Individual differences in amygdala volumes predict changes in functional connectivity between subcortical and cognitive control networks throughout adolescence

Abstract

Adolescence is a critical period of structural and functional neural maturation among regions serving the cognitive control of emotion. Evidence suggests that this process is guided by developmental changes in amygdala and striatum structure and shifts in functional connectivity between subcortical (SC) and cognitive control (CC) networks. Herein, we investigate the extent to which such developmental shifts in structure and function reciprocally predict one another over time. 179 youth (9–15 years-old) completed annual MRI scans for three years. Amygdala and striatum volumes and connectivity within and between SC and CC resting state networks were measured for each year. We tested for reciprocal predictability of within-person and between-person changes in structure and function using random-intercept cross-lagged panel models. Within-person shifts in amygdala volumes in a given year significantly and specifically predicted deviations in SC-CC connectivity in the following year, such that an increase in volume was associated with decreased SC-CC connectivity the following year. Deviations in connectivity did not predict changes in amygdala volumes over time. Conversely, broader group-level shifts in SC-CC connectivity were predictive of subsequent deviations in striatal volumes. We did not see any cross-predictability among amygdala or striatum volumes and within-network connectivity measures. Within-person shifts in amygdala structure year-to-year robustly predicted weaker SC-CC connectivity in subsequent years, whereas broader increases in SC-CC connectivity predicted smaller striatal volumes over time. These specific structure function relationships may contribute to the development of emotional control across adolescence.

Effects of chronic home radon exposure on cognitive, behavioral, and mental health in developing children and adolescents

“…It is possible that everyday home radon exposure may be impacting sensitive structural development in critical neural substrates that underlie emotion regulation abilities, resulting in the noted dysfunction in observable behaviors in the present study. Importantly, prior work has demonstrated that minute individual-level variations over time in structures like the amygdala do reliably alter functional connectivity between brain networks that are strongly associated with mental health outcomes ( Taylor et al, 2022 ). Thus, it is critically important to continue investigating the potential impacts of radon exposure on brain structure and function to further characterize how such toxic exposure affects developing youths.…”

Altered longitudinal trajectory of default mode network connectivity in healthy youth with subclinical depressive and posttraumatic stress symptoms

“…Of the remaining sample of 190 youth (93 UNMC, 97 MRN; 94 female), 137 returned and had complete data for year 2 (time between tests: UNMC: mean = 1.10 years, SD = 0.16; MRN: mean = 1.16 years, SD = 0.23) and 88 returned and had complete data for year 3 (time between tests: UNMC: 1.02 years, SD = 0.08; MRN: mean = 1.13 years, SD = 0.32). A detailed overview of recruitment, scans completed, and retention for this sample from the DevCoG study is available online ( Stephen et al, 2021 , Taylor et al, 2022 ).…”