The lasting impact of early-life adversity on individuals and their descendants: potential mechanisms and hope for intervention

The adverse effects of early-life stress are pervasive, with well-established mental and physical health consequences for exposed individuals. The impact of early adverse experiences is also highly persistent, with documented increases in risk for mental illness across the life span that are accompanied by stable alterations in neural function and hormonal responses to stress. Here, we review some of these 'stress phenotypes', with a focus on intermediary factors that may signal risk for long-term mental health outcomes, such as altered development of the fear regulation system. Intriguingly, recent research suggests that such stress phenotypes may persist even beyond the life span of the individuals, with consequences for their offspring and grand-offspring. Phenotypic characteristics may be transmitted to future generations via either the matriline or the patriline, a phenomenon that has been demonstrated in both human and animal studies. In this review, we highlight behavioral and epigenetic factors that may contribute to this multigenerational transmission and discuss the potential of various treatment approaches that may halt the cycle of stress phenotypes

What can the gut microbiome teach us about the connections between child physical and mental health? A systematic review

A deeper understanding of the gut-brain axis is of significance in pediatrics, given the influential role of early childhood experiences and exposures in shaping the microbiome, and health, across the life course. This systematic review synthesized evidence on the connection between the gut microbiome and mental health in children with physical illness. Six electronic databases were systematically searched and data extracted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Of 1,476 identified articles, 11 articles reporting on nine unique studies (all randomized controlled trials) were included. Most studies examined the gut microbiome in infants with colic, while the remaining studies investigated outcomes in children aged 1 day to 18 years at risk for atopic dermatitis or irritable bowel syndrome. Baseline and postintervention gut microbiome differences varied across studies. Findings on psychological functioning also varied, with only half of the captured studies showing a positive effect of intervention on psychological well-being. Only two studies analyzed the association between the gut microbiome and psychological outcomes, each with a different pattern of results. As the field moves forward, it will be critical to gain a better understanding of the microbiome characteristics that influence mental health outcomes in pediatric populations

The James Webb Space Telescope Mission

Twenty-six years ago a small committee report, building on earlier studies, expounded a compelling and poetic vision for the future of astronomy, calling for an infrared-optimized space telescope with an aperture of at least $4m$. With the support of their governments in the US, Europe, and Canada, 20,000 people realized that vision as the $6.5m$ James Webb Space Telescope. A generation of astronomers will celebrate their accomplishments for the life of the mission, potentially as long as 20 years, and beyond. This report and the scientific discoveries that follow are extended thank-you notes to the 20,000 team members. The telescope is working perfectly, with much better image quality than expected. In this and accompanying papers, we give a brief history, describe the observatory, outline its objectives and current observing program, and discuss the inventions and people who made it possible. We cite detailed reports on the design and the measured performance on orbit.Comment: Accepted by PASP for the special issue on The James Webb Space Telescope Overview, 29 pages, 4 figure

The lasting impact of early-life adversity on individuals and their descendants: potential mechanisms and hope for intervention

The adverse effects of early-life stress are pervasive, with well-established mental and physical health consequences for exposed individuals. The impact of early adverse experiences is also highly persistent, with documented increases in risk for mental illness across the life span that are accompanied by stable alterations in neural function and hormonal responses to stress. Here, we review some of these \u27stress phenotypes\u27, with a focus on intermediary factors that may signal risk for long-term mental health outcomes, such as altered development of the fear regulation system. Intriguingly, recent research suggests that such stress phenotypes may persist even beyond the life span of the individuals, with consequences for their offspring and grand-offspring. Phenotypic characteristics may be transmitted to future generations via either the matriline or the patriline, a phenomenon that has been demonstrated in both human and animal studies. In this review, we highlight behavioral and epigenetic factors that may contribute to this multigenerational transmission and discuss the potential of various treatment approaches that may halt the cycle of stress phenotypes

The Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (MAIN): Adding Cantonese to MAIN

This paper gives an introduction to the Cantonese adaptation of Multilingual Assessment Instrument for Narratives (MAIN), which is part of the Language Impairment Testing in Multilingual Settings (LITMUS) battery. We here discuss the motivation for adapting this assessment instrument into Cantonese, the adaptation process itself and potential contexts for use of the Cantonese MAIN