Abstract
The muscle cells start to contract as soon as they are formed. Fetal movements including breathing movements are important for the structural construction. Input from the sensory neurons is important for shaping the receptive fields in the cortex. The fetus can smell, taste, and hear, and this sensory input is probably also important for the development of the brain. There is spontaneous activity in the retinas, which simulate visual stimulation. The fetus has a short-term memory—habituation. During stress the fetus reacts first by inhibition of its movements and then shunting the blood to the most vital organs and bradycardia.
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Lagercrantz, H. (2016). Fetal Moving and Sensing. In: Infant Brain Development. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-44845-9_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-44845-9_4
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