Research exploring the underlying neuroanatomical correlates of early motherhood seems to suggest that the period after giving birth is marked by tissue increases in the mother's brain. While some studies point to the amygdala as one of the areas undergoing postpartum changes, existing analyses did not discriminate between the different subregions of this functionally heterogeneous structure. Thus, to further extend this understudied field of research and to better understand the potential role of the amygdala when transitioning to motherhood, we applied an advanced region-of-interest technique that enabled us to analyze the amygdala as a whole as well as its different subareas, specifically the left and right centromedian (CM), laterobasal (LB), and superficial (SF) regions. Comparing the brains of 14 healthy women between immediate postpartum (within 1–2 days of childbirth) and late postpartum (at 4–6 weeks after childbirth), we revealed increases of the amygdala. However, effects manifested differentially across subareas, with particularly strong effects for the SF region, moderate effects for the CM region, and no effects for the LB region. These findings might reflect region-specific adaptations of the mother's brain tuning into the distinct and ever-changing needs of a newborn, either as a cause for it or as a consequence thereof.

中文翻译：

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产后即刻和晚期杏仁核显着增加：浅表次区域内的显着影响

探索早期母亲的潜在神经解剖学相关性的研究似乎表明，分娩后的时期以母亲大脑中的组织增加为标志。虽然一些研究指出杏仁核是产后变化的区域之一，但现有分析并未区分这种功能异质结构的不同亚区域。因此，为了进一步扩展这一未充分研究的研究领域并更好地了解杏仁核在过渡到母亲时的潜在作用，我们应用了一种先进的感兴趣区域技术，使我们能够分析整个杏仁核以及它的不同子区域，特别是左右着丝点 (CM)、基底外侧 (LB) 和浅表 (SF) 区域。比较 14 名健康女性在产后立即（分娩后 1-2 天内）和产后晚期（分娩后 4-6 周）的大脑，我们发现杏仁核有所增加。然而，不同子区域的影响表现不同，SF 区域影响特别强，CM 区域影响中等，LB 区域没有影响。这些发现可能反映了母亲大脑对新生儿独特和不断变化的需求的特定区域适应，无论是作为原因还是结果。并且对 LB 区域没有影响。这些发现可能反映了母亲大脑对新生儿独特和不断变化的需求的特定区域适应，无论是作为原因还是结果。并且对 LB 区域没有影响。这些发现可能反映了母亲大脑对新生儿独特和不断变化的需求的特定区域适应，无论是作为原因还是结果。