Experience during adolescence shapes brain development: from synapses and networks to normal and pathological behavior

Suny Health Science Center At Brooklyn, Brooklyn NY

Investigators

Abstract

Adolescence is a period of dramatic neural reorganization and can be a vulnerable period. Social, emotional, and cognitive capacities mature during adolescence. Life experiences of adolescents can play a significant role in shaping the maturing brain. This award funds a symposium among a diversity of scientists and other professionals to examine topics such as synaptic plasticity in adolescent brains, environmental factors influencing adolescent brain development, neuroimaging methods used to study the brain, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Approximately 200 people across a wide range of professions are anticipated to attend the symposium. The broader impacts include enhanced understanding across multiple fields, which in turn, informs training, research, and policy. In addition, a summary of the symposium will be published to reach a wider audience. The information presented will benefit society by informing researchers, and health care professionals about the vulnerability of the developing adolescent brain and how this vulnerability can contribute to adolescent well-being. The adolescent brain experiences dramatic neural reorganization. The mechanisms underlying decision-making and risky behaviors of adolescents need to be examined with this reorganization in mind. This award supports a symposium which will take place as a component of the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Developmental Neurotoxicology Society (DNTS). The symposium will bring together major contributors to the field of adolescent brain development. Presentations will address numerous topics such as (a) how endocannabinoids impact cortical development; (b) what neuroimaging has revealed about cortical network development; (c) how discord between impulsivity and control contribute to risky behaviors, and (d) how exposure to common stimulants contribute to abnormal brain functioning. Experience-dependent plasticity will also be discussed. Conference attendees will be researchers, policy makers, basic scientists, clinical researchers, and government representatives (e.g., Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control). The symposium summary will be published as a means of making the information available to the scientific community. A better understanding of the connection between environmental factors and brain development may help us determine how to foster well-being among adolescents in our society. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.