# Opioids and Maternal Brain-Behavior Adaptation During the Early Postpartum

> **NIH NIH R01** · STATE UNIVERSITY NEW YORK STONY BROOK · 2024 · $617,267

## Abstract

Project Summary
 R01 DA047336-01: Opioids and Maternal Brain-Behavior Adaptation During the Early Postpartum
 Opioid use disorder (OUD) is a fast-growing and devastating epidemic in the US, affecting a high
proportion of child-bearing women, with many suffering comorbid mood disorders. Untreated opioid use and
dependence may cause withdrawal symptoms, impair interpersonal interactions and may be associated with
polysubstance use and neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). These problems are linked to higher risks of
child maltreatment and costly utilization of foster care. Buprenorphine Treatment (BT) reduces withdrawal
and other deleterious effects of illicit opioids for peripartum women. However, the effects of BT on
maternal neurobiology and infant-oriented behaviors in the context of OUD are unknown. Preclinical
maternal brain-behavior research and human brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies have provided
a model of corticolimbic maternal caregiving neurocircuit (MCN) for parenting behaviors. The MCN includes
two reciprocally inhibiting subsystems for (1) maternal care, mediated by the medial preoptic area in
hypothalamus, ventral tegmental area, nucleus accumbens and ventral pallidum; and (2) maternal defense,
mediated by periaqueductal grey. For humans, the MCN regulates flexible responses to the demands of their
own infant – such as to the unique, ethologically salient own-baby cry – during the early postpartum period. We
aim to examine the human MCN and maternal behaviors in a group of mothers undergoing BT for OUD (n=80)
as compared to non-OUD depression Matched Controls (MC, n=80). All participant will have 2 MRI scans: T1
at 1-month postpartum and T2 at 4-month postpartum. We will measure maternal thoughts and behaviors –
including measures of infant-oriented care and defense – and polysubstance use and moods in all participants.
We will use multimodal neuroimaging methods to measure resting-state functional connectivity, neural
responses to own-baby cry, and gray matter volumes of MCN. Based on our preliminary research and
preclinical models we hypothesize that BT in OUD increases activity in both care and defense
subsystems of MCN and diminishes normal reciprocal inhibition between these subsystems, resulting
in potential disinhibition of maternal infant-oriented defensive thoughts and behaviors. Finally, we will
explore the effects of cumulative buprenorphine exposure (daily dosage x days on BT) on MCN physiology and
maternal behaviors within the group of BT mothers, controlling for polysubstance use and NAS. The proposed
research will elucidate the effects of BT in the context of OUD on the neurobiology of parenting - with
translational potential to optimize current approaches to treat mothers with OUD and suggest directions to best
manage postpartum mental health issues.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10666546
- **Project number:** 5R01DA047336-05
- **Recipient organization:** STATE UNIVERSITY NEW YORK STONY BROOK
- **Principal Investigator:** James Edward Swain
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $617,267
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-30 → 2026-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10666546

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10666546, Opioids and Maternal Brain-Behavior Adaptation During the Early Postpartum (5R01DA047336-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10666546. Licensed CC0.

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