Poster #98 - Maternal Stress and Mood Across the Postnatal Period are Associated with Infant Secretory Immunoglobulin A

• In Event: 3-003 - Poster Session 09
  In Poster Session: PS 09 Section - Family Context & Processes

Integrative Statement

Infant biobehavioral regulation develops within the context of the mother-child relationship. Studies have linked mothers’ prenatal stress, anxiety, and mood disturbance to child outcomes such as low birth weight and preterm birth (Dunkel Schetter, 2011), aberrations in neurodevelopment (Van den Bergh et al., 2017), and behavior and emotional problems (Bush et al., 2017; Nolvi et al., 2016). Similarly, postnatal maternal stress, anxiety, and mood disturbances are associated with adverse child outcomes such as behavior problems (Netsi et al., 2018) and heightened stress physiology reactivity (Feldman et al., 2009). Few studies examine the role of maternal functioning on infant immunological development. In part filling this gap, this study seeks to examine relationships between maternal stress and negative mood, and infant salivary secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA).

SIgA is frequently used as a marker of immunity, as it is the predominant mucosal immunoglobulin and first line of defense against invading pathogens (Bridgman et al., 2016). Levels of sIgA are thought to be indicative of children’s immune competence and development (Gleeson & Cripps, 2004). Despite the importance of sIgA in understanding child immunity, only one study to date has examined this marker in relation to caregiving. Specifically, toddlers with insensitive caregivers were found to have lower levels of salivary sIgA (Vermeer et al., 2012). Though studies examining salivary sIgA and maternal functioning are limited, other immune markers also suggest maternal regulation of infant immunity. For example, infants whose mothers were anxious during pregnancy showed poorer cytokine immune responses to antigens (O’Connor et al., 2013). Further, during early childhood maternal stress and distress reduces cytokine functionality (Riis et al., 2016).Utilizing a longitudinal design, we examine if infant salivary sIgA is associated with pre- and post-natal maternal experiences.

In 51 mother-infant dyads, maternal perceived stress and negative affect were assessed at four time points: third trimester of pregnancy and approximately 1, 3, and 6 months postpartum. Maternal stress was reported via The Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen, Kamarck, & Mermelstein, 1983) and negative affect via the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (Friedman & Ryff, 2012). Infant saliva samples were collected at each postpartum time point to assess sIgA levels.

No relationships were found between prenatal maternal stress and infant sIgA or prenatal maternal negative affect and infant sIgA. Results indicated that during the postnatal period, both higher maternal perceived stress (b= -0.162, SE = -0.16, p< 0.05) and maternal negative affect (b=-0.145, SE = 0.06, p<.05) were concurrently associated with reduced infant sIgA, controlling for breastfeeding status. These findings advance our understanding of the influence of the social-context on infant development, highlighting the significance of postnatal maternal mental well-being and its relationship to infant immunity development during the first six months of life.

Authors

• Charlotte C Ellberg, University of California, Davis
  Presenting Author

• Kristina Renee Sayler, University of California, Davis
  Non-Presenting Author

• Leah C. Hibel, University of California, Davis
  Non-Presenting Author