Maternal psychological distress associates with alterations in
resting-state low-frequency fluctuations and distal functional
connectivity of the neonate medial prefrontal cortex
Abstract
Prenatal stress exposure (PSE) has been observed to exert a programming
effect on the developing infant brain, possibly with long-lasting
consequences on temperament, cognitive functions and the risk for
developing psychiatric disorders. Several prior studies have revealed
that PSE associates with alterations in neonate functional connectivity
in the prefrontal regions and amygdala. In this study, we explored
whether maternal psychological symptoms measured during the 24th
gestational week had associations with neonate resting-state network
metrics. 21 neonates (9 female) underwent resting-state fMRI scanning
(mean gestation-corrected age at scan 26.95 days) to assess fractional
amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (fALFF) and regional homogeneity
(ReHo). The ReHO/fALFF maps were used in multiple regression analysis to
investigate whether maternal self-reported anxiety and/or depressive
symptoms associate with neonate functional brain features. Maternal
psychological distress (composite score of depressive and anxiety
symptoms) was positively associated with fALFF in the neonate medial
prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Anxiety and depressive symptoms, assessed
separately, exhibited similar but weaker associations. Post hoc
seed-based connectivity analyses further showed that distal connectivity
of mPFC covaried with PSE. No associations were found between neonate
ReHo and PSE. These results offer preliminary evidence that PSE may
affect functional features of the developing brain during gestation.