A new study from University of Alberta researchers has shown that traumatic events or stress in childhood can lead to small changes in key brain structures that can now be identified decades later.
The study is the first to show that trauma or mistreatment during a child ‘s early years – a well – known risk factor for developing mental health illnesses such as major depressive disorder in adulthood – is ‘stimulation of changes in specific subdivisions of the amygdala and the hippocampus.
As soon as these changes occur, researchers believe that the affected areas of the brain may not function as well, increasing the risk of developing health disorders. mind as adults in times of stress.
“Now that we can really identify which specific subdivisions of the amygdala or hippocampus are permanently altered by events of childhood abuse, trauma or mistreatment, we can begin to focus on how you can mitigate those changes or even reverse them, “said Peter Silverstone, interim chair of the Department of Psychology and one of a team of eight U of A researchers who conducted the study.
A total of 35 participants with depressive disorder were recruited for the study, including 12 premenopausal males and 23 females ages 18 to 49 years. Researchers also recruited 35 healthy control subjects, including 12 males and 23 females according to age, gender, and education.
This may help to shed some light on how promising new therapies such as psychedelics work, as there is augmentation evidence that suggests they may increase zero regression in these areas. Understanding the specific structural and neurochemical brain changes that underlie mental health disorders is a critical step toward developing potential new therapies for these conditions. , which has not increased since the onset of COVID-19 pandemic. “
Patrick Silverstone, Member, U. Institute of Psychiatry and Mental Health.
The previous study noted that “most of the work on the effect of stress on the amygdala and hippocampal substructures has been performed in animals,” and it has been impossible to directly test it. preclinical stress models in humans. However, “recent advances in high-resolution MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) of the hippocampal and amygdala subnuclei subfields have allowed researchers to test these models in vivo in humans for the first time. “
As soon as these biological changes occur in stress-related brain structures, researchers say the affected areas of the brain could become “maladaptive”. or abstract when people deal with adult stresses, making them “more vulnerable” to developing depression or other mental disorders as adults.
The amygdala and hippocampus are seen as targets of childhood dysfunction “because they exhibit prolonged postnatal development, high concentrations of glucocorticoid receptors and postnatal neurogenesis,” the study notes. “(This study) confirmed the negative effects of childhood disorder on the right amygdala and suggested that these effects may affect the basolateral amygdala.”
Source:
Faculty of Science & Dentistry, University of Alberta