Affiliation:
1. University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus: University of Colorado - Anschutz Medical Campus
2. University of Colorado - Anschutz Medical Campus
3. University of Pennsylvania Department of Psychiatry
4. University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine
5. University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine
6. Johns Hopkins School of Medicine: Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Abstract
Abstract
Background
The mechanisms by which parental early life stress can be transmitted to the next generation, in some cases in a sex-specific manner, are unclear. Maternal preconception stress may increase susceptibility to suboptimal health outcomes via in utero programming of the fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis.
Methods
We recruited healthy pregnant women (N = 147), dichotomized into low (0 or 1) and high (2+) adverse childhood experience (ACE) groups based on the ACE Questionnaire, to test the hypothesis that maternal ACE history influences fetal adrenal development in a sex-specific manner. At a mean (standard deviation) of 21.5 (1.4) and 29.5 (1.4) weeks gestation, participants underwent three-dimensional ultrasounds to measure fetal adrenal volume, adjusting for body weight (waFAV).
Results
At ultrasound 1, waFAV was smaller in high versus low ACE males (b= -0.17; z=-3.75; p < .001), but females did not differ by maternal ACE group (b = 0.09; z = 1.72; p = .086). Compared to low ACE males, waFAV was smaller for low (b=-0.20; z=-4.10; p < .001) and high ACE females (b=-0.11; z = 2.16; p = .031); however, high ACE males did not differ from low (b = 0.03; z = .57; p = .570) or high ACE females (b=-0.06; z=-1.29; p = .196). At ultrasound 2, compared to low ACE males, high ACE males (b=-0.08; z=-1.58; p = .114) and low ACE females (b=-0.09; z=-1.92; p = .055) had marginally smaller waFAV. Perceived stress did not differ between maternal ACE groups at baseline (t=-0.58; df = 142.18; p = .562), ultrasound 1 (t =-1.46; df = 141.05; p = .148), or ultrasound 2 (t=-0.67; df = 140.55; p = .504).
Conclusions
We observed a significant impact of high maternal ACE history on waFAV, a proxy for fetal adrenal development, but only in males. Our observation that the waFAV in males of mothers with a high ACE history did not differ from the waFAV of females extends preclinical research demonstrating a dysmasculinizing effect of gestational stress on a range of offspring outcomes. Future studies investigating intergenerational transmission of stress should consider the influence of maternal preconception stress on offspring outcomes.
Publisher
Research Square Platform LLC