Altered cortical structure and psychiatric symptom risk in adolescents exposed to maternal stress in utero: A retrospective investigation.

ABSTRACT: Maternal exposure to stress during pregnancy is associated with increased risk for cognitive and behavioral sequelae in offspring. Animal research demonstrates exposure to stress during gestation has effects on brain structure. In humans, however, little is known about the enduring effects of in utero exposure to maternal stress on brain morphology. We examine whether maternal report of stressful events during pregnancy is associated with brain structure and behavior in adolescents. We compare gray matter morphometry of typically-developing early adolescents (11-14 years of age, mean 12.7) at a single timepoint, based on presence/absence of retrospectively-assessed maternal report of negative major life event stress (MLES) during pregnancy: prenatal stress (PS; n = 28), comparison group (C

SUBMITTER: McQuaid GA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10561894 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature