Telomere Erosion and Depressive Symptoms Across Development Following Institutional Care

Longitudinal associations between early-life adversity and accelerated molar eruption: the dimensional and cumulative approach

BACKGROUND

Early-life adversity (ELA) has been linked to accelerated biological development. This study aimed to explore the cumulative effects of different dimensions of early-life adversity (ELA) on accelerating biological aging, as indicated by the accelerated eruption of the second permanent molar (M2).

METHODS

Participants were drawn from an ongoing cohort of 1,448 children aged 7-12 years who were recruited following a 2-year follow-up and 1,191 children were ultimately included in this study. A multi-informant assessment of exposure to threat-related, deprivation-related, and unpredictability-related ELA was performed at baseline. Statistical analyses were performed via an accelerated failure time (AFT) model.

RESULTS

The analysis revealed that parents of 1,558 children (mean [SD] age, 9.2 [1.3] years) reported exposure to different types of ELA dimensions (threat, deprivation, and unpredictability) in their offspring. During a 2-year follow-up, three waves of physical and dental examinations were administered to the participants. The M2 accelerated eruption rate was 13.4% (209/1,558) at baseline and increased to 34.7% (444/1,280) at wave 3, with no significant sex difference (boys: 25.8%, girls: 26.3%). Deprivation-related (HR = 1.07, 95%CI: 1.12-2.29, P = 0.046) and unpredictability-related ELA (HR = 1.15, 95%CI: 1.06-1.25, P = 0.001) were found to be associated with M2 accelerated eruption over a two-year follow-up period, whereas threat-related ELA showed no such association. Notably, high ELA exposure in each dimension resulted in an increased risk of M2 accelerated eruption. These associations remained stable after controlling for covariates.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that ELA-induced acceleration of biological aging can be detected at the time of molar eruption in a dimension-specific and dose-specific manner. These results emphasize the importance of considering the different dimensions and levels of ELA exposure when evaluating its impact on biological aging.

Intergenerational continuation of parent-child separation and 1-year telomere length attrition among mother-offspring dyads in rural China: The moderating effects of resilience

BACKGROUND

Although stressor exposure early in life was known risk factor for telomere length (TL) attrition, limited literature explored it across generations. Furthermore, the effects of resilience have rarely been examined. Here, we examined whether the effects of intergenerational parent-child separation on offspring 1-year TL attrition vary by the levels of resilience.

METHOD

In a sample of 342 mother-child dyads living in rural China, the intergenerational continuation of parent-child separation was defined as the two generations both experiencing parent-child separation from both parents for >6 months a year early in life assessed by the parent-reported questionnaire, whereas intergenerational discontinuity refers to parent-child separation exposed in one generation only. TL was measured at baseline (from June to November 2021) and 1-year later with children's buccal mucosa swabs, with resilience polygenic risk scores (PRS) evaluated based on 4 single-nucleotide variations in 4 resilience-related genes (OXTR, FKBP5, NPY, and TNF-α).

RESULTS

Among 342 mother-offspring dyads, 35 (10.2 %) experienced intergenerational continuation of parent-child separation, and 139 (40.6 %) were identified as discontinuous. Remarkably, a 0.12-point reduction in TL attrition was only associated with intergenerational continuation of parent-child separation (95 % CI: 0.04, 0.21, P < 0.01) but not discontinuity. Importantly, the association between intergenerational continuation of parent-child separation with accelerated TL attrition disappeared in offspring with high resilience PRS (β = 0.07, 95%CI: -0.06, 0.21).

CONCLUSION

Our findings highlight the importance of breaking the intergenerational cycle of parent-child separation and the moderating effects of resilience on TL attrition for children exposed to adversity.

Parent-child border separation and the road to repair: addressing a global refugee phenomenon

As a result of the Department of Homeland Security's zero-tolerance policy (ZTP), over 5,000 children were separated from their parents at the U.S. southern border from 2017-2021, with over 1,000 still lacking confirmed reunifications. Separations also occur daily due to immigration raids, chaotic processing, and changing immigration policies. This article addresses the most fundamental question faced by families enduring such separations; how to mend attachment bonds that have been suddenly severed, especially within a population likely already traumatized. The paper begins by updating readers about separation in the United States and offers a concise summary of the consequences of child-parent separation. The paper then introduces Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) as an intervention for affected families. This paper also uniquely applies CPP to older children and provides three case examples of its use in treating separated families. Finally, the paper offers general suggestions for supporting these families.

Examining the Biological Impacts of Parent-Child Relationship Dynamics on Preschool-Aged Children who have Experienced Adversity

Parent-child relationship dynamics have been shown to predict socioemotional and behavioral outcomes for children, but little is known about how they may affect biological development. The aim of this study was to test if observational assessments of parent-child relationship dynamics (cohesion, enmeshment, and disengagement) were associated with three biological indices of early life adversity and downstream health risk: (1) methylation of the glucocorticoid receptor gene (NR3C1), (2) telomere attrition, and (3) mitochondrial biogenesis, indexed by mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn), all of which were measured in children's saliva. We tested hypotheses using a sample of 254 preschool-aged children (M age = 51.04 months) with and without child welfare-substantiated maltreatment (52% with documented case of moderate-severe maltreatment) who were racially and ethnically diverse (17% Black, 40% White, 23% biracial, and 20% other races; 45% Hispanic) and from primarily low-income backgrounds (91% qualified for public assistance). Results of path analyses revealed that: (1) higher parent-child cohesion was associated with lower levels of methylation of NR3C1 exon 1D and longer telomeres, and (2) higher parent-child disengagement was associated with higher levels of methylation of NR3C1 exon 1D and shorter telomeres. Results suggest that parent-child relationship dynamics may have distinct biological effects on children.