Early Life Loss Impacting Immune System in Later Life

Summary: Losing a parent or caregiver early in life can adversely affect immune health in later life. Researchers investigated how such losses impact the body’s response to cytomegalovirus (CMV), a…

Testosterone’s Dual Role in Brain Development: Affects Emotion Control Differently Across Ages

Summary: Higher testosterone levels influence emotion control differently during adolescence and adulthood. Using brain imaging, they discovered a positive impact of testosterone on the engagement of the brain’s anterior prefrontal…

Mapping Emotion Recognition in Children

Summary: Researchers discovered children’s ability to process emotional cues is largely established by the time they start school. Analyzing brain scans from children aged five to 15, the study revealed…

Alexithymia & Childhood Trauma: Unraveling The Mysterious Connection

Summary: Researchers reveal an alarming correlation between alexithymia (difficulty in identifying and describing emotions) and various forms of child maltreatment. Analyzing a staggering 78 sources involving 36,141 participants, the research…

Shaping Young Minds: Neurodevelopment Interventions for Psychiatric Disorders

Summary: Researchers explored potential treatments for neuropsychiatric disorders like schizophrenia and autism that act during critical windows of brain development. They specifically targeted underperforming dopamine neurons, which connect to the…

Youth Alcohol Dependency Could Signal Future Depression Risk

Summary: Adolescents with signs of alcohol dependency are more likely to suffer from depression in their mid-20s. The research, involving 3,902 participants from the ALSPAC study, examined the correlation between…

Child’s Play: Kids as Young as Six Consider Choices in Moral Judgments

Summary: Children as young as six factor in past choices when making moral judgments. Involving children aged four to nine, the study revealed that younger children’s judgments were mainly influenced…

The Power of Friendship Counters Early Life Stress

Summary: A new study, based on 36 years of data from nearly 200 baboons, indicates that strong social bonds formed in adulthood can counteract the negative effects of adversity experienced…

Schizophrenia Risk Genes: Placenta’s Role May Outweigh Brain’s

Summary: In a paradigm shift, researchers found over 100 genes associated with schizophrenia risk operate primarily through their role in the placenta, rather than the developing brain. The research emphasizes…

Stress Hormone in Pregnancy Bolsters Child’s Early Language Skills

Summary: Higher cortisol levels, a stress hormone, during the third trimester of pregnancy may boost speech and language skills in early childhood. A new study analyzed data from over 1,000…