Brain morphometry points to emerging patterns of psychosis, depression, and anxiety vulnerability over a 2-year period in childhood

Abstract

Background Gray matter morphometry studies have lent seminal insights into the etiology of mental illness. Existing research has primarily focused on adults and then, typically on a single disorder. Examining brain characteristics in late childhood, when the brain is preparing to undergo significant adolescent reorganization and various forms of serious psychopathology are just first emerging, may allow for a unique and highly important perspective of overlapping and unique pathogenesis. Methods A total of 8645 youth were recruited as part of the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study. Magnetic resonance imaging scans were collected, and psychotic-like experiences (PLEs), depressive, and anxiety symptoms were assessed three times over a 2-year period. Cortical thickness, surface area, and subcortical volume were used to predict baseline symptomatology and symptom progression over time. Results Some features could possibly signal common vulnerability, predicting progression across forms of psychopathology (e.g. superior frontal and middle temporal regions). However, there was a specific predictive value for emerging PLEs (lateral occipital and precentral thickness), anxiety (parietal thickness/area and cingulate), and depression (e.g. parahippocampal and inferior temporal). Conclusion Findings indicate common and distinct patterns of vulnerability for varying forms of psychopathology are present during late childhood, before the adolescent reorganization, and have direct relevance for informing novel conceptual models along with early prevention and intervention efforts.

Neurodevelopmental vulnerability to psychosis: developmentally-based methods enable detection of early life inhibitory control deficits that predict psychotic-like experiences at the transition to adolescence

“…Existing theories of developmental models of probabilistic risk for developing schizophrenia-spectrum disorders often conceptualize risk as progressive deviation from normative developmental trajectories (Insel, 2010; Rajkumar, 2014). However, research has demonstrated the importance of genetic, pre-natal, perinatal, and early life influences (Blair et al, 2018; Davies et al, 2018; Kelleher & Cannon, 2011; MacNeill et al, 2021; Owen, Craddock, & Jablensky, 2007; Vargas & Mittal, 2022) in impacting risk for schizophrenia-spectrum disorders. The present study suggests that not only are these factors present early in life but also that they can be identified at both behavioral and neural levels.…”

A Voxel-Based Morphometric Study of Gray Matter in Specific Phobia

“…The smaller size of these areas could interfere with emotional processing through top-down executive control mechanisms maintaining fear in the presence of the phobic stimulus [ 24 ]. Therefore, neurodevelopmental vulnerabilities would lead to the emergence of the disorder in the year prior to adolescence [ 7 ]. On the other hand, the increased putamen volume may be due to increased reactivity to threat cues or resistance to extinction.…”

“…The biological approach suggests that particular genes and deficits of some neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, could be the cause of certain emotional disorders [ 5 , 6 ]. Accordingly, some people show greater vulnerability to developing ADs [ 7 ]. The psychological approach emphasizes fear learning processes associated with threat detection and defensive responses [ 3 ].…”