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Whittle S, Zhang L, Rakesh D. Environmental and neurodevelopmental contributors to youth mental illness. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024:10.1038/s41386-024-01926-y. [PMID: 39030435 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-024-01926-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2024] [Revised: 06/03/2024] [Accepted: 07/09/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024]
Abstract
While a myriad of factors likely contribute to the development of mental illness in young people, the social environment (including early adverse experiences) in concert with neurodevelopmental alterations is undeniably important. A number of influential theories make predictions about how and why neurodevelopmental alterations may mediate or moderate the effects of the social environment on the emergence of mental illness. Here, we discuss current evidence supporting each of these theories. Although this area of research is rapidly growing, the body of evidence is still relatively limited. However, there exist some consistent findings, including increased striatal reactivity during positive affective processing and larger hippocampal volumes being associated with increased vulnerability or susceptibility to the effects of social environments on internalizing symptoms. Limited longitudinal work has investigated neurodevelopmental mechanisms linking the social environment with mental health. Drawing from human research and insights from animal studies, we propose an integrated mediation-moderation model and outline future research directions to advance the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Whittle
- Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
- Orygen, Parkville, VIC, Australia.
| | - Lu Zhang
- Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
- Orygen, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - Divyangana Rakesh
- Neuroimaging Department, Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
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2
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Buthmann JL, Miller JG, Uy JP, Coury SM, Jo B, Gotlib IH. Early life stress predicts trajectories of emotional problems and hippocampal volume in adolescence. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2024; 33:2331-2342. [PMID: 38135803 DOI: 10.1007/s00787-023-02331-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2023] [Accepted: 11/28/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023]
Abstract
Exposure to early life stress (ELS) has been consistently associated with adverse emotional and neural consequences in youth. The development of brain structures such as the hippocampus, which plays a significant role in stress and emotion regulation, may be particularly salient in the development of psychopathology. Prior work has documented smaller hippocampal volume (HCV) in relation to both ELS exposure and risk for psychopathology. We used longitudinal k-means clustering to identify simultaneous trajectories of HCV and emotional problems in 155 youth across three assessments conducted approximately two years apart (mean baseline age = 11.33 years, 57% female). We also examined depressive symptoms and resilience approximately two years after the third timepoint. We identified three clusters of participants: a cluster with high HCV and low emotional problems; a cluster with low HCV and high emotional problems; and a cluster with low HCV and low emotional problems. Importantly, severity of ELS was associated with greater likelihood of belonging to the low HCV/high symptom cluster than to the low HCV/low symptom cluster. Further, low HCV/high symptom participants had more depressive symptoms and lower resilience scores than did participants in the low HCV/low symptom, but not than in the high HCV/low symptom cluster. Our findings suggest that smaller HCV indexes biological sensitivity to stress. This adds to our understanding of the ways in which ELS can affect hippocampal and emotional development in young people and points to hippocampal volume as a marker of susceptibility to context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L Buthmann
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, 450 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
| | - Jonas G Miller
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
| | - Jessica P Uy
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, 450 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Saché M Coury
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, 450 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Booil Jo
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Ian H Gotlib
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, 450 Jane Stanford Way, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
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Adise S, Ottino-Gonzalez J, Rezvan PH, Kan E, Rhee KE, Goran MI, Sowell ER. Smaller subcortical volume relates to greater weight gain in girls with initially healthy weight. Obesity (Silver Spring) 2024; 32:1389-1400. [PMID: 38710591 PMCID: PMC11211063 DOI: 10.1002/oby.24028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 02/26/2024] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Among 3614 youth who were 9 to 12 years old and initially did not have overweight or obesity (12% [n = 385] developed overweight or obesity), we examined the natural progression of weight gain and brain structure development during a 2-year period with a high risk for obesity (e.g., pre- and early adolescence) to determine the following: 1) whether variation in maturational trajectories of the brain regions contributes to weight gain; and/or 2) whether weight gain contributes to altered brain development. METHODS Data were gathered from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. Linear mixed-effects regression models controlled for puberty, caregiver education, handedness, and intracranial volume (random effects: magnetic resonance scanner [MRI] scanner and participant). Because pubertal development occurs earlier in girls, analyses were stratified by sex. RESULTS For girls, but not boys, independent of puberty, greater increases in BMI were driven by smaller volumes over time in the bilateral accumbens, amygdala, hippocampus, and thalamus, right caudate and ventral diencephalon, and left pallidum (all p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The results suggest a potential phenotype for identifying obesity risk because underlying differences among regions involved in food intake were related to greater weight gain in girls, but not in boys. Importantly, 2 years of weight gain may not be sufficient to alter brain development, highlighting early puberty as a critical time to prevent negative neurological outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shana Adise
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Jonatan Ottino-Gonzalez
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Panteha Hayati Rezvan
- Biostatistics and Data Management Core, The Saban Research Institute, Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Eric Kan
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Research Administration, Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Kyung E. Rhee
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, California, United States of America
| | - Michael I Goran
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Elizabeth R. Sowell
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neurology, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
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4
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Miller JG, Gluckman PD, Fortier MV, Chong YS, Meaney MJ, Tan AP, Gotlib IH. Faster pace of hippocampal growth mediates the association between perinatal adversity and childhood depression. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2024; 67:101392. [PMID: 38761439 PMCID: PMC11127214 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2024.101392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2024] [Revised: 05/09/2024] [Accepted: 05/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Early life adversity has been posited to influence the pace of structural neurodevelopment. Most research, however, has relied on cross-sectional data, which do not reveal whether the pace of neurodevelopmental change is accelerated or slowed following early exposures. In a birth cohort study that included neuroimaging data obtained at 4.5, 6, and 7.5 years of age (N = 784), we examined associations among a cumulative measure of perinatal adversity relative to resources, nonlinear trajectories of hippocampal and amygdala volume, and children's subsequent depressive symptoms at 8.5 years of age. Greater adversity was associated with reduced bilateral hippocampal body volume in early childhood, but also to faster growth in the right hippocampal body across childhood. Further, the association between adversity and childhood depressive symptoms was mediated by faster hippocampal body growth. These findings suggest that perinatal adversity is biologically embedded in hippocampal structure development, including an accelerated pace of change in the right hippocampal body that is implicated in children's psychopathology risk. In addition, our findings suggest that reduced hippocampal volume is not inconsistent with accelerated hippocampal change; these aspects of structural development may typically co-occur, as smaller regional volumes in early childhood were associated with faster growth across childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas G Miller
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut, CT, USA.
| | - Peter D Gluckman
- Liggins Institute, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Marielle V Fortier
- Department of Diagnostic & Interventional Imaging, KK Women's and Children's Hospital, Singapore
| | - Yap Seng Chong
- Translational Neuroscience Program, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, A⁎STAR Research Entities, Singapore; Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Michael J Meaney
- Translational Neuroscience Program, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, A⁎STAR Research Entities, Singapore; Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Canada; Brain - Body Initiative, A⁎STAR Research Entities, Singapore
| | - Ai Peng Tan
- Translational Neuroscience Program, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, A⁎STAR Research Entities, Singapore; Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore; Brain - Body Initiative, A⁎STAR Research Entities, Singapore; Department of Diagnostic Imaging, National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Ian H Gotlib
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, CA, USA
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Grauduszus Y, Sicorello M, Demirakca T, von Schröder C, Schmahl C, Ende G. New insights into the effects of type and timing of childhood maltreatment on brain morphometry. Sci Rep 2024; 14:11394. [PMID: 38762570 PMCID: PMC11102438 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-62051-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Childhood maltreatment (CM) is known to influence brain development. To obtain a better understanding of related brain alterations, recent research has focused on the influence of the type and timing of CM. We aimed to investigate the association between type and timing of CM and local brain volume. Anatomical magnetic resonance images were collected from 93 participants (79 female/14 male) with a history of CM. CM history was assessed with the German Interview Version of the "Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology of Exposure" scale, "KERF-40 + ". Random forest regressions were performed to assess the impact of CM characteristics on the volume of amygdala, hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). The volume of the left ACC was predicted by neglect at age 3 and 4 and abuse at age 16 in a model including both type and timing of CM. For the right ACC, overall CM severity and duration had the greatest impact on volumetric alterations. Our data point to an influence of CM timing on left ACC volume, which was most pronounced in early childhood and in adolescence. We were not able to replicate previously reported effects of maltreatment type and timing on amygdala and hippocampal volume.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmin Grauduszus
- Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
| | - Maurizio Sicorello
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Traute Demirakca
- Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Claudius von Schröder
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Christian Schmahl
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Gabriele Ende
- Department of Neuroimaging, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
