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Healthy cortical development through adolescence and early adulthood.
Natalie J Forde1,2, Lisa Ronan3, Marcel P Zwiers4
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands. j.n.forde@umcg.nl.
Brain Structure & Function
|April 19, 2017
Summary
Adolescent brain development shows distinct patterns in cortical thickness (CT) and local gyrification index (LGI) with age, while cortical surface area (SA) differs between sexes. Intrinsic curvature (IC) offers a new measure of cortical morphology.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Radiology
Background:
- Adolescence involves significant brain changes, but age and sex effects on cortical development require further characterization.
- Traditional measures like cortical thickness (CT), local gyrification index (LGI), and surface area (SA) offer insights into brain morphology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationships between intrinsic curvature (IC), CT, LGI, and SA in adolescent cortical development.
- To examine how age and sex influence these cortical indices.
Main Methods:
- Utilized intrinsic curvature (IC) analysis alongside CT, LGI, and SA measures.
- Analyzed T1-weighted MRI data from 218 healthy volunteers (ages 8.3-29.2 years).
- Employed correlation analyses and generalized additive mixed-effect models for age and sex comparisons.
Main Results:
- IC demonstrated region-specific associations with LGI, SA, and CT.
- CT and LGI were inversely associated with age, while SA was not.
- Males exhibited larger cortical SA than females, with sex differences in LGI and IC explained by SA variations.
Conclusions:
- Intrinsic curvature (IC) provides a sensitive, semi-independent measure of cortical morphology relevant to cytoarchitecture.
- Understanding these age and sex-related cortical development patterns is crucial for identifying deviations from normal brain development.