Maternal Childhood Adversity and Infant Epigenetic Aging: Moderation by Restless Sleep During Pregnancy.

Maternal exposure to childhood adversity is associated with detrimental health outcomes throughout the lifespan and may have implications for offspring. Evidence links maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to detrimental birth outcomes, yet the impact on the infant's epigenome is unclear. Moreover, maternal sleep habits during pregnancy may influence this association. Here, we explore whether restless sleep during pregnancy moderates the association between exposure to maternal childhood adversity and infant epigenetic age acceleration in 332 mother-infant dyads (56% female; 39% Black; 25% Hispanic). During the 2nd trimester, mothers self-reported childhood adversity and past-week restless sleep; DNA methylation from umbilical vein endothelial cells was used to estimate five epigenetic clocks. Multivariable linear regression was used to test study hypotheses. Despite no evidence of main effects, there was evidence of an interaction between maternal ACEs and restless sleep in predicting infant epigenetic age acceleration using the EPIC Gestational Age clock. Only infants whose mothers reported exposure to both ACEs and restless sleep demonstrated accelerated epigenetic aging. Results provide preliminary evidence that maternal childhood adversity and sleep may influence the infant epigenome.

Sleep Duration Polygenic Risk and Phenotype: Associations with Biomarkers of Accelerated Aging in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging.

We sought to explore whether genetic risk for, and self-reported, short sleep are associated with biological aging and whether age and sex moderate these associations. Participants were a subset of individuals from the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging who had complete data on self-reported sleep (n = 567) or genotype (n = 367). Outcomes included: Intrinsic Horvath age, Hannum age, PhenoAge, GrimAge, and DNAm-based estimates of plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and granulocyte count. Results demonstrated that polygenic risk for short sleep was positively associated with granulocyte count; compared to those reporting <6 hr sleep, those reporting >7 hr demonstrated faster PhenoAge and GrimAge acceleration and higher estimated PAI-1. Polygenic risk for short sleep and self-reported sleep duration interacted with age and sex in their associations with some of the outcomes. Findings highlight that polygenic risk for short sleep and self-reported long sleep is associated with variation in the epigenetic landscape and subsequently aging.

Longitudinal patterns of adversity from childhood to adolescence: Examining associations with mental health through emerging adulthood using a random-intercept latent transition analysis.

Childhood adversity can have detrimental impacts on life course mental and physical health. Timing, nature, severity, and chronicity of adversity are thought to explain much of the variability in health and developmental outcomes among exposed individuals. The current study seeks to characterize heterogeneity in adverse experiences over time at the individual, family, and neighborhood domains in a cohort of predominantly Black children (85% Black and 15% White, 46.2% girls, 67.2% free/reduced lunch in first grade), and to examine associations with mental health from sixth grade to age 26. Participants were part of a randomized universal preventive interventions trial in first grade with prospective follow-up through early adulthood. Separate models characterized heterogeneity in adversity in elementary, middle, and high schools. Changes in adversity over time and relationships with mental health (anxiety, depression, suicidal behaviors) were investigated using a random-intercept latent transition analysis (RI-LTA). We identified three-class solutions in early childhood, middle school, and high school. Generally, both a higher and a lower poly-adversity class were observed at each time point, with varying nature of adversity characterized by the third class. RI-LTA indicated prevalent within-individual changes in adverse exposure over time and differential associations with mental health and suicidal behaviors. Results suggest that treating adverse exposures as a static construct may limit the ability to characterize salient variation over time. Identifying complexity in adverse experiences and their relation to health and well-being is key for developing and implementing effective prevention and early intervention efforts to mitigate negative effects through the life course. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Designing and Validating a Novel Method for Assessing Delay Discounting Associated With Health Behaviors: Ecological Momentary Assessment Study.

BACKGROUND: Delay discounting quantifies an individual's preference for smaller, short-term rewards over larger, long-term rewards and represents a transdiagnostic factor associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. Rather than a fixed trait, delay discounting may vary over time and place, influenced by individual and contextual factors. Continuous, real-time measurement could inform adaptive interventions for various health conditions. OBJECTIVE: The goals of this paper are 2-fold. First, we present and validate a novel, short, ecological momentary assessment (EMA)-based delay discounting scale we developed. Second, we assess this tool's ability to reproduce known associations between delay discounting and health behaviors (ie, substance use and craving) using a convenience-based sample. METHODS: Participants (N=97) were adults (age range 18-71 years), recruited on social media. In phase 1, data were collected on participant sociodemographic characteristics, and delay discounting was evaluated via the traditional Monetary Choice Questionnaire (MCQ) and our novel method (ie, 7-item time-selection and 7-item monetary-selection scales). During phase 2 (approximately 6 months later), participants completed the MCQ, our novel delay discounting measures, and health outcomes questions. The correlations between our method and the traditional MCQ within and across phases were examined. For scale reduction, a random number of items were iteratively selected, and the correlation between the full and random scales was assessed. We then examined the association between our time- and monetary-selection scales assessed during phase 2 and the percentage of assessments that participants endorsed using or craving alcohol, tobacco, or cannabis. RESULTS: In total, 6 of the 7 individual time-selection items were highly correlated with the full scale (r>0.89). Both time-selection (r=0.71; P<.001) and monetary-selection (r=0.66; P<.001) delay discounting rates had high test-retest reliability across phases 1 and 2. Phase 1 MCQ delay discounting function highly correlated with phase 1 (r=0.76; P<.001) and phase 2 (r=0.45; P<.001) time-selection delay discounting scales. One or more randomly chosen time-selection items were highly correlated with the full scale (r>0.94). Greater delay discounting measured via the time-selection measure (adjusted mean difference=5.89, 95% CI 1.99-9.79), but not the monetary-selection scale (adjusted mean difference=-0.62, 95% CI -3.57 to 2.32), was associated with more past-hour tobacco use endorsement in follow-up surveys. CONCLUSIONS: This study evaluated a novel EMA-based scale's ability to validly and reliably assess delay discounting. By measuring delay discounting with fewer items and in situ via EMA in natural environments, researchers may be better able to identify individuals at risk for poor health outcomes.

Maternal adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and offspring imprinted gene DMR methylation at birth.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) contribute to numerous negative health outcomes across the life course and across generations. Here, we extend prior work by examining the association of maternal ACEs, and their interaction with financial stress and discrimination, with methylation status within eight differentially methylated regions (DMRs) in imprinted domains in newborns. ACEs, financial stress during pregnancy, and experience of discrimination were self-reported among 232 pregnant women. DNA methylation was assessed at PEG10/SGCE, NNAT, IGF2, H19, PLAGL1, PEG3, MEG3-IG, and DLK1/MEG3 regulatory sequences using pyrosequencing. Using multivariable linear regression models, we found evidence to suggest that financial stress was associated with hypermethylation of MEG3-IG in non-Hispanic White newborns; discrimination was associated with hypermethylation of IGF2 and NNAT in Hispanic newborns, and with hypomethylation of PEG3 in non-Hispanic Black newborns. We also found evidence that maternal ACEs interacted with discrimination to predict offspring PLAGL1 altered DMR methylation, in addition to interactions between maternal ACEs score and discrimination predicting H19 and SGCE/PEG10 altered methylation in non-Hispanic White newborns. However, these interactions were not statistically significant after multiple testing corrections. Findings from this study suggest that maternal ACEs, discrimination, and financial stress are associated with newborn aberrant methylation in imprinted gene regions.

Associations of polygenic risk scores for smoking heaviness and lifetime cannabis use with tobacco and cannabis co-use trajectories among African Americans.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to identify distinct trajectories of tobacco, cannabis, and their co-use among African Americans, and to investigate whether these patterns were associated with polygenic risk scores (PRS) for tobacco and cannabis use. METHOD: Participants (N=428 participants; 50.9% male) were initially recruited for an elementary school-based prevention in a Mid-Atlantic city when they were in first grade. From ages 14-26, participants reported on their frequency of tobacco and cannabis use in the past year during annual assessments. DNA was collected from participants at age 21. PRS for smoking heaviness (i.e., cigarettes per day) and lifetime cannabis use were created based on genome-wide association study results derived from Liu et al. (2019) and Pasman et al. (2018), respectively. RESULTS: We identified five distinct trajectories of tobacco and cannabis co-use, including (1) Low Tobacco and Cannabis Use, (2) Adolescent Limited Tobacco and Cannabis Use, (3) Experimental Cannabis, Young Adult Increasing Tobacco, (4) Experimental Tobacco, Young Adult Increasing Cannabis, and (5) High, Chronic Tobacco and Cannabis Use. Compared to the Low Tobacco and Cannabis Use subgroup, individuals in the High, Chronic Tobacco and Cannabis Use subgroup had greater PRS for smoking heaviness, and individuals in the Experimental Cannabis, Young Adult Increasing Tobacco subgroup had higher PRS for lifetime cannabis use. CONCLUSIONS: Polygenic risk for lifetime cannabis use and smoking heaviness is associated with the developmental progression of tobacco and cannabis co-use among African Americans, furthering knowledge on the etiology of co-use in this population.

An epigenetic clock for gestational age based on human umbilical vein endothelial cells from a diverse population of newborns.

Background: Epigenetic clocks are emerging as a useful tool in many areas of research. Many epigenetic clocks have been developed for adults; however, there are fewer clocks focused on newborns and most are trained using blood from European ancestry populations. In this study, we built an epigenetic clock based on primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells from a racially and ethnically diverse population. Results: Using human umbilical vein endothelial cell [HUVEC]-derived DNA, we calculated epigenetic gestational age using 83 CpG sites selected through elastic net regression. In this study with newborns from different racial/ethnic identities, epigenetic gestational age and clinical gestational age were more highly correlated (r = 0.85), than epigenetic clocks built from adult and other pediatric populations. The correlation was also higher than clocks based on blood samples from newborns with European ancestry. We also found that birth weight was positively associated with epigenetic gestational age acceleration (EGAA), while NICU admission was associated with lower EGAA. Newborns self-identified as Hispanic or non-Hispanic Black had lower EGAA than self-identified as non-Hispanic White. Conclusions: Epigenetic gestational age can be used to estimate clinical gestational age and may help index neonatal development. Caution should be exercised when using epigenetic clocks built from adults with children, especially newborns. We highlight the importance of cell type-specific epigenetic clocks and general pan tissue epigenetic clocks derived from a large racially and ethnically diverse population.

Expanding on Threat and Deprivation: Empirical Examination of Adversity Dimensions and Psychiatric Outcomes Among Emerging Adults.

Dimensional models of adversity, whereby experiences lie along dimensions of threat and deprivation, are increasingly popular; however, their empirical validation is limited. In a sample of emerging adults (N=1,662; M age =20.72; 53% female; 72% Black), we conducted exploratory factor analyses using adversities derived from items probing family relationships and a validated assessment of traumatic events. Resulting factors were used to test associations with odds of lifetime diagnosis of a substance use disorder, other mental health disorders, and suicide attempt. Results supported a four-factor solution: threat (non-betrayal), emotional deprivation, sexual assault, and threat (betrayal). Threat (betrayal) summary scores were most strongly associated with increased odds of substance use and other disorders, whereas sexual assault was most strongly associated increased odds of lifetime suicide attempt. Findings provide some empirical support for categorizing adversity along dimensions of threat and deprivation. However, it also suggests the possibility of further divisions within these dimensions.

Financial stress as a mediator of the association between maternal childhood adversity and infant birth weight, gestational age, and NICU admission.

BACKGROUND: To examine whether financial stress during pregnancy mediates the association between maternal exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and three birth outcomes (i.e., gestational age, birth weight, and admission to the neonatal intensive care unit [NICU]). METHODS: Data were obtained from a prospective cohort study of pregnant women and their infants in Florida and North Carolina. Mothers (n = 531; Mage at delivery = 29.8 years; 38% Black; 22% Hispanic) self-reported their exposure to childhood adversity and financial stress during pregnancy. Data on infant gestational age at birth, birth weight, and admission to the NICU were obtained from medical records within 7 days of delivery. Mediation analysis was used to test study hypotheses, adjusting for study cohort, maternal race, ethnicity, body mass index, and tobacco use during pregnancy. RESULTS: There was evidence of an indirect association between maternal exposure to childhood adversity and infant gestational age at birth (b = -0.03, 95% CI = -0.06 - -0.01) and infant birth weight (b = -8.85, 95% CI = -18.60 - -1.28) such that higher maternal ACE score was associated with earlier gestational age and lower infant birth weight through increases in financial distress during pregnancy. There was no evidence of an indirect association between maternal exposure to childhood adversity and infant NICU admission (b = 0.01, 95% CI = -0.02-0.08). CONCLUSIONS: Findings demonstrate one pathway linking maternal childhood adversity to a potentially preterm birth or shorter gestational age, in addition to low birth weight at delivery, and present an opportunity for targeted intervention to support expecting mothers who face financial stress.

Temporal association of pre-pandemic perceived social support with psychological resilience and mental well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic among people with a history of injection drug use.

BACKGROUND: There are limited data on whether modifiable social factors foster psychological resilience and mental well-being among people who use drugs following Big Events. We examined the temporal association of pre-pandemic perceived social support with psychological resilience and negative mental health symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic among people with a history of injection drug use. METHODS: Between June and September 2020, we conducted a telephone survey among 545 participants in the AIDS Linked to the IntraVenous Experience (ALIVE) study: a community-based cohort of adults with a history of injection drug use. Leveraging data from study visits in 2018-early 2020, associations of pre-pandemic perceived social support with psychological resilience scores (range=1-5) and the probability of negative mental health symptoms during the pandemic were assessed using multivariable linear and modified Poisson regression models, respectively. RESULTS: Participants' median age was 58 years, 38.2% were female, 83.3% identified as Black, and 30.3% were living with HIV. During the pandemic, 14.5% had low (<3) resilience scores, 36.1% experienced anxiety, and 35.8% reported increased loneliness. Compared to participants in the lowest tertile of pre-pandemic social support, participants in the highest tertile had higher mean resilience scores (ß = 0.27 [95% CI = 0.12, 0.43]), a lower probability of anxiety (prevalence ratio [PR] = 0.71 [95% CI = 0.52, 0.96]), and a lower probability of increased loneliness (PR = 0.62 [95% CI = 0.45, 0.84]). CONCLUSIONS: Pre-pandemic perceived social support was associated with greater psychological resilience and generally better mental well-being during the pandemic. Interventions that improve social support may foster psychological resilience and protect the mental well-being of people who use drugs, especially during periods of social disruption.

Adverse childhood experiences and sleep links in a predominantly Black sample of overweight adults.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have been associated with worse sleep, but existing literature is limited by use of predominantly White samples, lack of objective sleep measurement, and use of non-standardized questionnaires. We investigated associations between retrospectively reported ACEs and sleep in adulthood in a sample of 43 adults 20-53 years of age, free from chronic conditions, with a Body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 (Mean age = 33.14 [SD = 10.05], 74% female, 54% Black). Sleep efficiency (SE), total sleep time (TST), wake after sleep onset (WASO), and sleep onset latency (SOL), were measured by actigraphy and daily diary. Global sleep quality and insomnia severity were measured by questionnaires. Sleepiness, fatigue, and sleep quality were also measured by daily diary. Adjusting for demographic characteristics and BMI, ACEs were significantly associated with poorer global sleep quality and diary measures of greater daytime sleepiness, fatigue, and poorer sleep quality. There were no significant associations between ACEs and SE, TST, WASO, or SOL measured by diary or actigraphy. Findings suggest that ACEs are associated with worse sleep perception and daytime functioning in adulthood. Larger prospective studies are needed to replicate these findings, examine racial/ethnic differences, and determine temporal associations between ACEs, sleep, and health (e.g., BMI).

Adverse childhood experiences and comorbidity in a cohort of people who have injected drugs.

BACKGROUND: Childhood adversity is associated with the onset of harmful adult substance use and related health problems, but most research on adversity has been conducted in general population samples. This study describes the prevalence of adverse childhood experiences in a cohort of people who have injected drugs and examines the association of these adverse experiences with medical comorbidities in adulthood. METHODS: Six hundred fifty three adults were recruited from a 30-year cohort study on the health of people who have injected drugs living in and around Baltimore, Maryland (Median age = 47.5, Interquartile Range = 42.3-52.3 years; 67.3% male, 81.1% Black). Adverse childhood experiences were assessed retrospectively in 2018 via self-report interview. Lifetime medical comorbidities were ascertained via self-report of a provider diagnosis. Multinomial logistic regression with generalized estimating equations was used to examine the association between adversity and comorbid conditions, controlling for potential confounders. RESULTS: Two hundred twelve participants (32.9%) reported 0-1 adverse childhood experiences, 215 (33.3%) reported 2-4, 145 (22.5%) reported 5-9, and 72 (11.1%) reported ≥10. Neighborhood violence was the most commonly reported adversity (48.5%). Individuals with ≥10 adverse childhood experiences had higher odds for reporting ≥3 comorbidities (Adjusted Odds Ratio = 2.9, 95% CI = 1.2 - 6.8, p = .01). CONCLUSIONS: Among people who have injected drugs, adverse childhood experiences were common and associated with increased occurrence of self-reported medical comorbidities. Findings highlight the persistent importance of adversity for physical health even in a population where all members have used drugs and there is a high burden of comorbidity.

Epigenome-wide association analyses of active injection drug use.

BACKGROUND: Injection drug use (IDU) is prevalent in the US and is associated with substantial risk of blood-borne infections, morbidity, and mortality. However, the spectrum of its biologic effects on DNA methylation in blood is not well characterized. METHODS: 401 participants (Mage = 47.9; 68% male; 90% African American) over several timepoints (1054 visits) were drawn from a longitudinal cohort of people who inject drugs. DNA methylation was measured among buffy coat samples from the 1054 visits. Compared to samples collected after ≥ 6 months of abstinence, separate EWAS were conducted for active injecting of any drug, quantitative injection frequency, injecting of heroin and injecting of cocaine. Linear mixed effect models were used and analyses were adjusted for repeated measurements and key technical, biological, and sociodemographic characteristics. RESULTS: We found epigenome-wide significant CpG sites associated with active injection (cg10636246, AIM2, p = 2.33 × 10-8) and injection intensity (cg13117953, p = 4.30 × 10-8). We found converging evidence that cg10636246 (AIM2), cg23110600 (PRKCH), cg03546163 (FKBP5), cg04590956 (GMCL1), and cg16317961 (MAPRE2) were among the top 0.1% significantly differentially methylated CpG sites shared across the five EWAS. Top ranked CpGs among the five EWAS were enriched (p < 0.0001) in AIM2 inflammasome complex, T cell migration, insulin regulation and epinephrine synthesis pathways. During periods of active injection, samples had 0.46 years of epigenetic age acceleration relative to the abstinence period, within the same subject (p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: Findings from this study demonstrate modest, common, and specific effects on DNA methylation during a relatively short time between periods of active drug injection and abstinence.

Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences at Age 5 Years and Healthcare Utilization at Age 9 Years.

OBJECTIVE: To determine associations between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) at age 5 years and healthcare utilization patterns at age 9 years. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a secondary analysis using longitudinal data from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study. Caregivers (n = 2521) provided data on their child's ACEs at age 5 years and on 4 types of healthcare utilization at age 9 years: past-year well visits, dental visits, primary care sick visits for injury or illness, and emergency room (ER) visits. Logistic regression analysis was used to examine the association between ACEs at age 5 and each type of healthcare utilization, adjusting for relevant sociodemographic covariates. RESULTS: Among the 2521 children (51% male, 48% Non-Hispanic Black), 77% had ≥1 ACE at age 5. Children with ≥4 ACEs had lower odds of a dental visit (aOR, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.29-0.91) and higher odds of a primary care sick visit (aOR, 1.77; 95% CI, 1.20-2.64) and an ER visit (aOR, 1.70; 95% CI, 1.11-2.59) compared with children with no reported ACEs. CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrate suboptimal healthcare utilization patterns among families with ACEs and indicate a need for targeted interventions that support appropriate healthcare utilization for children who endure adversity.

Brief Report: A Novel Digital Therapeutic that Combines Applied Behavior Analysis with Gaze-Contingent Eye Tracking to Improve Emotion Recognition in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

This study examined the feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of a video game-based digital therapeutic combining applied behavior analysis techniques and gaze-contingent eye tracking to target emotion recognition in youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Children aged 4-14 years with ASD were randomized to complete Lookware™ (n = 25) or a control video game (n = 29). Results from a 2 × 2 mixed ANOVA revealed that children in the intervention condition demonstrated significant improvements in emotion recognition from pre- to post-intervention compared to children in the control condition, F(1,52) = 17.48, p < 0.001. Children and staff perceived high feasibility and acceptability of Lookware™. Study results demonstrated the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of Lookware™.

Differential expression of NPAS4 in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex following opioid overdose.

Background: Although preclinical models reveal the neurobiological pathways altered through opioid abuse, comprehensive assessments of gene expression in human brain samples are needed. Moreover, less is known about gene expression in response to fatal overdose. The primary goal of the present study was to compare gene expression in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) between brain samples of individuals who died of acute opioid intoxication and group-matched controls. Methods: Postmortem tissue samples of the DLPFC from 153 deceased individuals (Mage  = 35.4; 62% male; 77% European ancestry). Study groups included 72 brain samples from individuals who died of acute opioid intoxication, 53 psychiatric controls, and 28 normal controls. Whole transcriptome RNA-sequencing was used to generate exon counts, and differential expression was tested using limma-voom. Analyses were adjusted for relevant sociodemographic characteristics, technical covariates, and cryptic relatedness using quality surrogate variables. Weighted correlation network analysis and gene set enrichment analyses also were conducted. Results: Two genes were differentially expressed in opioid samples compared to control samples. The top gene, NPAS4, was downregulated in opioid samples (log2FC = -2.47, adj. p = .049) and has been implicated in opioid, cocaine, and methamphetamine use. Weighted correlation network analysis revealed 15 gene modules associated with opioid overdose, though no intramodular hub genes were related to opioid overdose, nor were pathways related to opioid overdose enriched for differential expression. Conclusions: Results provide preliminary evidence that NPAS4 is implicated in opioid overdose, and more research is needed to understand its role in opioid abuse and associated outcomes.

Associations of adverse childhood experiences with adolescent total sleep time, social jetlag, and insomnia symptoms.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with sleep problems in adulthood, but less research has focused on ACEs and sleep during adolescence. The goal of the present study was to explore associations between ACEs reported at ages 5 and 9 years, and sleep (ie, total sleep time (TST), social jetlag, and insomnia symptoms) at age 15. METHODS: Participants comprised 817 families from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a nationally representative sample of children born to unwed parents. Number of ACEs was constructed from primary-caregiver reports at ages 5 and 9, and sleep measures (ie, TST, social jetlag, and insomnia symptoms) were derived from adolescent-reported sleep behaviors at age 15. RESULTS: Adjusting for sex and race/ethnicity, ACEs at age 9 were associated with longer weekend TST (B = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.04, 0.28), more social jetlag (B = 0.17, 95% CI = 0.07, 0.27), and higher odds of trouble falling asleep ≥3 times per week (Odds Ratio = 1.24, 95% CI = 1.01, 1.53). In females only, ACEs were associated with greater school night TST (B = 0.12, 95% CI = 0.01, 0.23). Results were similar after further adjustment for symptoms of anxiety and depression. Associations among ACEs, social jetlag, and insomnia symptoms appeared strongest among Non-Hispanic Black adolescents. CONCLUSION: ACEs appear to be related to multiple aspects of sleep in adolescence. Additional research is needed to confirm these associations and examine the extent to which sleep disturbances associated with ACEs account for later health outcomes.

Positive Functioning Moderates the Association between Classes of Adverse Childhood Experiences and Adolescent Depressive Symptoms.

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are associated with short- and long-term psychological health, but most research, to date, relies on retrospective self-reports during adulthood to test this association. Moreover, there is limited evidence on how ACEs group together and differentially influence mental health, as well as factors that promote positive outcomes in the context of ACEs. The present study used secondary data of children and their biological parents from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N = 3,487; M age = 9.30, SD = .40 years; 52% male) to test if meaningful subgroups of ACE exposure existed at age 9, and if positive adolescent functioning moderated the association between ACE exposure class membership at age 9 and adolescent depressive symptoms at age 15. Results revealed three distinct classes: an impoverished and interpersonally abused class, a single-parent and impoverished class, and a low adversity class. Positive adolescent functioning moderated the association between class membership and depressive symptoms. Specifically, individuals in the impoverished and interpersonally abused and low adversity classes had the highest levels of depressive symptoms at low levels of positive functioning, and the lowest levels of depressive symptoms at high levels of positive functioning. Results support prior evidence that children experiencing interpersonal abuse group together into a latent class and provide a nuanced perspective on factors that promote positive functioning in the context of various constellations of ACEs.

The Association Between Adverse Childhood Experiences and Child Telomere Length: Examining Self-Regulation as a Behavioral Mediator.

Childhood adversity is linked to shortened telomere length (TL), but behavioral indicators of telomere attrition remain unclear. This study examined the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and child TL, and if ACEs were indirectly associated with TL through children's self-regulatory abilities (i.e., effortful control and self-control). Hypotheses were tested using national data from teachers, parents, and their children (N = 2,527; Mage  = 9.35, SD = .36 years). More ACEs were uniquely associated with short TL, and low self-control mediated the association between more ACEs and short TL. While longitudinal studies are needed to strengthen claims of causation, this study identifies a pathway from ACEs to TL that should be explored further.