Adolescent Brain Development Research Articles

Effect of auditory memory load on speech-evoked P300 in healthy adolescents

Abstract Background: The P300 is a late cortical neurophysiological response that can be elicited with auditory and visual stimulation, by presenting the stimuli in an odd-ball paradigm. When deviant stimuli are elicited using auditory stimuli, the P300 is recorded as a large positive peak approximately 300 ms after the stimulus onset in the waveform. Adolescent brain development is heavily influenced by hormonal and physical transitions. Most of the investigations have been done in children and adults, with a limited focus on adolescents. Hence, there is a need to understand the characteristics of P300 in this group. Objective: The current research was planned to measure the effect of auditory memory load on speech-evoked P300 in healthy adolescents. Methods: A total of 14 late adolescents aged between 18.1 and 24 years participated in the study. The P300 was used to record speech stimuli in N-back (zero-back, one-back, and two-back) tasks using 64 channels. Results: There was a significant difference in the latency and amplitude of P300 across the N-back tasks. The mean amplitude of P300 was the highest in a zero-back task and the lowest in a one-back task, and the mean latency of P300 was the lowest in a zero-back task and the highest in a one-back task. Conclusion: Prolonged latency and smaller amplitude of the P300 as the N-back difficulty level increased from zero-back to one-back and then two-back tasks in healthy adolescents.

Puberty interacts with sleep and brain network organization to predict mental health.

Along with pubertal development, the transition to adolescence brings about increased risk for sleep disturbances and mental health problems. Functional connectivity of overlapping large-scale brain networks, such as increased connectivity between the default mode and dorsal attention networks, has been reported to relate to both sleep and mental health problems. Clarifying whether pubertal development interacts with sleep disturbances and functional brain networks to predict mental health may provide information to improve the timing and design of interventions targeting sleep disturbances in adolescents. To examine how pubertal status and tempo relate to sleep disturbances and shape the relationship between sleep disturbances and mental health problems, we harnessed a large sample of children aged 10-14 years from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (N ~ 3,000-10,000). We used graph theoretical tools to probe how pubertal development concurrently interacts with sleep disturbances and brain network organization to predict mental health problems. We found that advanced pubertal status, but not pubertal tempo, predicted sleep disturbances; however, both pubertal status and tempo interact with sleep disturbances to predict mental health problems and engage in three-way interactions with sleep and brain network organization to predict mental health problems. Overall, this work suggests that less advanced pubertal status and slower tempo are risk factors for the strongest links between sleep disturbances, brain organization, and mental health problems. Further, our findings speak to the importance of accounting for interactions in the constellation of factors that surround complex behavioral and clinical syndromes, here internalizing and externalizing disorders, and provide new context to consider for targeted interventions.

The Effects of Digital Addiction on Brain Function and Structure of Children and Adolescents: A Scoping Review.

The escalating prevalence of studies investigating digital addiction (DA) and its detrimental impact on the human brain's structure and functionality has been noticeable in recent years. Yet, an overwhelming majority of these reviews have been predominantly geared towards samples comprising college students or adults and have only inspected a single variant of DA, such as internet gaming disorder, internet addiction disorder, problematic smartphone use, tablet overuse, and so forth. Reviews focusing on young children and adolescents (ages 0-18), or those which amalgamate various types of DA, are decidedly scarce. Given this context, summarizing the effects of DA on brain structure and functionality during the vital developmental stage (0-18 years) is of immense significance. A scoping review, complying with the PRISMA extension for such reviews, was conducted to amalgamate findings from 28 studies spanning a decade (2013-2023) and to examine the influence of assorted forms of DA on the brains of children and adolescents (0-18 years). The synthesized evidence indicated two primary results: (1) DA exerts harmful effects on the structure and functionality of the brains of children and adolescents, and (2) the prefrontal lobe is the region most consistently reported as impacted across all research. Furthermore, this review discerned a notable void of studies investigating the neural indices of digital addiction, along with a shortage of studies focusing on young children (0-6 years old) and longitudinal evidence. This research could provide the necessary theoretical basis for the thwarting and intervention of digital addiction, a measure indispensable for ensuring healthy brain development in children and adolescents.

