The Intergenerational Impact of Maternal Childhood Adversity on Child Behavior and Neurodevelopment: The Healthy MiNDS Protocol.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Here we present Healthy MiNDS, a cohort of mothers and their newborns in São Paulo, Brazil, designed to investigate how maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) intergenerationally affect child behavior and neurodevelopment, while exploring underlying biological mechanisms.

Methods

The study included seven encounters, beginning with the enrollment of women at 25-39 weeks of gestation from a low-resource area, based on their high or low exposure to ACEs. Their newborns were followed through the first 2 years of life. Biospecimens (e.g. maternal and cord blood, hair, saliva, placenta) were collected before/during childbirth and at follow-up visits. Newborns underwent non-sedated brain MRI scans and were regularly assessed for behavior, mother-child interactions

SUBMITTER: Micali D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12275983 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature