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Airaksinen M, Gallen A, Kivi A, Vijayakrishnan P, Häyrinen T, Ilén E, Räsänen O, Haataja LM, Vanhatalo S. Intelligent wearable allows out-of-the-lab tracking of developing motor abilities in infants. COMMUNICATIONS MEDICINE 2022; 2:69. [PMID: 35721830 PMCID: PMC9200857 DOI: 10.1038/s43856-022-00131-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 05/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Early neurodevelopmental care needs better, effective and objective solutions for assessing infants’ motor abilities. Novel wearable technology opens possibilities for characterizing spontaneous movement behavior. This work seeks to construct and validate a generalizable, scalable, and effective method to measure infants’ spontaneous motor abilities across all motor milestones from lying supine to fluent walking. Methods A multi-sensor infant wearable was constructed, and 59 infants (age 5–19 months) were recorded during their spontaneous play. A novel gross motor description scheme was used for human visual classification of postures and movements at a second-level time resolution. A deep learning -based classifier was then trained to mimic human annotations, and aggregated recording-level outputs were used to provide posture- and movement-specific developmental trajectories, which enabled more holistic assessments of motor maturity. Results Recordings were technically successful in all infants, and the algorithmic analysis showed human-equivalent-level accuracy in quantifying the observed postures and movements. The aggregated recordings were used to train an algorithm for predicting a novel neurodevelopmental measure, Baba Infant Motor Score (BIMS). This index estimates maturity of infants’ motor abilities, and it correlates very strongly (Pearson’s r = 0.89, p < 1e-20) to the chronological age of the infant. Conclusions The results show that out-of-hospital assessment of infants’ motor ability is possible using a multi-sensor wearable. The algorithmic analysis provides metrics of motility that are transparent, objective, intuitively interpretable, and they link strongly to infants’ age. Such a solution could be automated and scaled to a global extent, holding promise for functional benchmarking in individualized patient care or early intervention trials. Assessment of an infant’s motor abilities is a key part of regular health checks of infant development. However, there is shortage of methods that would allow objective and user-friendly tracking of infant motor abilities. We describe a system that measures infant’s posture and movement with sensors that are attached to the clothing. Movement signals are analyzed with a deep learning algorithm to predict maturity of motor abilities. The accuracy of analysis is comparable to human assessments. This system could enable early diagnosis of developmental delays, and it can be used to assess motor development in clinical trials. Airaksinen et al. describe an infant wearable system that accurately quantifies key aspects of infant motor ability and uses deep learning algorithms to analyze movement signals. Motor ability age and maturation can be predicted, with the predictions correlating with other clinical and parental assessments.
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Ribner A, Devine RT, Blair C, Hughes C. Mothers' and fathers' executive function both predict emergent executive function in toddlerhood. Dev Sci 2022; 25:e13263. [PMID: 35357069 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/23/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
There are multivariate influences on the development of children's executive function throughout the lifespan and substantial individual differences can be seen as early as when children are 1 and 2 years of age. These individual differences are moderately stable throughout early childhood, but more research is needed to better understand their origins. To some degree, individual differences in executive function are correlated between mother and child, but no research to date has examined these associations prior to when children are preschool age, nor have any studies considered the role of fathers' and mothers' executive function in tandem. Here, we use a sample of 484 families (Mothers 89.2% white; Fathers 92.5% white) in three countries (UK, USA, Netherlands) to investigate the role of each parents' executive function on the development of children's (49.7% female) executive function from 14 (M = 14.42, SD = 0.57) to 24 (M = 24.47, SD = 0.78) months, as well as parenting practices that underlie these associations. Results of structural equation models suggest stability in some-but not all-components of executive function and growing unity between components as children age. We replicate extant findings such that mothers' executive function predicts children's executive function over and above stability and extend these findings to include associations between father and child skills. We find an additive role of fathers' EF, similar in magnitude to the role of mothers' EF. Finally, for both mothers and fathers we find that sensitivity and autonomy supportive practices mediate the relations between parents' and children's executive function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Ribner
- Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Rory T Devine
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Clancy Blair
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.,Department of Population Health, NYU School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Claire Hughes
- Center for Family Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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Knopik VS, Micalizzi L, Marceau K, Loviska AM, Yu L, Bien A, Rolan E, Evans AS, Palmer RHC, Heath AC. The roles of familial transmission and smoking during pregnancy on executive function skills: A sibling-comparison study. Dev Psychopathol 2022; 34:1-13. [PMID: 36039978 PMCID: PMC10710697 DOI: 10.1017/s095457942200075x] [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: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
