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PubMed1998

Role of the vomeronasal input in maternal behavior.

This article reviews the role of the vomeronasal system in the induction of parental behavior in female and male rats, using, primarily, the sensitization model. The following questions are addressed: (1) Is the vomeronasal system sexually dimorphic? (2) Do the sex differences found in the VNS underlie those seen in behavior? (3) Do mechanisms, other than the classical 'organizational' effects of perinatal gonadal steroids, play a role in the organization of behavioral phenotypes in parental behavior? and (4) Does vomeronasal input play a role in the formation of the mother infant bond in humans? The first question has been answered throughout the 1980's in various studies of the organizational actions of postnatal exposure to gonadal steroids. The second aim has been addressed in a functional approach by lesion and neural activation studies. The experiments which lead us to consider the hypothesis that nonsteroidal factors in development, and specifically GABA, could account for the expression of parental care are reviewed. Finally, research relevant to the existence of a vomeronasal organ in humans and a possible pheromonal input in the formation of mother-infant bonds in humans is reviewed.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Nest temperature: effects on maternal behavior, pup development, and interactions with handling.

These studies compared the patterns of mother-young contact under different thermal environments and assessed the implications of the differing patterns of contact for pup development and the dam's behavior. In the first experiment, the warm surface dramatically reduced the total amount of contact time between dams and litters and the dam's food intake, but the effects on the pups were limited to smaller adrenal glands. A replication of the first experiment in which daily weighing and handling of the pups was eliminated produced no differences in development. In a third experiment, during which dams had access to a warm surface outside of the next area and the daily weighing and handling was resumed, the pups showed smaller adrenal glands, lower body temperatures and less thermoregulatory ability. A comparison of results suggests that handling increased the weight of adrenal glands of pups reared under the unmanipulated condition, but not the warm-rearing condition.

Adipose Tissue, Brown↗
PubMed1975

Father absence, perceived, maternal behavior, and moral development in boys.

The rated and observed moral behavior, judgment, and affect of 120 preadolescent, predominantly lower-class boys from early-divorced (before the boys were 6), late-divorced (between 6 and 10), and parentally intact homes were investigated. In addition, the mothers' discipline (power assertive, inductive, and love withdrawal) and affection were examined by asking subjects about their mothers' methods of dealing with their transgressions. Moral behavior was assessed with resistance-to-temptation, self-criticism, altruism, reparation, and teacher-rating measures, while moral judgment was evaluated with 3 Kohlberg items and moral affect was investigated with 2 story-completion items maximizing guilt. The major findings were: (1) when relevant variables (IQ, SES, age, sibling status) were controlled, few differences were found between father-absent and father-present boys; (2) however, father-absent boys were reported by their teachers as less advanced in moral development than father-present boys; (3) the sons of the divorced women showed more "social deviation", according to their teachers, but were more advanced in level of moral judgment than were the sons of widows; (4) divorced women disciplined with more power assertion than widows, according to their sons' reports.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Prenatal protein malnutrition and maternal behavior in Sprague-Dawley rats.

Female Sprague-Dawley rats were provided with an adequate (25% casein) or low (6% casein) protein diet, fortified with methionine, starting 5 wk prior to gestation and continuing until the birth of their pups. At birth, the offspring were fostered to well-nourished lactating dams as follows: in Experiment 1, litters contained eight prenatally malnourished pups; in Experiment 2, litters consisted of four pups with prenatal malnutrition and four well-nourished pups; control litters for both experiments contained eight well-nourished pups. In Experiment 1, the time spent in passive nursing and pup grooming was significantly higher for dams rearing previously malnourished pups than for those rearing control litters. In Experiment 2, mixed litters were groomed less frequently than control litters, but there was no significant difference between groups for any other measure. In both experiments, the prenatally malnourished pups showed similar body weight deficits relative to well-nourished pups. These findings underscore the usefulness of mixed litters in studying the later effects of prenatal malnutrition because later deficits in brain function are less likely to be attributable to changes in the early rearing environment.

Analysis of Variance↗
PubMed1990

[Changes in maternal behavior and care practices in migrant women from Western Africa].

