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Early Life Stress on Brain Structure and Function Across the Lifespan: A Preliminary Study

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Abstract

Previous studies have shown that exposure to early life stress (ELS) is associated with reduced volume of brain regions critical for information processing, memory and emotional function. Further, recent studies from our lab utilizing diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) have found alterations in the microstructural integrity of white matter pathways among adults exposed to ELS. However, it is not clear if these relationships extend to children and adolescents, and it is also unclear if these DTI abnormalities are associated with cognitive performance. The present study examined the relationship between ELS and the microstructural integrity of the corpus callosum among a sample of otherwise healthy controls between the ages of 8 and 73. The participants were subdivided into four age groups (8–12, 13–18, 19–50, 51–73). Individuals with three or more ELS events were compared to individuals with fewer than 3 ELS events on fractional anisotropy (FA) in the genu of the corpus callosum. Separate analyses examined the two groups on tests of verbal memory, information processing speed, psychomotor speed and cognitive flexibility. Results revealed that the youngest group and the oldest group of individuals with ELS exhibited significantly lower FA in the genu compared to individuals without ELS. However, there were no group differences on any of the cognitive tasks. Our results indicate that ELS is related to subtle alterations in brain structure, but not function. The effects found with regard to DTI occurred during periods of critical age-related developmental windows.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Missouri, St. Louis, Stadler Hall, St. Louis, MO, USA

    Donna L. Seckfort, Robert Paul, Brian Vandenberg & Steven Bruce

  2. The Brain Resource International Database, The Brain Resource Company, Ultimo, New South Wales, 2007, Australia

    Stuart M. Grieve & Evian Gordon

  3. School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Richard A. Bryant

  4. Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Millenium Institute, Psychological Medicine, Western Clinical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Leanne M. Williams & Evian Gordon

  5. Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory and School of Psychology, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, 5001, Australia

    C. Richard Clark

  6. Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown Medical School, Providence, RI, USA

    Ronald A. Cohen

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  1. Donna L. Seckfort
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  2. Robert Paul
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  3. Stuart M. Grieve
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  4. Brian Vandenberg
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  7. C. Richard Clark
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  10. Evian Gordon
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Correspondence to Robert Paul.

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Seckfort, D.L., Paul, R., Grieve, S.M. et al. Early Life Stress on Brain Structure and Function Across the Lifespan: A Preliminary Study. Brain Imaging and Behavior 2, 49–58 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-007-9015-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11682-007-9015-y

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