Effect of parental depressive symptoms on offspring’s brain structure and function: A systematic review of neuroimaging studies

Giulia Cattarinussi, Mohammad Hadi Aarabi, Hossein Sanjari Moghaddam, Maryam Homayoun, Mahnaz Ashrafi, Hamid Soltanian-Zadeh, Fabio Sambataro
Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews. 2021-12-01; 131: 451-465
DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.09.046

1. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2021 Dec;131:451-465. doi:
10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.09.046. Epub 2021 Sep 27.

Effect of parental depressive symptoms on offspring’s brain structure and
function: A systematic review of neuroimaging studies.

Cattarinussi G(1), Aarabi MH(2), Sanjari Moghaddam H(3), Homayoun M(4), Ashrafi
M(5), Soltanian-Zadeh H(6), Sambataro F(7).

Author information:
(1)Department of Neuroscience (DNS), Padova Neuroscience Center, University of
Padova, Padua, Italy. Electronic address: .
(2)Department of Neuroscience (DNS), Padova Neuroscience Center, University of
Padova, Padua, Italy. Electronic address: .
(3)Faculty of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
(4)Faculty of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
(5)Control and Intelligent Processing Center of Excellence (CIPCE), School of
Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering, University of
Tehran, Tehran, Iran; TUM-Neuroimaging Center, Technische Universitaet Muenchen,
81675, Munich, Germany.
(6)Control and Intelligent Processing Center of Excellence (CIPCE), School of
Electrical and Computer Engineering, College of Engineering, University of
Tehran, Tehran, Iran; Neuroimage Signal and Image Analysis Group, School of
Cognitive Sciences, Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (IPM),
Tehran, Iran; Medical Image Analysis Laboratory, Departments of Radiology and
Research Administration, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit, MI, United States.
(7)Department of Neuroscience (DNS), Padova Neuroscience Center, University of
Padova, Padua, Italy.

Perinatal Depression (PND) is a severe mental disorder that appears during
pregnancy or in the post-partum. Although PND has been associated with
behavioral problems in the offspring, its effects on brain development are
unclear. With this review we aimed at summarizing the existing literature on the
effects of perinatal depressive symptoms on children’s brains. A search on
PubMed and Embase of structural, functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and
Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) studies exploring the effect of PND on
offspring’s brain was conducted. We selected twenty-six studies, ten structural
MRI, five DTI, six fMRI and five with combined techniques. Overall, the studies
showed: a) gray matter alterations in amygdala and fronto-temporal lobes; b)
microstructural alterations in amygdala, frontal lobe, cingulum, longitudinal
fasciculus and fornix; and c) functional alterations between limbic and
mesocortical networks. The small sample size and the heterogeneity in
populations and methodologies limit this review. In conclusion, PND seems to
influence structure and function of offspring, that may contribute to the risk
of behavioral disturbances later in life.