The Functional Anatomy of Adolescent ADHD: Defining Markers of Recovery

University Of Pittsburgh At Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

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Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is a revised K01 application to facilitate the candidate's development into a successful applied neuroscience researcher investigating the neurobiological bases of cognitive impairment in neurodevelopmental disorders, with a special emphasis on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). The candidate is an experimental psychologist, well versed in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), whose previous published work examines the functional-anatomic correlates of cognitive control across the adult lifespan. The candidate is proposing to obtain further training in developmental neuroscience, clinical approaches to developmental disability and neurodevelopmental disorders, and in multispectral brain imaging from a distinguished panel of mentors representing multiple disciples. The aim of the mentor project is to use diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and fMRI to examine the structural and functional-anatomic correlates of cognitive control in adolescents who have shown varying levels of recovery since an initial diagnosis of ADHD-Combined type in childhood. Cognitive control will be examined with a battery of tasks that index several aspects of controlled processing. FMRI studies will also be conducted that will, for the first time in ADHD, examine sustained changes in brain activity (independent of transient trial-related effects) that associate with higher order supervisory control functions (i.e., "control states" or "task sets") that appear to be impaired in ADHD. We hypothesize that different levels of cognitive and psychiatric impairment in the clinical group will be accompanied by discernable changes in white-matter structural integrity and brain activation patterns (notably in fronto-striatal-cerebellar circuits) relative to controls. Results from the mentor project will be crucial for developing a neurobehavioral model of dysfunction in ADHD that can inform treatment and remediation of functional status. The importance of doing so is underlined by recent conservative estimates of the prevalence of ADHD in childhood on the order of 3-5% in the US, with persistence rates of 40-70% through adolescence. The training proposed in this application will allow the candidate to obtain unique experience in multidisciplinary collaboration using her background in neuroimaging and cognitive psychology to enable translational research linking basic neuroscience with child psychiatry, neurology, neuropsychology, child development and functional status.