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A Longitudinal Study of Children's Hippocampal Development: Investigating Maternal Physical Activity, Depression, and

Arash Aghamohammadi-Sereshki1, Jess E Reynolds2, Merv Singh1,3

  • 1Department of Radiology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Developmental Neurobiology
|March 9, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Prenatal maternal physical activity, depression, and education did not significantly impact hippocampal development in children. This longitudinal study tracked brain structure from childhood to adolescence, finding no strong associations.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Medical Imaging

Background:

  • The developing hippocampus is crucial for cognitive functions and sensitive to early environmental factors.
  • Understanding how prenatal factors influence hippocampal development is vital for early intervention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the longitudinal associations between prenatal maternal physical activity, depression, education, and hippocampal development in children.
  • To characterize age-related changes and sex differences in hippocampal structure from early childhood to adolescence.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal neuroimaging study with 113 children and 510 magnetic resonance imaging scans.
  • Assessed maternal physical activity and depressive symptoms during pregnancy.
  • Measured hippocampal volume and diffusion metrics (FA, MD, RD) and analyzed developmental trajectories using generalized fractional polynomial mixed models.

Main Results:

  • Significant age-related changes were observed in hippocampal volume and diffusivity, consistent with typical brain maturation.
  • Sex differences were noted in the development of fractional anisotropy (FA).
  • No significant associations were found between prenatal maternal physical activity, education, or depression and hippocampal structure.

Conclusions:

  • Prenatal maternal factors like physical activity, depression, and education do not appear to be strongly associated with hippocampal structure development.
  • Longitudinal neuroimaging and flexible modeling are valuable for studying early brain development.
  • Further research may explore other environmental or genetic influences on hippocampal development.

Keywords:
APrON studydepressiondiffusion tensor imaginghippocampal developmentlongitudinal studymagnetic resonance imagingphysical activity

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