Childhood Adversities and the ATTACH TM Program’s Influence on Immune Cell Gene Expression

Zhiyuan Yu, Steve Cole, Kharah Ross, Martha Hart, Lubna Anis and Nicole Letourneau ()
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Zhiyuan Yu: School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, 525 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Steve Cole: School of Medicine, University of California-Los Angeles, Le Conte Ave, Los Angeles, CA 10833, USA
Kharah Ross: Department of Psychology, Athabasca University, 1 University Dr., Athabasca, AB T9S 3A3, Canada
Martha Hart: Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
Lubna Anis: Alberta Children’s Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada
Nicole Letourneau: Faculty of Nursing & Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 6, 1-11

Abstract: Objective: To determine whether maternal Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are (a) associated with increased inflammatory gene expression in mother–child dyads and (b) whether a parenting intervention (ATTACH™) moderates the association between maternal ACEs and mother and/or child inflammatory gene expression. Methods: Twenty mother–child dyads, recruited from a domestic violence shelter in Calgary, AB, Canada, were randomized into an ATTACH™ parenting intervention group ( n = 9) or a wait-list control group ( n = 11). Maternal ACEs were assessed. The mothers and children each provided one non-fasting blood sample after the intervention group completed the ATTACH™ program, which was assayed to quantify the Conserved Transcriptional Response to Adversity (CTRA) score, indicating inflammatory gene expression profile. Mixed-effect linear models were used, separately in mothers and children, to examine the associations between CTRA score, maternal ACEs, and the ACEs-by-intervention group interaction term. The covariates were age, sex, ethnicity, and maternal medication use. Results: Higher maternal ACEs were associated with higher child CTRA scores ( b = 0.123 ± SE 0.044, p = 0.005), indicating an increased pro-inflammatory gene expression profile. The ATTACH™ parenting intervention moderated this association between maternal ACEs and child CTRA scores ( b = 0.328 ± SE 0.133, p = 0.014). In mothers, the ACEs-by-intervention interaction terms were insignificant ( p = 0.305). Conclusions: Maternal ACEs could exert an intergenerational impact on child inflammatory activity, and this association could be moderated by participating in the ATTACH™ parenting intervention.

Keywords: adverse childhood experiences; parenting intervention; ATTACH™; immune cell gene expression; CTRA (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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