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. 2024 Nov;60(11):2052-2061.
doi: 10.1037/dev0001718. Epub 2024 Mar 28.

Prenatal maternal immune activation predicts observed fearfulness in infancy

Jishyra Serrano  1 , Sean Womack  2 , Catherine Yount  3 , Sadia Firoza Chowdhury  1 , Molly Arnold  4 , Jessica Brunner  5 , Zoe Duberstein  4 , Emily S Barrett  5 , Kristin Scheible  6 , Richard K Miller  5 , Thomas G O'Connor  7
Affiliations

Prenatal maternal immune activation predicts observed fearfulness in infancy

Jishyra Serrano et al. Dev Psychol. 2024 Nov.

Abstract

Fear reactivity is an early emerging temperament trait that predicts longer term behavioral and health outcomes. The current analysis tests the hypothesis, an extension of prior research on maternal immune activation (MIA), that the prenatal maternal immune system is a reliable predictor of observed fear reactivity in infancy. The analysis is based on a prospective longitudinal cohort study that collected data from the first trimester and conducted observational assessments of temperament at approximately 12 months of age (n = 281 infants). MIA was assessed from immune biomarkers measured in maternal blood at each trimester; infant temperament was assessed using the Laboratory Temperament Assessment Battery assessment at 12 months; covariates included family and sociodemographic factors. Patterns of inflammatory markers across gestation reliably predicted observed temperament: elevated prenatal MIA was associated with high fear reactivity to novel stimuli. The findings provide novel evidence of prenatal origins of fear reactivity and suggest developmental mechanisms that may underlie early emerging individual differences in child temperament. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Sample Path Diagram of Associations between Immune Cytokines and Observed Temperament
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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