Disrupted Brain Connectivity in Newborns Following Antenatal Opioid Exposure.
| Title: | Disrupted Brain Connectivity in Newborns Following Antenatal Opioid Exposure. |
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| Authors: | De Asis-Cruz J; Developing Brain Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC.; Kim JH; Developing Brain Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC.; Kapse K; Developing Brain Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC.; Wu Y; Developing Brain Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC.; Merhar SL; Perinatal Institute, Division of Neonatology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio; Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio.; Bann CM; Analytics Division, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.; Newman JE; Analytics Division, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.; Mack N; Analytics Division, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina.; DeMauro SB; Division of Neonatology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.; Ambalavanan N; Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama.; Lorch SA; Division of Neonatology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.; Wilson-Costello D; Department of Pediatrics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.; Poindexter BB; Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia.; Peralta-Carcelen M; Division of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama.; Davis JM; Division of Newborn Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts.; Limperopoulos C; Developing Brain Institute, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC. Electronic address: Climpero@childrensnational.org. |
| Source: | Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging [Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging] 2026 Mar; Vol. 11 (3), pp. 265-278. Date of Electronic Publication: 2025 Sep 20. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article; Observational Study |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Elsevier, Inc Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 101671285 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 2451-9030 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 24519022 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: New York, NY : Elsevier, Inc., [2016]- |
| MeSH Terms: | Brain*/drug effects ; Brain*/physiopathology ; Brain*/diagnostic imaging ; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects*/physiopathology ; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects*/diagnostic imaging ; Analgesics, Opioid*/adverse effects ; Nerve Net*/physiopathology ; Nerve Net*/diagnostic imaging ; Nerve Net*/drug effects; Neural Pathways/physiopathology ; Neural Pathways/drug effects ; Neural Pathways/diagnostic imaging ; Humans ; Female ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Pregnancy ; Male ; Infant, Newborn ; Prospective Studies |
| Abstract: | Background: The neural bases of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in antenatal opioid exposure are poorly understood. Very limited in vivo human newborn imaging studies have reported disrupted functional connectivity (FC) in limbic and reward-related brain regions, but these studies used small samples and lacked matched controls. Our objective was to compare brain FC in antenatal opioid-exposed and unexposed newborns to study the impact of opioid exposure on early brain development.; Methods: Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data were collected using 3T MRI at 4 centers as part of the prospective, observational OBOE (Outcomes of Babies with Opioid Exposure) study. We used seed-based correlation analysis to estimate the FC of 93 brain regions. Voxelwise linear regression with covariate adjustment and correction for multiple comparisons was used to determine significant between-group differences. FC differences based on opioid type were also investigated.; Results: We evaluated 248 rs-fMRI scans (158 opioid-exposed/90 unexposed). Canonical sensorimotor and higher-order resting-state network maps in exposed newborns (mean ± SD postmenstrual age at MRI = 42.80 ± 2.2 weeks, 53 male) were comparable to control newborns (42.82 ± 1.9 weeks, 88 male; Dice indices > 0.9 across 7 networks). Exposed newborns showed decreased FC from seeds in bilateral pre- and left postcentral gyri, bilateral orbitofrontal regions, and cerebellum and increased FC from seeds in peri-opercular, subcortical (e.g., amygdala, hippocampus, and putamen), and mid-to-superior occipital regions (familywise error rate, α < 0.05). Connectivity from 23 of 93 (24.7%) seeds differed between groups. Methadone- and buprenorphine-exposed newborns showed disrupted regional FC compared with control newborns, but there were no FC differences between them.; Conclusions: In a large sample of antenatally opioid-exposed newborns, we found altered organization of brain functional networks, particularly in integrative sensorimotor-affective circuits.; (Copyright © 2025 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.) |
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| Grant Information: | RL1 HD104253 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; RL1 HD104254 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; U24 HD101059 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; PL1 HD101059 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; UG1 HD104253 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; RL1 HD104252 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; UG1 HD104254 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; UG1 HD104252 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS; RL1 HD104251 United States HD NICHD NIH HHS |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Antenatal opioid exposure; Neonatal resting state networks; Newborn brain imaging; Outcomes of Babies with Opioid Exposure (OBOE) study; Resting-state functional MRI |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Analgesics, Opioid) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20250922 Date Completed: 20260308 Latest Revision: 20260423 |
| Update Code: | 20260614 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC12646200 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.bpsc.2025.09.011 |
| PMID: | 40983147 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
Journal Article; Observational Study