SAN DIEGO —New findings released today help identify the long-term impact of the prenatal environment and early parental care on the brain. Using animals as models, researchers help explain why early inflammation and a mother's exposure to drugs such as nicotine and high doses of pain killers have lasting consequences for children — and even future generations.
Maternal drug use has been associated with increased risk for learning disabilities, behavioral problems, and mental disorders for children. The new results provide greater insight into the neurobiological factors involved in these lifelong issues, and were reported at Neuroscience 2010, the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience and the world's largest source of emerging news on brain science and health.
Today's new findings show that:
"Brain circuits, formed by genetic programs during embryonic development, are modified through interactions with the internal and external environment," said press conference moderator Yasmin Hurd, PhD, of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, an expert in how drugs affect the brain, particularly prenatal and postnatal development. "These findings tell us new information about how the brain develops, and also highlight the social imperative of educating mothers on the importance of avoiding harmful substances."
This research was supported by national funding agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health, as well as private and philanthropic organizations.