ArticleMolecular psychiatry2025
Adolescent maturation of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex glutamate:GABA and cognitive function is supported by dopamine-related neurobiology.
Article in Molecular psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed.
- Pro-inflammatory markers interact with spontaneous theta oscillations to predict depression among adolescents.Brain, behavior, and immunity · 2026Article
- 7T magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging of subcortical neurometabolites across antipsychotic treatment in acutely symptomatic early-phase schizophrenia spectrum disorders.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Article
- Prefrontal Circuitry Abnormalities and Cognitive Impairment in Adolescents with Early- Onset Psychosis.Research square · 2026Article
- Developmental variation in basal ganglia tissue iron, neurocognitive functioning, and impulsivity is associated with substance use trajectories in youth.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Gene-Environment Interaction of Rims1 and Adolescent Social Isolation on Schizophrenia-Like Behaviors in Mice.Neuroscience bulletin · 2026Article
- Population-level encoding of task information is stronger in the adolescent compared to adult frontal cortex.Developmental cognitive neuroscience · 2026Article
- Annual Research Review: Neural mechanisms of eating disorders in youth - from current theory and findings to future directions.Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, and allied disciplines · 2026Review
- Aperiodic Signatures of Stress Sensitivity and Depression Recurrence in Adolescents.Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging · 2026Article
- Article
- Developmental variation in dopamine neurobiology, neurocognitive functioning, and impulsivity shape substance use trajectories in youth.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- A Synergistic Examination of Excitatory-Inhibitory Balance in First-Episode Schizophrenia Merging 7-Tesla Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Imaging and Magnetoencephalography.Brain and behavior · 2025Article
- Neurocognitive resilience as a predictor of psychosis onset and functional outcomes in individuals at high risk.BMC medicine · 2025Article
- Maturation of striatal dopamine supports the development of habitual behavior through adolescence.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
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7 authors.
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Abstract
Developmental changes in prefrontal cortex (PFC) excitatory (glutamatergic, Glu) and inhibitory (gamma- aminobutryic acid, GABA) neurotransmitter balance (E:I) have been identified during human adolescence, potentially reflecting a critical period of plasticity that supports the maturation of PFC-dependent cognition. Animal models implicate increases in dopamine (DA) in regulating changes in PFC E:I during critical periods of development, however, mechanistic relationships between DA and E:I have not been studied in humans. Here, we used high field (7T) echo planar imaging (EPI) in combination with Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopic Imaging (MRSI) to assess the role of basal ganglia tissue iron-reflecting DA neurophysiology-in longitudinal trajectories of dorsolateral PFC Glu, GABA, and their relative levels (Glu:GABA) and working memory performance from adolescence to adulthood in 153 participants (ages 10-32 years old, 1-3 visits, 272 visits total). Using generalized additive mixed models (GAMMs) that capture linear and non-linear developmental processes, we show that basal ganglia tissue iron increases during adolescence, and Glu:GABA is biased towards heightened Glu relative to GABA early in adolescence, decreasing into adulthood. Critically, variation in basal ganglia tissue iron was linked to different age-related trajectories in Glu:GABA and working memory. Specifically, individuals with higher levels of tissue iron showed a greater degree of age-related declines in Glu and Glu:GABA, resulting in lower Glu relative to GABA (i.e., higher GABA relative to Glu) in young adulthood. Variation in tissue iron additionally moderated working memory trajectories, as higher levels of tissue iron were associated with steeper age-related improvements and better performance into adulthood. Our results provide novel evidence for a model of critical period plasticity whereby individual differences in DA may be involved in fine-tuning PFC E:I and PFC-dependent cognitive function at a critical transition from adolescence into adulthood.
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