Greater levels of early poverty may increase the risk of depression in adolescence by affecting testosterone and hippocampal growth, a study suggests. Early adversity is associated with poor mental health outcomes later in life, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Deanna Barch and colleagues conducted a longitudinal study that tracked changes in brain development, pubertal hormones, emotion regulation, and psychiatric health in 167 children from preschool to late adolescence. The authors used self-reported symptoms of depression and checklists completed by caregivers to assess emotion regulation in the children. MRI was used to examine the volume of a brain region called the hippocampus, which is implicated in normal stress responses. In addition, saliva samples were collected to assess levels of testosterone, a stress-responsive hormone known to protect cells in the hippocampus. Increased levels of early poverty were associated with a reduced increase in testosterone, a reduced rate of hippocampal growth, and increased emotion dysregulation and depression during adolescence. Modeling results were consistent with the idea that early poverty likely increases depression in adolescence by flattening the testosterone slope, which decreases the rate of hippocampal growth and consequently increases emotion dysregulation. According to the authors, the findings suggest the need for interventions that may decrease the risk of mental health problems resulting from early adversity.
Article #20-04363: "Testosterone and hippocampal trajectories mediate relationship of poverty to emotion dysregulation and depression," by Deanna Barch et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Deanna Barch, Washington University, St. Louis, MO; e-mail: dbarch@wustl.edu
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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences