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Early life adversity jointly regulates body-mass index and working memory development
Bence Csaba Farkas1,2,3,4, Pierre Olivier Jacquet1,2,3,4
1Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Inserm, CESP, 94807, Villejuif, France.
Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|November 15, 2023
Summary
Early life adversity impacts the brain-body energy trade-off. Deprivation, specifically, negatively affects neurocognitive development and positively affects body mass index (BMI) growth.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Neuroscience
- Environmental health
Background:
- Energy allocation between somatic and neurocognitive development is theorized to involve a trade-off.
- The influence of early-life environmental factors on this developmental trade-off remains under-explored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between neurocognitive and somatic development trajectories.
- To examine the moderating role of early-life adversity on the brain-body energetic trade-off.
Main Methods:
- Utilized growth curve modeling to analyze developmental trajectories of neurocognition (working memory) and somatics (body-mass index).
- Incorporated multidimensional early-life adversity (deprivation, threat, unpredictability) into the models.
Main Results:
- Confirmed a negative relationship between somatic and neurocognitive growth, consistent with an energetic trade-off.
- Early-life adversity showed positive associations with somatic growth and negative associations with neurocognitive growth.
- Deprivation emerged as the most significant adversity dimension influencing both somatic and neurocognitive growth patterns.
Conclusions:
- The brain-body energetic trade-off during development is modulated by early-life environmental factors.
- Phenotypic plasticity plays a role in how individuals balance energy allocation in response to environmental influences, particularly deprivation.
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