Advances in fetal and neonatal neuroimaging and everyday exposures
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Lautarescu, Alexandra
Bonthrone, Alexandra F
Bos, Brendan
Barratt, Ben
Counsell, Serena J
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The complex, tightly regulated process of prenatal brain development may be adversely affected by “everyday exposures” such as stress and environmental pollutants. Researchers are only just beginning to understand the neural sequelae of such exposures, with advances in fetal and neonatal neuroimaging elucidating structural, microstructural, and functional correlates in the developing brain. This narrative review discusses the wide-ranging literature investigating the influence of parental stress on fetal and neonatal brain development as well as emerging literature assessing the impact of exposure to environmental toxicants such as lead and air pollution. These ‘everyday exposures’ can co-occur with other stressors such as social and financial deprivation, and therefore we include a brief discussion of neuroimaging studies assessing the effect of social disadvantage. Increased exposure to prenatal stressors is associated with alterations in the brain structure, microstructure and function, with some evidence these associations are moderated by factors such as infant sex. However, most studies examine only single exposures and the literature on the relationship between in utero exposure to pollutants and fetal or neonatal brain development is sparse. Large cohort studies are required that include evaluation of multiple co-occurring exposures in order to fully characterize their impact on early brain development.
Impact
Increased prenatal exposure to parental stress and is associated with altered functional, macro and microstructural fetal and neonatal brain development.
Exposure to air pollution and lead may also alter brain development in the fetal and neonatal period.
Further research is needed to investigate the effect of multiple co-occurring exposures, including stress, environmental toxicants, and socioeconomic deprivation on early brain development.
Impact
Increased prenatal exposure to parental stress and is associated with altered functional, macro and microstructural fetal and neonatal brain development.
Exposure to air pollution and lead may also alter brain development in the fetal and neonatal period.
Further research is needed to investigate the effect of multiple co-occurring exposures, including stress, environmental toxicants, and socioeconomic deprivation on early brain development.
Date Issued
2024-11-01
Date Acceptance
2024-04-29
Citation
Pediatric Research, 2024, 96 (6), pp.1404-1416
ISSN
0031-3998
Publisher
Springer Nature
Start Page
1404
End Page
1416
Journal / Book Title
Pediatric Research
Volume
96
Issue
6
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2024 Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/38877283
PII: 10.1038/s41390-024-03294-1
Subjects
Humans
Neuroimaging
Infant, Newborn
Female
Brain
Pregnancy
Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects
Stress, Psychological
Fetal Development
Environmental Exposure
Air Pollution
Maternal Exposure
Fetus
Environmental Pollutants
Publication Status
Published
Coverage Spatial
United States
Date Publish Online
2024-06-14