A study on the various kinds of behavior in mothering and the ways of taking care of children by 26 migrant mothers coming from West Africa was carried out in order to evaluate and analyze changes in these practices when coming into contact with French society. The data was gathered during observations and interviews in the home setting. Massage techniques and posturo-motor exercises, as well as the physical contact between the adult and the child, and breast-feeding, were examined. Acculturation can be rapid in the ways children are fed. Massage techniques and bodily exercises, which are bound up with the way the child and its development are perceived, are harder to change. Children having gone through these exercises walk significantly earlier than those who haven't. As regards sickness, resorting to modern medicine is obvious, but doesn't basically change the traditional way of interpreting it, which makes of sickness the expression of a disorder affecting the family group in its entirety.

Acculturation↗
PubMed1976

Maternal behavior and perceived sex of infant.

Eleven mothers interacted with one six-month-old male infant, dresses either as a male or female. Differences were found in overall maternal stimulation and toy handling as a function of perceived sex of the baby. Mothers interviewed reported that treatment of their own infants was not differentiated by sex. Results indicate that mothers behave according to their expectations rather than infant cues, although unaware of their stereotyping.

Attitude↗
PubMed1981

Maternal behavior following rehabilitation of rats with intergenerational malnutrition. 2. Contribution of mothers and pups to deficits in lactation-related behaviors.

In a companion paper, we reported the persistence of an increase in active nursing and nursing-related behaviors in rats that were rehabilitated following prolonged intergenerational malnutrition. The rehabilitated litters contained females and pups fed an adequate diet for up to three generations after a history of malnutrition. In the current study, a 2 X 2 cross-over design was used during the lactation period in which rehabilitated mothers suckled rehabilitated pups or well-nourished control pups, and control mothers similarly suckled rehabilitated or control pups. We found that maternal factors were dominant in determining the amount of active nursing, and that pup factors modified the maternal influence on other lactation-related behaviors.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Maternal behaviors: central integration or independent parallel circuits? Theoretical comment on Popeski and Woodside (2004).

N. Popeski and B. Woodside (2004) report that the injection of L-NAME into the 3rd ventricle, which would suppress the synthesis of nitric oxide, disrupts both maternal retrieval of pups and maternal aggression in postpartum rats. These findings are discussed around the question of whether a single central integrative site regulates retrieval and maternal aggression or whether independent neural mechanisms, each dependent upon nitric oxide, regulate the 2 behaviors. A case is made for each point of view. Future research utilizing direct injections of L-NAME into specific neural sites is needed to resolve this important question.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

Some effects of strain differences in the maternal behavior of inbred mice.

The frequencies of occurrence of a variety of activities were recorded for inbred female mice of 3 strains in the presence of their own offspring, in the presence of isogenic fostered offspring, and in the presence of nonisogenic fostered offspring. Differences in the frequency of nursing, of grooming and handling the offspring, and of the absence of the female from the nest were related to differences in the rate of early postnatal development of 2 of these strains: in general, those pups receiving less maternal attention developed more rapidly. The effective stimulus for accelerated maturation may lie in the sequential organization of the manipulation of the offspring by the foster mother, rather than in the overall quantity of manipulation received.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Child behavior, maternal depression, and social coercion as factors in the quality of child care.

Observational and self-report data were obtained in the homes of 33 mother-child dyads. These volunteer, normal subjects were monitored with respect to their affectionate and aversive interactions, and the mothers were asked to provide three categories of self-report data. Mothers made observational judgements of their children, their own feelings of depression, and the valences of their interactions with adults. Multiple regression analyses were then employed to predict the mothers' child care behaviors, which were composed of observed mother responses and mother observational judgements. In addition, conditional probability analyses were conducted to examine the directionality of correlations between observed mother-child interchanges. Results showed child behavior to be the best single predictor of how the mothers responded to their children, followed by maternal depression and mother coercive interactions with adults. Child behavior was shown to be a significant antecedent "cue" for the maternal responses. However, the findings also showed that mother observational judgements about their children had little to do with how the children behaved. Rather, the maternal judgements were best predicted by mother depression, mother coercive interchanges with adults, and the mothers' observed aversive responses to their children. Results were interpreted within a systems framework in which maternal care is viewed as a response that is "triangulated" by adult- and child-produced stimuli.

Child Behavior↗
PubMed1994

[Prospective study of maternal behavior in the neonatal period: a pilot study].

