Human fetal development has been associated with brain health at later stages. It is unknown whether growth in utero, as indexed by birth weight (BW), relates consistently to lifespan brain characteristics and changes, and to what extent these influences are of a genetic or environmental nature. Here we show remarkably stable and lifelong positive associations between BW and cortical surface area and volume across and within developmental, aging and lifespan longitudinal samples (N = 5794, 4–82 y of age, w/386 monozygotic twins, followed for up to 8.3 y w/12,088 brain MRIs). In contrast, no consistent effect of BW on brain changes was observed. Partly environmental effects were indicated by analysis of twin BW discordance. In conclusion, the influence of prenatal growth on cortical topography is stable and reliable through the lifespan. This early-life factor appears to influence the brain by association of brain reserve, rather than brain maintenance. Thus, fetal influences appear omnipresent in the spacetime of the human brain throughout the human lifespan. Optimizing fetal growth may increase brain reserve for life, also in aging.

中文翻译：

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胎儿对人脑一生的影响

人类胎儿发育与后期的大脑健康有关。目前尚不清楚以出生体重（BW）为指标的子宫内生长是否与终生大脑特征和变化始终相关，以及这些影响在多大程度上具有遗传或环境性质。在这里，我们显示了在发育、衰老和寿命纵向样本中，体重与皮质表面积和体积之间存在非常稳定和终生的正相关关系（N = 5794，4-82 岁，w/386 个同卵双胞胎，跟踪高达 8.3 yw/12,088 脑部 MRI）。相比之下，没有观察到 BW 对大脑变化的一致影响。通过对双胞胎体重不一致的分析表明了部分环境影响。总之，产前生长对皮质地形的影响在整个生命周期中是稳定可靠的。这种早期生命因素似乎通过大脑储备的关联而不是大脑的维护来影响大脑。因此，在人的一生中，胎儿的影响在人脑的时空中无处不在。优化胎儿生长可能会增加终生的大脑储备，甚至在衰老过程中也是如此。