Dataset Information

The impact of sex, puberty, and hormones on white matter microstructure in adolescents.

ABSTRACT:

Background

During adolescence, numerous factors influence the organization of the brain. It is unclear what influence sex and puberty have on white matter microstructure, as well as the role that rapidly increasing sex steroids play.

Methods

White matter microstructure was examined in 77 adolescents (ages 10-16) using diffusion tensor imaging. Multiple regression analyses were performed to examine the relationships between fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) and sex, puberty, and their interaction, controlling for age. Follow-up analyses determined if sex steroids predicted microstructural characteristics in sexually dimorphic and pubertal-related white matter regions, as well as in whole brain.

Results

Boys had higher FA in white matter carrying corticospinal, long-range association, and cortico-subcortical fibers, and lower MD in frontal and temporal white matter compared with girls. Pubertal development was related to higher FA in the insula, while a significant sex-by-puberty interaction was seen in superior frontal white matter. In boys, testosterone predicted white matter integrity in sexually dimorphic regions as well as whole brain FA, whereas estradiol showed a negative relationship with FA in girls.

Conclusions

Sex differences and puberty uniquely relate to white matter microstructure in adolescents, which can partially be explained by sex steroids.

SUBMITTER: Herting MM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3412439 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

The impact of sex, puberty, and hormones on white matter microstructure in adolescents.

Herting Megan M MM Maxwell Emily C EC Irvine Christy C Nagel Bonnie J BJ

Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) 20111014 9

<h4>Background</h4>During adolescence, numerous factors influence the organization of the brain. It is unclear what influence sex and puberty have on white matter microstructure, as well as the role that rapidly increasing sex steroids play.<h4>Methods</h4>White matter microstructure was examined in 77 adolescents (ages 10-16) using diffusion tensor imaging. Multiple regression analyses were performed to examine the relationships between fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) and s ...[more]

PMID: 22002939

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Project description:Despite accumulating evidence from animal models demonstrating that prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) results in life-long neuroendocrine dysregulation, very little is known on this topic among humans with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). We expected that alterations in gonadal hormones might interfere with the typical development of white matter (WM) myelination, and in a sex-dependent manner, in human adolescents with FASD. In order to investigate this hypothesis, we used diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to assess: 1) whether or not sex moderates the impact of PAE on WM microstructure; and 2) how gonadal hormones relate to alterations in WM microstructure in children and adolescents affected by PAE.Methods61 youth (9 to 16 yrs.; 49% girls; 50% PAE) participated as part of the Collaborative Initiative on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (CIFASD). DTI scans and passive drool samples were obtained to examine neurodevelopmental associations with testosterone (T) and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) levels in boys and girls, and estradiol (E2) and progesterone (P) levels in girls. Tract-based spatial statistics were utilized to generate fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) for 9 a priori WM regions of interest (ROIs).ResultsAs predicted, alterations in FA were observed in adolescents with PAE relative to controls, and these differences varied by sex. Girls with PAE exhibited lower FA (Inferior fronto-occipital and Uncinate fasciculi) while boys with PAE exhibited higher FA (Callosal body, Cingulum, Corticospinal tract, Optic radiation, Superior longitudinal fasciculus) relative to age-matched controls. When gonadal hormone levels were examined in relation to DTI measures, additional group differences in FA were revealed, demonstrating that neuroendocrine factors are associated with PAE-related brain alterations.ConclusionsThese findings provide human evidence that PAE relates to sex-specific differences in WM microstructure, and underlying alterations in gonadal hormone function may, in part, contribute to these effects. Determining PAE-effects on neuroendocrine function among humans is an essential first step towards developing novel clinical (e.g., assessment or intervention) tools that target hormone systems to improve on-going brain development among children and adolescents with FASD.

Dataset Information

The impact of sex, puberty, and hormones on white matter microstructure in adolescents.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

The impact of sex, puberty, and hormones on white matter microstructure in adolescents.

Similar Datasets

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