Maternal salivary cortisol differs by fetal sex during the second half of pregnancy

• Published in: Psychoneuroendocrinology Vol. 36; no. 4; pp. 588 - 591
• Main Authors: DiPietro, Janet A, Costigan, Kathleen A, Kivlighan, Katie T, Chen, Ping, Laudenslager, Mark L
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.05.2011; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adult; Behavioral psychophysiology; Biological and medical sciences; Cohort Studies; Cortisol; Endocrinology & Metabolism; Female; Fetus - physiology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gestational Age; Hormones and behavior; HPA axis; Humans; Hydrocortisone - analysis; Hydrocortisone - metabolism; Longitudinal Studies; Male; Male vulnerability; Mothers; Pregnancy; Pregnancy - metabolism; Pregnancy Trimester, Second - metabolism; Pregnancy Trimester, Second - physiology; Pregnancy Trimester, Third - metabolism; Pregnancy Trimester, Third - physiology; Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Saliva - chemistry; Saliva - metabolism; Sex Characteristics; Sex differences; Pregnancy; Male vulnerability; Sex differences; Cortisol; HPA axis; Corticosteroid; Hypothalamohypophysoadrenal axis; Steroid hormone; Antiinflammatory agent; Sex; Male; Vulnerability; Hydrocortisone; Glucocorticoid; Adrenal hormone; Fetus
• ISSN: 0306-4530; 1873-3360
• DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2010.09.005

Summary Maternal salivary cortisol was measured at weekly intervals from 24 to 38 weeks gestation. The total sample consisted of 120 women enrolled in staggered intervals in such a way as to generate weekly measures of salivary cortisol during the latter half of pregnancy. Hierarchical linear modeling revealed the expected increase in unbound maternal cortisol during this period, with a slight deceleration in rate of increase at 33 weeks gestation. Women carrying male fetuses had higher levels of salivary cortisol initially as compared to women carrying female fetuses; at 30 weeks gestation there was cross-over such that higher maternal cortisol was observed in women carrying female fetuses beyond this time and through term. Results highlight the importance of considering fetal sex as a moderator of contemporaneous and predictive associations between maternal cortisol and prenatal or postnatal development.