The relationship between biological and psychosocial risk factors and resting‐state functional connectivity in 2‐monthold Bangladeshi infants: A feasibility and pilot study

Authors

Ted K. Turesky, Boston Children’s Hospital & Harvard Medical School
Sarah K.G. Jensen, Boston Children’s Hospital & Harvard Medical School
Xi Yu, Boston Children’s Hospital & Harvard Medical School
Swapna Kumar, Boston Children’s Hospital
Yingying Wang, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital & University of Cincinnati & University of Nebraska‐LincolnFollow
Danielle D. Sliva, Boston Children’s Hospital & Brown University
Borjan Gagoski, Boston Children’s Hospital & Harvard Medical School
Joseph Sanfilippo, Boston Children’s Hospital
Lilla Zöllei, Massachusetts General Hospital
Emma Boyd, Massachusetts General Hospital
Rashidul Haque, The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research
Shahria Hafiz Kakon, The International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research
Nazrul Islam, National Institute of Neurosciences & Hospital
William A. Petri Jr., University of Virginia
Charles A. Nelson, Boston Children’s Hospital & Harvard Medical School & Harvard Graduate School of Education
Nadine Gaab, Harvard Graduate School of Education,

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

4-17-2019

Citation

2019 The Authors. Developmental Science Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Comments

Developmental Science. 2019;22:e12841. | 1 of 17 https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12841 wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/des

Abstract

Childhood poverty has been associated with structural and functional alterations in the developing brain. However, poverty does not alter brain development directly, but acts through associated biological or psychosocial risk factors (e.g. malnutrition, family conflict). Yet few studies have investigated risk factors in the context of infant neurodevelopment, and none have done so in low‐resource settings such as Bangladesh, where children are exposed to multiple, severe biological and psychosocial hazards. In this feasibility and pilot study, usable resting‐state fMRI data were acquired in infants from extremely poor (n = 16) and (relatively) more affluent (n = 16) families in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Whole‐brain intrinsic functional connectivity (iFC) was estimated using bilateral seeds in the amygdala, where iFC has shown susceptibility to early life stress, and in sensory areas, which have exhibited less susceptibility to early life hazards. Biological and psychosocial risk factors were examined for associations with iFC. Three resting‐state networks were identified in within‐group brain maps: medial temporal/striatal, visual, and auditory networks. Infants from extremely poor families compared with those from more affluent families exhibited greater (i.e. less negative) iFC in precuneus for amygdala seeds; however, no group differences in iFC were observed for sensory area seeds. Height‐for‐age, a proxy for malnutrition/infection, was not associated with amygdala/precuneus iFC, whereas prenatal family conflict was positively correlated. Findings suggest that it is feasible to conduct infant fMRI studies in low‐resource settings. Challenges and practical steps for successful implementations are discussed.