Early childhood deprivation is associated with alterations in adult brain structure despite subsequent environmental enrichment
Early childhood deprivation is associated with alterations in adult brain structure despite subsequent environmental enrichment
Early childhood deprivation is associated with higher rates of neurodevelopmental and mental disorders in adulthood. The impact of childhood deprivation on the adult brain and the extent to which structural changes underpin these effects are currently unknown. To investigate these questions, we utilized MRI data collected from young adults who were exposed to severe deprivation in early childhood in the Romanian orphanages of the Ceauşescu era and then, subsequently adopted by UK families; 67 Romanian adoptees (with between 3 and 41 mo of deprivation) were compared with 21 nondeprived UK adoptees. Romanian adoptees had substantially smaller total brain volumes (TBVs) than nondeprived adoptees (8.6% reduction), and TBV was strongly negatively associated with deprivation duration. This effect persisted after covarying for potential environmental and genetic confounds. In whole-brain analyses, deprived adoptees showed lower right inferior frontal surface area and volume but greater right inferior temporal lobe thickness, surface area, and volume than the nondeprived adoptees. Right medial prefrontal volume and surface area were positively associated with deprivation duration. No deprivation-related effects were observed in limbic regions. Global reductions in TBV statistically mediated the observed relationship between institutionalization and both lower intelligence quotient (IQ) and higher levels of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. The deprivation-related increase in right inferior temporal volume seemed to be compensatory, as it was associated with lower levels of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. We provide compelling evidence that time-limited severe deprivation in the first years of life is related to alterations in adult brain structure, despite extended enrichment in adoptive homes in the intervening years.
ADHD, Brain structure |, Early adversity, Institutional deprivation, Structural MRI
641-649
Mackes, Nuria
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Golm, Dennis
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Sarkar, Sagari
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Kumsta, Robert
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Rutter, Michael
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Fairchild, Graeme F.
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Mehta, Mitul A.
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Sonuga-Barke, Edmund
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ERA Young Adult Follow-up team
7 January 2020
Mackes, Nuria
0ade154d-e560-4675-a863-5e16e0ffcd54
Golm, Dennis
ae337f61-561e-4d44-9cf3-3e5611c7b484
Sarkar, Sagari
66e7e4d0-92d2-4900-8274-14f6459af3a6
Kumsta, Robert
0a5e2361-6b7c-4c66-b9fd-1210d3306402
Rutter, Michael
c58bfa2b-e6cf-4a67-9e76-9e20e7695aa4
Fairchild, Graeme F.
f99bc911-978e-48c2-9754-c6460666a95f
Mehta, Mitul A.
656d4095-c3a0-4161-8cb7-0dafcaf1404e
Sonuga-Barke, Edmund
180c5d1b-8848-41e4-ba25-2b6461a05b5e
Mackes, Nuria, Golm, Dennis, Sarkar, Sagari, Kumsta, Robert, Rutter, Michael, Fairchild, Graeme F., Mehta, Mitul A. and Sonuga-Barke, Edmund
,
ERA Young Adult Follow-up team
(2020)
Early childhood deprivation is associated with alterations in adult brain structure despite subsequent environmental enrichment.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 117 (1), .
(doi:10.1073/pnas.1911264116).
Abstract
Early childhood deprivation is associated with higher rates of neurodevelopmental and mental disorders in adulthood. The impact of childhood deprivation on the adult brain and the extent to which structural changes underpin these effects are currently unknown. To investigate these questions, we utilized MRI data collected from young adults who were exposed to severe deprivation in early childhood in the Romanian orphanages of the Ceauşescu era and then, subsequently adopted by UK families; 67 Romanian adoptees (with between 3 and 41 mo of deprivation) were compared with 21 nondeprived UK adoptees. Romanian adoptees had substantially smaller total brain volumes (TBVs) than nondeprived adoptees (8.6% reduction), and TBV was strongly negatively associated with deprivation duration. This effect persisted after covarying for potential environmental and genetic confounds. In whole-brain analyses, deprived adoptees showed lower right inferior frontal surface area and volume but greater right inferior temporal lobe thickness, surface area, and volume than the nondeprived adoptees. Right medial prefrontal volume and surface area were positively associated with deprivation duration. No deprivation-related effects were observed in limbic regions. Global reductions in TBV statistically mediated the observed relationship between institutionalization and both lower intelligence quotient (IQ) and higher levels of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. The deprivation-related increase in right inferior temporal volume seemed to be compensatory, as it was associated with lower levels of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms. We provide compelling evidence that time-limited severe deprivation in the first years of life is related to alterations in adult brain structure, despite extended enrichment in adoptive homes in the intervening years.
Text
472725_2_merged_1572973472
- Accepted Manuscript
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472725_2_supp_8230938_q0hh4v
- Accepted Manuscript
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Accepted/In Press date: 11 November 2019
e-pub ahead of print date: 6 January 2020
Published date: 7 January 2020
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. We express our gratitude for the continued support and dedication of the families who took part in the ERA. We also thank Niall Bourke for his assistance with data collection. The ERABIS has been funded by Medical Research Council Grant MR/K022474/1. Economic and Social Research Council Grant RES-062-23-3300 funded the young adult follow-up. The study team acknowledges the support of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Clinical Research Network. M.A.M. was supported in part by the NIHR Biomedical Research Centre at South London, Maudsley National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust, and King’s College London. The views expressed are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of the NHS, the NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2020 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.
Keywords:
ADHD, Brain structure |, Early adversity, Institutional deprivation, Structural MRI
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 436771
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/436771
ISSN: 0027-8424
PURE UUID: be6292ba-19c1-418b-98f8-2690bd5fa56d
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Date deposited: 07 Jan 2020 17:30
Last modified: 17 Mar 2024 03:35
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Contributors
Author:
Nuria Mackes
Author:
Sagari Sarkar
Author:
Robert Kumsta
Author:
Michael Rutter
Author:
Graeme F. Fairchild
Author:
Mitul A. Mehta
Author:
Edmund Sonuga-Barke
Corporate Author: ERA Young Adult Follow-up team
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