FIGURE 3.

The relationship between baseline CSF log kynurenic acid/kynurenine ratio (KYNA/KYN) and CSF log anthranilic acid (ANTH) as a function of early adversity. A positive correlation was observed at baseline between the CSF log KYNA/KYN and CSF log ANTH, specifically in VFD subjects (N = 9) in comparison to the non-correlation in normatively reared controls (N = 14). There was a significant VFD*KYNA/KYN interactive effect (F₁,₁₉ = 13.91; p = 0.0014) rendering an effect size (partial η² = 0.42) that is three-fold greater than a large effect size, deemed as 0.14. The data suggest a close synchronization of the neuroprotective and neuroxic arms—CSF ANTH serves as a proxy for the latter—within the kynurenine pathway following the VFD form of early life stress. Abbreviations: VFD, variable foraging demand; KYNA, kynurenic acid; KYN, kynurenine; CSF, cerebrospinal fluid; ANTH, anthranilic acid.