-esteem, rumination, and positive self-appraisal are risk factors for mood disorders. Disturbances in circadian rhythm and immune dysfunction are associated with mood disorders and may be vulnerability markers influenced by these other risk factors. CONCLUSIONS There is accruing evidence of a number of measurable and potentially modifiable markers of vulnerability and developing illness in youth at familial risk for bipolar disorder. Longitudinal studies of multiple biological and psychological risk processes in high-risk offspring, both individually and together, will improve our understanding of illness onset and lead to the development of specific early interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Duffy
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada (Dr Duffy); Mood Disorders Centre of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada (Dr Duffy); Lancaster University, Division of Health Research, Lancaster, United Kingdom (Dr Jones); Department of Epidemiology, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Ms Goodday, Dr Bentall); University of Liverpool, Institute of Psychology Health and Society, Liverpool, United Kingdom (Ms Goodday and Dr Bentall).
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88
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Stanton MA, Heintz MR, Lonsdorf EV, Santymire RM, Lipende I, Murray CM. Maternal Behavior and Physiological Stress Levels in Wild Chimpanzees ( Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii). INT J PRIMATOL 2015; 36:473-488. [PMID: 26213430 PMCID: PMC4512756 DOI: 10.1007/s10764-015-9836-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Individual differences in maternal behavior toward, and investment in, offspring can have lasting consequences, particularly among primate taxa characterized by prolonged periods of development over which mothers can exert substantial influence. Given the role of the neuroendocrine system in the expression of behavior, researchers are increasingly interested in understanding the hormonal correlates of maternal behavior. Here, we examined the relationship between maternal behavior and physiological stress levels, as quantified by fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (FGM) concentrations, in lactating chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes schweinfurthii, at Gombe National Park, Tanzania. After accounting for temporal variation in FGM concentrations, we found that mothers interacted socially (groomed and played) with and nursed their infants more on days when FGM concentrations were elevated compared to days when FGM concentrations were within the range expected given the time of year. However, the proportion of time mothers and infants spent in contact did not differ based on FGM concentrations. These results generally agree with the suggestion that elevated GC concentrations are related to maternal motivation and responsivity to infant cues and are the first evidence of a hormonal correlate of maternal behavior in a wild great ape.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret A. Stanton
- Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052
| | - Matthew R. Heintz
- Department of Conservation and Science, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Illinois 60614; and Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637
| | - Elizabeth V. Lonsdorf
- Department of Psychology, Franklin and Marshall College, Lancaster, Pennsylvania 17604
| | - Rachel M. Santymire
- Department of Conservation and Science, Lincoln Park Zoo, Chicago, Illinois 60614; and Committee on Evolutionary Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637
| | | | - Carson M. Murray
- Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052
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Thayer ZM, Kuzawa CW. Ethnic discrimination predicts poor self-rated health and cortisol in pregnancy: insights from New Zealand. Soc Sci Med 2015; 128:36-42. [PMID: 25589034 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Despite growing research emphasis on understanding the health effects of ethnic discrimination, little work has focused on how such exposures may influence a woman's biology and health during pregnancy. Understanding such effects is important given evidence that maternal stress experience in pregnancy can have long term effects on offspring health. Here we present data evaluating the relationship between perceived discrimination, self-rated health, and the stress hormone cortisol measured in late pregnancy among a diverse sample of women living in Auckland, New Zealand (N = 55). We also evaluated possible intergenerational impacts of maternal discrimination on stress reactivity in a subset of offspring (N = 19). Pregnant women were recruited from two antenatal care clinics in Auckland. Women were met in their homes between 34 and 36 weeks gestation, during which time a prenatal stress questionnaire was administered and saliva samples (morning and evening from two days) were obtained. Offspring cortisol reactivity was assessed at the standard six week postnatal vaccination visit. We found that 34% of women reported having experienced ethnic discrimination, with minority and immigrant women being more likely to report being angry or upset in response to discrimination experience compared with NZ-born women of European descent. Women reporting discrimination experience had worse self-rated health, higher evening cortisol and gave birth to infants with higher cortisol reactivity, all independent of ethnicity and material deprivation. These findings suggest that discrimination experience can have biological impacts in pregnancy and across generations, potentially contributing to the ethnic gradient in health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zaneta M Thayer
- Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO, USA.
