Table 1.

Overview of main correlates of neuroprotective factors for each developmental stage in animals (A) and humans (H).

Developmental Phase	Modulating Factors	Biochemical Changes	Psychosocial Correlates
Gestation	• Positive social interactions for future mothers (H) • Social support from partners (H)	• Reduced maternal HPA stress axis activation (H) • Increased plasma oxytocin in mothers (H) • Reduced systolic blood pressure (H) • Normal child’s body length and weight (H)	• Positive outcomes with respect to postpartum emotional distress and infant reactivity to novelty (H) • Promotion of mother-infant attachment formation (H)
Early infancy	• Skin-to-skin contact (H) • Massage (H) • Touch, warm temperature, and pleasant auditory stimuli (A) • Licking and grooming (in rats) (A)	• Increased vagal tone during the neonatal period (H) • Decreased plasma beta-endorphin and cortisol (H) • Increased endogenous oxytocin levels (A,H) • Enhanced levels of GRs (A) • Increased gastric motility and body weight (H) • Protective effects for early brain development (A,H)	• Increased mother–infant synchrony at 3 months in preterm infants (H) • High physiologic self-regulation, exploration, and cognition in preterm infants (H) • Reduced anxiety-like responses (A)
Youth	• Positive social experiences (A,H) • Compassionate feelings and interactions (H)	• Increased expression of BDNF (A) • Cortical gene expression of IGF1 (A) • Increased dendritic arborization in the medial prefrontal cortex (A) • Increased heart rate variability (H) • Increased neural survival and synaptogenesis (H)	• Increased emotion processing and learning (A,H) • Increased social learning and emotion regulation (A,H)
Adulthood	• Companionship of partner (A) • Social support during exposure to stress (H) • Self-generated feelings of compassion, social connection, and positive affects toward others (H)	• Enhanced oxytocin levels in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (A) • Regulation of cardiovascular reactivity and circulating levels of corticosterone (H) • Reduced cortisol reactivity (H) • Increased telomere length (H) • Reduction of C-reactive protein (H) • Reduced interleukin-6 levels after a stress task (H) • Dampening of HPA activation in response to stress (A,H)	• Decreased anxiety-like behaviors (A) • Protection against cognitive impairment (H)
Elderhood	• Social support (H) • Compassion-focused meditation (H) • Social interaction after stroke (A)	• Increased leukocyte telomere length (H) • Reduced proinflammatory NF-κB-related gene expression in circulating leukocytes (H) • Increased hypothalamic oxytocin gene expression (A) • Lack of age-related atrophy of brain grey matter (H) • Attenuated infarct size, neuroinflammation, and oxidative stress following experimental stroke (A)	• Reduced risk of mortality (H) • Attenuated dysfunctional responses to stress (H)