TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2022//
TI  - Childhood maltreatment in females is associated with enhanced fear acquisition and an overgeneralization of fear
JO  - Brain sciences
A1  - Stanek, Mercedes
A1  - Niese, Taylor
A1  - Boaz, Kayla
A1  - Getnet, Bruktawit
A1  - Pfister, Cassidy
A1  - Thebeault, Caitlin
A1  - Helwig, Sara
A1  - Virden, Emma
A1  - Norrholm, Seth
A1  - Rorabaugh, Boyd
A1  - Parker, Sydney
A1  - Long, Kristen
A1  - Cordes, Chloe
A1  - Weiser, Jordan
A1  - Reneau, Kassidy
A1  - Zoladz, Phillip
SP  - 
EP  - 
VL  - 12
IS  - 11
N2  - Childhood maltreatment may alter fear neurocircuitry, which results in pathological anxiety and depression. One alteration of fear-related behaviors that has been observed in several psychiatric populations is an overgeneralization of fear. Thus, we examined the association between childhood maltreatment and fear generalization in a non-clinical sample of young adults. Two hundred and ninety-one participants underwent differential fear conditioning in a fear-potentiated startle paradigm. One visual stimulus (CS+), but not another (CS-), was associated with an aversive airblast to the throat (US) during acquisition. The next day, participants were tested for their fear responses to the CS+, CS-, and several generalization stimuli (GS) without the presence of the US. Participants also completed questionnaires that assessed symptoms of childhood maltreatment, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Participants reporting high childhood maltreatment (n = 71; 23 males, 48 females) exhibited significantly greater anxiety, depression, and symptoms of PTSD than participants reporting low childhood maltreatment (n = 220; 133 males, 87 females). Females reporting high childhood maltreatment demonstrated significantly enhanced fear learning and greater fear generalization, based on their fear-potentiated startle responses. Our findings suggest that childhood maltreatment may sex-dependently influence the development of fear neurocircuitry and result in greater fear generalization in maltreated females.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 2076-3425
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12111536
ID  - ref1
ER  -