A Functional MRI Study of Mother-Infant Attachment

描述（由申请人提供）：母婴关系被认为是影响人类健康和发育的最重要的关系之一。当这种关系涉及虐待或忽视儿童时，它与认知和学业延迟、精神疾病、社会障碍和犯罪有关。然而，我们对这种依恋关系背后的神经内分泌过程知之甚少。 该职业发展奖的长期目标是：1。探讨母婴依恋的神经生物学基础，包括神经解剖学和神经内分泌学相关因素。探讨这些过程的中断是否可能与儿童忽视和未能茁壮成长有关; 3.更好地了解不安全或无组织的依恋如何导致儿童认知和情感发展受损。 研究计划的目的是：1。通过测量母亲对婴儿面部线索的功能磁共振成像反应，探讨母婴依恋的功能神经解剖学相关性。通过测量母亲血液中催产素、皮质醇和儿茶酚胺的水平，确定母亲对婴儿相关应激反应的差异。使用镜像互动情境，确定母婴应急反应的差异。采用成人依恋访谈法和陌生情境访谈法，对母亲和婴儿依恋类型的相关程度进行研究。 60名首次使用右手的母亲将沿着其8个月（+/-1个月）大的足月婴儿入组本研究。母亲的依恋分类将使用成人依恋访谈来确定。血清催产素，皮质醇和儿茶酚胺水平将获得顺序从母亲在一个标准化的时期，母婴互动，镜像互动的情况。在此期间，婴儿的面部表情和母婴互动模式将被录像，随后进行分析。然后，血氧水平依赖性功能性MRI（BOLD-fMRI）将被用来测量母亲对婴儿面部线索的大脑反应，将她自己的婴儿与未知的婴儿面部图像进行比较。婴儿依恋将在8个月后使用陌生情境程序进行评估。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The mother-infant relationship has been characterized as one of the most important relationships affecting the health and development of the human species. When that relationship involves child abuse or neglect, it is associated with cognitive and academic delays, psychiatric illness, social impairment and delinquency. However, little is known about the neuroendocrine processes underlying this attachment relationship. The long-term objectives of this career development award are: 1. To explore the neurobiological basis of mother-infant attachment, including neuroanatomical and neuroendocrine correlates; 2. To explore whether a disruption in these processes may be associated with child neglect and failure-to-thrive; and 3. To better understand how insecure or disorganized attachment may contribute to impaired cognitive and emotional development in children. The aims of the research proposal are: 1. To identify functional neuroanatomical correlates of mother-infant attachment, measuring maternal functional MRI responses to infant facial cues; 2. To identify differences in mothers' infant-related stress responses, measuring sequential levels of blood oxytocin, cortisol and catecholamines; 3. To determine defferences in mother-infant contingency responses, using the Mirror Interaction Situation; and 4. To determine the degree of correlation between maternal and infant attachment classifications, using the Adult Attachment Interview on study entry, and the Strange Situation procedure 8 months later. Sixty right-handed first-time mothers will be enrolled in the study, along with their full-term infants, aged 8 months (+/- 1 month). The mother's attachment classification will be determined using the Adult Attachment Interview. Serum oxytocin, cortisol and catecholamine levels will be obtained sequentially from the mothers during a standardized period of mother-infant interaction, the Mirror Interaction Situation. During this time, infant facial expressions and patterns of mother-infant interaction will be videotaped and subsequently analysed. Blood-oxygen-level-dependent functional MRI (BOLD-fMRI) will then be used to measure maternal brain responses to infant facial cues, comparing her own infant with unknown infant facial images. Infant attachment will be assessed 8 months later using the Strange Situation procedure.