The DOI matches its Crossref record; 77 of the 78 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Sensitive periods of amygdala development: The role of maltreatment in preadolescence
Open accessAbstract
The amygdala is vulnerable to stress-dependent disruptions in neural development. Animal models have shown that stress increases dendritic arborization leading to larger amygdala volumes. Human studies of early stress and amygdala volume, however, remain inconclusive. This study compared amygdala volume in adults with childhood maltreatment to that in healthy controls. Eighteen participants from a longitudinal cohort and 33 cross-sectional controls (17 M/34 F, 25.5±3.1 years) completed a structural magnetic resonance imagining scan and the Maltreatment and Abuse Chronology of Exposure scale. Random forest regression with conditional trees was used to assess relative importance of exposure to adversity at each age on amygdala, thalamic or caudate volume. Severity of exposure to adversity across age accounted for 27% of the variance in right amygdala volume. Peak sensitivity occurred at 10-11 years of age, and importance of exposure at this time was highly significant based on permutation tests (p=0.003). The regression model showed that exposure during this sensitive period resulted in steep dose-response function with maximal response to even modest levels of exposure. Subjects in the highest exposure quartile (MACE-11, range=11-54) had a 9.1% greater right amygdala volume than subjects in the lowest exposure quartile (MACE-11, ≤3.5). No associations emerged between age of exposure and volume of the left amygdala or bilateral caudate or thalamus. Severity of adversity experienced at age 10-11 contributed to larger right but not left amygdala volume in adulthood. Results provide preliminary evidence that the amygdala may have a developmental sensitive period in preadolescence.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Interviewed in adulthood, the longitudinal participants reported more severe exposure to maltreatment in childhood than controls and reported lower levels of maternal care on the Parental Bonding Instrument than controls (p = .002).”
From Disorganized attachment in infancy predicts greater amygdala volume in adulthood (2016) · cites this paper as [38]
In the citing paper
“Severity of childhood maltreatment was significantly related to right hemisphere volumes but not to left volumes, with severity of maltreatment at 10–11 years of age the most important predictor of right amygdala volume.”
From Disorganized attachment in infancy predicts greater amygdala volume in adulthood (2016) · cites this paper as [38]
In the citing paper
“Both left and right amygdala volumes were larger among longitudinal participants than controls, with least square mean adjusted amygdala volume 3.8% greater among the longitudinal group.”
From Disorganized attachment in infancy predicts greater amygdala volume in adulthood (2016) · cites this paper as [38]
In the citing paper
“Thus, right amygdala may be differentially responsive to negative or threatening stimuli (107–109), and alterations in structure (38, 109, 110) of the right amygdala in adulthood have been particularly related to exposure to childhood maltreatment.”
From Disorganized attachment in infancy predicts greater amygdala volume in adulthood (2016) · cites this paper as [38]
In the citing paper
“Also notably, compared to cross-sectional controls, the same participants studied here exhibited right amygdala enlargement in relation to the severity of maltreatment in middle childhood, with peak effect from maltreatment between 10 and 11 years of age (38), but show left amygdala enlargement here in relation to quality of early care.”
From Disorganized attachment in infancy predicts greater amygdala volume in adulthood (2016) · cites this paper as [38]
In the citing paper
“Interestingly, we have previously discussed possible evidence for sensitive periods during which childhood maltreatment influences regional brain development, indicating a potential causal mechanism.45,46”
From Ventral striatum dysfunction in children and adolescents with reactive attachment disorder: functional MRI study (2015) · cites this paper as [46]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing
R Core Team (2000) · doi:10.32614/r.manuals · Cited by 355,893
Breiman, L. (2001) · Machine Learning · doi:10.1023/a:1010933404324 · Cited by 133,538 · cited 1×
“Random forest regression has the advantage of high accuracy, no restrictions regarding the distribution and scaling properties of the data, high tolerance formulticolinearity and a novelmeans of determining variable importance (Breiman, 2001; Cutler et al., 2007).”
BackgroundSTATISTICAL METHODS FOR ASSESSING AGREEMENT BETWEEN TWO METHODS OF CLINICAL MEASUREMENT
Martin Bland, J., & Altman, D. (1986) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(86)90837-8 · Cited by 47,965
An Introduction to the Bootstrap
Efron, B., & Tibshirani, R. J. (1994) · doi:10.1201/9780429246593 · Cited by 40,500
A Global Measure of Perceived Stress
Cohen, S., Kamarck, T., & Mermelstein, R. (1983) · Journal of Health and Social Behavior · doi:10.2307/2136404 · Cited by 32,807 · cited 2×
“The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) was used as a global measure of subjective stress experienced during the past month (Cohen et al., 1983), the SymptomQuestionnaire (SQ) (Kellner, 1987) assessed symptoms of depression, anxiety, anger–hostility and somatic complaints during the last week, and the…”
Method(1970) · Cited by 24,983
Beckett, A. H., Rowland, M., & TURNER, P. (1965) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(65)91037-8 · Cited by 16,917
Cortical Surface-Based Analysis
Dale, A. M., Fischl, B., & Sereno, M. I. (1999) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1006/nimg.1998.0395 · Cited by 10,910 · cited 1×
“Although this program originated as a method for assessing cortical structure (Dale et al., 1999; Fischl et al., 1999; Fischl et al., 2001; Fischl andDale, 2000), it has evolved to include robust tools for subcortical volume analyses (Fischl et al., 2002; Fischl et al., 2004).”