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Unternaehrer E, Meyer AH, Burkhardt SCA, Dempster E, Staehli S, Theill N, Lieb R, Meinlschmidt G. Childhood maternal care is associated with DNA methylation of the genes for brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and oxytocin receptor (OXTR) in peripheral blood cells in adult men and women. Stress 2015; 18:451-61. [PMID: 26061800 DOI: 10.3109/10253890.2015.1038992] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
In adults, reporting low and high maternal care in childhood, we compared DNA methylation in two stress-associated genes (two target sequences in the oxytocin receptor gene, OXTR; one in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor gene, BDNF) in peripheral whole blood, in a cross-sectional study (University of Basel, Switzerland) during 2007-2008. We recruited 89 participants scoring < 27 (n = 47, 36 women) or > 33 (n = 42, 35 women) on the maternal care subscale of the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) at a previous assessment of a larger group (N = 709, range PBI maternal care = 0-36, age range = 19-66 years; median 24 years). 85 participants gave blood for DNA methylation analyses (Sequenom(R) EpiTYPER, San Diego, CA) and cell count (Sysmex PocH-100i™, Kobe, Japan). Mixed model statistical analysis showed greater DNA methylation in the low versus high maternal care group, in the BDNF target sequence [Likelihood-Ratio (1) = 4.47; p = 0.035] and in one OXTR target sequence Likelihood-Ratio (1) = 4.33; p = 0.037], but not the second OXTR target sequence [Likelihood-Ratio (1) < 0.001; p = 0.995). Mediation analyses indicated that differential blood cell count did not explain associations between low maternal care and BDNF (estimate = -0.005, 95% CI = -0.025 to 0.015; p = 0.626) or OXTR DNA methylation (estimate = -0.015, 95% CI = -0.038 to 0.008; p = 0.192). Hence, low maternal care in childhood was associated with greater DNA methylation in an OXTR and a BDNF target sequence in blood cells in adulthood. Although the study has limitations (cross-sectional, a wide age range, only three target sequences in two genes studied, small effects, uncertain relevance of changes in blood cells to gene methylation in brain), the findings may indicate components of the epiphenotype from early life stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Unternaehrer
- a Department of Psychology, Division of Clinical Psychology and Epidemiology , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland
- b National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR), Swiss Etiological Study of Adjustment and Mental Health (sesam), University of Basel , Switzerland
- c Douglas Mental Health University Institute, McGill University , Montréal , Canada
| | - Andrea Hans Meyer
- a Department of Psychology, Division of Clinical Psychology and Epidemiology , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland
| | - Susan C A Burkhardt
- b National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR), Swiss Etiological Study of Adjustment and Mental Health (sesam), University of Basel , Switzerland
- d Department of Research & Development , University of Applied Sciences in Special Needs Education , Zürich , Switzerland
| | - Emma Dempster
- e University of Exeter Medical School, Exeter University , Exeter , UK
| | - Simon Staehli
- a Department of Psychology, Division of Clinical Psychology and Epidemiology , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland
- f Institute of Psychobiology, University of Trier , Trier , Germany
| | - Nathan Theill
- g Division of Psychiatry Research , University of Zurich , Zurich , Switzerland , and
| | - Roselind Lieb
- a Department of Psychology, Division of Clinical Psychology and Epidemiology , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland
- b National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR), Swiss Etiological Study of Adjustment and Mental Health (sesam), University of Basel , Switzerland
| | - Gunther Meinlschmidt
- a Department of Psychology, Division of Clinical Psychology and Epidemiology , University of Basel , Basel , Switzerland
- b National Center of Competence in Research (NCCR), Swiss Etiological Study of Adjustment and Mental Health (sesam), University of Basel , Switzerland
- h Faculty of Medicine , Ruhr-University Bochum , Germany
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Müller M, Zietlow AL, Tronick E, Reck C. What Dyadic Reparation Is Meant to Do: An Association with Infant Cortisol Reactivity. Psychopathology 2015; 48:386-99. [PMID: 26550998 PMCID: PMC4698136 DOI: 10.1159/000439225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2015] [Accepted: 08/06/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The latency to reparation of interactive mismatches (interactive repair) is argued to regulate infant distress on a psychobiological level, and maternal anxiety disorders might impair infant regulation. SAMPLING AND METHODS A total of 46 dyads (19 mothers with an anxiety disorder, 27 controls) were analyzed for associations between interactive repair and infant cortisol reactivity during the Face-to-Face-Still-Face paradigm 3-4 months postpartum. Missing cortisol values (n = 16) were imputed. Analyses were conducted on both the original and the pooled imputed data. RESULTS Interactive repair during the reunion episode was associated with infant cortisol reactivity (original data: p < 0.01; pooled data: p < 0.01) but not maternal anxiety disorder (p > 0.23). Additional stepwise regression analyses found that latency to repair during play (p < 0.01), an interaction between distress during the first trimester of pregnancy and latency to repair during reunion (p < 0.01) and infant self-comforting behaviors during the reunion episode (p = 0.04) made independent contributions to cortisol reactivity in the final regression model. CONCLUSIONS This is the first study demonstrating that interactive repair is related to infant psychobiological stress reactivity. The lack of a relation to maternal anxiety disorder may be due to the small sample size. However, this result emphasizes that infants respond to what they experience and not to the maternal diagnostic category.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mitho Müller
