Amygdala-prefrontal functional connectivity mediates the effects of COVID-related prenatal stress on infant temperament

Motivation: Prenatal maternal stress is associated with difficult behaviours in children, however, the mechanisms are pooly understood. Goal(s): We aimed to test whether associations between prenatal stress and infant temperament were mediated by altered brain connectivity. Approach: Diffusion and resting-state functional MRI scans were collected on 3-month old infants from a prospective longitudinal pregnancy-birth cohort. Results: Prenatal maternal objective stress was associated with infant negative affectivity at 6 months of age, and was mediated by decreased functional connetivity between the amygdala and the prefrontal cortex at 3 months of age. Impact: Our study suggests a possible neural biomarker for predicting early atypical infant temperament caused by prenatal stress exposure. This helps understand the mechanisms via which prenatal stress can impact child development and points to potential intervention targets.