There is growing recognition that women who experience psychological and social adversity during pregnancy (i.e., prenatal stress) are at increased risk for preterm delivery, even after adjusting for the effects of established biomedical and sociodemographic factors. Studies have examined features of stressors or sociodemographic characteristics to identify factors associated with increased vulnerability to stress; however, with one exception, none of these has examined individual differences in women's biological response to stress. The objective of this proposal is to examine the role of maternal biological stress reactivity in outcomes related to the length of gestation. A prospective study will be conducted in sample of at least 200 women to assess the responses of the sympathetic-medullary-adrenal axis (i.e., blood pressure, heart rate) and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system (i.e., ACTH, cortisol levels) to a standard laboratory-based behavioral stress paradigm at three time-points during gestation (10 to 12, 20 to 22, and 30 to 32 wks). The primary study hypothesis is that greater maternal biological reactivity to stress will predict earlier delivery. Secondary hypotheses include: the effects of maternal biological stress reactivity will be mediated by placental CRH; the magnitude of the biological stress response will decrease with advancing gestational age; and baseline hormonal levels, obstetric risk status, and maternal psychosocial factors will correlate significantly with measures of stress reactivity. Significance and implications of this work include identification of the biologic mechanisms which mediate the relation between stress and preterm birth as well as potential development of a prognostic risk assessment for preterm delivery.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD)
Type
First Independent Research Support & Transition (FIRST) Awards (R29)
Project #
5R29HD033506-02
Application #
2889214
Study Section
Human Development and Aging Subcommittee 3 (HUD)
Program Officer
Catz, Charlotte S
Project Start
1998-07-01
Project End
2003-06-30
Budget Start
1999-07-01
Budget End
2000-06-30
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
1999
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Kentucky
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
832127323
City
Lexington
State
KY
Country
United States
Zip Code
40506
Moog, Nora K; Buss, Claudia; Entringer, Sonja et al. (2016) Maternal Exposure to Childhood Trauma Is Associated During Pregnancy With Placental-Fetal Stress Physiology. Biol Psychiatry 79:831-839
Voellmin, Annette; Entringer, Sonja; Moog, Nora et al. (2013) Maternal positive affect over the course of pregnancy is associated with the length of gestation and reduced risk of preterm delivery. J Psychosom Res 75:336-40
Entringer, Sonja; Buss, Claudia; Shirtcliff, Elizabeth A et al. (2010) Attenuation of maternal psychophysiological stress responses and the maternal cortisol awakening response over the course of human pregnancy. Stress 13:258-68
Buss, Claudia; Entringer, Sonja; Reyes, Jonazary F et al. (2009) The maternal cortisol awakening response in human pregnancy is associated with the length of gestation. Am J Obstet Gynecol 201:398.e1-8
Entringer, Sonja; Kumsta, Robert; Hellhammer, Dirk H et al. (2009) Prenatal exposure to maternal psychosocial stress and HPA axis regulation in young adults. Horm Behav 55:292-8
Entringer, Sonja; Buss, Claudia; Kumsta, Robert et al. (2009) Prenatal psychosocial stress exposure is associated with subsequent working memory performance in young women. Behav Neurosci 123:886-93
Entringer, Sonja; Kumsta, Robert; Nelson, Edward L et al. (2008) Influence of prenatal psychosocial stress on cytokine production in adult women. Dev Psychobiol 50:579-87
Entringer, Sonja; Wust, Stefan; Kumsta, Robert et al. (2008) Prenatal psychosocial stress exposure is associated with insulin resistance in young adults. Am J Obstet Gynecol 199:498.e1-7
Federenko, Ilona S; Wolf, Jutta M; Wust, Stefan et al. (2006) Parity does not alter baseline or stimulated activity of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis in women. Dev Psychobiol 48:703-11
Wadhwa, Pathik D (2005) Psychoneuroendocrine processes in human pregnancy influence fetal development and health. Psychoneuroendocrinology 30:724-43

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