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Review
. 2022 Apr 7:16:806323.
doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.806323. eCollection 2022.

Neurobiology of Parental Regulation of the Infant and Its Disruption by Trauma Within Attachment

Nina Graf  1 , Roseanna M Zanca  2   3 , Wei Song  1 , Elizabeth Zeldin  1 , Roshni Raj  1 , Regina M Sullivan  1   2   3
Affiliations
Review

Neurobiology of Parental Regulation of the Infant and Its Disruption by Trauma Within Attachment

Nina Graf et al. Front Behav Neurosci. .

Abstract

The complex process of regulating physiological functions and homeostasis during external and internal disruptions develops slowly in altricial species, with parental care functioning as a co-regulator of infant physiological and emotional homeostasis. Here, we review our current understanding of the infant's use of parental behaviors for neurobehavioral regulation and its disruption with harsh parental care. Taking a cross-species view, we briefly review the human developmental literature that highlights the importance of the caregiver in scaffolding the child's physiological and emotional regulation, especially under threat and stress. We then use emerging corresponding animal literature within the phylogenetically preserved attachment system to help define neural systems supporting caregiver regulation and its supporting causal mechanism to provide translational bridges to inform causation and mechanisms impossible to define in children. Next, we briefly review animal research highlighting the impact of specific sensory stimuli imbedded in parental care as important for infant physiological and emotion regulation. We then highlight the importance of parental sensory stimuli gaining hedonic value to go beyond simple sensory stimuli to further impact neurobehavioral regulation, with poor quality of care compromising the infant's ability to use these cues for regulation. Clinically, parental regulation of the infant is correlated with later-life neurobehavioral outcome and quality of life. We suggest an understanding of this parental regulation of the infant's immediate neurobehavioral functioning within the context of attachment quality, that may provide insights into the complex processes during early life, initiating the pathway to pathology.

Keywords: attachment; caregiver regulation; homeostasis; mother; mother-infant dyad; social buffering; stress; trauma bonding.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Attachment to the primary caregivers is learned across species. Once the infant learns the attachment figure, the attachment figure acquires special value for the infant, including regulation of homeostasis (Bowlby, 1969; Hofer, 1994). As illustrated in the top panel, when alone, the infant’s ability to maintain physiological and emotional homeostasis is limited. As illustrated in the lower panel, the regulatory role of sensory stimuli from the attachment figure was shown to have a particular impact on the infant’s brain to permit homeostasis and regulation of diverse systems. During maternal care, the infant detects visual, auditory, olfactory, and tactile stimuli from the caregiver during parental behavior, while rodents rely on olfactory and tactile stimuli during maternal behavior. Across species, the infant uses these sensory stimuli from parental care to regulate brain functions, which extends to physiological and emotional homeostasis. Created with BioRender.com.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Experiments by Opendak et al. (2020) have shown that pups reared under adverse conditions face repeated maltreatment by their mothers compared to control-reared pups. The quality of maternal care provided is causal for the pup’s brain development. While typically reared pups show a dynamic LFP response (synchronized, low-frequency waves) and a maternally suppressed amygdala response, adversity reared pups to show a blunted LFP response (desynchronized, high-frequency waves) and amygdala hyperactivation. At PN 10–12 the pup’s brain is most sensitive to maternal regulation. The mother’s ability to regulate the pup’s physiological and emotional state diminishes as the pup is getting older and more independent. Neurological changes during brain development caused by maternal maltreatment set the early stage for later-life pathologies. Created with BioRender.com.
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