Working Memory-Related Neurofunctional Correlates Associated with the Frontal Lobe in Children with Familial vs.
Xiaobo Li1,2, Chirag Motwani1,3, Meng Cao1,3
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ 07102, USA.
Brain Sciences
|October 28, 2023
Summary
Children with a family history of ADHD show altered brain activity in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) during working memory tasks. This functional underdevelopment in the left IFG is linked to ADHD symptom onset.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Genetics
Background:
- Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder with significant heritability.
- Children with a family history of ADHD face increased risks for symptom emergence, persistence, and executive function deficits.
- Neural mechanisms underlying these risks, particularly in relation to family history, remain underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate working memory-related functional brain activation patterns in children with ADHD, differentiating between those with (ADHD-F) and without (ADHD-NF) a positive family history.
- To compare these patterns with typically developing children (TDC).
- To explore the relationship between brain activation, task performance, and ADHD symptomatology.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during a two-back working memory task.
- Voxel-based and region of interest analyses were performed on data from 362 children (186 TDC, 96 ADHD-NF, 80 ADHD-F).
Main Results:
- Both ADHD groups exhibited significantly reduced activation in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) compared to TDC.
- In the ADHD-F group, left IFG activation correlated positively with reaction time.
- The right IFG showed a negative association with ADHD symptomatology, and IFG laterality correlated negatively with inattention scores.
Conclusions:
- Working memory-related functional alterations in the bilateral IFG are implicated in ADHD, particularly in children with a family history (ADHD-F).
- Functional underdevelopment of the left IFG appears to significantly contribute to the onset of ADHD symptoms in ADHD-F.
- Findings suggest potential for tailored diagnoses and targeted interventions for ADHD-F.
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