Associations Between Family History of Alcohol and/or Substance Use Problems and Frontal Cortical Development From 9 to 13 Years of Age: A Longitudinal Analysis of the ABCD Study

BackgroundPrevious investigations that have examined associations between family history (FH) of alcohol/substance use and adolescent brain development have been primarily cross-sectional. Here, leveraging a large population-based sample of youths, we characterized frontal cortical trajectories among 9- to 13-year-olds with (FH+) versus without (FH−) an FH and examined sex as a potential moderator. MethodsWe used data from 9710 participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (release 4.0). FH+ was defined as having ≥1 biological parents and/or ≥2 biological grandparents with a history of alcohol/substance use problems (n = 2433). Our primary outcome was frontal cortical structural measures obtained at baseline (ages 9–11) and year 2 follow-up (ages 11–13). We used linear mixed-effects models to examine the extent to which FH status qualified frontal cortical development over the age span studied. Finally, we ran additional interactions with sex to test whether observed associations between FH and cortical development differed significantly between sexes. ResultsFor FH+ (vs. FH−) youths, we observed increased cortical thinning from 9 to 13 years across the frontal cortex as a whole. When we probed for sex differences, we observed significant declines in frontal cortical thickness among boys but not girls from ages 9 to 13 years. No associations were observed between FH and frontal cortical surface area or volume. ConclusionsHaving a FH+ is associated with more rapid thinning of the frontal cortex across ages 9 to 13, with this effect driven primarily by male participants. Future studies will need to test whether the observed pattern of accelerated thinning predicts future substance use outcomes.

Social epidemiology of the Mediterranean-dietary approaches to stop hypertension intervention for neurodegenerative delay (MIND) diet among early adolescents: the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study

BackgroundThe purpose of our study was to understand the relationship between sociodemographic factors and adherence to the MIND (Mediterranean-DASH [Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension] Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) diet in a demographically diverse national population-based sample of 9–12-year-olds in the US.MethodsWe analyzed data from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (Year 1, N = 8333). Multivariable linear regression analysis was used to identify associations between MIND diet score and sociodemographic factors, including race/ethnicity, household income, parent education level, age, sex, and sexual minority status.ResultsCompared to White adolescents, Latino adolescents showed the greatest adherence to the MIND diet. Boys had lower adherence to the MIND diet than girls. Lower household income was associated with lower adherence to the MIND diet. Older age was associated with lower adherence to the MIND diet. Sexual minorities had a lower adherence to the MIND diet when compared to their heterosexual counterparts.DiscussionFemale sex, Latino ethnicity, Asian and Black race, high household income, heterosexual sexual orientation, and younger age were associated with higher adherence to the MIND diet. These sociodemographic differences can inform targeted screening and counseling for clinicians and public health organizations among diverse adolescent populations.Impact StatementSociodemographic disparities in diet quality have been documented, but none have explored adherence to the MIND (Mediterranean-DASH [Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension] Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) diet in early adolescence.In this demographically diverse sample of 9–12-year-old early adolescents in the U.S., we found notable and nuanced sociodemographic disparities in adherence to the MIND diet.Sociodemographic factors associated with higher adherence to the MIND diet included female sex, Latino ethnicity, high household income, heterosexual sexual orientation, and younger age.

Genetic and environmental influences on early-age susceptibility and initiation of nicotine-containing product use: A twin-pairs study.

Nicotine-containing products (NCPs) such as electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) are increasingly common throughout the landscape of youth use of nicotine-containing products (NCP), and have overtaken traditional cigarette smoking modalities. This study seeks to examine the genetic and environmental influences on liability for susceptibility and initiation of ENDS and other NCPs among US children. Data were drawn from 886 monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs aged 9-10 years in the Adolescent Brain & Cognitive Development (ABCD) study at the baseline during 2016-2018. Heritability (h2) measured the proportion of the total phenotypic variation attributable to genes. Variance component models were utilized to analyze influences from the common environment (c2) and unique environmental factors (e2), taking into account correlations within twin pairs. The national sample included 50% females, 69.5% of non-Hispanic Whites, 12.8% of non-Hispanic Blacks, and 11.6% of Hispanics, with a mean age of 121.5 months. The twin sets were 60% DZ and 40% MZ. Heritability was low for NCP susceptibility (h2=0) and moderate for NCP initiation (h2=39%, p=0.02). The variance associated with NCP susceptibility was primarily influenced by environmental factors, especially one's unique factors (c2=37%, p<0.0001 vs e2=63%, p<0.0001). In contrast, the variance associated with NCP initiation was split across common and unique environmental factors (c2=32%, p=0.02 vs e2=29%, p=0.02). In the era with ENDS use surging among youth, NCP initiation remains to be a heritable trait with joint influence from the environment. NCP susceptibility is largely influenced by environmental factors, especially unique environments. Continued assessment of gene × environment interaction can better inform future youth NCP interventions.

Nonsuicidal Self-Injury in Preadolescents.

There is a dearth of literature on the prevalence and predictors of nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) history and onset among preadolescent youth. This gap in the literature is significant given evidence suggesting that NSSI is a robust predictor of negative mental health outcomes, and that early onset NSSI may be associated with a more severe course of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors. This study aimed to evaluate sociodemographic characteristics, psychiatric disorders, and suicidal ideation (SI) in relation to NSSI onset and history in preadolescents. Data were drawn from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) study, which recruited a diverse sample of 11 875 youth aged 9 to 10 years. The primary outcome measures were lifetime history and recent onset of NSSI. Measures included sociodemographics and the K-SADS diagnostic interview assessing psychopathology and SI. Female sex and identifying as Black were associated with lower odds of lifetime NSSI. Identifying as a sexual minority, having unmarried parents, and a low family income were associated with higher odds of lifetime NSSI. Although depression was most predictive of NSSI history and onset, a range of internalizing and externalizing disorders, greater comorbidity, and SI also were predictive. Given that NSSI was associated with a range of mental health disorders and comorbidity, it may be best conceptualized as a transdiagnostic phenomenon. Findings highlight key sociodemographic and diagnostic factors that may help to direct screening efforts in preadolescents, particularly sexual minority status and depression.

80 Longitudinal Development of Response Inhibition in Adolescence and Young Adulthood and Associations with Gray Matter Architecture

Objective:The present study explored how individual differences and development of gray matter architecture in inferior frontal gyri (IFG), anterior cingulate (ACC), and inferior parietal lobe (IPL) relate to development of response inhibition as measured by both the Stop Signal Task (SST) and the Go/No-Go (GNG) task in a longitudinal sample of healthy adolescents and young adults. Reliability of behavioral and neural measures was also explored.Participants and Methods:A total of 145 individuals contributed data from the second through fifth timepoints of an accelerated longitudinal study focused on adolescent brain and behavioral development at the University of Minnesota. At baseline, participants were 9 to 23 years of age and were typically-developing. Assessment waves were spaced approximately 2 years apart. Behavioral measures of response inhibition collected at each assessment included GNG Commission Errors (CE) and the SST Stop Signal Reaction Time (SSRT). Structural T1 MRI scans were collected on a Siemens 3 T Tim Trio and processed with the longitudinal Freesurfer 6.0 pipeline to yield cortical thickness (CT) and surface area values. Regions of interest based on the Desikan-Killiany-Tourville atlas included IFG regions (pars opercularis (PO) and pars triangularis (PT)), ACC and IPL. The cuneus and global brain measures were evaluated as control regions. Retest stability of all measures was calculated using the psych package in R. Mixed linear effects modeling using the lme4 R package identified whether age-based trajectories for SSRTs and GNG CEs best fit linear, quadratic, or inverse curve. Then, disaggregated between- and within-subjects effects of regional cortical architecture measures were added to longitudinal behavioral models to identify individual differences and developmental effects, respectively.Results:Both response inhibition metrics demonstrated fair reliability and were best fit by an inverse age trajectory. Neural measures demonstrated excellent retest stability (all ICCs &gt; 0.834). Age-based analyses of regional CT identified heterogeneous patterns of development, including linear trajectories for ACC and inverse age trajectories for bilateral PT. Individuals with thinner left PO showed worse performance on both response inhibition tasks. SSRTs were related to individual differences in right PO thickness and surface area. A developmental pattern was observed for right PT cortical thickness, where thinning over time was related to better GNG performance. Lower surface area of the right PT was related to worse GNG performance. No individual differences or developmental patterns were observed for the ACC, IPL, cuneus, or global metrics.Conclusions:This study examined the adolescent development of response inhibition and its association with cortical architecture in the IFG, ACC and IPL. Separate response inhibition tasks demonstrated similar developmental patterns with steepest improvements in early adolescence and relationships with left PO thickness, but each measure had unique relationships with other IFG regions. This study indicates that a region of the IFG, the par opercularis, relates to both individual difference and developmental change in response inhibition. These patterns suggest brain-behavior association that could be further explored in functional imaging studies and that may index, in vulnerable individuals, risk for psychopathology.

