Developmental shifts in fMRI activations during visuospatial relational reasoning
Paul J Eslinger1, Clancy Blair, JianLi Wang
1Department of Neurology (EC037), College of Medicine and Hershey Medical Center, The Pennsylvania State University, P.O. Box 850, Hershey, PA 17033, USA. peslinger@psu.edu
Brain and Cognition
|October 7, 2008
Summary
Brain imaging reveals how fluid cognition, or fluid intelligence, develops. As children age, brain activity shifts from widespread areas to focused regions, enhancing reasoning skills.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Development
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Fluid cognition, essential for problem-solving, undergoes significant development during childhood and adolescence.
- Understanding the neural basis of cognitive maturation is crucial for identifying developmental trajectories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the maturational plasticity of fluid cognition systems using functional brain imaging.
- To map the developmental changes in brain activation patterns during visuospatial relational reasoning.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used in healthy participants aged 8-19 years.
- Participants completed visuospatial relational reasoning tasks, similar to Raven's matrices and elementary math problems.
- Regression analyses examined the relationship between age and brain activity.
Main Results:
- Visuospatial relational reasoning activated superior parietal, dorsolateral prefrontal, occipital-temporal, premotor/supplementary cortices, basal ganglia, and insula.
- Activity in superior parietal lobes increased with age.
- Activity decreased in anterior neural systems, including prefrontal, cingulate, and striatal regions, with age.
Conclusions:
- Neuromaturational changes in fluid cognition involve a developmental shift in brain activation.
- Early childhood shows a widespread fronto-cingulate-striatal pattern, transitioning to a parieto-frontal pattern in late adolescence.
- These findings highlight the dynamic nature of brain development in supporting cognitive functions.
