Plasma p-tau217 detects Alzheimer's disease co-pathology in cerebral amyloid angiopathy: Comparison to CSF biomarkers in the ANGMAR cohort.

Pregnancy, childbirth, and the transition into motherhood represent profound milestones in a woman’s life, often bringing a mix of joy, anticipation, and challenges. It is a period of increased vulnerability to emotional disorders, particularly postpartum depression (PPD). It affects between 10% and 20% of women globally, with 25% of new mothers in Canada reporting symptoms [–]; Statistics Canada, [, ]. However, the true prevalence may be even higher due to barriers such as stigma and undetected cases. As one of the most common perinatal disorders, PPD not only undermines maternal well-being but is associated with less optimal child development, with intergenerational effects. Additionally, it incurs significant familial and societal costs [, , ]; Statistics Canada, []. Notably, PPD has been associated with poorer parenting strategies, such as those characterized by low self-efficacy, less healthy practices, less closeness, warmth and sensitivity []. The Integrative Model of Risk for Psychopathology in the Children of Depressed Mothers, proposed by Goodman and Gotlib [], outlines four key mechanisms through which maternal depression may be related to adverse child outcomes: genetic and epigenetic factors, exposure to stressors, prenatal influences, and parenting behaviors. Parenting is a key pathway in this model, with evidence supporting its role in mediating associations between maternal depression and child outcomes, even when genetic factors are considered []. This developmental model assumes longitudinal processes, such as the intergenerational transmission of risk and the gradual unfolding of mechanisms like parenting over time. However, a significant proportion of the empirical work testing the model’s hypotheses has relied on cross-sectional data, unidirectional designs, and small cohorts, which limits the ability to confirm the temporal pathway proposed in the model. Building on this model, recent longitudinal studies have explored how maternal depressive symptoms (MDS) are associated with parenting in early childhood. For example, Hentges et al., [], in a longitudinal study of a large cohort, suggested that hostile parenting may mediate the transmission of MDS to children internalizing problems, with assessments conducted from 25 weeks of gestation to 5 years of age. Errazuriz Arellano et al. [] longitudinal study of 199 mothers and their children (aged 3 to 6 years) found that higher MDS were associated with parenting characterized by increased overreactivity and laxness, and reduced warmth by age 6. Similarly, in another longitudinal study, Mitchell et al. [] reported that higher maternal prenatal depressive symptoms predicted lower warmth at 4 months postpartum, although changes in depressive symptoms were not related to changes in warm responsiveness over time. Guyon-Harris et al. [] observed that mothers with high depressive affect and physical symptoms (e.g., sleep and eating difficulties, low energy, trouble initiating tasks, and increased agitation) were at greater risk of harsh parenting at age 2 and disengaged parenting at age 3. Notably, no differences in positive parenting were found across depression profiles in this study. While these studies were limited to specific populations, mothers of children with behavioral problems [], predominantly single mothers [], and a low-income community sample [], they provided support for Goodman and Gotlib’s [] model, by highlighting associations between MDS and parenting. Importantly, Errazuriz Arellano et al. [] also suggested that associations between MDS and parenting may be bidirectional. Supporting this idea, recent studies and meta-analyses have highlighted the transactional and bidirectional nature of this relationship. Specifically, early MDS may be associated with less effective parenting, which then may exacerbate MDS, creating a feedback loop that perpetuates the cycle, a dynamic that may be further amplified by children’s behavioral and emotional responses to less effective parenting, such as dysregulation or increased negativity [, ]. This emphasizes the need to further investigate how MDS and parenting may be dynamically interrelated over time [].