A magnetoencephalography study of first-time mothers listening to infant cries

Author:

Hoegholt N F123ORCID,Bonetti L124ORCID,Stevner A B A12ORCID,Andersen C E5ORCID,Hughes M2,Fernandes H M12ORCID,Vuust P1ORCID,Kringelbach M L164ORCID

Affiliation:

1. Aarhus University & The Royal Academy of Music Aarhus/Aalborg Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, , 8000 Aarhus , Denmark

2. Linacre College, University of Oxford Centre for Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing, , Oxford OX37JX , United Kingdom

3. Emergency Department at Randers Regional Hospital , 8930 , Denmark

4. University of Oxford Department of Psychiatry, , Oxford OX37JX , United Kingdom

5. Aarhus University Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience, Department of Clinical Medicine, , 8000 Aarhus , Denmark

6. Linacre College Centre for Eudaimonia and Human Flourishing, , University of Oxford, Oxford OX37JX, United Kingdom

Abstract

Abstract Studies using magnetoencephalography (MEG) have identified the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) to be an important early hub for a “parental instinct” in the brain. This complements the finding from functional magnetic resonance imaging studies linking reward, emotion regulation, empathy, and mentalization networks to the “parental brain.” Here, we used MEG in 43 first-time mothers listening to infant and adult cry vocalizations to investigate the link with mother–infant postpartum bonding scores and their level of sleep deprivation (assessed using both actigraphy and sleep logs). When comparing brain responses to infant versus adult cry vocalizations, we found significant differences at around 800–1,000 ms after stimuli onset in the primary auditory cortex, superior temporal gyrus, hippocampal areas, insula, precuneus supramarginal gyrus, postcentral gyrus, and posterior cingulate gyrus. Importantly, mothers with weaker bonding scores showed decreased brain responses to infant cries in the auditory cortex, middle and superior temporal gyrus, OFC, hippocampal areas, supramarginal gyrus, and inferior frontal gyrus at around 100–300 ms after the stimulus onset. In contrast, we did not find correlations with sleep deprivation scores. The significant decreases in brain processing of an infant’s distress signals could potentially be a novel signature of weaker infant bonding in new mothers and should be investigated in vulnerable populations.

Funder

Carlsberg Foundation

European Research Council

Danish National Research Foundation

Publisher

Oxford University Press (OUP)

Subject

Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience,Cognitive Neuroscience

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