Towards a New Dynamic Interaction Model of Adolescent CUD Manifestation, Prevention, and Treatment: A Narrative Review.

Cannabis is one of the most popular drugs of the 21st century, especially among adolescents and young adults. Evidence of a variety of lasting neuropsychological deficits as a result of chronic cannabis use has increased. Furthermore, regular cannabis use is found to be a predictor of mental health problems, less motivation in school, and school dropout. Our goal is to propose a theoretical model of adolescent cannabis use disorder (CUD) based on Zinberg's drug, set, and setting model and explicated by a review of the literature on adolescent cannabis use to improve the prevention and treatment of CUD for adolescents. PubMed and Web of Science were searched for relevant publications as part of a hypothesis-based and model-generating review. Individual (set) and environmental (setting) risk factors play important roles in the development of CUD in adolescents. School performance, motivation, and attendance can be negatively influenced by persistent cannabis use patterns and adolescent brain development can consequently be impaired. Thus, cannabis use can be understood as both being the cause of poor school performance but also the consequence of poor school performance. To prevent and reduce adolescent CUD the drug, set, and setting must all be considered. It is important to notice that the multiple feedback loops (indicated in our dynamic interaction model) are not mutually exclusive, but offer important intervention focus points for social workers, addiction professionals, parents, and other care takers. We argue that the three dimensions of drug, set, and setting contribute significantly to the eventual manifestation of CUD. Based on our dynamic interaction model, recommendations are made for possible preventive and therapeutic interventions for the treatment of adolescents and young adults with CUD.

Screen Media Use Affects Subcortical Structures, Resting-State Functional Connectivity, and Mental Health Problems in Early Adolescence.

The association between excessive screen media use and mental health problems has attracted widespread attention. The literature to date has neglected the biological mechanisms underlying such a relationship and failed to distinguish between different types of screen media activities. A sample from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study was used in the present study to elucidate the longitudinal associations between specific types of screen media use, brain development, and diverse mental health problems. The results showed that different types of screen media use have differentiated associations with mental health problems, subcortical volume, and cortical-subcortical connectivity. Specifically, more passive media use was associated with increased rule-breaking behavior, while more video game playing was associated with increased withdrawn/depressed symptoms. In addition, more social media use was associated with a reduced volume of the hippocampus, caudate, and thalamus proper. More research is needed to examine the differential effects of screen media use on neurodevelopmental processes and mental health problems across adolescence.

The Influence of Pubertal Development on Early Adolescent Sleep and Changes in Family Functioning.

Pubertal development has been separately linked to adolescents' sleep problems and larger family functioning, but research connecting these inter-related processes remains sparse. This study aimed to examine how pubertal status and tempo were related to early adolescents' sleep and their family functioning. Using longitudinal data from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study, the study's sample (N = 4682) was 49.2% female, was an average of 9.94 years old at baseline, and was 60.1% white. Analyses in the current study modeled the indirect associations between pubertal change and changes in family conflict via adolescent sleep duration and variability of duration. The results suggested that pubertal status and tempo predicted shorter adolescent sleep durations and greater variability in those durations, which predicted residual increases in family conflict. The findings highlight the role of adolescents' pubertal changes in their sleep and how such changes can negatively affect family functioning.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Accelerometer-Measured Physical Activity and Sleep in Preadolescents

ObjectiveTo assess the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and objective measures of physical activity and sleep. MethodsData from the baseline and 2-year follow-up of the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study were analyzed (n = 6227 for physical activity; n = 4151 for sleep). ACEs were assessed by parent report at baseline (mean age 9.9 years) with 3 levels: none, exposure to 1 ACE, and exposure to 2 or more ACEs. Objective measures of physical activity and sleep were assessed with an accelerometer at 2-year follow-up (mean age 11.9 years). Multivariate linear regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between ACEs and physical activity as well as sleep, adjusting for family income and sex. ResultsCompared to children with no ACEs, children with ACEs had fewer daily steps: 1 ACE (β = −323 (95% CI: −508 to −138), P < .001) and 2 or more ACEs (β = −417 (95% CI: −624 to −209), P < .001). ACEs were also associated with shorter sleep duration (minutes), although only for participants with 2 or more ACEs (1 ACE: β = −2.2 (−5.3 to 0.8), P = .16; 2 or more ACEs: β = −6.2 (95% CI: −9.6 to −2.7), P < .001). Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep specifically was reduced in participants with ACEs (1 ACE (β = −1.4 (−2.7 to −0.01), P = .05) and 2 or more ACEs (β = −2.3 (−3.8 to −0.8), P = .003). ConclusionsThere is a dose-response relationship between ACEs and reduced daily steps, total sleep duration, and REM sleep in preadolescents.