- Department of Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich, Munich, Germany
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Mörelius E, Örtenstrand A, Theodorsson E, Frostell A. A randomised trial of continuous skin-to-skin contact after preterm birth and the effects on salivary cortisol, parental stress, depression, and breastfeeding. Early Hum Dev 2015; 91:63-70. [PMID: 25545453 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2014.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 143] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2014] [Revised: 07/25/2014] [Accepted: 12/09/2014] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
AIM To evaluate the effects of almost continuous skin-to-skin contact (SSC) on salivary cortisol, parental stress, parental depression, and breastfeeding. STUDY DESIGN This is a randomised study engaging families of late preterm infants (32-35 weeks gestation). Salivary cortisol reactivity was measured in infants during a nappy change at one month corrected age, and in infants and mothers during still-face at four month corrected age. Both parents completed the Swedish Parenthood Stress Questionnaire (SPSQ) at one month and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at one and four months. Ainsworth's sensitivity scale was used to control for parental sensitivity. SUBJECTS Thirty-seven families from two different neonatal care units in Sweden, randomised to either almost continuous SSC or standard care (SC). RESULTS Infants randomised to SSC had a lower salivary cortisol reactivity at one month (p=0.01). There was a correlation between the mothers' and the preterm infants' salivary cortisol levels at four months in the SSC group (ρ=0.65, p=0.005), but not in the SC group (ρ=0.14, p=0.63). Fathers in SSC scored lower on the SPSQ sub-scale spouse relationship problems compared to fathers in SC (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS Almost continuous SSC decreases infants' cortisol reactivity in response to handling, improves the concordance between mothers' and infants' salivary cortisol levels, and decreases fathers' experiences of spouse relationship problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evalotte Mörelius
- Department of Social and Welfare Studies, Division of Health, Activity and Care, Linköping University, Norrköping, Sweden; Department of Pediatrics, County Council of Östergötland, Linköping, Sweden.
| | - Annika Örtenstrand
- Department of Woman and Child Health, Division of Neonatology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Elvar Theodorsson
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Division of Clinical Chemistry, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Anneli Frostell
- Department of Behavioural Sciences and Learning, Division of Psychology, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden
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93
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Abstract
Complex interactions between biological, behavioral and environmental factors are involved in mediating individual differences in health and disease. In this review, we present evidence suggesting that increased vulnerability to infectious disease may be at least, in part, due to long-lasting effects of early life psychosocial adversities. Studies have shown that maternal psychosocial stress during pregnancy is associated with long lasting changes in immune function and disease resistance in the offspring. Studies further indicated that harsh environmental conditions during the neonatal period may also cause lasting changes in host response to infectious disease. Although the mechanisms involved in these effects have not been fully examined, several potential mediators have been described, including changes in the development of the offspring hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, alterations in epigenetic pathways, stress-related maternal health risk behavior and infection during pregnancy. Although there are ample literature indicating that perinatal psychosocial stress increases vulnerability to disease, other reports suggest that mild predictable stressors may benefit the organism and allow better coping with future stressors. Thus, understanding the possible consequences of perinatal adversities and the mechanisms that are involved in immune regulation is important for increasing awareness to the potential outcomes of early negative life events and providing insight into potential therapies to combat infection in vulnerable individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ronit Avitsur
- a School of Behavioral Sciences, The Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo , Yaffo , Israel
| | - Sigal Levy
- a School of Behavioral Sciences, The Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo , Yaffo , Israel
| | - Naama Goren
- a School of Behavioral Sciences, The Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo , Yaffo , Israel
| | - Rachel Grinshpahet
- a School of Behavioral Sciences, The Academic College of Tel Aviv-Yaffo , Yaffo , Israel
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94