MethodFischl, B., Salat, D. H., Busa, E., Albert, M., Dieterich, M., Haselgrove, C., van der Kouwe, A., Killiany, R., Kennedy, D., Klaveness, S., et al. (2002) · Neuron · doi:10.1016/s0896-6273(02)00569-x · Cited by 8,610
Effects of stress throughout the lifespan on the brain, behaviour and cognition
Lupien, S. J., McEwen, B. S., Gunnar, M. R., & Heim, C. (2009) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn2639 · Cited by 6,256
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 78 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Schmahl, 2003, Magnetic resonance imaging of hippocampal and amygdala volume in women with childhood abuse and borderline personality disorder, Psychiatry Res. Neuroimaging, 122, 193, 10.1016/S0925-4927(03)00023-4 · DOI · Paper page
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 301–342 of 342
The Evolution of Systemic Approaches to Children and Adolescents
Wampler, R. S. (2020) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119788393.ch1
Stress and Reward: A Multimodal Assessment of Resilience after Childhood Sexual AbusePreprint
Pechtel, P., Belleau, E. L., Kaiser, R. H., Whitton, A. E., Beltzer, M., Clegg, R. A., Goer, F., Vitaliano, G. D., Teicher, M. H., & Pizzagalli, D. A. (2022) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.4090307
Self-citationTiming and severity of adverse life events: impact on substance use among high-risk adolescentsPreprint
Zarchev, M. G., Kamperman, A. M., Marroun, H. E., Bloemendaal, A. F. T., Mulder, C. L., Hoogendijk, W. J. G., & Grootendorst, N. (2022) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/kywf7
Rokach, A., & Clayton, S. (2023) · Elsevier eBooks · doi:10.1016/b978-0-323-85853-3.00009-4 · Cited by 1
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.002.0003
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.002.0005
Detention as Licensed Child Care—Texas-Style
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0005
Ordeals and Histories of Immigration
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0003
Sleepless Under the Bridge in El Paso
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0012
Four Generations of Mothers and Daughters
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0015
Studying Families, Hearing Their Stories
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0008
Take the Children. Age Doesn’t Matter
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0006
Sufrir, Sufrimiento, and Hallucinating the Invisible Killer Girl
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0014
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0004
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0011
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0016
Stages of Central American Immigration
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0009
A Mother’s Doubt, a Child’s Hunger*
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0013
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0001
Stress, Trauma, and Children’s Development
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0010
Hiding Boys in Therapeutic Detention
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0007
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.002.0007
The Poet, Heroic Mothers, and Cash Cows
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.003.0002
Zayas, L. H. (2023) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oso/9780197668160.002.0004
Kraatz, G., Xie, H. T. H., Long, H., & Walker, C. (2024) · Journal of Neuroendocrinology · doi:10.1111/jne.13483 · Cited by 2
“Among several of the negative consequences of ELS, dysfunctional emotional regulation 18 is potentially the first to appear in childhood 19,20 as the capacity to identify and respond to a threat with adaptive behavior is a fundamental aspect of survival.”
Hermenau, K., Scharpf, F., & Hecker, T. (2025) · Journal of Family Violence · doi:10.1007/s10896-024-00801-0 · Cited by 1
“This is even more important as research suggests that the age period between 9 and 12 years is a particularly sensitive period for harmful effects of maltreatment on children`s well-being and development (Dunn et al., 2023; Pechtel et al., 2014; Schalinski et al., 2016).”
Adolescent Brain Development Under Stress and Trauma: Evidence-Based Treatments
Pappas, I., Yu, T. L. T., Liu, O., & Srinivasan, N. (2025) · Berkeley Pharma Tech Journal of Medicine · doi:10.52243/bptjm.v5i1.73
France, J. M., Valbrun, S., Grasser, L. R., Wiltshire, C., Basarkod, S., Davie, W., Reda, M., George, S. A., Winters, S., Bradley, B., et al. (2025) · Biological Psychiatry Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging · doi:10.1016/j.bpsc.2025.08.007 · Cited by 1
Mason, A., Jung, P., Merritt, K., Sethi, A., Zammit, S., Jones, D. K., David, A. S., & Bloomfield, M. (2025) · Schizophrenia Bulletin · doi:10.1093/schbul/sbaf184
“11 ,12 ,14 It has been hypothesized that DT produces a small enlargement of the amygdala, but also sensitizes to subsequent stressors that result in a graded reduction in volume.”
