Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA 30329, United States.
Dev Cogn Neurosci. 2012 Jan;2(1):181-93. doi: 10.1016/j.dcn.2011.09.003. Epub 2011 Oct 5.
Early life stress (ELS) is a risk factor for anxiety, mood disorders and alterations in stress responses. Less is known about the long-term neurobiological impact of ELS. We used [(18)F]-fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography (FDG-PET) to assess neural responses to a moderate stress test in adult monkeys that experienced ELS as infants. Both groups of monkeys showed hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis stress-induced activations and cardiac arousal in response to the stressor. A whole brain analysis detected significantly greater regional cerebral glucose metabolism (rCGM) in superior temporal sulcus, putamen, thalamus, and inferotemporal cortex of ELS animals compared to controls. Region of interest (ROI) analyses performed in areas identified as vulnerable to ELS showed greater activity in the orbitofrontal cortex of ELS compared to control monkeys, but greater hippocampal activity in the control compared to ELS monkeys. Together, these results suggest hyperactivity in emotional and sensory processing regions of adult monkeys with ELS, and greater activity in stress-regulatory areas in the controls. Despite these neural responses, no group differences were detected in neuroendocrine, autonomic or behavioral responses, except for a trend towards increased stillness in the ELS monkeys. Together, these data suggest hypervigilance in the ELS monkeys in the absence of immediate danger.
早期生活应激（ELS）是焦虑、情绪障碍和应激反应改变的危险因素。对于 ELS 的长期神经生物学影响知之甚少。我们使用 [(18)F]-氟脱氧葡萄糖正电子发射断层扫描（FDG-PET）来评估婴儿时期经历过 ELS 的成年猴子对中度应激测试的神经反应。两组猴子的下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺（HPA）轴在应激源作用下均表现出应激激活和心脏唤醒。全脑分析发现，ELS 动物的上颞回、壳核、丘脑和下颞叶皮质的局部脑葡萄糖代谢（rCGM）明显高于对照组。在确定易受 ELS 影响的区域进行的 ROI 分析显示，ELS 组的眶额皮质活动高于对照组猴子，但对照组猴子的海马体活动高于 ELS 猴子。这些结果表明，ELS 成年猴子的情绪和感觉处理区域过度活跃，而对照组的应激调节区域活动增加。尽管存在这些神经反应，但除了 ELS 猴子的静止时间略有增加外，在神经内分泌、自主或行为反应方面未检测到组间差异。总的来说，这些数据表明 ELS 猴子在没有即时危险的情况下保持高度警惕。