This research examines maternal smoking during pregnancy and risk for poorer executive function in siblings discordant for exposure. Data (N = 173 families) were drawn from the Missouri Mothers and Their Children study, a sample, identified using birth records (years 1998-2005), in which mothers changed smoking behavior between two pregnancies (Child 1 [older sibling]: M age = 12.99; Child 2 [younger sibling]: M age = 10.19). A sibling comparison approach was used, providing a robust test for the association between maternal smoking during pregnancy and different aspects of executive function in early-mid adolescence. Results suggested within-family (i.e., potentially causal) associations between maternal smoking during pregnancy and one working memory task (visual working memory) and one response inhibition task (color-word interference), with increased exposure associated with decreased performance. Maternal smoking during pregnancy was not associated with stop-signal reaction time, cognitive flexibility/set-shifting, or auditory working memory. Initial within-family associations between maternal smoking during pregnancy and visual working memory as well as color-word interference were fully attenuated in a model including child and familial covariates. These findings indicate that exposure to maternal smoking during pregnancy may be associated with poorer performance on some, but not all skills assessed; however, familial transmission of risk for low executive function appears more important.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valerie S Knopik
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University, 1202 West State St, West Lafayette, USA, IN, 47906
| | - Lauren Micalizzi
- Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Brown University, Box G-S121-5 Providence, RI, 02903, USA
- Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Box G-S121-5, Brown University School of Public Health, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Kristine Marceau
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University, 1202 West State St, West Lafayette, USA, IN, 47906
| | - Amy M Loviska
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University, 1202 West State St, West Lafayette, USA, IN, 47906
| | - Li Yu
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University, 1202 West State St, West Lafayette, USA, IN, 47906
| | - Alexandra Bien
- Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Purdue University, 1202 West State St, West Lafayette, USA, IN, 47906
| | - Emily Rolan
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, 316 Physics Rd., East Lansing, MI, 48823, USA
| | - Allison S Evans
- Concord Comprehensive Neuropsychological Services, 86 Baker Avenue Extension #301, Concord, MA, 01742, USA
| | - Rohan H C Palmer
- Behavioral Genetics of Addiction Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA, 30322, USA
| | - Andrew C Heath
- Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, 660 S Euclid Ave, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
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Camerota M, Wylie AC, Goldblum J, Wideman L, Cheatham CL, Propper CB. Testing a cascade model linking prenatal inflammation to child executive function. Behav Brain Res 2022; 431:113959. [PMID: 35690156 PMCID: PMC10652221 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.113959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Revised: 05/21/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Inflammation during pregnancy is beginning to be understood as a risk factor predicting poor infant health and neurodevelopmental outcomes. The long-term sequelae associated with exposure to prenatal inflammation are less well established. The current study examined associations between maternal inflammation during pregnancy, markers of infant neurodevelopment (general cognitive ability, negative affect, and sleep quality), and preschool executive function (EF) in a longitudinal sample of 40 African American mother-infant dyads. Mothers completed a blood draw in the third trimester of pregnancy to measure plasma levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and pro-inflammatory cytokines (e.g., interleukin 6 [IL-6], tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-α]). When infants were 6 months of age, we assessed general cognitive ability via the Bayley-III, negative affect via the Still-Face Paradigm, and sleep quality via actigraphy monitoring. When children were 4 years of age, we assessed their EF ability using four tasks from the EF Touch battery. Elevated levels of maternal CRP, IL-6, and TNF-α were associated with poorer infant general cognitive ability. Although there were no direct effects of prenatal inflammation on preschool EF, we observed an indirect relationship between IL-6 and preschool EF ability via infant general cognitive ability. Our findings suggest that prenatal inflammation may have long-lasting, cascading implications for child neurodevelopment. Implications of these findings for health disparities in women and children of color are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Camerota
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States
| | - Amanda C Wylie
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States
| | - Jessica Goldblum
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States
| | - Laurie Wideman
- Department of Kinesiology, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, United States
| | - Carol L Cheatham
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States; Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States
| | - Cathi B Propper
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, United States.
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de Mendonça Filho EJ, Barth B, Bandeira DR, de Lima RMS, Arcego DM, Dalmaz C, Pokhvisneva I, Sassi RB, Hall GBC, Meaney MJ, Silveira PP. Cognitive Development and Brain Gray Matter Susceptibility to Prenatal Adversities: Moderation by the Prefrontal Cortex Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Gene Co-expression Network. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:744743. [PMID: 34899157 PMCID: PMC8652300 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.744743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Previous studies focused on the relationship between prenatal conditions and neurodevelopmental outcomes later in life, but few have explored the interplay between gene co-expression networks and prenatal adversity conditions on cognitive development trajectories and gray matter density. Methods: We analyzed the moderation effects of an expression polygenic score (ePRS) for the Brain-derived Neurotrophic Factor gene network (BDNF ePRS) on the association between prenatal adversity and child cognitive development. A score based on genes co-expressed with the prefrontal cortex (PFC) BDNF was created, using the effect size of the association between the individual single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) and the BDNF expression in the PFC. Cognitive development trajectories of 157 young children from the Maternal Adversity, Vulnerability and Neurodevelopment (MAVAN) cohort were assessed longitudinally in 4-time points (6, 12, 18, and 36 months) using the Bayley-II mental scales. Results: Linear mixed-effects modeling indicated that BDNF ePRS moderates the effects of prenatal adversity on cognitive growth. In children with high BDNF ePRS, higher prenatal adversity was associated with slower cognitive development in comparison with those exposed to lower prenatal adversity. Parallel-Independent Component Analysis (pICA) suggested that associations of expression-based SNPs and gray matter density significantly differed between low and high prenatal adversity groups. The brain IC included areas involved in visual association processes (Brodmann area 19 and 18), reallocation of attention, and integration of information across the supramodal cortex (Brodmann area 10). Conclusion: Cognitive development trajectories and brain gray matter seem to be influenced by the interplay of prenatal environmental conditions and the expression of an important BDNF gene network that guides the growth and plasticity of neurons and synapses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Euclides José de Mendonça Filho
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Barbara Barth
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Integrated Program in Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Denise Ruschel Bandeira
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Psicologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Randriely Merscher Sobreira de Lima
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Bioquímica e Neurociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Danusa Mar Arcego
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Carla Dalmaz
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Bioquímica e Neurociências, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Irina Pokhvisneva
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | | | - Geoffrey B. C. Hall
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Michael J. Meaney
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Patricia Pelufo Silveira
- Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Ludmer Centre for Neuroinformatics and Mental Health, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal, QC, Canada
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Braren SH, Perry RE, Ribner A, Brandes-Aitken A, Brito N, Blair C. Prenatal mother-father cortisol linkage predicts infant executive functions at 24 months. Dev Psychobiol 2021; 63:e22151. [PMID: 34674244 DOI: 10.1002/dev.22151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 05/14/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
The present study investigated associations between prenatal mother-father cortisol linkage and infant executive functions. Data come from an international sample (N = 358) of predominantly white and middle- to upper-class first-time parents. During late pregnancy, parents collected diurnal salivary cortisol samples and reported on levels of psychological stress. At 24 months, children completed a battery of executive function tasks. Parent cortisol linkage was operationalized as the time-dependent, within-dyad association between maternal and paternal diurnal cortisol. Results indicated that prenatal linkage was positively related to infant executive functions, suggesting that stronger mother-father cortisol linkage was associated with higher executive function scores. Additionally, this relation was moderated by paternal average cortisol levels such that executive function scores were lower when fathers had higher average cortisol levels and linkage was weak. This association suggests that elevated paternal cortisol amplifies the negative relation between lower cortisol linkage and lower infant executive function scores. Importantly, these findings were observed while controlling for observational measures of caregiving and self-report measures of psychosocial functioning and infant social-emotional behavior. These results suggest that prenatal linkage of mother's and father's stress physiology plays a potentially important part in programming and regulating infant neurocognitive development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Andrew Ribner
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, USA
| | | | - Natalie Brito
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, USA
| | - Clancy Blair
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, USA
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- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, USA.,Centre for Family Research, University of Cambridge, UK.,Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Leiden, The Netherlands
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Perinatal foundations of personality pathology from a dynamical systems perspective. Curr Opin Psychol 2020; 37:121-128. [PMID: 33444894 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2020.12.003] [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: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The development of personality pathology is an interactive process between biologically based susceptibilities, interpersonal patterns, and contextual factors across the lifespan. In this paper, we argue that these interactions begin before birth. We describe the perinatal period (i.e. pregnancy and up to one year postpartum) as a sensitive developmental window during which regulatory and stress response systems that confer risk for personality pathology begin forming. In addition, we present converging evidence for significant associations between perinatal factors and later life personality disorders. Finally, we present this perinatal perspective through the lens of dynamical systems theory and emphasize the promise of this framework for guiding future personality disorder research, prevention, and intervention.
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