Developmental responses to early‐life adversity: Evolutionary and mechanistic perspectives

Adverse ecological and social conditions during early life are known to influence development, with rippling effects that may explain variation in adult health and fitness. The adaptive function of such developmental plasticity, however, remains relatively untested in long‐lived animals, resulting i...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Evolutionary anthropology 2019-09, Vol.28 (5), p.249-266
Main Authors: Lu, Amy, Petrullo, Lauren, Carrera, Sofia, Feder, Jacob, Schneider‐Crease, India, Snyder‐Mackler, Noah
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation, Biological
Adaptive behavior
Adversity
Animals
Anthropology, Physical
Biological Evolution
Birds
developmental constraints
developmental plasticity
Female
Glucocorticoids
Growth and Development
Humans
Immediate
Male
Mammals
maternal capital
Maternal Health
microbiome
Microbiota
Models, Biological
Mothers
Plasticity
predictive adaptive responses
Primates
Social conditions & trends
Stress, Physiological
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Summary:Adverse ecological and social conditions during early life are known to influence development, with rippling effects that may explain variation in adult health and fitness. The adaptive function of such developmental plasticity, however, remains relatively untested in long‐lived animals, resulting in much debate over which evolutionary models are most applicable. Furthermore, despite the promise of clinical interventions that might alleviate the health consequences of early‐life adversity, research on the proximate mechanisms governing phenotypic responses to adversity have been largely limited to studies on glucocorticoids. Here, we synthesize the current state of research on developmental plasticity, discussing both ultimate and proximate mechanisms. First, we evaluate the utility of adaptive models proposed to explain developmental responses to early‐life adversity, particularly for long‐lived mammals such as humans. In doing so, we highlight how parent‐offspring conflict complicates our understanding of whether mothers or offspring benefit from these responses. Second, we discuss the role of glucocorticoids and a second physiological system—the gut microbiome—that has emerged as an additional, clinically relevant mechanism by which early‐life adversity can influence development. Finally, we suggest ways in which nonhuman primates can serve as models to study the effects of early‐life adversity, both from evolutionary and clinical perspectives.
ISSN:1060-1538
1520-6505
DOI:10.1002/evan.21791