Understanding the Profound Yet Hidden Effects of Neglect on White Matter Structures

August 29, 2025

Understanding the Profound Yet Hidden Effects of Neglect on White Matter Structures

Researchers use advanced neuroimaging to reveal how neglect alters children’s brain structures, providing scientific evidence for awareness, policy, and intervention

Child neglect—or the failure to provide care during early years—is the most prevalent yet understudied form of child maltreatment, often leaving no visible scars but causing long-term harm. Now, researchers from Japan have used advanced neuroimaging to examine the brain’s white matter in neglected children. They identified structural abnormalities in brain regions linked to emotion, behavior, and cognition, offering objective markers for early intervention and highlighting the profound impact of neglect on development.

When we think of child abuse, physical violence or emotional cruelty often comes to mind first. However, the most common form of maltreatment is actually much quieter: neglect. Affecting three out of four children in substantiated abuse cases worldwide, child neglect involves the failure to provide basic necessities like adequate food, shelter, supervision, or protection. Despite causing documented long-term mental health problems and developmental issues, this ‘invisible’ form of maltreatment has received surprisingly little scientific attention.

A major challenge with neglect is that its effects often fly under the radar. Unlike physical abuse, which may leave visible marks, many neglected children don’t show obvious behavioral problems right away, making it difficult for teachers, doctors, and social workers to identify who needs help. Moreover, most brain research has focused on more overt forms of maltreatment, leaving a crucial question unanswered: how does neglect affect a developing child’s brain?

In an effort to address this knowledge gap, the research team at the Research Center for Child Mental Development at the University of Fukui, Japan, conducted a study using advanced neuroimaging techniques to examine the impact of neglect on the brain development in children. Their paper, published in Volume 15 of Scientific Reports on July 26, 2025, was spearheaded by Professor Akemi Tomoda, who served as the corresponding author and provided the overall leadership that guided the study to completion.

The researchers compared the white matter microstructure of neglected children without other types of maltreatment to that of typically developing children. They used diffusion tensor imaging, a technique that excels at detecting even subtle abnormalities, to identify how neglect affects neural communication pathways.

The study involved 21 neglected children and 106 typically developing children. Through comprehensive whole-brain analysis, the researchers found that neglected children had significant abnormalities in three critical brain regions. These included the right corticospinal tract, which controls voluntary movement and motor skills; the right superior longitudinal fasciculus, which plays a key role in attention, language, and executive functions; and the left cingulum, which connects emotional and cognitive brain systems and is crucial for emotional regulation. Notably, the changes observed in these pathways were directly linked to conduct problems and behavioral difficulties. “Our findings demonstrate that even in the absence of physical or emotional abuse, neglect alone can have a profound impact on brain development,” highlights Dr. Tomoda.

Taken together, these changes in the brain identified by the research team provide objective markers that could help professionals identify children affected by neglect, even before serious behavioral or developmental problems become apparent. This is particularly valuable because the effects of neglect are often invisible to casual observers.

Moreover, the findings of the study could help reshape child protection policies and inform training programs for professionals. By understanding the interplay between neglect and its effect on behavior and the brain, it will be possible to design targeted interventions and therapies that can directly address the specific developmental challenges faced by affected children. “In the future, the newfound brain-based indicators may be used to monitor neurodevelopment and evaluate the effectiveness of interventions, contributing to the establishment of new support models for neglected children,” concludes Dr. Tomoda.

By understanding neglect as a major form of adversity, this work highlights the urgent need for strengthened support systems for affected children. Hopefully, further investigations on the effects of this form of childhood maltreatment will ultimately lead to a better future for those who are at the receiving end of such abuse.

Larger WM fiber tracts were observed in the neglected group compared to the TD group. Slices of the mean FA skeleton (green), overlaid with red clusters, depict significantly higher AD values in the neglected group than in the TD group. Here, AD refers to axial diffusivity and FA to fractional anisotropy; both are measures used to assess WM integrity.

In these plots, closed circles represent the neglected group, and open circles represent the TD group. The shaded beige area indicates 95% confidence intervals for the regression line (shown in dark yellow). Here, L.CG refers to the left cingulum, R.CST to the right cortical spinal tract, R.SLF to the right superior longitudinal fasciculus, and CP to conduct problems.

Reference
Title of original paper:White matter microstructure abnormalities in children experiencing neglect without other forms of maltreatment
Journal:Scientific Reports
DOI:10.1038/s41598-025-13363-y

About University of Fukui, Japan
The University of Fukui is a preeminent research institution with robust undergraduate and graduate schools focusing on education, medical and science, engineering, and global and community studies. The university conducts cutting-edge research and strives to nurture human resources capable of contributing to society on the local, national, and global level.

Website: https://www.u-fukui.ac.jp/eng/

About the Division of Developmental Support Research at the Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui
The Division of Developmental Support Research at the Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, is dedicated to advancing the science and practice of child development and mental health. Our mission is to explore the biological, psychological, and social foundations of children’s growth, with a special focus on early detection, intervention, and prevention of developmental and mental health difficulties. By integrating neuroscience, clinical practice, and community-based research, the division promotes innovative approaches to foster resilience, well-being, and healthy development, contributing to improved support systems for children, families, and society.

Funding information
This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Early-Career Scientists [grant number 22K13677], JSPS KAKENHI Fostering Joint International Research [grant number 22KK0218], Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research (Houga) [grant number 21K18499], AMED [grant number JP20gk0110052], JSPS KAKENHI Scientific Research (A) [grant number 19H00617], Grant-in-Aid for “Creating a Safe and Secure Living Environment in the Changing Public and Private Spheres” from the Japan Science and Technology Corporation (JST)/Research Institute of Science and Technology for Society (RISTEX), Research Grant from Japan-United States Brain Research Cooperative Program, a research grant from the Strategic Budget to Realize University Missions (FY 2022), JSPS KAKENHI Scientific Research (B) [grant number 23K25644], JSPS KAKENHI Scientific Research (C) [grant number 21K02352], and JSPS KAKENHI Advanced Bioimaging Support (ABiS) [Grant Number JP22H04926].

Media contact:
University of Fukui PR center
sskoho-k※ad.u-fukui.ac.jp

Please change ※to＠.