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McLean MA, Weinberg J, Synnes AR, Miller SP, Grunau RE. Relationships between cortisol levels across early childhood and processing speed at age 4.5 years in children born very preterm. Child Neuropsychol 2024:1-19. [PMID: 38406870 DOI: 10.1080/09297049.2024.2314958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Children born very low gestational age (VLGA, 29-32 weeks gestational age [GA]) display slower processing speed and altered hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis function, with greater effects in those born extremely low gestational age (ELGA; 24-28 weeks GA). We investigated trajectories of HPA axis activity as indexed by cortisol output and patterns across cognitive assessment at ages 1.5, 3 and 4.5 years, comparing children born ELGA and VLGA and associations with 4.5-year processing speed. In a prospective longitudinal cohort study, infants born very preterm (<33 weeks gestation) returned for developmental assessment at ages 1.5, 3, and 4.5 years. At each age, children completed standardized cognitive testing and saliva samples collected before (Pretest), during (During) and after (End) challenging cognitive tasks were assayed for cortisol. For the total group (n = 188), cortisol area under the curve with respect to ground (AUCg) decreased, while cortisol reactivity to challenge (Pre-test to During) increased from 1.5 to 3 years, remaining stable to 4.5 years. This longitudinal pattern was related to higher Processing Speed (WPPSI-IV) scores at 4.5 years. Children born ELGA displayed higher AUCg than VLGA, particularly at age 3, driven by higher Pre-test cortisol levels. Overall, relative to those born VLGA, children born ELGA displayed greater cortisol responsivity to cognitive challenge. A higher setpoint of cortisol levels at age 3-years in children born ELGA may reflect altered HPA axis regulation more broadly and may contribute to difficulties with information processing in this population, critical for academic and social success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mia A McLean
- Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Joanne Weinberg
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, Canada
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Anne R Synnes
- Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Steven P Miller
- Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Ruth E Grunau
- Department of Pediatrics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
- BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, Vancouver, Canada
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Oliveira PS. The impact of out-of-home care on brain development: a brief review of the neuroscientific evidence informing our understanding of children's attachment outcomes. Front Behav Neurosci 2024; 18:1332898. [PMID: 38586563 PMCID: PMC10995925 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2024.1332898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Researchers interested in the effects of early experiences of caregiving adversity have employed neuroscientific methods to illuminate whether and how such environmental input impacts on brain development, and whether and how such impacts underpin poor socioemotional outcomes in this population. Evidence is compelling in documenting negative effects on the individual's neurodevelopment following exposure to adverse or disadvantaged environments such as institutionalization or maltreatment. Neuroimaging research focused specifically on attachment-relevant processing of socioemotional stimuli and attachment outcomes among children looked-after is scarcer, but largely consistent. This review begins by summarizing the key general brain structural and functional alterations associated with caregiving deprivation. Then, neuroscientific evidence that is more directly relevant for understanding these children's attachment outcomes, both by employing social stimuli and by correlating children's neural markers with their attachment profiles, is reviewed. Brief interpretations of findings are suggested, and key limitations and gaps in the literature identified.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula S. Oliveira
- Anna Freud, and Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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Alderman PJ, Saxon D, Torrijos-Saiz LI, Sharief M, Page CE, Baroudi JK, Biagiotti SW, Butyrkin VA, Melamed A, Kuo CT, Vicini S, García-Verdugo JM, Herranz-Pérez V, Corbin JG, Sorrells SF. Delayed maturation and migration of excitatory neurons in the juvenile mouse paralaminar amygdala. Neuron 2024; 112:574-592.e10. [PMID: 38086370 PMCID: PMC10922384 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2022] [Revised: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
The human amygdala paralaminar nucleus (PL) contains many immature excitatory neurons that undergo prolonged maturation from birth to adulthood. We describe a previously unidentified homologous PL region in mice that contains immature excitatory neurons and has previously been considered part of the amygdala intercalated cell clusters or ventral endopiriform cortex. Mouse PL neurons are born embryonically, not from postnatal neurogenesis, despite a subset retaining immature molecular and morphological features in adults. During juvenile-adolescent ages (P21-P35), the majority of PL neurons undergo molecular, structural, and physiological maturation, and a subset of excitatory PL neurons migrate into the adjacent endopiriform cortex. Alongside these changes, PL neurons develop responses to aversive and appetitive olfactory stimuli. The presence of this homologous region in both humans and mice points to the significance of this conserved mechanism of neuronal maturation and migration during adolescence, a key time period for amygdala circuit maturation and related behavioral changes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pia J Alderman
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - David Saxon
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children's Research Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC 20011, USA; Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC 20007, USA
| | - Lucía I Torrijos-Saiz
- Laboratory of Comparative Neurobiology, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Comparative Neurobiology, University of Valencia, CIBERNED-ISCIII, Valencia 46980, Spain
| | - Malaz Sharief
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Chloe E Page
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Jude K Baroudi
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Sean W Biagiotti
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Vladimir A Butyrkin
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children's Research Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC 20011, USA; Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Program, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Anna Melamed
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA
| | - Chay T Kuo
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Stefano Vicini
- Interdisciplinary Program in Neuroscience, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC 20007, USA; Department of Pharmacology & Physiology, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC 20007, USA
| | - Jose M García-Verdugo
- Laboratory of Comparative Neurobiology, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Comparative Neurobiology, University of Valencia, CIBERNED-ISCIII, Valencia 46980, Spain; Department of Cell Biology, Functional Biology and Physical Anthropology, University of Valencia, Burjassot 46100, Spain
| | - Vicente Herranz-Pérez
- Laboratory of Comparative Neurobiology, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Comparative Neurobiology, University of Valencia, CIBERNED-ISCIII, Valencia 46980, Spain; Department of Cell Biology, Functional Biology and Physical Anthropology, University of Valencia, Burjassot 46100, Spain
| | - Joshua G Corbin
- Center for Neuroscience Research, Children's Research Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC 20011, USA
| | - Shawn F Sorrells
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA; Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.
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Korom M, Valadez EA, Tottenham N, Dozier M, Spielberg JM. Preliminary examination of the effects of an early parenting intervention on amygdala-orbitofrontal cortex resting-state functional connectivity among high-risk children: A randomized clinical trial. Dev Psychopathol 2024:1-9. [PMID: 38247369 PMCID: PMC11260902 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423001669] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2024]
Abstract
We examined the long-term causal effects of an evidence-based parenting program delivered in infancy on children's emotion regulation and resting-state functional connectivity (rs-fc) during middle childhood. Families were referred to the study by Child Protective Services (CPS) as part of a diversion from a foster care program. A low-risk group of families was also recruited. CPS-involved families were randomly assigned to receive the target (Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up, ABC) or a control intervention (Developmental Education for Families, DEF) before infants turned 2. Both interventions were home-based, manualized, and 10-sessions long. During middle childhood, children underwent a 6-min resting-state functional MRI scan. Amygdala seed-based rs-fc analysis was completed with intervention group as the group-level predictor of interest. Fifty-seven children (NABC = 21; NDEF = 17; NCOMP = 19; Mage = 10.02 years, range = 8.08-12.14) were scanned successfully. The DEF group evidenced negative left amygdala↔OFC connectivity, whereas connectivity was near zero in the ABC and comparison groups (ABCvsDEF: Cohen's d = 1.17). ABC may enhance high-risk children's regulatory neurobiology outcomes ∼8 years after the intervention was completed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Korom
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Emilio A. Valadez
- Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mary Dozier
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Jeffrey M. Spielberg
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
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Filetti C, Kane-Grade F, Gunnar M. The Development of Stress Reactivity and Regulation in Children and Adolescents. Curr Neuropharmacol 2024; 22:395-419. [PMID: 37559538 PMCID: PMC10845082 DOI: 10.2174/1570159x21666230808120504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Adversity experienced in early life can have detrimental effects on physical and mental health. One pathway in which these effects occur is through the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, a key physiological stress-mediating system. In this review, we discuss the theoretical perspectives that guide stress reactivity and regulation research, the anatomy and physiology of the axis, developmental changes in the axis and its regulation, brain systems regulating stress, the role of genetic and epigenetics variation in axis development, sensitive periods in stress system calibration, the social regulation of stress (i.e., social buffering), and emerging research areas in the study of stress physiology and development. Understanding the development of stress reactivity and regulation is crucial for uncovering how early adverse experiences influence mental and physical health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clarissa Filetti
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
| | - Finola Kane-Grade
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
| | - Megan Gunnar
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
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11
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Rakesh D, Elzeiny R, Vijayakumar N, Whittle S. A longitudinal study of childhood maltreatment, subcortical development, and subcortico-cortical structural maturational coupling from early to late adolescence. Psychol Med 2023; 53:7525-7536. [PMID: 37203450 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291723001253] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/20/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Examining neurobiological mechanisms that may transmit the effects of childhood maltreatment on mental health in youth is crucial for understanding vulnerability to psychopathology. This study investigated associations between childhood maltreatment, adolescent structural brain development, and mental health trajectories into young-adulthood. METHODS Structural magnetic resonance imaging data was acquired from 144 youth at three time points (age 12, 16, and 18 years). Childhood maltreatment was reported to occur prior to the first scan. Linear mixed models were utilized to examine the association between total childhood maltreatment, neglect, abuse and (i) amygdala and hippocampal volume development, and (ii) maturational coupling between amygdala/hippocampus volume and the thickness of prefrontal regions. We also examined whether brain development mediated the association between maltreatment and depressive and anxiety symptoms trajectories from age 12 to 28. RESULTS Total maltreatment, and neglect, were associated with positive maturational coupling between the amygdala and caudal anterior cingulate cortex (cACC), whereby at higher and lower levels of amygdala growth, maltreatment was associated with lower and higher PFC thinning, respectively. Neglect was also associated with maturational coupling of the hippocampus with prefrontal regions. While positive amygdala-cACC maturational coupling was associated with greater increases in anxiety symptoms, it did not significantly mediate the association between maltreatment and anxiety symptom trajectories. CONCLUSION We found maltreatment to be associated with altered patterns of coupling between subcortical and prefrontal regions during adolescence, suggesting that maltreatment is associated with the development of socio-emotional neural circuitry. The implications of these findings for mental health require further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Divyangana Rakesh
