ArticleCerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)2013
Metabolic maturation of the human brain from birth through adolescence: insights from in vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy.
Article in Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991), 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 98 papers.
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Who cites it
98 citing papers in PubMed, 155 citations in OpenAlex.
- Dynamics of infant white matter maturation from birth to 6 months.Communications biology · 2026Article
- Methodological comparison of fetal brainExperimental physiology · 2026Article
- Persistent neuroimmune alterations in children who are HIV-exposed but uninfected at age 6-7 years: Associations with language development in a South African birth cohort.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Longitudinal changes in neurometabolites in pediatric migraine across child development: a pilot study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Diagnostic value of quantitative MR spectroscopy metabolite ratios for Canavan disease.Frontiers in radiology · 2026Article
- Adolescent maturation of cortical excitation-inhibition ratio based on individualized biophysical network modeling.Science advances · 2025Article
- Adolescent maturation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex glutamate:GABA and cognitive function is supported by dopamine-related neurobiology.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Article
- Associations Between Brain Metabolites Measured With MR Spectroscopy and Head Impacts in High School American Football Athletes.Journal of magnetic resonance imaging : JMRI · 2025Article
- Article
- Maternal and child immune profiles are associated with neurometabolite measures of early-life neuroinflammation in children who are HIV-exposed and uninfected: a South African birth cohort.Wellcome open research · 2025Article
- The role of nutrition and gut microbiome in childhood brain development and behavior.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Review
- Altered markers of brain metabolism and excitability are associated with executive functioning in young children exposed to alcohol in utero.Metabolic brain disease · 2024Article
- Differential effects of moderate chronic ethanol consumption on neurobehavior, white matter glial protein expression, and mTOR pathway signaling with adolescent brain maturation.The American journal of drug and alcohol abuse · 2024Article
- The developmental trajectory of 1H-MRS brain metabolites from childhood to adulthood.Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) · 2024Article
- Multivariate and regional age-related change in basal ganglia iron in neonates.Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) · 2024Article
- Concentrations of glutamate andFrontiers in molecular neuroscience · 2024Article
- Impact of bronchopulmonary dysplasia on brain GABA concentrations in preterm infants: Prospective cohort study.Early human development · 2023Article
- Gestational and postnatal age associations for striatal tissue iron deposition in early infancy.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2023Article
- Assessment of Brain Magnetic Resonance and Spectroscopy Imaging Findings and Outcomes After Pediatric Cardiac Arrest.JAMA network open · 2023Article
- Neurometabolic changes in neonates with congenital heart defects and their relation to neurodevelopmental outcome.Pediatric research · 2023Article
38 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Between birth and late adolescence, the human brain undergoes exponential maturational changes. Using in vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we determined the developmental profile for 6 metabolites in 5 distinct brain regions based on spectra from 309 children from 0 to 18 years of age. The concentrations of N-acetyl-aspartate (an indicator for adult-type neurons and axons), creatine (energy metabolite), and glutamate (excitatory neurotransmitter) increased rapidly between birth and 3 months, a period of rapid axonal growth and synapse formation. Myo-inositol, implicated in cell signaling and a precursor of membrane phospholipid, as well as an osmolyte and astrocyte marker, declined rapidly during this period. Choline, a membrane metabolite and indicator for de novo myelin and cell membrane synthesis, peaked from birth until approximately 3 months, and then declined gradually, reaching a plateau at early childhood. Similarly, taurine, involved in neuronal excitability, synaptic potentiation, and osmoregulation, was high until approximately 3 months and thereafter declined. These data indicate that the first 3 months of postnatal life are a critical period of rapid metabolic changes in the development of the human brain. This study of the developmental profiles of the major brain metabolites provides essential baseline information for future analyses of the pediatric health and disease.
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Registered trials
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