At First Sight: Fetal Eye Movements Reveal a Preference for Face-Like Configurations From 26 Weeks of Gestation.

ABSTRACT: Previous research indicates that both adults and newborns show enhanced electrophysiological and behavioral responses to schematic face-like configurations (FCs-three dots composing a downward-pointing triangle), as compared to the inverted configurations (ICs). Even fetuses, when exposed to light stimuli projected through the uterine wall, preferentially orient their heads toward FCs rather than ICs. However, when this effect emerges along the third trimester of pregnancy and in relation to the maturation of which brain structures is still unknown. Here, to provide a sensitive measure of fetal preference for FCs along the whole third trimester, fetal lens movements in response to FCs and ICs was monitored with 2D-ultrasound. In a series of three experiments, fetuses were recruited at 26,

SUBMITTER: Ronga I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11696828 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature