Journal article

Cortisol Levels in Childhood Associated With Emergence of Attenuated Psychotic Symptoms in Early Adulthood

AE Cullen, HL Fisher, N Gullet, ER Fraser, RE Roberts, U Zahid, M To, NH Yap, PA Zunszain, CM Pariante, SJ Wood, P McGuire, RM Murray, V Mondelli, KR Laurens

Biological Psychiatry | ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC | Published : 2022

Abstract

Background: In individuals at clinical high-risk for psychosis, elevated cortisol levels predict subsequent onset of psychotic disorder. However, it is unclear whether cortisol alterations are evident at an earlier clinical stage and promote progression of psychosis expression. This study aimed to address this issue by investigating whether cortisol levels in childhood were associated with the emergence of attenuated psychotic symptoms in early adulthood. In exploratory analyses, we examined whether cortisol and psychosocial stress measures interacted in predicting attenuated psychotic symptoms. Methods: A sample of children (N = 109) enriched for psychosis risk factors were recruited at age..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Grants

Awarded by Department of Health and Social Care


Funding Acknowledgements

This research was supported by grants from a Sir Henry Wellcome Post-doctoral Fellowship (Grant No. 107395/Z/15/Z [to AEC] ) , a British Medical Association Margaret Temple Award 2012 (to HLF) , a National Institute forHealth Research Career Development Fellowship (Grant No. CDF/08/01/015 [to KRL] ) , a Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Young Investigator Award (to KRL) , a British Medical Association Margaret Temple Award 2006 (to KRL) , and BIAL Foundation research grants (Grant Nos. 35/06 [to KRL and RMM] and 192/12 [to KRL and RER] ) , a Young Investigator Grant awarded by the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (Grant No. 28336 [to AEC] ) , the Evelyn Toll Family Foundation (to AEC) , the Economic and Social Research Council Centre for Society and Mental Health at King's College London (Grant No. ES/S012567/1 [to HLF] ) , a Ph.D. scholarship supported by Lord Leverhulme's Charitable Trust (to UZ) , National Institute for Health Research Senior Investigator Awards (CMP and PM) , and an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship (Grant No. FT170100294 [KRL] ) .