This study intends to test empirically some pre- and perinatal conditions of loving motherly behavior and motherly anxiety during the first month after birth. In the framework of a prospective study a sample of 40 women, pregnant for the first time, was tested by a questionnaire in the last trimester of pregnancy. They were visited in their homes about 19 days after having given birth. There loving behavior during nursing was observed. Their anxiety was credited by a structured interview. When considering the single postulated predictors separately a significant prediction of the observed loving behavior was only possible by the frequency of their attempts to establish a contact with the unborn. This predictor was able to explain one third of the variance. If all the relevant predictors were considered, two fifth of the loving behavior could be explained. It was clearly confirmed that the experience of a direct sensual and physical contact was most important for the continuity of a loving relationship with the child while the cognitive engagement was far less important. Personality characteristics like emotional lability and anxiety proved to be significant correlates of early maternal anxiety, thus confirming once again the relevance of stable personality characteristics for motherly behavior.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Influences of environmental demand on maternal behavior and infant development.

Research has shown that in conjunction with genetic factors, significant aspects of non-human primate development are influenced by the infant's physical and social environment. In addition to the direct impact of the environment on the infant, the infant's attachment relationship with the mother is seen as the primary mediating factor in shaping these influences. When the mother is able to cope with environmental demands, as a reflection of her responsivity to her infant's needs, she may prepare infants for periodic interruptions in her attention, ameliorate distress during disruptive periods and, most importantly, compensate for these disruptions with enhanced attention to her infant once they are ended. Our recent work shows that when the mother's survival requirements increase, and her coping capacities are exceeded, both short- and long-term deleterious effects on her developing offspring may emerge. Particularly when confronted with an unpredictable environment, mothers are less able to maintain effective, stress-buffering, maternal-coping mechanisms which can preserve a stable attachment relationship and permit normal infant development. When these coping mechanisms are insufficient, infants may show manifest disturbances, such as depression, during development or reveal more latent disturbances, such as reduced sociability and timidity, when psychologically challenged, even as young adults. Evidence now suggests that these long-term effects may, at least in part, be the product of altered neurodevelopment of the serotonergic and noradrenergic systems.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2004

Epigenetic programming by maternal behavior.

Here we report that increased pup licking and grooming (LG) and arched-back nursing (ABN) by rat mothers altered the offspring epigenome at a glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene promoter in the hippocampus. Offspring of mothers that showed high levels of LG and ABN were found to have differences in DNA methylation, as compared to offspring of 'low-LG-ABN' mothers. These differences emerged over the first week of life, were reversed with cross-fostering, persisted into adulthood and were associated with altered histone acetylation and transcription factor (NGFI-A) binding to the GR promoter. Central infusion of a histone deacetylase inhibitor removed the group differences in histone acetylation, DNA methylation, NGFI-A binding, GR expression and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) responses to stress, suggesting a causal relation among epigenomic state, GR expression and the maternal effect on stress responses in the offspring. Thus we show that an epigenomic state of a gene can be established through behavioral programming, and it is potentially reversible.

Acetylation↗
PubMed1996

Ecology of weaning among nomadic Turkana pastoralists of Kenya: maternal thinking, maternal behavior, and human adaptive strategies.

Weaning of human children is a complex process involving the introduction of non-breast-milk foods, reduction in suckling activity, and eventual termination of breast feeding. Because the choice of strategies for each component of the weaning process depends on the operating environmental constraints, reproductive demands on women, and prevailing levels of infant and weanling mortality, it is appropriate to examine weaning practices as human adaptive strategies. Here, I examine the structure of weaning and maternal attitudes toward weaning among nomadic Turkana pastoralists from the perspective of human adaptation. Using retrospective and prospective data on breast feeding, the use of non-breast-milk foods, and the cessation of breast feeding. I identify ideal strategies as those defined by Turkana women. Real behavior in relation to weaning, however, deviates considerably from the ideal, and this deviation reflects adaptive responses to nutritional and disease risks to infants. Particular attention is given to problematic aspects of weaning practices in Turkana, such as premature introduction of non-breast-milk foods and abrupt termination of breast feeding, which have been shown to contribute to high infant and weanling mortality in populations in developing countries. These practices have evolved from the dual caretaking and childbearing role of women and the necessity of reconciling the needs of the breast-feeding child with the demands of the next pregnancy. As such, they represent rational strategies for enhancing reproductive success in this and other similarly stressful environments.

Adaptation, Psychological↗
PubMed2004

Maternal behavior regulates benzodiazepine/GABAA receptor subunit expression in brain regions associated with fear in BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice.

