Neurobiological mechanisms of motherhood: From hormones and maternal behavior to perinatal mental health

Motherhood induces profound physiological, psychological and behavioral changes. Maternal behaviors, including lactation, caregiving, attachment, bonding, and protection are essential for offspring survival and development. These behaviors are governed by complex neurobiological mechanisms involving dynamic changes in neural circuits, hormones, and neuropeptides. Current technologies such as neuroimaging, optogenetics, and chemogenetics have advanced our understanding of maternal behaviors and related brain circuits, including the medial preoptic area, amygdala, periaqueductal gray, and ventral tegmental area. Single-cell RNA sequencing now provides deeper insight into the transcriptomic changes underlying these adaptations. Neuropeptides such as oxytocin, prolactin, and vasopressin modulate maternal motivation and emotional regulation, allowing mothers to adapt their behaviors to respond to their infants’ needs.

Animal models, particularly rodents, offer critical insights into the neurobiology of motherhood. Experimental manipulations of hormonal states and neural activity in maternal rodents have identified key mechanisms that drive maternal caregiving and protective behaviors. These findings contribute to a broader understanding of how the maternal brain adapts to support offspring survival. Epigenetic mechanisms also play a crucial role, as early-life experiences and environmental factors shape gene expression patterns that influence caregiving tendencies. Understanding how epigenetic modifications impact maternal brain plasticity may offer novel insights into intergenerational transmission of caregiving behaviors.

Postpartum mental health disorders significantly impact new mothers with conditions such as postpartum depression, anxiety, and obsessive-compulsive disorders disrupting maternal well-being and the parent-child bond. Hormonal dysregulation and altered neural circuits within the maternal brain may underlie these disorders, yet the precise mechanisms linking hormonal changes to neural circuit dysfunction in postpartum mental disorders remain poorly understood. Further research is needed to also distinguish the neural basis of postpartum-specific mood disorders from general depression or OCD.

By integrating findings from both human and animal studies, this Research Topic aims to clarify the neurobiological basis of motherhood, from hormonal regulation to maternal behavior and perinatal mental health. These insights may inform therapeutic strategies for postpartum disorders.

This collection aims to uncover how hormones, neural circuits, and neuropeptides shape maternal behaviors. In the short term, we aim to deepen our understanding of the neurobiological foundations of motherhood by examining the dynamic interactions between hormones, neural circuits, and maternal behaviors, through both human and animal models’ studies. Transcriptomic and epigenetic analyses will provide deeper insights into molecular-level adaptations. The long-term goal is to identify biomarkers and therapeutic targets for perinatal mental health disorders, including depression and OCD, leading to personalized interventions that enhance maternal well-being and child development.

We welcome contributions from human and animal models’ research across the following topics:

• Neural basis regulating maternal care, nurturing, attachment, protection, and other behaviors that contribute to offspring survival and development.

• Hormonal and neuropeptidergic regulation of maternal motivation, emotion, and stress responses.

• Impact of maternal mental health disorders (e.g. postpartum depression, anxiety, and OCD) on regulation of maternal motivation, emotion, and stress responses.

• Epigenetic and transcriptomic mechanisms underlying maternal brain plasticity and caregiving behaviors.

• Understudied neural circuits involved in maternal cognition, sensory processing, and decision-making

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• ... View all formats

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Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Systematic Review

Keywords: perinatal, mental health, postpartum, peripartum, OCD, hormones, neural circuits, neuropeptides, transcriptomic, epigenetic, biomarkers, depression, anxiety

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.