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Thayer ZM, Kuzawa CW. Early origins of health disparities: material deprivation predicts maternal evening cortisol in pregnancy and offspring cortisol reactivity in the first few weeks of life. Am J Hum Biol 2014; 26:723-30. [PMID: 24599586 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.22532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2013] [Revised: 02/06/2014] [Accepted: 02/08/2014] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Maternal hypothalamic pituitary adrenal-axis function regulates production of the stress hormone cortisol, which during pregnancy can cross the placenta and have lasting impacts on fetal growth and development. This article provides a preliminary test of the hypothesis that a woman's socioeconomic status (SES) predicts her cortisol during pregnancy and her offspring's cortisol during the early postnatal period among an ethnically diverse sample in Auckland, New Zealand to evaluate whether differences in cortisol contribute to the intergenerational inheritance of health disparities within this population. METHODS Maternal saliva samples were collected at waking and prior to sleep on 2 days in late pregnancy (34-36 weeks gestation; N = 55), and a subset of offspring saliva was collected before (N = 48) and 20 min after a standard vaccination at 6 weeks of age (N = 19). SES was quantified using a locally validated index of material deprivation, the NZ Deprivation Index for individuals (NZiDep). RESULTS We found that, after controlling for ethnicity and other covariates, women with higher NZiDep scores had significantly higher evening but similar morning cortisol, consistent with a pattern of chronic strain. Infants of women reporting greater material deprivation had elevated cortisol response to vaccination. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that maternal SES experience impacts maternal cortisol in pregnancy and offspring cortisol reactivity soon after birth, with potential long-term effects on offspring biology and health. Additional research is needed to clarify how biological and behavioral factors in both the prenatal and postnatal period facilitate this relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zaneta M Thayer
- Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, Colorado, 80202
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95
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Philbrook LE, Hozella AC, Kim BR, Jian N, Shimizu M, Teti DM. Maternal emotional availability at bedtime and infant cortisol at 1 and 3 months. Early Hum Dev 2014; 90:595-605. [PMID: 25128871 PMCID: PMC4170024 DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2014.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2012] [Revised: 04/11/2014] [Accepted: 05/02/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous work has shown that early experience influences infant cortisol secretion. Few studies, however, have examined associations between parenting quality and cortisol levels and patterning in very young infants. AIMS This study examined linkages between maternal emotional availability (EA) during a routine caregiving task, bedtime, and infant cortisol in the first 3 months of life. Concurrent and longitudinal associations between maternal EA and infant cortisol were examined. STUDY DESIGN Families were visited when their infants were 1 and 3 months old. Video equipment was set up in order to record the infant's bedtime routine. Parents were provided with materials with which to take saliva samples from their infants at late afternoon, bedtime, and the following morning. SUBJECTS At 1 month, participants were 96 mothers and infants living in a rural U.S. state. Data were available for 88 mothers and infants at 3 months. OUTCOME MEASURES Maternal EA was scored from videotapes of bedtime at each age point. Infant cortisol was assessed from the saliva samples taken by parents. RESULTS Regression analyses indicated that at 1 and 3 months of age, infants of more emotionally available mothers showed lower levels of cortisol secretion across the night than infants of less emotionally available mothers. Additionally, multilevel model analyses indicated that infants of more emotionally available mothers showed greater evidence of a decline in their cortisol levels across the evening, followed by an increase across the nighttime into the morning in their cortisol at 3 months. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that maternal care in the context of a routine caregiving task is associated with lower stress reactivity and with earlier circadian patterning in very young infants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Bo-Ram Kim
- The Pennsylvania State University, United States.
| | - Ni Jian
- The Pennsylvania State University, United States.
| | - Mina Shimizu
- The Pennsylvania State University, United States.
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96
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Abstract
Research on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis has emerged as a vital area within the field of developmental psychopathology in the past 25 years. Extensive animal research has provided knowledge of the substrates and physiological mechanisms that guide development of stress reactivity and regulation using methods that are not feasible in humans. Recent advances in understanding the anatomy and physiology of the HPA axis in humans and its interactions with other stress-mediating systems, including accurate assessment of salivary cortisol, more sophisticated neuroimaging methods, and a variety of genetic analyses, have led to greater knowledge of how psychological and biological processes impact functioning. A growing body of research on HPA axis regulation and reactivity in relation to psychopathology has drawn increased focus on the prenatal period, infancy, and the pubertal transition as potentially sensitive periods of stress system development in children. Theories such as the allostatic load model have guided research by integrating multiple physiological systems and mechanisms by which stress can affect mental and physical health. However, almost none of the prominent theoretical models in stress physiology are truly developmental, and future work must incorporate how systems interact with the environment across the life span in normal and atypical development. Our theoretical advancement will depend on our ability to integrate biological and psychological models. Researchers are increasingly realizing the importance of communication across disciplinary boundaries in order to understand how experiences influence neurobehavioral development. It is important that knowledge gained over the past 25 years has been translated to prevention and treatment interventions, and we look forward to the dissemination of interventions that promote recovery from adversity.
