Here's a glimpse at some of the research going on at The Kinsey Institute.

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The birth of a child for many couples and families is a time of celebration. Yet, 10-15 percent of new mothers are overwhelmed with negative emotions and anxiety and may have trouble sleeping or lose their appetite for an extended period of time. It’s a condition known as postpartum depression (PPD), a condition that can interfere with a new mother's ability to care for her baby.

Dr. Heather Rupp, assistant scientist at The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction, is studying the mechanisms behind postpartum depression.

The prefrontal-limbic system is a part of the brain that may be involved in maternal behavior. New mothers generally show changes in the responsiveness of the prefrontal-limbic system to infants in ways that differ from women who have not just given birth. New mothers may also show less sensitivity to stress.

Additionally, women who suffer depression outside of the postpartum period show heightened responsiveness of the prefrontal-limbic system in response to stress, suggesting an overlap in circuits critical to maternal behavior and those altered by depression. It is unknown whether changes in this prefrontal limbic system are related to postpartum depression (PPD).

The mechanism for altered neural responsiveness in the postpartum period may involve oxytocin, which also occurs at higher levels in new mothers. It is hypothesized that this makes the new mother less affected, generally, by negative stressors from the outside world, but more responsive to her infant.

The study will involve three groups of women -- new mothers who are not depressed, new mothers with PPD, and women who have never given birth. Using fMRI technology, Rupp and her colleagues will compare brain activity in the three groups in response to a series of images. Some of the women will also receive an oxytocin nasal spray. The study results will provide a better understanding of brain activity in women with postpartum depression, and the role of oxytocin in the early stages of motherhood.

Co-investigators are Julia Heiman, director of the The Kinsey Institute; Thomas James, assistant professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Kinsey Institute research fellow; Dale Sengelaub, professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Kinsey Institute senior research fellow; Ellen Ketterson, professor in the Department of Biology and Kinsey Institute senior research fellow; and Beate Ditzen, researcher at The University of Zurich in Switzerland.