University of California, San Diego, Department of Psychiatry, 9500 Gilman Drive (0603V), La Jolla, CA 92093-0603V, USA.
Brain Res. 2012 Jan 13;1432:66-73. doi: 10.1016/j.brainres.2011.11.013. Epub 2011 Nov 11.
Frontoparietal connections underlie key executive cognitive functions. Abnormalities in the frontoparietal network have been observed in chronic alcoholics and associated with alcohol-related cognitive deficits. It remains unclear whether neurobiological differences in frontoparietal circuitry exist in substance-naïve youth who are at-risk for alcohol use disorders. This study used functional connectivity magnetic resonance imaging and diffusion tensor imaging to examine frontoparietal connectivity and underlying white matter microstructure in 20 substance-naïve youth with a family history of alcohol dependence and 20 well-matched controls without familial substance use disorders. Youth with a family history of alcohol dependence showed significantly less functional connectivity between posterior parietal and dorsolateral prefrontal seed regions (ps<.05), as compared to family history negative controls; however, they did not show differences in white matter architecture within tracts subserving frontoparietal circuitry (ps>.34). Substance-naïve youth with a family history of alcohol dependence show less frontoparietal functional connectivity in the absence of white matter microstructural abnormalities as compared to youth with no familial risk. This may suggest a potential neurobiological marker for the development of substance use disorders.
额顶连接是关键的执行认知功能的基础。在慢性酗酒者中观察到额顶网络的异常,并与酒精相关的认知缺陷有关。目前尚不清楚在没有物质使用障碍家族史的物质-naïve 青少年中,额顶电路是否存在神经生物学差异。本研究使用功能连接磁共振成像和弥散张量成像来检查 20 名物质-naïve 青少年(有酒精依赖家族史)和 20 名匹配良好的对照者(无家族物质使用障碍)的额顶连接和潜在的白质微观结构。与家族史阴性对照组相比,有酒精依赖家族史的青少年后顶叶和背外侧前额叶种子区域之间的功能连接明显减少(p<0.05);然而,在额顶电路束内的白质结构没有差异(p>.34)。与没有家族风险的青少年相比,有酒精依赖家族史的物质-naïve 青少年的额顶功能连接减少,但没有白质微观结构异常。这可能表明物质使用障碍发展的潜在神经生物学标志物。