Barry Tom J, Murray Lynne, Fearon R M Pasco, Moutsiana Christina, Cooper Peter, Goodyer Ian M, Herbert Joe, Halligan Sarah L
Centre for the Psychology of Learning and Experimental Psychopathology, University of Leuven, Tiensestraat 102, Leuven 3000, Belgium.
School of Psychology and CLS, University of Reading, Reading RG6 6AL, UK; Department of Psychology, Stellenbosch University, Stellenbosch, South Africa.
Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2015 Feb;52:251-60. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.12.003. Epub 2014 Dec 9.
The offspring of depressed parents have been found to show elevated basal levels of the stress hormone cortisol. Whether heightened cortisol stress reactivity is also present in this group has yet to be clearly demonstrated. We tested whether postnatal maternal depression predicts subsequent increases in offspring biological sensitivity to social stress, as indexed by elevated cortisol reactivity. Participants (mean age 22.4-years) derived from a 22-year prospective longitudinal study of the offspring of mothers who had postnatal depression (PND group; n=38) and a control group (n=38). Salivary cortisol response to a social-evaluative threat (Trier Social Stress Test) was measured. Hierarchical linear modelling indicated that PND group offspring showed greater cortisol reactivity to the stress test than control group participants. Group differences were not explained by offspring depressive or anxiety symptoms, experiences of negative life events, elevated basal cortisol at age 13-years, subsequent exposure to maternal depression, or other key covariates. The findings indicate that the presence of early maternal depression can predict offspring biological sensitivity to social stress in adulthood, with potential implications for broader functioning.
研究发现，父母患有抑郁症的后代，其应激激素皮质醇的基础水平会升高。该群体是否也存在增强的皮质醇应激反应性，尚未得到明确证实。我们测试了产后母亲抑郁是否会预测后代对社会压力的生物敏感性增加，以皮质醇反应性升高为指标。参与者（平均年龄22.4岁）来自一项对产后抑郁症母亲的后代进行的为期22年的前瞻性纵向研究（产后抑郁症组；n = 38）和一个对照组（n = 38）。测量了唾液皮质醇对社会评价威胁（特里尔社会应激测试）的反应。分层线性模型表明，产后抑郁症组后代对应激测试的皮质醇反应性高于对照组参与者。组间差异不能通过后代的抑郁或焦虑症状、负面生活事件经历、13岁时基础皮质醇升高、随后暴露于母亲抑郁或其他关键协变量来解释。研究结果表明，早期母亲抑郁的存在可以预测成年后代对社会压力的生物敏感性，这对更广泛的功能可能具有潜在影响。
