Prenatal Maternal Mood Influences Brain Morphological Development in the First Decade of Life
Poster No:
997
Submission Type:
Late-Breaking Abstract Submission
Authors:
Chenlu Ma1, Yap Seng Chong2, Peter Gluckman3, Michael Meaney4, Anqi Qiu5
Institutions:
1The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore, 3Institute for Human Development and Potential, Singapore, Singapore, 4McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, 5the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Introduction:
Maternal mental health challenges during pregnancy, including psychological stress, depressive symptoms, and anxiety, have long-term effects on child brain development (Buss et al., 2010, 2012; Qiu et al., 2013, 2015; Wei et al., 2022). However, few studies have comprehensively examined how prenatal maternal mood influences brain morphological development from childhood to early adolescence, a critical period for understanding fetal programming and subsequent neurodevelopment.
Methods:
This study utilized data from the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) cohort. Prenatal maternal mental health was assessed via questionnaires administered at 26–28 gestational weeks. Confirmatory factor analysis identified one general mood factor and four specific dimensions: depression/anxiety symptoms, somatic symptoms, pregnancy-specific worries, and positive emotion (Qiu et al., 2024; López-Vicent et al., 2024). T1-weighted brain scans (n = 1143) were acquired longitudinally at 4.5, 6, 7.5, and 10.5 years. Generalized mixed additive models (GAMMs) examined the effects of prenatal maternal mood on developmental trajectories and baseline brain morphology, including cortical thickness, surface area, and volume. Analyses controlled for covariates such as child's sex, ethnicity, household income, and total intracranial volume, with false discovery rate (FDR) correction applied. Sex-dependent effects were further explored by analyzing girls and boys separately under the same statistical framework.
Results:
As shown in Figure 1, prenatal maternal general mood exhibited age-dependent effects on left amygdala volume (adjusted p = 0.032) and right middle temporal surface area (adjusted p = 0.046). Among specific mood dimensions, while no significant effects on developmental trajectories were found, depression/anxiety symptoms were associated with reduced right pars orbitalis volume in the inferior frontal gyrus (adjusted p = 0.028). Sex-dependent effects were evident (Fig. 2). Girls were more affected by the prenatal maternal mood in general, showing amygdala volume alterations in both developmental trajectories (adjusted p = 0.029) and overall pattern (adjusted p = 0.002). Additionally, age-dependent variations in right middle temporal gyrus volume (adjusted p = 0.041) affected by general mood were observed only in girls. Girls also exhibited cortical thickness alterations in the visual cortex, medial orbitofrontal cortex, and inferior temporal gyrus (adjusted ps < 0.05) in response to prenatal somatic symptoms. Conversely, boys were more susceptible to pregnancy-specific worries, showing age-dependent surface area alterations in the frontal pole (adjusted p = 0.036) and overall distinction (adjusted p = 0.017) in cortical thickness in the left inferior frontal gyrus. Importantly, a positive emotion trend was observed, influencing left hippocampus volume development (p = 0.005, adjusted p = 0.065) in girls, consistent with previous findings (Qiu et al., 2024).
·Longitudinal effects of prenatal maternal mood on brain morphology from ages 4.5 to 10.5 years.
·Sex-specific effects on brain morphological development from ages 4.5 to 10.5 years.
Conclusions:
This study provides unique longitudinal data on brain morphological development in the first decade of life in relation to prenatal maternal mood. Our findings suggest that prenatal maternal mood influences both the overall pattern and developmental trajectory of brain structures, particularly in the amygdala and temporal regions. Additionally, sex-dependent effects highlight differential susceptibilities in boys and girls. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding of fetal programming and its long-term impact on neurodevelopment.
Lifespan Development:
Early life, Adolescence, Aging 1
Normal Brain Development: Fetus to Adolescence 2
Neuroanatomy, Physiology, Metabolism and Neurotransmission:
Normal Development
Keywords:
Anxiety
Development
Morphometrics
Other - Longitudinal
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
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2. Buss, C., Davis, E. P., Shahbaba, B., Pruessner, J. C., Head, K., & Sandman, C. A. (2012). Maternal cortisol over the course of pregnancy and subsequent child amygdala and hippocampus volumes and affective problems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109(20), E1312-E1319.
3. López‐Vicente, M., Szekely, E., Lafaille‐Magnan, M. E., Morton, J. B., Oberlander, T. F., Greenwood, C. M., ... & White, T. (2024). Examining the interaction between prenatal stress and polygenic risk for attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder on brain growth in childhood: Findings from the DREAM BIG consortium. Developmental Psychobiology, 66(4), e22481.
4. Qiu, A., Anh, T. T., Li, Y., Chen, H., Rifkin-Graboi, A., Broekman, B. F., ... & Meaney, M. J. (2015). Prenatal maternal depression alters amygdala functional connectivity in 6-month-old infants. Translational psychiatry, 5(2), e508-e508.
5. Qiu, A., Shen, C., López-Vicente, M., Szekely, E., Chong, Y.-S., White, T., & Wazana, A. (2024). Maternal positive mental health during pregnancy impacts the hippocampus and functional brain networks in children. Nature Mental Health, 2(3), 320–327.
6. Qiu, A., Rifkin-Graboi, A., Chen, H., Chong, Y. S., Kwek, K., Gluckman, P. D., ... & Meaney, M. J. (2013). Maternal anxiety and infants' hippocampal development: timing matters. Translational psychiatry, 3(9), e306-e306.
7. Wei, D., Zhang, H., Broekman, B. F., Chong, Y. S., Shek, L. P., Yap, F., ... & Qiu, A. (2022). Cortical development mediates association of prenatal maternal depressive symptoms and child reward sensitivity: a longitudinal study. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 61(3), 392-401.