- Department of Psychiatry, Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Reham Elzeiny
- Department of Psychiatry, Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Nandita Vijayakumar
- Deakin University, Centre for Social and Early Emotional Development, School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Geelong, Australia
| | - Sarah Whittle
- Department of Psychiatry, Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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12
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Korom M, Tabachnick AR, Sellers T, Valadez EA, Tottenham N, Dozier M. Associations between cortical thickness and parasympathetic nervous system functioning during middle childhood. Psychophysiology 2023; 60:e14391. [PMID: 37455342 PMCID: PMC10789912 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Revised: 06/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/28/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
Positive associations have been found between cortical thickness and measures of parasympathetic cardiac control (e.g., respiratory sinus arrhythmia, RSA) in adults, which may indicate mechanistic integration between neural and physiological indicators of stress regulation. However, it is unknown when in development this brain-body association arises and whether the direction of association and neuroanatomical localization vary across development. To investigate this, we collected structural magnetic resonance imaging and resting-state respiratory sinus arrhythmia data from children in middle childhood (N = 62, Mage = 10.09, range: 8.28-12.14 years). Whole-brain and exploratory ROI analyses revealed positive associations between RSA and cortical thickness in four frontal and parietal clusters in the left hemisphere and one cluster in the right. Exploratory ROI analyses revealed a similar positive association between cortical thickness and RSA, with two regions surviving multiple comparison correction, including the inferior frontal orbital gyrus and the Sylvian fissure. Prior work has identified these cortical areas as part of the central autonomic network that supports integrative regulation of stress response (e.g., autonomic, endocrine, and behavioral) and emotional expression. Our results suggest that the association between cortical thickness and resting RSA is present in middle childhood and is similar to the associations seen during adulthood. Future studies should investigate associations between RSA and cortical thickness among young children and adolescents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Korom
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA
| | | | - Tabitha Sellers
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA
| | - Emilio A Valadez
- Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University in the City of New York, New York, New York, USA
| | - Mary Dozier
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA
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13
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Howland MA. Recalibration of the stress response system over adult development: Is there a perinatal recalibration period? Dev Psychopathol 2023; 35:2315-2337. [PMID: 37641984 PMCID: PMC10901284 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423000998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
During early life-sensitive periods (i.e., fetal, infancy), the developing stress response system adaptively calibrates to match environmental conditions, whether harsh or supportive. Recent evidence suggests that puberty is another window when the stress system is open to recalibration if environmental conditions have shifted significantly. Whether additional periods of recalibration exist in adulthood remains to be established. The present paper draws parallels between childhood (re)calibration periods and the perinatal period to hypothesize that this phase may be an additional window of stress recalibration in adult life. Specifically, the perinatal period (defined here to include pregnancy, lactation, and early parenthood) is also a developmental switch point characterized by heightened neural plasticity and marked changes in stress system function. After discussing these similarities, lines of empirical evidence needed to substantiate the perinatal stress recalibration hypothesis are proposed, and existing research support is reviewed. Complexities and challenges related to delineating the boundaries of perinatal stress recalibration and empirically testing this hypothesis are discussed, as well as possibilities for future multidisciplinary research. In the theme of this special issue, perinatal stress recalibration may be a mechanism of multilevel, multisystem risk, and resilience, both intra-individually and intergenerationally, with implications for optimizing interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariann A Howland
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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14
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Herzberg MP, Triplett R, McCarthy R, Kaplan S, Alexopoulos D, Meyer D, Arora J, Miller JP, Smyser TA, Herzog ED, England SK, Zhao P, Barch DM, Rogers CE, Warner BB, Smyser CD, Luby J. The Association Between Maternal Cortisol and Infant Amygdala Volume Is Moderated by Socioeconomic Status. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 3:837-846. [PMID: 37881545 PMCID: PMC10593881 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2023.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2022] [Revised: 02/25/2023] [Accepted: 03/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Background It has been well established that socioeconomic status is associated with mental and physical health as well as brain development, with emerging data suggesting that these relationships begin in utero. However, less is known about how prenatal socioeconomic environments interact with the gestational environment to affect neonatal brain volume. Methods Maternal cortisol output measured at each trimester of pregnancy and neonatal brain structure were assessed in 241 mother-infant dyads. We examined associations between the trajectory of maternal cortisol output across pregnancy and volumes of cortisol receptor-rich regions of the brain, including the amygdala, hippocampus, medial prefrontal cortex, and caudate. Given the known effects of poverty on infant brain structure, socioeconomic disadvantage was included as a moderating variable. Results Neonatal amygdala volume was predicted by an interaction between maternal cortisol output across pregnancy and socioeconomic disadvantage (standardized β = -0.31, p < .001), controlling for postmenstrual age at scan, infant sex, and total gray matter volume. Notably, amygdala volumes were positively associated with maternal cortisol for infants with maternal disadvantage scores 1 standard deviation below the mean (i.e., less disadvantage) (simple slope = 123.36, p < .01), while the association was negative in infants with maternal disadvantage 1 standard deviation above the mean (i.e., more disadvantage) (simple slope = -82.70, p = .02). Individuals with disadvantage scores at the mean showed no association, and there were no significant interactions in the other brain regions examined. Conclusions These data suggest that fetal development of the amygdala is differentially affected by maternal cortisol production at varying levels of socioeconomic advantage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max P. Herzberg
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Regina Triplett
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Ronald McCarthy
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Sydney Kaplan
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | | | - Dominique Meyer
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Jyoti Arora
- Department of Biostatistics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - J. Philip Miller
- Department of Biostatistics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Tara A. Smyser
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Erik D. Herzog
- Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Sarah K. England
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Peinan Zhao
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Deanna M. Barch
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Cynthia E. Rogers
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Barbara B. Warner
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Christopher D. Smyser
- Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Joan Luby
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri
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15
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Sun J, Lunkenheimer E, Lin D. Dimensions of child maltreatment and longitudinal diurnal cortisol patterns: The roles of resilience and child sex. Dev Psychopathol 2023:1-15. [PMID: 37746719 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579423001086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/26/2023]
Abstract
Informed by the dimensional approach to adversity, this study disaggregated child maltreatment effects to examine how abuse versus neglect influenced cortisol at the baseline assessment and longitudinal changes in diurnal cortisol among a sample of Chinese children and adolescents (N = 312; aged 9-13 years; M age = 10.80, SD = 0.84; 67% boys). The moderating roles of resilience and sex differences in these associations were also explored. Results revealed distinct effects of abuse versus neglect on diurnal cortisol in girls, but not boys, which varied by the time scale of assessment and type of cortisol measure. Specifically, abuse was associated with girls' longitudinal changes in awakening cortisol, cortisol awakening response, and diurnal cortisol slope over one year, whereas neglect was associated with girls' awakening cortisol and cortisol awakening response at the baseline assessment. Further, resilience moderated the effects of abuse on girls' baseline awakening cortisol and longitudinal changes in diurnal cortisol slope, suggesting both the potential benefits and costs of resilience. Findings support the application of the dimensional approach to research on stress physiology and deepen our understanding of individual differences in the associations between child maltreatment and diurnal cortisol.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianing Sun
- Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Erika Lunkenheimer
- Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Danhua Lin
- Institute of Developmental Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
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16
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Holz NE, Zabihi M, Kia SM, Monninger M, Aggensteiner PM, Siehl S, Floris DL, Bokde ALW, Desrivières S, Flor H, Grigis A, Garavan H, Gowland P, Heinz A, Brühl R, Martinot JL, Martinot MLP, Orfanos DP, Paus T, Poustka L, Fröhner JH, Smolka MN, Vaidya N, Walter H, Whelan R, Schumann G, Meyer-Lindenberg A, Brandeis D, Buitelaar JK, Nees F, Beckmann C, Banaschewski T, Marquand AF. A stable and replicable neural signature of lifespan adversity in the adult brain. Nat Neurosci 2023; 26:1603-1612. [PMID: 37604888 PMCID: PMC10471497 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01410-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 08/23/2023]
Abstract
Environmental adversities constitute potent risk factors for psychiatric disorders. Evidence suggests the brain adapts to adversity, possibly in an adversity-type and region-specific manner. However, the long-term effects of adversity on brain structure and the association of individual neurobiological heterogeneity with behavior have yet to be elucidated. Here we estimated normative models of structural brain development based on a lifespan adversity profile in a longitudinal at-risk cohort aged 25 years (n = 169). This revealed widespread morphometric changes in the brain, with partially adversity-specific features. This pattern was replicated at the age of 33 years (n = 114) and in an independent sample at 22 years (n = 115). At the individual level, greater volume contractions relative to the model were predictive of future anxiety. We show a stable neurobiological signature of adversity that persists into adulthood and emphasize the importance of considering individual-level rather than group-level predictions to explain emerging psychopathology.
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Grants
- MRF_MRF-058-0004-RG-DESRI MRF
- U54 EB020403 NIBIB NIH HHS
- R56 AG058854 NIA NIH HHS
- MR/W002418/1 Medical Research Council
- Wellcome Trust
- MR/S020306/1 Medical Research Council
- MRF_MRF-058-0009-RG-DESR-C0759 MRF
- R01 DA049238 NIDA NIH HHS
- MR/R00465X/1 Medical Research Council
- R01 MH085772 NIMH NIH HHS
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation)
- Radboud Universiteit (Radboud University)
- Universität Heidelberg (University of Heidelberg)
- Ministerium für Wissenschaft, Forschung und Kunst Baden-Württemberg (Ministry of Science, Research and Art Baden-Württemberg)
- European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 101025785
- Horizon Stay Healthy 2021 European Union funded project ‘environMENTAL’, grant no: 101057429
- Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI)
- German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF, grants 01EF1803A, 01ZX1314G, 01GQ1003B) European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7, grants 602450, 602805, 115300, HEALTH-F2-2010-241909, Horizon2020 CANDY grant 847818 and Eat2beNICE grant 728018) Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts of the State of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany (MWK, grant 42-04HV.MED(16)/16/1)
- Wellcome Trust (Wellcome)
- Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research Vici Grant No. 17854 and NWO-CAS Grant No. 012-200-013.
- EC | Horizon 2020 Framework Programme (EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation H2020)
- German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (01EE1408E ESCAlife; FKZ 01GL1741[X] ADOPT; 01EE1406C Verbund AERIAL; 01EE1409C Verbund ASD-Net; 01GL1747C STAR; 01GL1745B IMAC-Mind),
- EC | EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation H2020 | H2020 Priority Excellent Science | H2020 European Research Council (H2020 Excellent Science - European Research Council)
- Dutch Organisation for Scientific Research (VIDI grant 016.156.415)
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathalie E Holz
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Schleswig Holstein, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany.
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
| | - Mariam Zabihi
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- MRC Unit for Lifelong Health & Ageing, University College London (UCL), London, UK
| | - Seyed Mostafa Kia
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Maximillian Monninger
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Pascal-M Aggensteiner
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Sebastian Siehl
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Schleswig Holstein, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
| | - Dorothea L Floris
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Methods of Plasticity Research, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Arun L W Bokde
- Discipline of Psychiatry, School of Medicine and Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Sylvane Desrivières
- Social, Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Herta Flor
- Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
- Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, University of Mannheim, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Antoine Grigis
- NeuroSpin, CEA, Université Paris-Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Hugh Garavan
- Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA
| | - Penny Gowland
- Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, UK
| | - Andreas Heinz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy CCM, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Rüdiger Brühl
- Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), Braunschweig and Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jean-Luc Martinot
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, INSERM U1299 'Developmental Trajectories & Psychiatry'; Université Paris-Saclay, Ecole Normale supérieure Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Centre Borelli, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Marie-Laure Paillère Martinot
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, INSERM U1299 'Developmental Trajectories & Psychiatry'; Université Paris-Saclay, Ecole Normale supérieure Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Centre Borelli, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, INSERM U1299 'Developmental Trajectories & Psychiatry'; Université Paris-Saclay, Ecole Normale supérieure Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Centre Borelli, Gif-sur-Yvette; and AP-HP.Sorbonne Université, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Paris, France
| | | | - Tomáš Paus
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience and Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Departments of Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Luise Poustka
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Centre for Psychosocial Medicine, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Centre Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Juliane H Fröhner
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Michael N Smolka
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Nilakshi Vaidya
- PONS-Centre, Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, CCM, Charite University Medicine, Berlin, Germany
| | - Henrik Walter
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy CCM, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Robert Whelan
- School of Psychology and Global Brain Health Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Gunter Schumann
- PONS-Centre, Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, CCM, Charite University Medicine, Berlin, Germany
- Centre for Population Neuroscience and Precision Medicine (PONS), Institute for Science and Technology of Brain-inspired Intelligence (ISTBI), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Andreas Meyer-Lindenberg
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Daniel Brandeis
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Jan K Buitelaar
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Karakter Child and Adolescent Psychiatry University Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Frauke Nees
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Schleswig Holstein, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Christian Beckmann
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Centre for Functional MRI of the Brain, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Tobias Banaschewski
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Andre F Marquand
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
- Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
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17
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Vannucci A, Fields A, Hansen E, Katz A, Kerwin J, Tachida A, Martin N, Tottenham N. Interpersonal early adversity demonstrates dissimilarity from early socioeconomic disadvantage in the course of human brain development: A meta-analysis. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 150:105210. [PMID: 37141961 PMCID: PMC10247458 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2023] [Revised: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
It has been established that early-life adversity impacts brain development, but the role of development itself has largely been ignored. We take a developmentally-sensitive approach to examine the neurodevelopmental sequelae of early adversity in a preregistered meta-analysis of 27,234 youth (birth to 18-years-old), providing the largest group of adversity-exposed youth to date. Findings demonstrate that early-life adversity does not have an ontogenetically uniform impact on brain volumes, but instead exhibits age-, experience-, and region-specific associations. Relative to non-exposed comparisons, interpersonal early adversity (e.g., family-based maltreatment) was associated with initially larger volumes in frontolimbic regions until ∼10-years-old, after which these exposures were linked to increasingly smaller volumes. By contrast, socioeconomic disadvantage (e.g., poverty) was associated with smaller volumes in temporal-limbic regions in childhood, which were attenuated at older ages. These findings advance ongoing debates regarding why, when, and how early-life adversity shapes later neural outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Vannucci
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA.
| | - Andrea Fields
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA.
| | - Eleanor Hansen
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Ariel Katz
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - John Kerwin
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Ayumi Tachida
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Nathan Martin
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA.
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18
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Donnici C, Long X, Reynolds J, Giesbrecht GF, Dewey D, Letourneau N, Huo Y, Landman B, Lebel C. Prenatal depressive symptoms and childhood development of brain limbic and default mode network structure. Hum Brain Mapp 2023; 44:2380-2394. [PMID: 36691973 PMCID: PMC10028635 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Prenatal depressive symptoms are linked to negative child behavioral and cognitive outcomes and predict later psychopathology in adolescent children. Prior work links prenatal depressive symptoms to child brain structure in regions like the amygdala; however, the relationship between symptoms and the development of brain structure over time remains unclear. We measured maternal depressive symptoms during pregnancy and acquired longitudinal T1-weighted and diffusion imaging data in children (n = 111; 60 females) between 2.6 and 8 years of age. Controlling for postnatal symptoms, we used linear mixed effects models to test relationships between prenatal depressive symptoms and age-related changes in (i) amygdala and hippocampal volume and (ii) structural properties of the limbic and default-mode networks using graph theory. Higher prenatal depressive symptoms in the second trimester were associated with more curvilinear trajectories of left amygdala volume changes. Higher prenatal depressive symptoms in the third trimester were associated with slower age-related changes in limbic global efficiency and average node degree across childhood. Our work provides evidence that moderate symptoms of prenatal depression in a low sociodemographic risk sample are associated with structural brain development in regions and networks implicated in emotion processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire Donnici
- Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Xiangyu Long
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Jess Reynolds
- Telethon Kids Institute, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Gerald F Giesbrecht
- Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Deborah Dewey
- Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Nicole Letourneau
- Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Faculty of Nursing, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Yuankai Huo
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Bennett Landman
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA
| | - Catherine Lebel
- Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Department of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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19
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Holz NE, Berhe O, Sacu S, Schwarz E, Tesarz J, Heim CM, Tost H. Early Social Adversity, Altered Brain Functional Connectivity, and Mental Health. Biol Psychiatry 2023; 93:430-441. [PMID: 36581495 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2022.10.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Revised: 10/28/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Early adverse environmental exposures during brain development are widespread risk factors for the onset of severe mental disorders and strong and consistent predictors of stress-related mental and physical illness and reduced life expectancy. Current evidence suggests that early negative experiences alter plasticity processes during developmentally sensitive time windows and affect the regular functional interaction of cortical and subcortical neural networks. This, in turn, may promote a maladapted development with negative consequences on the mental and physical health of exposed individuals. In this review, we discuss the role of functional magnetic resonance imaging-based functional connectivity phenotypes as potential biomarker candidates for the consequences of early environmental exposures-including but not limited to-childhood maltreatment. We take an expanded concept of developmentally relevant adverse experiences from infancy over childhood to adolescence as our starting point and focus our review of functional connectivity studies on a selected subset of functional magnetic resonance imaging-based phenotypes, including connectivity in the limbic and within the frontoparietal as well as default mode networks, for which we believe there is sufficient converging evidence for a more detailed discussion in a developmental context. Furthermore, we address specific methodological challenges and current knowledge gaps that complicate the interpretation of early stress effects on functional connectivity and deserve particular attention in future studies. Finally, we highlight the forthcoming prospects and challenges of this research area with regard to establishing functional connectivity measures as validated biomarkers for brain developmental processes and individual risk stratification and as target phenotypes for mechanism-based interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathalie E Holz
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Institute of Medical Psychology and Medical Sociology, University Medical Center Schleswig Holstein, Kiel University, Kiel, Germany; Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Oksana Berhe
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Seda Sacu
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Emanuel Schwarz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany
| | - Jonas Tesarz
- Department of General Internal Medicine and Psychosomatics, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Christine M Heim
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institute of Medical Psychology, Berlin, Germany; College of Health and Human Development, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
| | - Heike Tost
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Mannheim, Germany.
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20
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Vannucci A, Fields A, Hansen E, Katz A, Kerwin J, Tachida A, Martin N, Tottenham N. Interpersonal early adversity demonstrates dissimilarity from early socioeconomic disadvantage in the course of human brain development: A meta-analysis. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.16.528877. [PMID: 36824818 PMCID: PMC9949158 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.16.528877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2023]
Abstract
It has been established that early-life adversity impacts brain development, but the role of development itself has largely been ignored. We take a developmentally-sensitive approach to examine the neurodevelopmental sequelae of early adversity in a preregistered meta-analysis of 27,234 youth (birth to 18-years-old), providing the largest group of adversity-exposed youth to date. Findings demonstrate that early-life adversity does not have an ontogenetically uniform impact on brain volumes, but instead exhibits age-, experience-, and region-specific associations. Relative to non-exposed comparisons, interpersonal early adversity (e.g., family-based maltreatment) was associated with initially larger volumes in frontolimbic regions until ~10-years-old, after which these exposures were linked to increasingly smaller volumes. By contrast, socioeconomic disadvantage (e.g., poverty) was associated with smaller volumes in temporal-limbic regions in childhood, which were attenuated at older ages. These findings advance ongoing debates regarding why, when, and how early-life adversity shapes later neural outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Vannucci
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - Andrea Fields
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - Eleanor Hansen
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - Ariel Katz
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - John Kerwin
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - Ayumi Tachida
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - Nathan Martin
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, Developmental Affective Neuroscience Laboratory (409A Schermerhorn Hall), 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, MC 5501, New York, NY, USA 10027
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21
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Associations between cortical thickness and anxious/depressive symptoms differ by the quality of early care. Dev Psychopathol 2023; 35:73-84. [PMID: 35045914 PMCID: PMC9023591 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579421000845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
A variety of childhood experiences can lead to anxious/depressed (A/D) symptoms. The aim of the present study was to explore the brain morphological (cortical thickness and surface area) correlates of A/D symptoms and the extent to which these phenotypes vary depending on the quality of the parenting context in which children develop. Structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans were acquired on 45 children with Child Protective Services (CPS) involvement due to risk of not receiving adequate care (high-risk group) and 25 children without CPS involvement (low-risk group) (rangeage = 8.08-12.14; Mage = 10.05) to assess cortical thickness (CT) and cortical surface area (SA). A/D symptoms were measured using the Child Behavioral Checklist. The association between A/D symptoms and CT, but not SA, differed by risk status such that high-risk children showed decreasing CT as A/D scores increased, whereas low-risk children showed increasing CT as A/D scores increased. This interaction was specific to CT in prefrontal, frontal, temporal, and parietal cortical regions. The groups had marginally different A/D scores, in the direction of higher risk being associated with lower A/D scores. Results suggest that CT correlates of A/D symptoms are differentially shaped by the quality of early caregiving experiences and should be distinguished between high- and low-risk children.
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22
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Laricchiuta D, Panuccio A, Picerni E, Biondo D, Genovesi B, Petrosini L. The body keeps the score: The neurobiological profile of traumatized adolescents. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 145:105033. [PMID: 36610696 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2022] [Revised: 12/13/2022] [Accepted: 01/02/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Trauma-related disorders are debilitating psychiatric conditions that affect people who have directly or indirectly witnessed adversities. Experiencing multiple types of traumas appears to be common during childhood, and even more so during adolescence. Dramatic brain/body transformations occurring during adolescence may provide a highly responsive substrate to external stimuli and lead to trauma-related vulnerability conditions, such as internalizing (anxiety, depression, anhedonia, withdrawal) and externalizing (aggression, delinquency, conduct disorders) problems. Analyzing relations among neuronal, endocrine, immune, and biochemical signatures of trauma and internalizing and externalizing behaviors, including the role of personality traits in shaping these conducts, this review highlights that the marked effects of traumatic experience on the brain/body involve changes at nearly every level of analysis, from brain structure, function and connectivity to endocrine and immune systems, from gene expression (including in the gut) to the development of personality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniela Laricchiuta
- Department of Philosophy, Social Sciences & Education, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.
| | - Anna Panuccio
- Laboratory of Experimental and Behavioral Neurophysiology, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy; Department of Psychology, University Sapienza of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Eleonora Picerni
- Laboratory of Experimental and Behavioral Neurophysiology, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy; Department of Neuroscience Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | | | | | - Laura Petrosini
- Laboratory of Experimental and Behavioral Neurophysiology, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
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23
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Xiong Y, Hong H, Liu C, Zhang YQ. Social isolation and the brain: effects and mechanisms. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:191-201. [PMID: 36434053 PMCID: PMC9702717 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01835-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Revised: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
An obvious consequence of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is the worldwide reduction in social interaction, which is associated with many adverse effects on health in humans from babies to adults. Although social development under normal or isolated environments has been studied since the 1940s, the mechanism underlying social isolation (SI)-induced brain dysfunction remains poorly understood, possibly due to the complexity of SI in humans and translational gaps in findings from animal models. Herein, we present a systematic review that focused on brain changes at the molecular, cellular, structural and functional levels induced by SI at different ages and in different animal models. SI studies in humans and animal models revealed common socioemotional and cognitive deficits caused by SI in early life and an increased occurrence of depression and anxiety induced by SI during later stages of life. Altered neurotransmission and neural circuitry as well as abnormal development and function of glial cells in specific brain regions may contribute to the abnormal emotions and behaviors induced by SI. We highlight distinct alterations in oligodendrocyte progenitor cell differentiation and oligodendrocyte maturation caused by SI in early life and later stages of life, respectively, which may affect neural circuit formation and function and result in diverse brain dysfunctions. To further bridge animal and human SI studies, we propose alternative animal models with brain structures and complex social behaviors similar to those of humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Xiong
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
| | - Huilin Hong
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
| | - Cirong Liu
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309Institute of Neuroscience, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031 China ,grid.511008.dShanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Shanghai, 201210 China
| | - Yong Q. Zhang
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China ,grid.410726.60000 0004 1797 8419University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
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24
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Sheridan MA, Mukerji CE, Wade M, Humphreys KL, Garrisi K, Goel S, Patel K, Fox NA, Zeanah CH, Nelson CA, McLaughlin KA. Early deprivation alters structural brain development from middle childhood to adolescence. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabn4316. [PMID: 36206331 PMCID: PMC9544316 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn4316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2021] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Hypotheses concerning the biologic embedding of early adversity via developmental neuroplasticity mechanisms have been proposed on the basis of experimental studies in animals. However, no studies have demonstrated a causal link between early adversity and neural development in humans. Here, we present evidence from a randomized controlled trial linking psychosocial deprivation in early childhood to changes in cortical development from childhood to adolescence using longitudinal data from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project. Changes in cortical structure due to randomization to foster care were most pronounced in the lateral and medial prefrontal cortex and in white matter tracts connecting the prefrontal and parietal cortex. Demonstrating the causal impact of exposure to deprivation on the development of neural structure highlights the importance of early placement into family-based care to mitigate lasting neurodevelopmental consequences associated with early-life deprivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret A. Sheridan
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 235 E. Cameron Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
- Corresponding author.
| | - Cora E. Mukerji
- Department of Psychology, Bryn Mawr College, 101 North Merion Ave, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010, USA
- Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Mark Wade
- University of Toronto, Department of Applied Psychology and Human Development, 252 Bloor St. West, Toronto, ON M5S 1V6, Canada
| | - Kathryn L. Humphreys
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, 230 Appleton Place, Nashville, TN 37203, USA
| | - Kathryn Garrisi
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 235 E. Cameron Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Srishti Goel
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 235 E. Cameron Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
- Department of Psychology, Yale University, Box 208205, New Haven, CT 06520-8205, USA
| | - Kinjal Patel
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 235 E. Cameron Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Nathan A. Fox
- Department of Human Development, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20740, USA
| | - Charles H. Zeanah
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Tulane University School of Medicine, 1430 Tulane Ave, New Orleans, LA 70112, USA
| | - Charles A. Nelson
- Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck St, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Harvard Graduate School of Education, 13 Appian Way, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
| | - Katie A. McLaughlin
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, 33 Kirkland St, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
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25
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Brodzinsky D, Gunnar M, Palacios J. Adoption and trauma: Risks, recovery, and the lived experience of adoption. CHILD ABUSE & NEGLECT 2022; 130:105309. [PMID: 34544593 PMCID: PMC8926933 DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2021.105309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 08/27/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 05/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although a very heterogeneous group, adopted persons may present developmental and mental health problems of varying severity. Pre-placement adversity and trauma have often been linked to these problems. It has been also suggested that adoption itself is a psychological trauma, predisposing the individual to emotional difficulties. OBJECTIVES This article examines the links between early adversity, trauma, and adoption. We begin by defining trauma and then describe the way in which pre-placement adversity can undermine neurobehavioral and interpersonal functioning, increasing the risk for long-term psychological difficulties. Next, we examine children's recovery when placed in a stable adoptive home. Finally, we explore adoption as a lived experience, highlighting contextual and developmental factors that facilitate the person's positive or negative attributions about being adopted, leading to varying patterns of emotional adjustment. CONCLUSIONS Although pre-placement adversity increases adopted individuals' risk for maladjustment, the human brain and behavior are malleable, and placement in a nurturing adoptive home often facilitates recovery from early adversity, with significant heterogeneity in the extent of recovery within and across domains of functioning. While there is no evidence that early adoption is a trauma for the individual, ongoing negative life circumstances, attachment difficulties, and developmentally-mediated attributions about adoption can undermine the person's self-esteem, identity, relationships, and sense of well-being. Conclusions and suggestions for future research are offered.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Megan Gunnar
- University of Minnesota, United States of America
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26
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Immature excitatory neurons in the amygdala come of age during puberty. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2022; 56:101133. [PMID: 35841648 PMCID: PMC9289873 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2022.101133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The human amygdala is critical for emotional learning, valence coding, and complex social interactions, all of which mature throughout childhood, puberty, and adolescence. Across these ages, the amygdala paralaminar nucleus (PL) undergoes significant structural changes including increased numbers of mature neurons. The PL contains a large population of immature excitatory neurons at birth, some of which may continue to be born from local progenitors. These progenitors disappear rapidly in infancy, but the immature neurons persist throughout childhood and adolescent ages, indicating that they develop on a protracted timeline. Many of these late-maturing neurons settle locally within the PL, though a small subset appear to migrate into neighboring amygdala subnuclei. Despite its prominent growth during postnatal life and possible contributions to multiple amygdala circuits, the function of the PL remains unknown. PL maturation occurs predominately during late childhood and into puberty when sex hormone levels change. Sex hormones can promote developmental processes such as neuron migration, dendritic outgrowth, and synaptic plasticity, which appear to be ongoing in late-maturing PL neurons. Collectively, we describe how the growth of late-maturing neurons occurs in the right time and place to be relevant for amygdala functions and neuropsychiatric conditions.
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27
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Bloom PA, VanTieghem M, Gabard‐Durnam L, Gee DG, Flannery J, Caldera C, Goff B, Telzer EH, Humphreys KL, Fareri DS, Shapiro M, Algharazi S, Bolger N, Aly M, Tottenham N. Age-related change in task-evoked amygdala-prefrontal circuitry: A multiverse approach with an accelerated longitudinal cohort aged 4-22 years. Hum Brain Mapp 2022; 43:3221-3244. [PMID: 35393752 PMCID: PMC9188973 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2021] [Revised: 02/20/2022] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The amygdala and its connections with medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) play central roles in the development of emotional processes. While several studies have suggested that this circuitry exhibits functional changes across the first two decades of life, findings have been mixed - perhaps resulting from differences in analytic choices across studies. Here we used multiverse analyses to examine the robustness of task-based amygdala-mPFC function findings to analytic choices within the context of an accelerated longitudinal design (4-22 years-old; N = 98; 183 scans; 1-3 scans/participant). Participants recruited from the greater Los Angeles area completed an event-related emotional face (fear, neutral) task. Parallel analyses varying in preprocessing and modeling choices found that age-related change estimates for amygdala reactivity were more robust than task-evoked amygdala-mPFC functional connectivity to varied analytical choices. Specification curves indicated evidence for age-related decreases in amygdala reactivity to faces, though within-participant changes in amygdala reactivity could not be differentiated from between-participant differences. In contrast, amygdala-mPFC functional connectivity results varied across methods much more, and evidence for age-related change in amygdala-mPFC connectivity was not consistent. Generalized psychophysiological interaction (gPPI) measurements of connectivity were especially sensitive to whether a deconvolution step was applied. Our findings demonstrate the importance of assessing the robustness of findings to analysis choices, although the age-related changes in our current work cannot be overinterpreted given low test-retest reliability. Together, these findings highlight both the challenges in estimating developmental change in longitudinal cohorts and the value of multiverse approaches in developmental neuroimaging for assessing robustness of results.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Dylan G. Gee
- Department of PsychologyYale UniversityNew HavenConnecticutUSA
| | | | - Christina Caldera
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of California Los AngelesLos AngelesCaliforniaUSA
| | - Bonnie Goff
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of California Los AngelesLos AngelesCaliforniaUSA
| | - Eva H. Telzer
- University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillNorth CarolinaUSA
| | | | | | | | - Sameah Algharazi
- Department of PsychologyCity College of New YorkNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Niall Bolger
- Department of PsychologyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Mariam Aly
- Department of PsychologyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Department of PsychologyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
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28
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Coughlin C, Ben-Asher E, Roome HE, Varga NL, Moreau MM, Schneider LL, Preston AR. Interpersonal Family Dynamics Relate to Hippocampal CA Subfield Structure. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:872101. [PMID: 35784846 PMCID: PMC9247275 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.872101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2022] [Accepted: 04/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Social environments that are extremely enriched or adverse can influence hippocampal volume. Though most individuals experience social environments that fall somewhere in between these extremes, substantially less is known about the influence of normative variation in social environments on hippocampal structure. Here, we examined whether hippocampal volume tracks normative variation in interpersonal family dynamics in 7- to 12-year-olds and adults recruited from the general population. We focused on interpersonal family dynamics as a prominent feature of one's social world. Given evidence that CA1 and CA2 play a key role in tracking social information, we related individual hippocampal subfield volumes to interpersonal family dynamics. More positive perceptions of interpersonal family dynamics were associated with greater CA1 and CA2/3 volume regardless of age and controlling for socioeconomic status. These data suggest that CA subfields are sensitive to normative variation in social environments and identify interpersonal family dynamics as an impactful environmental feature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine Coughlin
- Center for Learning and Memory, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Eliya Ben-Asher
- Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Hannah E. Roome
- Center for Learning and Memory, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Nicole L. Varga
- Center for Learning and Memory, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Michelle M. Moreau
- Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Lauren L. Schneider
- Department of Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
| | - Alison R. Preston
- Center for Learning and Memory, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
- Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
- Department of Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, United States
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29
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Cay M, Gonzalez-Heydrich J, Teicher MH, van der Heijden H, Ongur D, Shinn AK, Upadhyay J. Childhood maltreatment and its role in the development of pain and psychopathology. THE LANCET. CHILD & ADOLESCENT HEALTH 2022; 6:195-206. [PMID: 35093193 PMCID: PMC10364973 DOI: 10.1016/s2352-4642(21)00339-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2021] [Revised: 10/25/2021] [Accepted: 10/26/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Childhood maltreatment represents a form of trauma capable of altering fundamental neurobiological properties and negatively impacting neurodevelopmental processes. An outcome of childhood maltreatment is the emergence of psychopathology, which might become evident during childhood or adolescence, but might also project into adulthood. In this Review, we propose a biobehavioural framework in which childhood maltreatment and the associated aberrant neurobiological mechanisms and behavioural processes additionally lead to the onset of altered pain processing and, ultimately, the existence of pain syndromes. Considering that subpopulations of maltreated children show preserved function and minimal psychiatric or pain symptoms, compensatory mechanisms-perhaps instilled by robust psychosocial support systems-are also discussed. We present validated tools and experimental methods that could facilitate better comprehension of the interactions between childhood maltreatment, psychopathology, and pain. Such tools and approaches can in parallel be implemented to monitor abnormal pain-related processes and potentially guide early intervention strategies in cases of childhood maltreatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariesa Cay
- Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA
| | | | - Martin H Teicher
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA; Developmental Biopsychiatry Research Program, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Hanne van der Heijden
- Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Faculty of Science, Biomedical Sciences Neurobiology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Dost Ongur
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA; Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Program, Psychotic Disorders Division, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Ann K Shinn
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA; Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Program, Psychotic Disorders Division, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Jaymin Upadhyay
- Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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30
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Bourne SV, Korom M, Dozier M. Consequences of Inadequate Caregiving for Children's Attachment, Neurobiological Development, and Adaptive Functioning. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev 2022; 25:166-181. [PMID: 35201540 DOI: 10.1007/s10567-022-00386-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Given that human infants are almost fully reliant on caregivers for survival, the presence of parents who provide sensitive, responsive care support infants and young children in developing the foundation for optimal biological functioning. Conversely, when parents are unavailable or insensitive, there are consequences for infants' and children's attachment and neurobiological development. In this paper, we describe effects of inadequate parenting on children's neurobiological and behavioral development, with a focus on developing capacities for executive functioning, emotion regulation, and other important cognitive-affective processes. Most prior research has examined correlational associations among these constructs. Given that interventions tested through randomized clinical trials allow for causal inferences, we review longitudinal intervention effects on children's biobehavioral and cognitive-affective outcomes. In particular, we provide an overview of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project, a study in which children were randomized to continue in orphanage care (typically the most extreme condition of privation) or were placed into the homes of trained, supported foster parents. We also discuss findings regarding Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up, an intervention enhancing sensitivity among high-risk parents. We conclude by suggesting future directions for research in this area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stacia V Bourne
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA.
