Selective inflammatory propensities in adopted adolescents institutionalized as infants

Melissa L Engel; Christopher L Coe; Brie M Reid; Bonny Donzella; Megan R Gunnar

doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.105065

Selective inflammatory propensities in adopted adolescents institutionalized as infants

Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2021 Feb:124:105065. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.105065. Epub 2020 Nov 17.

Authors

Melissa L Engel¹, Christopher L Coe², Brie M Reid³, Bonny Donzella⁴, Megan R Gunnar⁵

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, 51 E. River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA. Electronic address: mlengel@emory.edu.
² Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 1202 W. Johnson Street, Madison, WI, 53706, USA. Electronic address: ccoe@wisc.edu.
³ Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, 51 E. River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA. Electronic address: reidx189@umn.edu.
⁴ Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, 51 E. River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA. Electronic address: donzella@umn.edu.
⁵ Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, 51 E. River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA. Electronic address: gunnar@umn.edu.

Abstract

This study examined whether early life adversity (ELA) limited to infancy was associated with an increase in circulating levels of proinflammatory cytokines and cellular cytokine responses to three stimulants [lipopolysaccharide (LPS), phytohemagglutinin (PHA), and phorbol myristate acetate plus ionomycin (PMA/IO)]. Participants were previously institutionalized (PI) youth (N = 45, 56 % female) who had spent their first years in institutional care (e.g., orphanages, baby homes) before being adopted into well-resourced homes (median age at adoption = 13 mos) and non-adopted comparisons (NA; N = 38, 55 % female). Their age range was 13.3-21.2 years (M = 16.3 years). This analysis followed up an earlier report on these youth (Reid et al., 2019a) that identified an increase in terminally differentiated CD8 + CD57 T cells among the PI relative to the NA youth. Cytokine levels in circulation were not highly correlated and thus examined separately. PI youth had higher circulating levels of Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (TNFα), but not Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) or Interleukin-6 (IL-6). Cytokine responses to in vitro activation within each stimulant condition were highly correlated and were thus combined to generate an index of the inflammatory reaction to each stimulant. Using Multivariate Analysis of Covariance, there was a highly significant multivariate effect of group, which was carried primarily by the PMA/IO condition, with PI youth exhibiting a larger inflammatory response than NA youth. Tests of mediation showed that both the early rearing effects on circulating TNFα and the composite inflammatory index of PMA/IO responsiveness were mediated in the statistical model by the percentage of CD8 + CD57+ TEMRA cells in circulation, a marker of replicative senescence in T cells. Sex differences were also found in circulating levels of IL-6 and TNFα, with males having higher levels than females.

Keywords: Adolescence; Early life adversity; Inflammation; Institutional care; Sex differences.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Cytokines
Female
Humans
Infant
Interleukin-6*
Male
Orphanages
T-Lymphocytes
Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate / pharmacology
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha*
Young Adult

Substances

Cytokines
Interleukin-6
Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate

Grants and funding

R21 HD086312/HD/NICHD NIH HHS/United States