Similarity infunctional connectome architecture predicts teenage grit.

Grit is a personality trait that encapsulates the tendency to persevere and maintain consistent interest for long-term goals. While prior studies found that grit predicts positive behavioral outcomes, there is a paucity of work providing explanatory evidence from a neurodevelopmental perspective. Based on previous research suggesting the utility of the functional connectome (FC) as a developmental measure, we tested the idea that individual differences in grit might be, in part, rooted in brain development in adolescence and emerging adulthood (N = 64, 11-19 years of age). Our analysis showed that grit was associated with connectome stability across conditions and connectome similarity across individuals. Notably, inter-subject representational similarity analysis revealed that teenagers who were grittier shared similar FC architecture with each other, more so than those with lower grit. Our findings suggest that individuals with high levels of grit are more likely to exhibit a converging pattern of whole-brain functional connectivity, which may underpin subsequent beneficial behavioral outcomes.

Common and disorder-specific cortical thickness alterations in internalizing, externalizing and thought disorders during early adolescence: an Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development study.

A growing body of neuroimaging studies has reported common neural abnormalities among mental disorders in adults. However, it is unclear whether the distinct disorder-specific mechanisms operate during adolescence despite the overlap among disorders. We studied a large cohort of more than 11 000 preadolescent (age 9-10 yr) children from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development cohort. We adopted a regrouping approach to compare cortical thickness (CT) alterations and longitudinal changes between healthy controls (n = 4041) and externalizing (n = 1182), internalizing (n = 1959) and thought disorder (n = 347) groups. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) was performed on regional CT across 4468 unrelated European youth. Youth with externalizing or internalizing disorders exhibited increased regional CT compared with controls. Externalizing (p = 8 × 10-4, Cohen d = 0.10) and internalizing disorders (p = 2 × 10-3, Cohen d = 0.08) shared thicker CT in the left pars opercularis. The somatosensory and the primary auditory cortex were uniquely affected in externalizing disorders, whereas the primary motor cortex and higher-order visual association areas were uniquely affected in internalizing disorders. Only youth with externalizing disorders showed decelerated cortical thinning from age 10-12 years. The GWAS found 59 genome-wide significant associated genetic variants across these regions. Cortical thickness in common regions was associated with glutamatergic neurons, while internalizing-specific regional CT was associated with astrocytes, oligodendrocyte progenitor cells and GABAergic neurons. The sample size of the GWAS was relatively small. Our study provides strong evidence for the presence of specificity in CT, developmental trajectories and underlying genetic underpinnings among externalizing and internalizing disorders during early adolescence. Our results support the neurobiological validity of the regrouping approach that could supplement the use of a dimensional approach in future clinical practice.

Neurodevelopmental risk and adaptation as a model for comorbidity among internalizing and externalizing disorders: genomics and cell-specific expression enriched morphometric study

BackgroundComorbidity is the rule rather than the exception for childhood and adolescent onset mental disorders, but we cannot predict its occurrence and do not know the neural mechanisms underlying comorbidity. We investigate if the effects of comorbid internalizing and externalizing disorders on anatomical differences represent a simple aggregate of the effects on each disorder and if these comorbidity-associated cortical surface differences relate to a distinct genetic underpinning.MethodsWe studied the cortical surface area (SA) and thickness (CT) of 11,878 preadolescents (9–10 years) from the Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development Study. Linear mixed models were implemented in comparative and association analyses among internalizing (dysthymia, major depressive disorder, disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, agoraphobia, panic disorder, specific phobia, separation anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder), externalizing (attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, conduct disorder) diagnostic groups, a group with comorbidity of the two and a healthy control group. Genome-wide association analysis (GWAS) and cell type specificity analysis were performed on 4468 unrelated European participants from this cohort.ResultsSmaller cortical surface area but higher thickness was noted across patient groups when compared to controls. Children with comorbid internalizing and externalizing disorders had more pronounced areal reduction than those without comorbidity, indicating an additive burden. In contrast, cortical thickness had a non-linear effect with comorbidity: the comorbid group had no significant CT differences, while those patient groups without comorbidity had significantly higher thickness compare to healthy controls. Distinct biological pathways were implicated in regional SA and CT differences. Specifically, CT differences were associated with immune-related processes implicating astrocytes and oligodendrocytes, while SA-related differences related mainly to inhibitory neurons.ConclusionThe emergence of comorbidity across distinct clusters of psychopathology is unlikely to be due to a simple additive neurobiological effect alone. Distinct developmental risk moderated by immune-related adaptation processes, with unique genetic and cell-specific factors, may contribute to underlying SA and CT differences. Children with the highest risk but lowest resilience, both captured in their developmental morphometry, may develop a comorbid illness pattern.

