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Inherited anxiety-related parent-infant dyads alter LHPA activity
E Ullmann1,2, J Licinio3, S W Perry3
1a Department of Medicine , Carl Gustav Carus, Technical University of Dresden , Dresden , Germany.
Stress (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
|November 15, 2018
Summary
Inherited overprotective parenting, particularly in Jewish families experiencing intergenerational trauma, is linked to altered stress hormone levels and limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (LHPA) axis reactivity, potentially contributing to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) pathogenesis.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Genetics
- Endocrinology
Background:
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) pathogenesis is not fully understood.
- Mother-child relationship disruptions, especially during early development, may contribute to PTSD.
- Overprotective parenting can hinder a child's separation-individuation process.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the long-term consequences of inherited stress responses across three generations.
- To assess the impact of parental overprotection on stress markers in descendants of Holocaust survivors.
- To explore the role of the limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (LHPA) axis in transgenerational trauma transmission.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of long-term stress hormones and other stress markers.
- Comparison of hair steroid concentrations and LHPA axis reactivity among Jewish, German, and Russian-German subjects.
- Assessment of recalled parental overprotective behaviors.
Main Results:
- Jewish subjects recalling overprotective parenting exhibited higher hair steroid concentrations.
- These subjects also showed dampened LHPA axis reactivity compared to other groups.
- Altered LHPA axis activity in maternally overprotected Jewish subjects suggests a transmitted pathomechanism.
Conclusions:
- Altered LHPA axis activity may represent a transgenerational "frustrated individuation" mechanism linked to anti-Semitic experiences.
- Hair steroid concentrations and parenting practices could aid in PTSD diagnosis.
- Inherited LHPA axis adaptivity may enhance stress resistance but carries a risk of allostatic overload.
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