| | - Marta Korom
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Mary Dozier
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
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31
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Tsotsi S, Rifkin-Graboi A, Borelli JL, Chong YS, Rajadurai VS, Chua MC, Broekman B, Meaney M, Qiu A. Neonatal brain and physiological reactivity in preschoolers: An initial investigation in an Asian sample. J Psychiatr Res 2022; 146:219-227. [PMID: 34809993 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2020] [Revised: 10/04/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) activity is important to physiological regulation. Limbic structures are important in determining what information the PNS receives, potentially influencing concurrent physiological responsivity and, ultimately, shaping PNS development. Yet, whether individual differences in these structures are linked to PNS activity in early childhood remains unclear. Here, in an exploratory capacity, we examined the association between neonatal limbic structures (i.e., the left and right amygdala and hippocampus) and preschoolers' resting-state respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA). RSA is a measure of heart-rate variability, a physiological marker that reflects fluctuation in the PNS and is often found predictive of emotion regulation and psychological wellbeing. Data were extracted from the "Growing Up in Singapore towards Healthy Outcomes" (GUSTO) cohort (n = 73, 39 girls). Neonatal limbic volume was collected within two weeks after birth while infants were asleep. Resting-state RSA was collected during a coloring session at 42 months of age. After controlling for potential confounders, a Bonferroni-corrected significant association between neonatal left hippocampal volume and resting-state RSA emerged wherein larger hippocampal volume was associated with higher resting-state RSA. No significant associations were present between resting-state RSA and right or left amygdala, or right hippocampal volume. These findings contribute to an increasing body of evidence aiming at enhancing our understanding of neurobiological underpinnings of parasympathetic activity and modulation. Results are also discussed with reference to ideas concerning biological sensitivity to context, as both left hippocampal volume and resting-state RSA were previously found to moderate associations between adversity and psychological function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Tsotsi
- PROMENTA Research Centre, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Anne Rifkin-Graboi
- Centre for Research in Child Development, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
| | - Jessica L Borelli
- Department of Psychological Science, School of Social Ecology, University of California, Irvine, USA
| | - Yap Seng Chong
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore; Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore and National University Health System, Singapore
| | - Victor Samuel Rajadurai
- Department of Neonatology, Kandang Kerbau Women and Children's Hospital, Singapore; Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | - Mei Chien Chua
- Department of Neonatology, Kandang Kerbau Women and Children's Hospital, Singapore; Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
| | - Birit Broekman
- Department of Psychiatry, OLVG and Amsterdam UMC, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Michael Meaney
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences (SICS), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore; McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Anqi Qiu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
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32
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Rogers CR, Chen X, Kwon SJ, McElwain NL, Telzer EH. The role of early attachment and parental presence in adolescent behavioral and neurobiological regulation. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2021; 53:101046. [PMID: 34954667 PMCID: PMC8717427 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.101046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2021] [Revised: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Early attachment shapes brain development underlying emotion regulation. Given that sensitivity to affective cues is heightened during adolescence and effective emotion regulation strategies continue to develop, it is imperative to examine the role of early attachment and parental influence on adolescent regulation. Fifty-one children (M age=32.61 months) participated in a modified Strange Situation with their mother and approximately 10 years later (M age =13.2 years) completed an fMRI scan during which they were presented with appetitive and aversive affective cues (images of adolescent interactions) during a Go-Nogo task. They completed the task alone and in the presence of a parent. Behavioral multilevel models and whole-brain analyses showed attachment-related patterns, such that affective cues elicited greater behavioral and neural dysregulation in insecure (versus secure) adolescents.Furthermore, parental presence buffered behavioral and neural dysregulation toward socially aversive cues for adolescents with early insecure attachment, underscoring the salience of caregivers across development in promoting regulation in their offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christy R Rogers
- Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, Texas Tech University, USA.
| | - Xi Chen
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, China
| | - Seh-Joo Kwon
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
| | - Nancy L McElwain
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, USA; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, USA
| | - Eva H Telzer
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
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Liu S, Wang YS, Zhang Q, Zhou Q, Cao LZ, Jiang C, Zhang Z, Yang N, Dong Q, Zuo XN. Chinese Color Nest Project : An accelerated longitudinal brain-mind cohort. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2021; 52:101020. [PMID: 34653938 PMCID: PMC8517840 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.101020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Revised: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The ongoing Chinese Color Nest Project (CCNP) was established to create normative charts for brain structure and function across the human lifespan, and link age-related changes in brain imaging measures to psychological assessments of behavior, cognition, and emotion using an accelerated longitudinal design. In the initial stage, CCNP aims to recruit 1520 healthy individuals (6-90 years), which comprises three phases: developing (devCCNP: 6-18 years, N = 480), maturing (matCCNP: 20-60 years, N = 560) and aging (ageCCNP: 60-84 years, N = 480). In this paper, we present an overview of the devCCNP, including study design, participants, data collection and preliminary findings. The devCCNP has acquired data with three repeated measurements from 2013 to 2017 in Southwest University, Chongqing, China (CCNP-SWU, N = 201). It has been accumulating baseline data since July 2018 and the second wave data since September 2020 in Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China (CCNP-CAS, N = 168). Each participant in devCCNP was followed up for 2.5 years at 1.25-year intervals. The devCCNP obtained longitudinal neuroimaging, biophysical, social, behavioral and cognitive data via MRI, parent- and self-reported questionnaires, behavioral assessments, and computer tasks. Additionally, data were collected on children's learning, daily life and emotional states during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. We address data harmonization across the two sites and demonstrated its promise of characterizing the growth curves for the overall brain morphometry using multi-center longitudinal data. CCNP data will be shared via the National Science Data Bank and requests for further information on collaboration and data sharing are encouraged.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siman Liu
- Research Center for Lifespan Development of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yin-Shan Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Developmental Population Neuroscience Research Center, International Data Group/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Qing Zhang
- Research Center for Lifespan Development of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Quan Zhou
- Research Center for Lifespan Development of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Li-Zhi Cao
- Research Center for Lifespan Development of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Chao Jiang
- School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
| | - Zhe Zhang
- Department of Psychology, College of Education, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang 05024, Hebei, China
| | - Ning Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Developmental Population Neuroscience Research Center, International Data Group/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Qi Dong
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Xi-Nian Zuo
- Research Center for Lifespan Development of Mind and Brain, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China; Developmental Population Neuroscience Research Center, International Data Group/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
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34
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Turesky TK, Shama T, Kakon SH, Haque R, Islam N, Someshwar A, Gagoski B, Petri WA, Nelson CA, Gaab N. Brain morphometry and diminished physical growth in Bangladeshi children growing up in extreme poverty: A longitudinal study. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2021; 52:101029. [PMID: 34801857 PMCID: PMC8605388 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.101029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2021] [Revised: 09/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Diminished physical growth is a common marker of malnutrition and it affects approximately 200 million children worldwide. Despite its importance and prevalence, it is not clear whether diminished growth relates to brain development and general cognitive ability. Further, diminished growth is more common in areas of extreme poverty, raising the possibility that it may mediate previously shown links between socioeconomic status (SES) and brain structure. To address these gaps, 79 children growing up in an extremely poor, urban area of Bangladesh underwent MRI at age six years. Structural brain images were submitted to Mindboggle software, a Docker-compliant and high-reproducibility tool for tissue segmentation and regional estimations of volume, surface area, cortical thickness, sulcal depth, and mean curvature. Diminished growth predicted brain morphometry and mediated the link between SES and brain morphometry most consistently for subcortical and white matter subcortical volumes. Meanwhile, brain volume in left pallidum and right ventral diencephalon mediated the relationship between diminished growth and full-scale IQ. These findings offer malnutrition as one possible pathway through which SES affects brain development and general cognitive ability in areas of extreme poverty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ted K Turesky
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, United States; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
| | - Talat Shama
- The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | | | - Rashidul Haque
- The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | - Nazrul Islam
- National Institute of Neuroscience and Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh
| | - Amala Someshwar
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Borjan Gagoski
- Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, United States; Fetal-Neonatal Neuroimaging and Development Science Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
| | - William A Petri
- Division of Infectious Diseases and International Health, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, United States
| | - Charles A Nelson
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, United States; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Nadine Gaab
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, United States; Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, United States; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
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35
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Gee DG. Early Adversity and Development: Parsing Heterogeneity and Identifying Pathways of Risk and Resilience. Am J Psychiatry 2021; 178:998-1013. [PMID: 34734741 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2021.21090944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Adversity early in life is common and is a major risk factor for the onset of psychopathology. Delineating the neurodevelopmental pathways by which early adversity affects mental health is critical for early risk identification and targeted treatment approaches. A rapidly growing cross-species literature has facilitated advances in identifying the mechanisms linking adversity with psychopathology, specific dimensions of adversity and timing-related factors that differentially relate to outcomes, and protective factors that buffer against the effects of adversity. Yet, vast complexity and heterogeneity in early environments and neurodevelopmental trajectories contribute to the challenges of understanding risk and resilience in the context of early adversity. In this overview, the author highlights progress in four major areas-mechanisms, heterogeneity, developmental timing, and protective factors; synthesizes key challenges; and provides recommendations for future research that can facilitate progress in the field. Translation across species and ongoing refinement of conceptual models have strong potential to inform prevention and intervention strategies that can reduce the immense burden of psychopathology associated with early adversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dylan G Gee
- Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, Conn
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36
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The role of glucocorticoid receptor gene in the association between attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder and smaller brain structures. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2021; 128:1907-1916. [PMID: 34609638 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-021-02425-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
ADHD is associated with smaller subcortical brain volumes and cortical surface area, with greater effects observed in children than adults. It is also associated with dysregulation of the HPA axis. Considering the effects of the glucocorticoid receptor (NR3C1) in neurophysiology, we hypothesize that the blurred relationships between brain structures and ADHD in adults could be partly explained by NR3C1 gene variation. Structural T1-weighted images were acquired on a 3 T scanner (N = 166). Large-scale genotyping was performed, and it was followed by quality control and pruning procedures, which resulted in 48 independent NR3C1 gene variants analyzed. After a stringent Bonferroni correction, two SNPs (rs2398631 and rs72801070) moderated the association between ADHD and accumbens and amygdala volumes in adults. The significant SNPs that interacted with ADHD appear to have a role in gene expression regulation, and they are in linkage disequilibrium with NR3C1 variants that present well-characterized physiological functions. The literature-reported associations of ADHD with accumbens and amygdala were only observed for specific NR3C1 genotypes. Our findings reinforce the influence of the NR3C1 gene on subcortical volumes and ADHD. They suggest a genetic modulation of the effects of a pivotal HPA axis component in the neuroanatomical features of ADHD.