Inbred strains of mice, such as BALB/cByJ and C57BL/6ByJ, have been used repeatedly to study genotype-phenotype relations. These strains differ on behavioral measures of fear. In novel environments, for example, BALB/c mice are substantially more neophobic than C57BL/6 animals. The benzodiazepine (BZ)/GABAA receptor system has been proposed as a regulator of behavioral responses to stress, and BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice differ in BZ/GABAA receptor binding. In the present study, we found increased BZ receptor levels in C57BL/6 mice in the central and basolateral nuclei of the amygdala as well as the locus coeruleus using either flunitrazepam (nonselective) or zolpidem (alpha1 subtype selective) as radioligands. Differences in receptor binding were most pronounced in the amygdala and locus coeruleus using [3H]zolpidem. C57BL/6 mice showed increased alpha1 mRNA levels in the locus coeuruleus compared to BALB/c mice. In addition, gamma2 mRNA expression in BALB/c mice was decreased in the central nucleus of the amygdala to levels that were 2-2.5-fold lower than those of C57BL/6 mice. The results of an adoption study revealed that the biological offspring of C57BL/6 mothers fostered after birth to BALB/c dams showed decreased levels of gamma2 mRNA expression in the central nucleus of the amygdala in comparison to peers fostered to other C57BL/6 mothers (the reverse was found for the biological offspring of BALB/c mothers). In a step-down exploration paradigm, BALB/cByJ mice crossfostered onto a C57BL/6ByJ dam expressed reduced anxiety responses. However, among C57BL/6ByJ mice, the relatively low levels of anxiety ordinarily evident were not increased when mice of this strain were reared by a BALB/cByJ dam. These preliminary findings suggest that the strain differences in the BZ/GABAA receptor system occur, at least in part, as a function of parental care. Such findings may reflect a mammalian example of an indirect genetic effect mediated by maternal care.

Adoption↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Predicting maternal behaviors during pregnancy: does intention status matter?

CONTEXT: Women's behavior during pregnancy, which can affect the health of their infant, may be influenced by their attitude toward the pregnancy. METHODS: Multivariate analyses of data from the 1988 National Maternal and Infant Health Survey and the 1988 National Survey of Family Growth were conducted to investigate whether women with unplanned births differ from other women in their pregnancy behavior, independent of their social and demographic characteristics. RESULTS: Women with intended conceptions are more likely than similar women with unintended pregnancies to recognize early signs of pregnancy and to seek out early prenatal care, and somewhat more likely to quit smoking, but they are not more likely than women with comparable social and demographic characteristics to adhere to a recommended schedule of prenatal visits once they begin care, to reduce alcohol intake, or to follow their clinician's advice about taking vitamins and gaining weight. Social and demographic differences in these behaviors are largely unaffected by planning status, indicating that these differences are independently related to pregnancy behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: Both the intendedness of a pregnancy and the mother's social and demographic characteristics are important predictors of pregnancy-related behavior.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Maternal and neonatal behavior.

Maternal and neonatal behavior differs among food-producing mammals, and our management must reflect these differences. Sows will show more elaborate preparturient behavior than the other species as they attempt to build a nest that will last for several days. Because the nest is the focal point of maternal behavior for several days, the sow does not need to recognize her piglets until they are about 1 week of age. Although this facilitates the fostering of piglets between litters, the teat order developed by piglets during the first day or two makes it difficult for alien piglets to suckle when first fostered. Piglets are weaned at a relatively early age, and this results in conflict as neonatal behavior persists in an environment that requires better developed feeding patterns. Restrictions placed on ewes and cows by confinement at the time of parturition may result in their being unable to select an appropriate birth site. Our management must accommodate these needs by providing sites that are protected from the harsh environment and also allow separation from the rest of the flock. This is particularly important for ewes bearing multiple young, for lambs frequently become separated from the ewe while she is caring for another lamb. Both cows and ewes must be allowed to bond to their offspring soon after birth if they are to provide adequate maternal care. Fostering in these species involves manipulation of identifying stimuli to overcome the dam's ability to recognize her own young shortly after birth. Suckling problems, due to pendulous udders on cows and multiple lambs in sheep, may require attention by the stockman shortly after birth. Weaning does not result in major behavioral problems in sheep or beef cattle that are weaned after the young are consuming solid feed on a regular basis. Dairy calves, which are initially weaned onto milk replacer at a very early age, may develop inappropriate sucking behaviors that persist beyond weaning onto a solid diet. Despite our growing knowledge of maternal and neonatal behavior, mortality among piglets, lambs, and calves is still high. However, many of the most recent findings have yet to be incorporated into management procedures or standard practice. As this occurs, we should be able to reduce losses of young animals.

Animals↗