Longitudinal measures of monkey brain structure and activity through adolescence predict cognitive maturation

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Adolescence in primates involves cognitive enhancements and brain alterations.
• The precise impact of these neural changes on cognitive performance is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the multilevel, longitudinal neurocognitive development during primate adolescence.
• To link changes in neural activity and brain structure to cognitive improvements.

Main Methods:

• A longitudinal study tracking behavior, neuronal activity, and anatomical imaging in adolescent monkeys.
• Analysis of prefrontal neural activity trajectories and white matter tract maturation.

Main Results:

• Prefrontal neural activity trajectories accurately predicted working memory improvements.
• Maturation of long-distance white matter tracts predicted neural activity and cognitive changes.
• Decreases in brain volume/thickness did not predict cognitive changes, unlike in humans.

Conclusions:

• White matter maturation is a key driver of neural activity changes underlying adolescent cognitive development.
• This contrasts with human adolescent cognitive changes potentially driven by gray matter reductions.