Pregnancy is a period of major physiological change. However, some of these changes (particularly those in the brain) are surprisingly poorly understood. Now, recent research by Laura Pritschet and colleagues, published in Nature Neuroscience, finally sheds new light on this process. The researchers have generated an unprecedented map of the neuroanatomical changes occurring in the maternal brain from preconception to two years postpartum. Spoiler alert: it’s a lot of changes. A “heroic” researchThe study focused on one 38-year-old woman. She had an MRI scan every few weeks from three weeks pr…
