Parental brain
[2] Research has shown that hormones such as oxytocin, prolactin, estradiol and progesterone are essential for the onset and the maintenance of maternal behavior in rats, and other mammals as well.
[12] Mothers experience a decrease in estrogen and an increase in oxytocin and prolactin caused by lactation, pregnancy, parturition and interaction with the infant.
[14][15] Mothers who experienced adversity in their own childhood, had higher daily patterns of cortisol levels, and were less maternally sensitive.
[2] The Medial Preoptic Area (MPOA) of the hypothalamus contains receptors for estradiol, progesterone, prolactin, oxytocin, vasopressin and opioids.
[26] The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) plays a role in the attention, cognitive flexibility and working memory of the mother.
[2] The thalamus, parietal cortex, and brain stem serve for processing the smell, touch and vocalization associated with the infant.
[17][29][30] Maternal experience increases neurogenesis in the subventricular zone (SBZ) which is responsible for producing the neurons of the olfactory bulb.
[33] The mother's positive attitude towards the infant can be used as a predictor for the increase in gray matter in the above stated brain structures.
[34] Postpartum increase in gray matter volumes may help the mother activate the motivation to perform maternal behavior in response to cue from their offspring.
[33] The amygadala, prefrontal cortex and hypothalamus begin to change during pregnancy due to the high levels of stress experienced by the mother during this time.
[35] In human mothers there was a correlation between increased gray matter volume in the substantia nigra and positive emotional feelings towards the infant.
Daniel Schechter and colleagues have studied specifically interpersonal violence-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and comorbid dissociation as associated with specific patterns of maternal neural activation in response to viewing silent video-stimuli of stressful parent-toddler interactions such as separation versus less-stressful ones such as play.
[41][42] Importantly, less medial prefrontal cortex activity and greater limbic system activity (i.e. entorhinal cortex and hippocampus) were found among these post-traumatically stressed mothers of toddlers compared to mothers of toddlers without PTSD in response to stressful parent-child interactions as well as, within a different sample, in response to menacing adult male-female interactions.
[45] Mothers that had negative experiences involving their families undergo neurobiological changes which lead to high stress reactivity and insecure attachment.
are activated in the father, and hormonal changes occur in the paternal brain to ensure display of parenting behavior.
