The Silent Toll of Childhood Trauma: How Inflammation Alters the Brain for Life
Childhood trauma doesn’t just affect emotional well-being; it leaves a lasting biological imprint. In a new interview with Genomic Press published in Brain Medicine, Dr. Sara Poletti, a leading researcher at IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele in Milan, outlines how early adversity can reprogram the immune system and reshape brain structure, increasing a person’s vulnerability to psychiatric disorders later in life.
Dr. Poletti’s work reveals that the immune system plays a critical role in mental health and that childhood trauma can cause chronic neuroinflammation that persists for decades.
These biological changes are not just markers of past suffering; they’re predictive tools. Her research has identified specific inflammatory biomarkers tied to early adversity, offering the potential for earlier diagnosis and more targeted treatment of conditions like depression and bipolar disorder.
Bridging neuroimaging, genetics, and immunology, Dr. Poletti’s multidisciplinary approach is at the forefront of a shift in psychiatry, from managing symptoms to addressing the biological roots of mental illness.
Her studies ask urgent, forward-looking questions: Why do some people emerge from trauma with resilience while others develop severe mental health challenges? What biological factors account for these differences? And how early can we intervene to change the course of a person’s mental health?
Her journey into this complex field was anything but traditional. From an early fascination with microscopy to challenging early-career warnings against exploring psychedelics and inflammation, Dr. Poletti has pursued questions others dismissed.
Now, as Project Leader in the Psychiatry and Clinical Psychobiology Unit at San Raffaele, she coordinates international teams working on the links between infection, inflammation, and psychiatric outcomes.
Dr. Poletti’s work also carries broader implications. If childhood trauma alters the immune system and brain, then preventing such trauma becomes a matter not only of ethics but of public health.
Her findings support the development of trauma-informed clinical practices and policies, as well as early intervention strategies that could dramatically improve mental health outcomes over a lifetime.
Even outside the lab, Dr. Poletti finds clarity and purpose in nature, especially while hiking the Italian Alps. That connection to the environment mirrors her research philosophy: that mental health is shaped not just by biology, but by our lived experiences and surroundings.
Her work points toward a new era of psychiatric care, one grounded in biology, guided by compassion, and focused on prevention. As societies grapple with the lasting impact of early adversity, Dr. Poletti’s research provides both a scientific foundation and a moral imperative to act.
