Logo image
Strengthening of top-down frontal cognitive control networks underlying the development of inhibitory control: a functional magnetic resonance imaging effective connectivity study
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Strengthening of top-down frontal cognitive control networks underlying the development of inhibitory control: a functional magnetic resonance imaging effective connectivity study

Kai Hwang, Katerina Velanova and Beatriz Luna
The Journal of neuroscience, Vol.30(46), pp.15535-15545
11/17/2010
DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2825-10.2010
PMCID: PMC2995693
PMID: 21084608
url
https://doi.org/10.1523/jneurosci.2825-10.2010View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

The ability to voluntarily inhibit responses to task-irrelevant stimuli, which is a fundamental component of cognitive control, has a protracted development through adolescence. Previous human developmental imaging studies have found immaturities in localized brain activity in children and adolescents. However, little is known about how these regions integrate with age to form the distributed networks known to support cognitive control. In the present study, we used Granger causality analysis to characterize developmental changes in effective connectivity underlying inhibitory control (antisaccade task) compared with reflexive responses (prosaccade task) in human participants. By childhood, few top-down connectivities were evident with increased parietal interconnectivity. By adolescence, connections from prefrontal cortex increased and parietal interconnectivity decreased. From adolescence to adulthood, there was evidence of increased number and strength of frontal connections to cortical regions as well as subcortical regions. Together, results suggest that developmental improvements in inhibitory control may be supported by age-related enhancements in top-down effective connectivity between frontal, oculomotor, and subcortical regions.
Nerve Net - growth & development Age Factors Humans Neural Pathways - growth & development Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods Male Prefrontal Cortex - growth & development Nerve Net - physiology Neural Pathways - physiology Psychomotor Performance - physiology Young Adult Neural Inhibition - physiology Adolescent Adult Female Child Prefrontal Cortex - physiology

Details

Metrics

Logo image