Sex-Specific Effects of Early-Life Unpredictability on Hippocampal and Amygdala Responses to Novelty in Adolescents.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Unpredictable childhood experiences are an understudied form of early-life adversity that impact neurodevelopment. The neurobiological processes by which exposure to early-life unpredictability impact development and vulnerability to psychopathology remain poorly understood. In the current study, we investigated the sex-specific consequences of early-life unpredictability on the limbic network, focusing on the hippocampus and the amygdala.

Methods

Participants included 150 youths (54% female). Early-life unpredictability was assessed using the Questionnaire of Unpredictability in Childhood (QUIC). Participants engaged in 1 or more task-functional magnetic resonance imaging scans between the ages of 8 and 17 (223 total observations) measuring blood oxygen level-dep

SUBMITTER: Davis EP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12673399 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature