Mother-infant interactions and regional brain volumes in infancy: an MRI study

Sethna, V., Pote, I., Wang, S., Gudbrandsen, M., Blasi, A., McCusker, C., Daly, E., Perry, E., Adams, K. P. H., Kuklisova-Murgasova, M., Busuulwa, P., Lloyd-Fox, S., Murray, L., Johnson, M. H., Williams, S. C. R., Murphy, D. G. M., Craig, M. C. and McAlonan, G. M. (2017) Mother-infant interactions and regional brain volumes in infancy: an MRI study. Brain Structure and Function, 222 (5). pp. 2379-2388. ISSN 1863-2661 doi: 10.1007/s00429-016-1347-1

Abstract/Summary

Background: It is generally agreed that the human brain is responsive to environmental influences, and that the male brain may be particularly sensitive to early adversity. However, this is largely based on retrospective studies of older children and adolescents exposed to extreme environments in childhood. Less is understood about how normative variations in parent-child interactions are associated with the development of the infant brain in typical settings. Method: To address this, we used magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the relationship between observational measures of mother-infant interactions and regional brain volumes in a community sample of 3-6 month old infants (N=39). In addition, we examined whether this relationship differed in male and female infants. Results: We found that lower maternal sensitivity was correlated with smaller subcortical grey matter volumes in the whole sample, and that this was similar in both sexes. However, male infants who showed greater levels of positive communication and engagement during early interactions had smaller cerebellar volumes. Conclusion These preliminary findings suggest that variations in mother-infant interaction dimensions are associated with differences in infant brain development. Although the study is cross-sectional and causation cannot be inferred, the findings reveal a dynamic interaction between brain and environment that may be important when considering interventions to optimize infant outcomes.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/68634
Identification Number/DOI	10.1007/s00429-016-1347-1
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Department of Psychology Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Neuroscience Interdisciplinary centres and themes > Winnicott
Publisher	Springer
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