Plasticity of human resilience mechanisms | Science Advances

The hippocampus’s vulnerability to trauma-induced stress can lead to pathophysiological disturbances that precipitate the development of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The mechanisms of resilience that foster remission and mitigate the adverse effects of stress remain unknown. We analyzed the evolution of hippocampal morphology between 2016/2017 and 2018/2019, as well as the memory control mechanisms crucial for trauma resilience. Participants were individuals exposed to the 2015 Paris terrorist attacks ( N = 100), including chronic ( N = 34) and remitted ( N = 19) PTSD, and nonexposed ( N = 72). We found that normalization of inhibitory control processes, which regulate the resurgence of intrusive memories in the hippocampus, not only predicted PTSD remission but also preceded a reduction in traumatic memories. Improvement in control mechanisms was associated with the interruption of stress-induced atrophy in a hippocampal region that includes the dentate gyrus. Human resilience to trauma is characterized by the plasticity of memory control circuits, which interacts with hippocampal neuroplasticity.