Meta-analysis: Exposure to Early Life Stress and Risk for Depression in Childhood and Adolescence

AbstractExposure to early life stress (ELS) causes abnormal hippocampal development and functional deficits in rodents and humans, but no meta-analysis has been used yet to quantify the effects of different rodent models of ELS on hippocampal-dependent memory. We searched PubMed and Web of Science for publications that assessed the effects of handling, maternal separation (MS), and limited bedding and nesting (LBN) on performance in the Morris water maze (MWM), novel object recognition (NOR), and contextual fear conditioning (CFC). Forty-five studies met inclusion criteria (n = 451–763 rodents per test) and were used to calculate standardized mean differences (Hedge’s g) and to assess heterogeneity, publication bias, and the moderating effects of sex and species (rats vs. mice). We found significantly lower heterogeneity in LBN compared to handling and MS with no consistent effects of sex or species across the three paradigms. LBN and MS caused similar cognitive deficits in tasks that rely heavily on the dorsal hippocampus, such as MWM and NOR, and were significantly different compared to the improved performance seen in rodents exposed to handling. In the CFC task, which relies more on the ventral hippocampus, all three paradigms showed reduced freezing with moderate effect sizes that were not statistically different. These findings demonstrate the utility of using meta-analysis to quantify outcomes in a large number of inconsistent preclinical studies and highlight the need to further investigate the possibility that handling causes different alterations in the dorsal hippocampus but similar outcomes in the ventral hippocampus when compared to MS and LBN.

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Effects of early life stress on biochemical indicators of the dopaminergic system: A 3 level meta-analysis of rodent studies

Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews ◽

10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.09.003 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 95 ◽

pp. 1-16 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

V. Bonapersona ◽

M. Joëls ◽

R.A. Sarabdjitsingh

Keyword(s):

Life Stress ◽

Early Life ◽

Dopaminergic System ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Early Life Stress ◽

Biochemical Indicators ◽

System A

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Early Life Stress Combined with Serotonin 3A Receptor and Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Valine 66 to Methionine Genotypes Impacts Emotional Brain and Arousal Correlates of Risk for Depression

Biological Psychiatry ◽

10.1016/j.biopsych.2010.06.025 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 68 (9) ◽

pp. 818-824 ◽

Cited By ~ 61

Author(s):

Justine M. Gatt ◽

Charles B. Nemeroff ◽

Peter R. Schofield ◽

Robert H. Paul ◽

C. Richard Clark ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Neurotrophic Factor ◽

Life Stress ◽

Early Life ◽

Early Life Stress ◽

Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor ◽

Risk For Depression

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Loneliness Mediates the Relationship Between Early Life Stress and Perceived Stress but not Hypothalamic–Pituitary–Adrenal Axis Functioning

Frontiers in Psychology ◽

10.3389/fpsyg.2021.647265 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Isabel Crespo-Sanmiguel ◽

Mariola Zapater-Fajarí ◽

Matias M. Pulopulos ◽

Vanesa Hidalgo ◽

Alicia Salvador

Keyword(s):

Perceived Stress ◽

Hpa Axis ◽

Life Stress ◽

Early Life ◽

Early Life Stress ◽

Childhood And Adolescence ◽

Diurnal Cortisol ◽

Hypothalamic Pituitary Adrenal ◽

Hpa Axis Functioning ◽

The Relationship

Many authors have proposed that early life stress (ELS) provokes a dysregulation of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis and contributes negatively to the management of stress in adulthood. However, these associations have not always been observed, making it necessary to include new factors that could explain the different results found. In this regard, people with ELS experiences report less social support during adulthood, suggesting that loneliness could be a mediating factor. Thus, our aims were to investigate whether ELS was related to both perceived stress and diurnal HPA axis activity, and whether loneliness mediates these relationships, in a community sample (N=187, 18–55years old). Fourteen cortisol samples were collected on two non-consecutive days to obtain the overall diurnal cortisol, diurnal cortisol slope, and bedtime levels. Additionally, ELS was assessed with the Risky Families Questionnaire (RFQ) and the Recalled Childhood and Adolescence Perceived Stress (ReCAPS) measure. Results revealed that ELS was associated with perceived stress, but not HPA axis functioning, and loneliness mediated the relationship between ELS and perceived stress, but not between ELS and HPA axis functioning. Similar results were found for both ELS questionnaires, suggesting that the ReCAPS is an adequate tool. These results highlight the importance of loneliness in understanding the long-term effects of ELS, and they indicate different effects of ELS on subjective and physiological stress indicators.

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INTERACTION OF GENETIC RISK AND EARLY LIFE STRESS ON RISK FOR DEPRESSION INVESTIGATED IN A NATIONWIDE, DANISH CASE-COHORT STUDY

European Neuropsychopharmacology ◽

10.1016/j.euroneuro.2017.08.046 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 29 ◽

pp. S806-S807

Author(s):

Nis Suppli ◽

Esben Agerbo ◽

Klaus Kaae Andersen ◽

Veera Rajagopal ◽

Michael Benros ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cohort Study ◽

Genetic Risk ◽

Life Stress ◽

Early Life ◽

Early Life Stress ◽

Risk For Depression

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Assessing Stress in Pregnancy and Postpartum: Comparing Measures

Maternal and Child Health Journal ◽

10.1007/s10995-020-02978-4 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 24 (10) ◽

pp. 1193-1201

Author(s):

Irena Štěpáníková ◽

Elizabeth Baker ◽

Gabriela Oates ◽

Julie Bienertova-Vasku ◽

Jana Klánová

Keyword(s):

Life Stress ◽

Early Life ◽

Stressful Life Events ◽

Depression Scale ◽

Early Life Stress ◽

Childhood And Adolescence ◽

Model Combining ◽

Pregnancy And Postpartum ◽

Stress Measure ◽

In Pregnancy

Abstract Introduction Measuring early-life psychosocial stress is complicated by methodological challenges. This paper compares three survey instruments for the assessment of life in pregnancy/postpartum and investigates the effects of the timing of early-life stress for emotional/behavioral difficulties (EBD) of offspring during mid/late childhood and adolescence. Methods Observational data were obtained from the European Longitudinal Cohort Study of Pregnancy and Childhood (ELSPAC-CZ), which included 4811 pregnancies in two Czech metropolitan areas. We used data collected between 1991 and 2010 at 20 weeks of pregnancy (T1), after delivery (T2), at 6 months postpartum (T3), and at child’s age of 7 years (T4), 11 years (T5), 15 years (T6), and 18 years (T7). Life stress was assessed with (1) the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), (2) a stressful life events (SLE) count based on 42-item inventory, and (3) the SLE measure weighted by perceived stressfulness (PS). Each stress measure was administered at T1, T2, and T3. Child’s EBD were assessed with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire at T4, T5, T6, and T7. Results Each stress measure independently predicted long-term EBD. The best data fit was obtained in a model combining EPDS and SLE. Effect sizes for SLEs decreased between the first half of pregnancy and postpartum, while the effect of EPDS increased. Discussion SLE-based methods capture an aspect of perinatal stress not adequately assessed by EPDS. Combination of psychological distress measures and SLE-based measures is optimal in predicting EBD of the child. Stress measures based on SLE are suitable for early pregnancy, while self-reports of depressive symptoms may perform better in postpartum.

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