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37
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Ferschmann L, Bos MGN, Herting MM, Mills KL, Tamnes CK. Contextualizing adolescent structural brain development: Environmental determinants and mental health outcomes. Curr Opin Psychol 2021; 44:170-176. [PMID: 34688028 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.09.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2021] [Revised: 09/15/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
The spatiotemporal group-level patterns of brain macrostructural development are relatively well-documented. Current research emphasizes individual variability in brain development, including its causes and consequences. Although genetic factors and prenatal and perinatal events play critical roles, calls are now made to also study brain development in transactional interplay with the different aspects of an individual's physical and social environment. Such focus is highly relevant for research on adolescence, a period involving a multitude of contextual changes paralleled by continued refinement of complex cognitive and affective neural systems. Here, we discuss associations between selected aspects of an individual's physical and social environment and adolescent brain structural development and possible links to mental health. We also touch on methodological considerations for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lia Ferschmann
- PROMENTA Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway.
| | - Marieke G N Bos
- Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, the Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, the Netherlands
| | - Megan M Herting
- Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, University of Southern California, USA
| | - Kathryn L Mills
- PROMENTA Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, USA
| | - Christian K Tamnes
- PROMENTA Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway; NORMENT, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychiatric Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway
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38
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Roddy D, Kelly JR, Farrell C, Doolin K, Roman E, Nasa A, Frodl T, Harkin A, O'Mara S, O'Hanlon E, O'Keane V. Amygdala substructure volumes in Major Depressive Disorder. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2021; 31:102781. [PMID: 34384996 PMCID: PMC8361319 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2021.102781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The role of the amygdala in the experience of emotional states and stress is well established. Connections from the amygdala to the hypothalamus activate the hypothalamic-pituitaryadrenal (HPA) axis and the cortisol response. Previous studies have failed to find consistent whole amygdala volume changes in Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), but differences may exist at the smaller substructural level of the amygdala nuclei. High-resolution T1 and T2-weighted-fluid-attenuated inversion recovery MRIs were compared between 80 patients with MDD and 83 healthy controls (HC) using the automated amygdala substructure module in FreeSurfer 6.0. Volumetric assessments were performed for individual nuclei and three anatomico-functional composite groups of nuclei. Salivary cortisol awakening response (CAR), as a measure of HPA responsivity, was measured in a subset of patients. The right medial nucleus volume was larger in MDD compared to HC (p = 0.002). Increased right-left volume ratios were found in MDD for the whole amygdala (p = 0.004), the laterobasal composite (p = 0.009) and in the central (p = 0.003) and medial (p = 0.014) nuclei. The CAR was not significantly different between MDD and HC. Within the MDD group the left corticoamygdaloid transition area was inversely correlated with the CAR, as measured by area under the curve (AUCg) (p ≤ 0.0001). In conclusion, our study found larger right medial nuclei volumes in MDD compared to HC and relatively increased right compared to left whole and substructure volume ratios in MDD. The results suggest that amygdala substructure volumes may be involved in the pathophysiology of depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Darren Roddy
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - John R Kelly
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland.
| | - Chloë Farrell
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Kelly Doolin
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Elena Roman
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Anurag Nasa
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Thomas Frodl
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Andrew Harkin
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Shane O'Mara
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Erik O'Hanlon
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland; Department of Psychiatry, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Veronica O'Keane
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Lloyd Building, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
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Hanson JL, Nacewicz BM. Amygdala Allostasis and Early Life Adversity: Considering Excitotoxicity and Inescapability in the Sequelae of Stress. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:624705. [PMID: 34140882 PMCID: PMC8203824 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.624705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2020] [Accepted: 04/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Early life adversity (ELA), such as child maltreatment or child poverty, engenders problems with emotional and behavioral regulation. In the quest to understand the neurobiological sequelae and mechanisms of risk, the amygdala has been of major focus. While the basic functions of this region make it a strong candidate for understanding the multiple mental health issues common after ELA, extant literature is marked by profound inconsistencies, with reports of larger, smaller, and no differences in regional volumes of this area. We believe integrative models of stress neurodevelopment, grounded in "allostatic load," will help resolve inconsistencies in the impact of ELA on the amygdala. In this review, we attempt to connect past research studies to new findings with animal models of cellular and neurotransmitter mediators of stress buffering to extreme fear generalization onto testable research and clinical concepts. Drawing on the greater impact of inescapability over unpredictability in animal models, we propose a mechanism by which ELA aggravates an exhaustive cycle of amygdala expansion and subsequent toxic-metabolic damage. We connect this neurobiological sequela to psychosocial mal/adaptation after ELA, bridging to behavioral studies of attachment, emotion processing, and social functioning. Lastly, we conclude this review by proposing a multitude of future directions in preclinical work and studies of humans that suffered ELA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie L. Hanson
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Brendon M. Nacewicz
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, United States
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40
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Fowler CH, Bogdan R, Gaffrey MS. Stress-induced cortisol response is associated with right amygdala volume in early childhood. Neurobiol Stress 2021; 14:100329. [PMID: 33997154 PMCID: PMC8102621 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2020] [Revised: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Rodent research suggests that dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the resulting cortisol stress response can alter the structure of the hippocampus and amygdala. Because early-life changes in brain structure can produce later functional impairment and potentially increase risk for psychiatric disorder, it is critical to understand the relationship between the cortisol stress response and brain structure in early childhood. However, no study to date has characterized the concurrent association between cortisol stress response and hippocampal and amygdala volume in young children. In the present study, 42 young children (M age = 5.97, SD = 0.76), completed a frustration task and cortisol response to stress was measured. Children also underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), providing structural scans from which their hippocampal and amygdala volumes were extracted. Greater cortisol stress response was associated with reduced right amygdala volume, controlling for whole brain volume, age, sex, and number of cortisol samples. There were no significant associations between cortisol stress response and bilateral hippocampus or left amygdala volumes. The association between right amygdala volume and cortisol stress response raises the non-mutually exclusive possibilities that the function of the HPA axis may shape amygdala structure and/or that amygdala structure may shape HPA axis function. As both cortisol stress response and amygdala volume have been associated with risk for psychopathology, it is possible that the relationship between cortisol stress response and amygdala volume is part of a broader pathway contributing to psychiatric risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina H. Fowler
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University, Reuben-Cooke Building, 417 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
| | - Ryan Bogdan
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, Somers Family Hall, Forsyth Blvd, St. Louis, Missouri, 63105, USA
| | - Michael S. Gaffrey
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University, Reuben-Cooke Building, 417 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC, 27708, USA
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Shields GS, Hostinar CE, Vilgis V, Forbes EE, Hipwell AE, Keenan K, Guyer AE. Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Activity in Childhood Predicts Emotional Memory Effects and Related Neural Circuitry in Adolescent Girls. J Cogn Neurosci 2021; 33:872-886. [PMID: 34449842 PMCID: PMC8764738 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/30/2024]
Abstract
Negative emotional experiences can be more difficult to forget than neutral ones, a phenomenon termed the "emotional memory effect." Individual differences in the strength of the emotional memory effect are associated with emotional health. Thus, understanding the neurobiological underpinnings of the emotional memory effect has important implications, especially for individuals at risk for emotional health problems. Although the neural basis of emotional memory effects has been relatively well defined, less is known about how hormonal factors that can modulate emotional memory, such as glucocorticoids, relate to that neural basis. Importantly, probing the role of glucocorticoids in the stress- and emotion-sensitive period of late childhood to adolescence could provide actionable points of intervention. We addressed this gap by testing whether hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity during a parent-child conflict task at 11 years of age predicted emotional memory and its primary neural circuitry (i.e., amygdala-hippocampus functional connectivity) at 16 years of age in a longitudinal study of 147 girls (104 with complete data). Results showed that lower HPA axis activity predicted stronger emotional memory effects, r(124) = -.236, p < .01, and higher emotional memory-related functional connectivity between the right hippocampus and the right amygdala, β = -.385, p < .001. These findings suggest that late childhood HPA axis activity may modulate the neural circuitry of emotional memory effects in adolescence, which may confer a potential risk trajectory for emotional health among girls.
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