Compulsivity and impulsivity traits linked to attenuated developmental frontostriatal myelination trajectories

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Adolescence to adulthood is a critical period for brain development.
• This developmental stage has an increased risk for psychiatric disorders.
• The underlying brain changes are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate brain development during the transition from adolescence to adulthood.
• To explore the relationship between brain changes and psychiatric traits.
• To identify specific brain regions associated with compulsivity and impulsivity.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a unique longitudinal dataset.
• Employed in vivo myelin-sensitive magnetization transfer (MT) MRI scans.
• Analyzed brain-wide MT trajectories in gray and white matter.

Main Results:

• Observed brain-wide growth in MT trajectories during this developmental period.
• Found that compulsivity and impulsivity traits correlate with reduced MT trajectory growth in frontostriatal regions.
• Identified specific prefrontal regions (dorsomedial, dorsolateral, lateral, medial) associated with these traits.

Conclusions:

• Myelin-related growth in the adolescent brain is widespread.
• Compulsivity and impulsivity are associated with regionally specific reductions in this myelin growth.
• These findings offer insights into the neurodevelopmental basis of psychiatric traits.