Childhood trauma can have lasting brain consequences, cause psychiatric disorders
New Delhi: Childhood adversity may have a profound connection with lifelong vulnerability causing psychiatric disorders and other brain consequences, according to a study.
The study showed that early life experiences become biologically embedded and create lasting changes in brain structure and immune function.
“The immune system doesn’t just fight infections — it plays a crucial role in shaping our mental health throughout life,” said Sara Poletti, senior researcher at IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele Milan, Italy.
“Childhood trauma can fundamentally reprogramme these immune responses, creating vulnerability to depression, bipolar disorder, and other psychiatric conditions decades later,” she added.
By identifying specific inflammatory markers associated with childhood trauma, the study provides potential targets for novel interventions.
The research calls for precision medicine approach to transform psychiatric treatment from symptom management to addressing underlying biological mechanisms.
The paper, published in the journal Brain Medicine focussed on the use of an immunomodulatory agent (interleukin 2) to treat mood disorders.
Mood disorders have been recognised by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a major source of disability, morbidity, and mortality worldwide. Among mood disorders, major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorders (BD) are the most frequent and disabling ones.
The lifetime prevalence is about 12 per cent for MDD and 2 per cent for BD.
Recent years have seen evidence increasing for the role of immune dysregulations in mood disorders with a focus on the inflammatory response system (IRS). It suggests that an activation of the IRS should be considered as one of the main pathological underpinnings of mood disorders.
“I aim to further elucidate the role of the immune system and its interaction with the environment in psychiatric disorders,” Poletti said.
Her vision includes developing prevention strategies to reduce mental illness odds, particularly for individuals with trauma histories. This preventive focus represents a paradigm shift from reactive to proactive psychiatric care.