Profiling intra- and inter-individual differences in brain development across early adolescence

As we move toward population-level developmental neuroscience, understanding intra- and inter-individual variability in brain maturation and sources of neurodevelopmental heterogeneity becomes paramount. Large-scale, longitudinal neuroimaging studies have uncovered group-level neurodevelopmental trajectories, and while recent work has begun to untangle intra- and inter-individual differences, they remain largely unclear. Here, we aim to quantify both intra- and inter-individual variability across facets of neurodevelopment across early adolescence (ages 8.92 to 13.83 years) in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study and examine inter-individual variability as a function of age, sex, and puberty. Our results provide novel insight into differences in annualized percent change in macrostructure, microstructure, and functional brain development from ages 9–13 years old. These findings reveal moderate age-related intra-individual change, but age-related differences in inter-individual variability only in a few measures of cortical macro- and microstructure development. Greater inter-individual variability in brain development were seen in mid-pubertal individuals, except for a few aspects of white matter development that were more variable between prepubertal individuals in some tracts. Although both sexes contributed to inter-individual differences in macrostructure and functional development in a few regions of the brain, we found limited support for hypotheses regarding greater male-than-female variability. This work highlights pockets of individual variability across facets of early adolescent brain development, while also highlighting regional differences in heterogeneity to facilitate future investigations in quantifying and probing nuances in normative development, and deviations therefrom.

In Case You Haven't Heard…

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism has an alcohol policy information system that is a deep trove of information on state policies. Recently ADAW noticed that it includes cannabis. We asked NIAAA director George F. Koob, Ph.D., why this is. After all, cannabis is the province of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the two agencies — both research agencies — have in the past battled over turf. Here is his response: “The primary goal of the Alcohol Policy Information System (APIS) is to encourage and facilitate research on the effects and effectiveness of alcohol‐related public policies. Inclusion of information on state policies addressing recreational use of cannabis is consistent with this objective. While some policy researchers hypothesize that easier access to marijuana will lead people to substitute marijuana for alcohol, others suggest easier access will simply lead to greater co‐use. Combining alcohol and marijuana could increase the risk of alcohol‐impaired traffic crashes and compound the impact of alcohol on adolescent brain development. As such, it is important for researchers studying alcohol policy to be able to consider changes in policies governing access to marijuana. In the absence of a similar data resource providing authoritative, detailed, and comparable cross‐sectional and longitudinal data on policies addressing [the] adult recreational use of cannabis, the APIS platform provides an effective way to ensure that alcohol policy researchers can incorporate appropriate cannabis policy information in their studies.”

Preterm birth associated alterations in brain structure, cognitive functioning and behavior in children from the ABCD dataset.

Preterm birth is a global health problem and associated with increased risk of long-term developmental impairments, but findings on the adverse outcomes of prematurity have been inconsistent. Data were obtained from the baseline session of the ongoing longitudinal Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. We identified 1706 preterm children and 1865 matched individuals as Control group and compared brain structure (MRI data), cognitive function and mental health symptoms. Results showed that preterm children had higher psychopathological risk and lower cognitive function scores compared to controls. Structural MRI analysis indicated that preterm children had higher cortical thickness in the medial orbitofrontal cortex, parahippocampal gyrus, temporal and occipital gyrus; smaller volumes in the temporal and parietal gyrus, cerebellum, insula and thalamus; and smaller fiber tract volumes in the fornix and parahippocampal-cingulum bundle. Partial correlation analyses showed that gestational age and birth weight were associated with ADHD symptoms, picvocab, flanker, reading, fluid cognition composite, crystallized cognition composite and total cognition composite scores, and measures of brain structure in regions involved with emotional regulation, attention and cognition. These findings suggest a complex interplay between psychopathological risk and cognitive deficits in preterm children that is associated with changes in regional brain volumes, cortical thickness, and structural connectivity among cortical and limbic brain regions critical for cognition and emotional well-being.