Cella, R., Wang, L., WU, R. T., Ford, J. D., Pearlson, G. D., & Steffens, D. C. (2025) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2025.120928
Amygdala volume is not associated with MRI-based markers of early cardiovascular disease
Schlaeger, S., Lorbeer, R., Bamberg, F., Schlett, C. L., Rospleszcz, S., Beller, E., Galiè, F., Heier, M., Ladwig, K., Ricke, J., et al. (2026) · Insights into Imaging · doi:10.1186/s13244-025-02190-4
Chen, Y., Liu, R., & Zhu, J. (2026) · Brain Science and Child Development · doi:10.1016/j.bscd.2026.100001
Scars of Our Minds: The Neuropsychiatry of Childhood Trauma
Lennon, M. J., Lauterbach, M. D., & Eapen, V. (2026) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-10099-3_10
Habegger, M., Dimanova, P., Borbás, R., Federici, E., Ribeaud, D., Eisner, M., Hare, T. A., & Raschle, N. M. (2026) · Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.dcn.2026.101728
“Studies focusing on maladaptive parenting behaviors or adverse childhood experiences have reported larger amygdala volumes in late adolescence (Mehta et al., 2009) and young adulthood (Pechtel et al., 2014; Evans et al., 2016).”
Transgenerational Programming of Brain Development and Behaviour in Response to Early-Life Adversity
Bock, J. (2026) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-24295-2_6
Zhu, J., Zhou, L., Zou, Y., Zhang, Y., Liu, Y., & Teicher, M. H. (2026) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41380-026-03689-y
“Emerging evidence supporting the sensitive period hypothesis shows that maltreatment at speci fi c developmental stages has more profound effects on the risk of grey matter volume alterations in the amygdala and hippocampus compared to maltreatment at other periods [22, 23].”
Self-citationRockhold, M. N., Speybroeck, E. L., Cole, L. L., Richardson, A. A., Merz, E., Kautz‐Turnbull, C., Myers, J., & Petrenko, C. L. M. (2026) · Child Neuropsychology · doi:10.1080/09297049.2026.2692956
Cheng, X., Liu, P., & Zhang, Q. (2026) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs16071104
“Pechtel et al. (2014) found that adversity experienced by children aged 10–11 is correlated with increased right amygdala volume in adulthood, but not with the left amygdala volume.”
von Wendorff, C., Meier, M., Schalinski, I., Dwir, D., Giangreco, B., Klauser, P., Beck, K., Demirkiran, G., Schneider, P., Neves, M. D., et al. (2026) · European Journal of Psychotraumatology · doi:10.1080/20008066.2026.2711481
“…timing and duration of CM and structural brain alterations, including changes in the anterior cingulate cortex (Grauduszus et al., 2024), amygdala and hippocampus volume (Pechtel et al., 2014; Sicor-ello et al., 2021), and cortical thickness (Türkmen et al., 2024) have been reported in the past.”
Imaging biomarkers in functional neurological disorders
Lozzi, I., Concetti, C., & Aybek, S. (2026) · Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rstb.2024.0472 · Cited by 2
Hartanto, S., Rakesh, D., Orr, C., Forlano, E., Khetan, M., & Whittle, S. (2026) · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines · doi:10.1111/jcpp.70259
Metadata
- Authors
- Pechtel, P., Lyons-Ruth, K., Anderson, C. M., & Teicher, M. H.
- Affiliations
- Harvard University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Pechtel, Pia
- Venue
- NeuroImage
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2014-08
- Volume
- 97
- Pages
- 236-244
- ISSN
- 1053-8119 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4258391
- OpenAlex
- W2079348783
- Cited by
- 342
- References
- 78
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 21 · 2024: 18 · 2023: 43 · 2022: 31 · 2021: 31 · 2020: 35 · 2019: 26 · 2018: 41 · 2017: 26 · 2016: 31 · 2015: 20 · 2014: 4
- FWCI
- 31.87
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- NeuroImage (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- NIH (UL1 RR 025758)
- Frederick Leonhardt Foundation
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
- Keywords
- amygdala development, child abuse, sensitive period, late childhood, amygdala volume, adversity exposure, dose-response relationship, thalamus, caudate nucleus, brain structure
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Amygdala, Caudate Nucleus, Child, Child Abuse, Child, Preschool, Cross-Sectional Studies, Female, Hippocampus, Humans, Infant, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Sex Factors, Stress, Psychological, Thalamus, Cohort Studies
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
