Work

The impact of maternal stress on infant alpha‐amylase is buffered by high infant regulation and low infant negative reactivity

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: This study examined the main and interactive effects of maternal perceived stress and infant temperament-surgency, negative affectivity, and orienting/regulation-on infant salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) responses to stress. Saliva samples were collected prior to and following two naturalistic stressors: maternal separation conducted at 9 months and blood draw/immunizations conducted at 12 months. sAA area under the curve (AUC) was computed to determine response of the sympathetic nervous system to each stressor. Results revealed significant interactions of maternal stress and infant negative affectivity and orienting/regulation with sAA AUC. Relations between maternal stress and infant sAA AUC were stronger among infants with higher levels of negative affectivity and lower levels of orienting/regulation. These results highlight the need to examine both infant characteristics and environmental factors when investigating the development of stress response systems.

Source: Developmental Psychobiology

DOI: 10.1002/dev.21858

Authors: Jingwen Liu, Hayley S. Kamin, Sara Kurtevski, Maria Kelly, Darlene A. Kertes

Institutions: University of Florida, University of Florida Health

Language: English

Topic: Stress Responses and Cortisol

Subfield: Behavioral Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, National Center for Research Resources