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97
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Hostinar CE, Johnson AE, Gunnar MR. Parent support is less effective in buffering cortisol stress reactivity for adolescents compared to children. Dev Sci 2014; 18:281-97. [PMID: 24942038 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12195] [Citation(s) in RCA: 155] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2013] [Accepted: 03/28/2014] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
The goal of the present study was to investigate developmental differences in the effectiveness of parent support to alleviate hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis stress responses of children (ages 9-10, N = 40) and adolescents (ages 15-16, N = 41). We experimentally manipulated the provision of parent support during the speech preparation period before a modified Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) and examined its effect on levels of salivary cortisol secreted in response to this laboratory stressor. Analyses revealed a significant interaction of condition and age group such that social support from the parent (versus a stranger) significantly eliminated the cortisol stress response in children, but had no effect on the response among adolescents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camelia E Hostinar
- Cells to Society - The Center on Social Disparities and Health, Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, USA; Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, USA
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98
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Tackett JL, Kushner SC, Josephs RA, Harden KP, Page-Gould E, Tucker-Drob EM. Hormones: empirical contribution. Cortisol reactivity and recovery in the context of adolescent personality disorder. J Pers Disord 2014; 28:25-39. [PMID: 24344885 DOI: 10.1521/pedi.2014.28.1.25] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
The present study examined whether the associations between stress responses and psychopathology were moderated by adolescent personality disorder (PD) traits. Participants were a community sample of 106 adolescents (47 male, Mage = 16.01) and their parents. Parents reported on adolescents' PD traits and behavioral problems. Changes in salivary cortisol were assessed in response to a laboratory-based stress induction. Moderated regression analyses revealed significant linear and quadratic interactions between cortisol recovery and PD traits in the prediction of behavioral problems. Although typically conceptualized as "adaptive," steeper poststressor recovery was associated with more behavioral problems when PD traits were high. These findings suggest that, in the presence of maladaptive personality traits, premature recovery from environmental stressors may indicate an inability to respond appropriately to negative environmental stimuli, thus reflecting a core disturbance in PD trait functioning. The results underscore the informative role that personality plays in illuminating the nature of hormone functioning in adolescents and are interpreted in a developmental psychopathology framework.
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99
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Hostinar CE, Sullivan RM, Gunnar MR. Psychobiological mechanisms underlying the social buffering of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis: a review of animal models and human studies across development. Psychol Bull 2014; 140:256-282. [PMID: 23607429 PMCID: PMC3844011 DOI: 10.1037/a0032671 10.1037/a0032671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
Discovering the stress-buffering effects of social relationships has been one of the major findings in psychobiology in the last century. However, an understanding of the underlying neurobiological and psychological mechanisms of this buffering is only beginning to emerge. An important avenue of this research concerns the neurocircuitry that can regulate the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis. The present review is a translational effort aimed at integrating animal models and human studies of the social regulation of the HPA axis from infancy to adulthood, specifically focusing on the process that has been named social buffering. This process has been noted across species and consists of a dampened HPA axis stress response to threat or challenge that occurs with the presence or assistance of a conspecific. We describe aspects of the relevant underlying neurobiology when enough information exists and expose major gaps in our understanding across all domains of the literatures we aimed to integrate. We provide a working conceptual model focused on the role of oxytocinergic systems and prefrontal neural networks as 2 of the putative biological mediators of this process, and propose that the role of early experiences is critical in shaping later social buffering effects. This synthesis points to both general future directions and specific experiments that need to be conducted to build a more comprehensive model of the HPA social buffering effect across the life span that incorporates multiple levels of analysis: neuroendocrine, behavioral, and social.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Regina M Sullivan
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan S. Kline Institute, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York University Langone Medical Center
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100
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Abstract
AbstractAlthough considerable research has examined the relations between parental behavior and a range of child developmental outcomes, much of this work has been conducted at a very broad level of behavioral analysis. A developmental psychopathology framework and recent research conducted within this framework point to the need for models of parenting and child psychopathology that offer greater specificity regarding processes that may be implicated in the effects of these relationships. In addition, recent animal work and some human work has focused more on theproximalbiological and social mechanisms through which parenting affects child outcomes. Our conceptualization of parenting effects acknowledges that family and child factors are embedded in a dynamic biological and social context that is key to understanding developmental trajectories of child adjustment. In this paper, we review two areas of research that are illuminating the biological processes underlying links between parenting and child psychopathology: molecular genetics and psychophysiology. We adopt a biopsychosocial perspective on developmental psychopathology that implies that a set of hierarchically organized, but reciprocally interacting, processes, from the genetic to the environmental, provide the essential elements of both normative and nonnormative development (Gottlieb, 2007). New directions stimulated by this general approach are discussed, with an emphasis on the contextual and developmental issues and applications implied by such a perspective.
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