Sex-dependent associations between maternal prenatal cortisol and child callous-unemotional traits: Findings from the Wirral Child Health and Development Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Elevated maternal glucocorticoids during pregnancy may impact on fetal development in a sex-dependent way, leading to increased amygdala activation and increased risk for internalising disorders in females. Based on evidence implicating reduced amygdala activation in callous-unemotional (CU) traits, we predicted that elevated maternal cortisol in pregnancy would be associated with lower CU traits and elevated anxious-depressed symptoms, only in girls.

Methods

Participants were 225 members of a stratified subsample within an epidemiological longitudinal cohort (WCHADS). Salivary cortisol was measured over two days at 32 weeks gestation (on waking, 30-min post-waking and during the evening) and the log of the area under the curve (LogAUC) was calculated as an index

SUBMITTER: Wright N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6857434 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature