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Anxiety is related to indices of cortical maturation in typically developing children and adolescents.

ABSTRACT: Anxiety is a risk factor for many adverse neuropsychiatric and socioeconomic outcomes, and has been linked to functional and structural changes in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC). However, the nature of these differences, as well as how they develop in children and adolescents, remains poorly understood. More effective interventions to minimize the negative consequences of anxiety require better understanding of its neurobiology in children. Recent research suggests that structural imaging studies may benefit from clearly delineating between cortical surface area and thickness when examining these associations, as these distinct cortical phenotypes are influenced by different cellular mechanisms and genetic factors. The present study examined relationships between cortical surface area and thickness of the VMPFC and a self-report measure of anxiety (SCARED-R) in 287 youths aged 7-20 years from the Pediatric Imaging, Neurocognition, and Genetics (PING) study. Age and gender interactions were examined for significant associations in order to test for developmental differences. Cortical surface area and thickness were also examined simultaneously to determine whether they contribute independently to the prediction of anxiety. Anxiety was negatively associated with relative cortical surface area of the VMPFC as well as with global cortical thickness, but these associations diminished with age. The two cortical phenotypes contributed additively to the prediction of anxiety. These findings suggest that higher anxiety in children may be characterized by both delayed expansion of the VMPFC and an altered trajectory of global cortical thinning. Further longitudinal studies will be needed to confirm these findings.

SUBMITTER: Newman E

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5064818 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Anxiety is related to indices of cortical maturation in typically developing children and adolescents.

Newman Erik E Thompson Wesley K WK Bartsch Hauke H Hagler Donald J DJ Chen Chi-Hua CH Brown Timothy T TT Kuperman Joshua M JM McCabe Connor C Chung Yoonho Y Libiger Ondrej O Akshoomoff Natacha N Bloss Cinnamon S CS Casey B J BJ Chang Linda L Ernst Thomas M TM Frazier Jean A JA Gruen Jeffrey R JR Kennedy David N DN Murray Sarah S SS Sowell Elizabeth R ER Schork Nicholas N Kenet Tal T Kaufmann Walter E WE Mostofsky Stewart S Amaral David G DG Dale Anders M AM Jernigan Terry L TL

Brain structure & function 20150717 6

Anxiety is a risk factor for many adverse neuropsychiatric and socioeconomic outcomes, and has been linked to functional and structural changes in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC). However, the nature of these differences, as well as how they develop in children and adolescents, remains poorly understood. More effective interventions to minimize the negative consequences of anxiety require better understanding of its neurobiology in children. Recent research suggests that structural im ...[more]

PMID: 26183468

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Project description:Just as typical development of anatomical asymmetries in the human brain has been linked with normal lateralization of motor and cognitive functions, disruption of asymmetry has been implicated in the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). No study has examined the development of cortical asymmetry using longitudinal neuroanatomical data.To delineate the development of cortical asymmetry in children with and without ADHD.Longitudinal study.Government Clinical Research Institute.A total of 218 children with ADHD and 358 typically developing children, from whom 1133 neuroanatomical magnetic resonance images were acquired prospectively.Cortical thickness was estimated at 40 962 homologous points in the left and right hemispheres, and the trajectory of change in asymmetry was defined using mixed-model regression.In right-handed typically developing individuals, a mean (SE) increase in the relative thickness of the right orbitofrontal and inferior frontal cortex with age of 0.011 (0.0018) mm per year (t(337) = 6.2, P < .001) was balanced against a relative left-hemispheric increase in the occipital cortical regions of 0.013 (0.0015) mm per year (t(337) = 8.1, P < .001). Age-related change in asymmetry in non-right-handed typically developing individuals was less extensive and was localized to different cortical regions. In ADHD, the posterior component of this evolving asymmetry was intact, but the prefrontal component was lost.These findings explain the way that, in typical development, the increased dimensions of the right frontal and left occipital cortical regions emerge in adulthood from the reversed pattern of childhood cortical asymmetries. Loss of the prefrontal component of this evolving asymmetry in ADHD is compatible with disruption of prefrontal function in the disorder and demonstrates the way that disruption of typical processes of asymmetry can inform our understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders.

Dataset Information

Anxiety is related to indices of cortical maturation in typically developing children and adolescents.

Publications

Anxiety is related to indices of cortical maturation in typically developing children and adolescents.

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