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Prenatal psychosocial stress exposure is associated with subsequent working memory performance in young women

Prenatal psychosocial stress exposure is associated with subsequent working memory performance in young women
Prenatal psychosocial stress exposure is associated with subsequent working memory performance in young women
The aim of the present study was to examine the association between prenatal psychosocial stress exposure and subsequent prefrontal cortex-dependent working memory performance in human adults. Working memory performance was assessed using an item-recognition task under 10 mg hydrocortisone (cortisol) and placebo conditions in a sample of 32 healthy young women (mean age = 25 +/- 4.34 years) whose mothers experienced a major negative life event during their pregnancy (Prenatal Stress, PS group), and in a comparison group of 27 healthy young women (mean age = 24 +/- 3.4 years). The two groups did not differ in the placebo condition, however, subjects in the PS group showed longer reaction times after hydrocortisone administration compared with subjects in the comparison group (p = .02). These findings provide support for an association between prenatal stress exposure and the potential modulatory effect of cortisol on working memory performance in young adults, which may reflect compromised development of the prefrontal cortex in prenatal life.
886-893
Entringer, Sonja
f96a0401-9da9-4f00-aada-b6a3569501ba
Buss, Claudia
ef95b8cb-9d65-4687-b6a2-029d18a3970a
Kumsta, Robert
88285030-6a7c-4ef1-ba75-b78e09cd2f1e
Hellhammer, Dirk
b2379f6e-c74a-4fc8-8efa-a5a682da8cd1
Wadhwa, Pathik
e5c751a8-f3b9-4141-b36d-e302f9cb96d8
Wüst, Stefan
530861ea-05ba-4a73-8030-9735f1759d5b
Entringer, Sonja
f96a0401-9da9-4f00-aada-b6a3569501ba
Buss, Claudia
ef95b8cb-9d65-4687-b6a2-029d18a3970a
Kumsta, Robert
88285030-6a7c-4ef1-ba75-b78e09cd2f1e
Hellhammer, Dirk
b2379f6e-c74a-4fc8-8efa-a5a682da8cd1
Wadhwa, Pathik
e5c751a8-f3b9-4141-b36d-e302f9cb96d8
Wüst, Stefan
530861ea-05ba-4a73-8030-9735f1759d5b

Entringer, Sonja, Buss, Claudia, Kumsta, Robert, Hellhammer, Dirk, Wadhwa, Pathik and Wüst, Stefan (2009) Prenatal psychosocial stress exposure is associated with subsequent working memory performance in young women. Behavioral Neuroscience, 123 (4), 886-893. (doi:10.1037/a0016265).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to examine the association between prenatal psychosocial stress exposure and subsequent prefrontal cortex-dependent working memory performance in human adults. Working memory performance was assessed using an item-recognition task under 10 mg hydrocortisone (cortisol) and placebo conditions in a sample of 32 healthy young women (mean age = 25 +/- 4.34 years) whose mothers experienced a major negative life event during their pregnancy (Prenatal Stress, PS group), and in a comparison group of 27 healthy young women (mean age = 24 +/- 3.4 years). The two groups did not differ in the placebo condition, however, subjects in the PS group showed longer reaction times after hydrocortisone administration compared with subjects in the comparison group (p = .02). These findings provide support for an association between prenatal stress exposure and the potential modulatory effect of cortisol on working memory performance in young adults, which may reflect compromised development of the prefrontal cortex in prenatal life.

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Published date: August 2009

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 67280
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/67280
PURE UUID: d4e8ddf4-c605-47b6-89a1-7b2bff1e8883

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Date deposited: 12 Aug 2009
Last modified: 13 Mar 2024 18:47

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Contributors

Author: Sonja Entringer
Author: Claudia Buss
Author: Robert Kumsta
Author: Dirk Hellhammer
Author: Pathik Wadhwa
Author: Stefan Wüst

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