Adolescents At Risk for Alcohol Abuse Demonstrate Altered Frontal Lobe Activation During Stroop Performance

Abstract

Background Children and adolescents, family history positive (FH+) for alcoholism, exhibit differences in brain structure and functional activation when compared to family history negative (FH-) counterparts. Given that frontal brain regions, and associated reciprocal connections with limbic structures, undergo the most dramatic maturational changes during adolescence, the objective of this study was to compare functional brain activation during a frontally-mediated test of response inhibition in 32 adolescents separated into low-risk (FH-) and high-risk (FH+) groups. Methods Functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) data were acquired at 1.5 Tesla during performance of Stroop Color Naming, Word Reading and Interference. Preprocessing and statistical analyses, covaried for age, were conducted in SPM99 using a search territory that included superior, middle, and inferior frontal gyri (trigone region), anterior cingulate gyrus, and left and right amygdala. Results Significantly greater activation in the fronto-limbic search territory was observed in FH+ relative to FH- subjects during Stroop Interference. In addition, a significant regression between brain activation and family history density was observed, with a greater density being associated with increased activation in regions including middle frontal gyrus (BA9) and cingulate gyrus (BA24). Conclusions These data demonstrate a significant influence of FH status on brain activation during the performance of a response inhibition task, perhaps reflecting a neurobiological vulnerability associated with FH status that may include reduced neuronal efficiency and/or recruitment of additional neuronal resources. These findings are important given that the adolescent developmental period is already associated with reduced inhibitory capacity, even prior to the onset of alcohol use.

Family history of alcohol dependence modulates functional neurophysiology in mood/anxiety disorders

“…reduced neuronal efficiency), as compared with patients without such a history and HCs. Reduced neuronal efficiency of frontal areas during cognitively challenging tasks was reported earlier in FH+ youth (Silveri et al 2011), heavy cannabis users (Kanayama et al 2004) and after sleep deprivation (Drummond et al 2001(Drummond et al , 2005. As the DLPFC and ACC are part of a network involved in top-down emotional regulation (Phillips et al 2003a ;Drevets et al 2008), impairments in these regions could lead to a decreased capacity for emotion regulation, further contributing to an unfavourable course of mood/anxiety disorders.…”

Cognitive control in alcohol use disorder: deficits and clinical relevance

“…In addition, there is a wide literature supporting the fact that dysfunctional cognitive control is both a potential risk factor for (Saunders et al, 2008; Silveri et al, 2011; Mackiewicz Seghete et al, 2013) or a potential consequence of (Pfefferbaum et al, 1998) AUD. In this article, exploring ‘which came first ’ and the relationships of family history of inhibitory control and genetics will not be a focus.…”

Development of Impulse Control Circuitry in Children of Alcoholics

“…Heitzeg et al (14) found abnormal caudate activation during response inhibition in 16-22 year-olds with a family history of AUD compared to controls, while Schweinsburg et al (15) observed a decrease in left middle frontal gyrus activity during response inhibition in 12-14 year-old family history positive youth. Silveri and colleagues (16) reported greater recruitment of frontal regions, including right middle frontal and cingulate gyri, in 8-19 year-olds with parental AUDs. Further studies have used follow-up data to retrospectively classify participants (who were not recruited based on family history) by whether they began using substances after fMRI scanning to provide a more definitive connection between neural activation patterns and risk.…”