Social Disparities Increase Risk of SUDs

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Annual MeetingFull AccessSocial Disparities Increase Risk of SUDsNick ZagorskiNick ZagorskiSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:16 Jun 2023https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.pn.2023.07.7.53AbstractAt APA’s 2023 Annual Meeting, National Institute on Drug Abuse Director Nora Volkow, M.D., highlighted the relationship between early stress and brain development.The COVID-19 pandemic made many hidden truths more abundantly clear, National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Director Nora Volkow, M.D., said during a presentation at APA’s Annual Meeting in May. Among them was the power of social determinants of health—as racial and ethnic minorities, those with less income, and people with psychiatric illness bore the brunt of negative health outcomes.Social determinants of health are also strong risk factors for substance use disorders, Volkow continued.She noted that brain imaging data indicate that the environment plays a stronger role than genetics in guiding brain development between the ages of 5 and 8 years. In households with dysfunction, stress, and/or financial difficulties, children tend to receive more negative environmental stimulation and less positive stimulation.Making use of new imaging data from over 7,500 9- and 10-year-old children enrolled in NIDA’s Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, Volkow together with Dardo Tomasi, Ph.D., a staff scientist at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, evaluated the relationship between family income and brain structure. Their analysis revealed that children from higher-income families appeared to have larger and thicker frontal cortices as well as higher cognitive test scores compared with children from lower-income families.Another brain imaging study of babies born during the COVID-19 pandemic uncovered a similar pattern: Greater levels of maternal stress and anxiety were associated with worse connectivity between the amygdala and frontal cortex in the infants. Lower social support was a significant predictor of clinically elevated prenatal maternal distress, the study found.Such early changes in brain structure may increase the risk of later problems with substance use, Volkow noted, as data show that people who are more sensitive to negative conditioning (for example, learning quickly not to touch a hot stove after getting burned) and/or have blunted reward conditioning are at higher risk of addiction.Showing a correlation is one thing, but is there evidence that correlation can be changed?Well, yes, Volkow noted. She pointed to one controlled intervention in which 1,000 low-income mothers from several U.S. cities were randomly allocated either a $333 or $20 monthly stipend after the birth of their child. About 400 of the babies were selected for EEG scans at one year of age, and the EEG data found that babies of mothers with the high-cash stipend had more robust and active brain activity than the babies of mothers who received the low-cash stipend.“This simple monetary intervention probably reduced the mother’s stress [related to] how she would support her child and maybe let them spend more time together,” Volkow said. There was a clear positive neurodevelopmental outcome.Volkow acknowledged that the United States may not have the resources right now to implement some of these early-life interventions on a large scale, but building up the infrastructure is one of NIDA’s priorities. Just attenuating the impact of poverty can boost childhood development and prevent susceptibility to substance use down the road, she said. ■Resources“Associations of Family Income with Cognition and Brain Structure in USA Children: Prevention Implications”“Prenatal Maternal Distress During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Associations With Infant Brain Connectivity” ISSUES NewArchived

Peer facilitation of emotion regulation in adolescence

Emotion regulation is particularly important for adolescents as they undergo normative developmental changes in affective systems and experience heightened risk for psychopathology. Despite a high need for emotion regulation during adolescence, commonly studied emotion regulation strategies like cognitive reappraisal are less beneficial for adolescents than adults because they rely on neural regions that are still developing during this period (i.e., lateral prefrontal cortex). However, adolescence is also marked by increased valuation of peer relationships and sensitivity to social information and cues. In the present review, we synthesize research examining emotion regulation and peer influence across development to suggest that sensitivity to peers during adolescence could be leveraged to improve emotion regulation for this population. We first discuss developmental trends related to emotion regulation at the level of behavior and brain in adolescents, using cognitive reappraisal as an exemplar emotion regulation strategy. Next, we discuss social influences on adolescent brain development, describing caregiver influence and increasing susceptibility to peer influence, to describe how adolescent sensitivity to social inputs represents both a window of vulnerability and opportunity. Finally, we conclude by describing the promise of social (i.e., peer-based) interventions for enhancing emotion regulation in adolescence.