Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Early Deprivation Alters Structural Brain Development From Middle Childhood To Adolescence, Margaret A. Sheridan, Cora E. Mukerji, Mark Wade, Kathryn L. Humphreys, Kathryn Garrisi, Srishti Goel, Kinjal Patel, Nathan A. Fox, Charles H. Zeanah, Charles A. Nelson, Katie A. Mclaughlin

Psychology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Hypotheses concerning the biologic embedding of early adversity via developmental neuroplasticity mechanisms have been proposed on the basis of experimental studies in animals. However, no studies have demonstrated a causal link between early adversity and neural development in humans. Here, we present evidence from a randomized controlled trial linking psychosocial deprivation in early childhood to changes in cortical development from childhood to adolescence using longitudinal data from the Bucharest Early Intervention Project. Changes in cortical structure due to randomization to foster care were most pronounced in the lateral and medial prefrontal cortex and in white matter tracts connecting the prefrontal …