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Major depressive disorder (MDD) has been linked to elevated inflammation markers. It remains unclear whether the elevation of C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) levels are not only observable in acute MDD but also in patients after remission. MDD is a common sequela of early life maltreatment (ELM), which has also been associated with elevated inflammation markers. While the majority of studies investigated (acute) MDD and ELM as isolated predictors of inflammation, a few studies found inflammation levels to be more pronounced in patients with MDD that were exposed to ELM. This investigation included both ELM and MDD in one study and aimed at distinguishing between the effects of MDD in remission (rMDD) and ELM and investigating potential accumulative effects on the inflammatory markers CRP and IL-6 in a population of N = 126 women (n = 122 for CRP and n = 66 for IL-6). We further investigated how disorder characteristics (course and severity) and specific types of ELM affect levels of CRP and IL-6. We found that rMDD predicted levels of CRP and IL-6 and physical abuse predicted levels of CRP when considering both predictors simultaneously, while other types of ELM did not. A later onset of MDD and a shorter time interval since the last episode were associated with higher levels of IL-6. Our findings contribute to the existing literature on the association between MDD and inflammation, suggesting that elevated levels of inflammation markers may persist even after remission of MDD. Our findings on physical abuse as a specific predictor of CRP in the presence of rMDD suggest that different types of ELM could result in distinct inflammation profiles.

Background There is a well-established link between maternal depression and child mental health. Similar effects have been found for maternal history of early life maltreatment (ELM). However, studies investigating the relationship of children's quality of life and maternal depression are scarce and none have been conducted for the association with maternal ELM. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of maternal history of ELM and depression on children's health-related quality of life and to identify mediating factors accounting for these effects. Methods Our study involved 194 mothers with and without history of depression and/or ELM and their children between five and 12 years. Children's health-related quality of life was assessed by maternal proxy- and child self-ratings using the KIDSCREEN. We considered maternal sensitivity and maternal parenting stress as potential mediators. Results We found an effect of maternal history of depression but not of maternal history of ELM on health-related quality of life. Maternal stress and sensitivity mediated the effects of maternal depression on child global health-related quality of life, as well as on the dimensions Autonomy & Parent Relation, School Environment (maternal and child rating), and Physical Wellbeing (child rating). Limitation Due to the cross-sectional design of the study, causal interpretations must be made with caution. Some scales yielded low internal consistency. Conclusions Maternal impairments in areas of parenting which possibly developed during acute depression persist even after remission of acute affective symptoms. Interventions should target parenting stress and sensitivity in parents with prior depression.

Background Maternal sensitive behavior depends on recognizing one’s own child’s affective states. The present study investigated distinct and overlapping neural responses of mothers to sad and happy facial expressions of their own child (in comparison to facial expressions of an unfamiliar child). Methods We used functional MRI to measure dissociable and overlapping activation patterns in 27 healthy mothers in response to happy, neutral and sad facial expressions of their own school-aged child and a gender- and age-matched unfamiliar child. To investigate differential activation to sad compared to happy faces of one’s own child, we used interaction contrasts. During the scan, mothers had to indicate the affect of the presented face. After scanning, they were asked to rate the perceived emotional arousal and valence levels for each face using a 7-point Likert-scale (adapted SAM version). Results While viewing their own child’s sad faces, mothers showed activation in the amygdala and anterior cingulate cortex whereas happy facial expressions of the own child elicited activation in the hippocampus. Conjoint activation in response to one’s own child happy and sad expressions was found in the insula and the superior temporal gyrus. Conclusions Maternal brain activations differed depending on the child’s affective state. Sad faces of the own child activated areas commonly associated with a threat detection network, whereas happy faces activated reward related brain areas. Overlapping activation was found in empathy related networks. These distinct neural activation patterns might facilitate sensitive maternal behavior.

The study addresses the impact of maternal early life maltreatment (ELM) and maternal history of depression (HoD) on offspring's mental health. Maternal sensitivity was examined as a potential mediator explaining the relationship between maternal ELM, maternal HoD and child psychopathology. Participants were 194 mothers with and without HoD and/or ELM as well as their children between 5 and 12 years. Maternal sensitivity was assessed using the Emotional Availability Scales. Parent and teacher ratings were utilized to assess child psychopathology. Path analyses showed an indirect effect of maternal HoD on parents' ratings of child psychopathology with maternal sensitivity as mediating variable. In contrast, maternal ELM was directly linked to teachers' ratings of child psychopathology; this effect was not mediated by maternal sensitivity. Our results indicate that the impact of maternal HoD, maternal ELM, and maternal sensitivity on offspring psychopathology might vary depending on the context in which child psychopathology is assessed.