Socioeconomic status, white matter, and executive function in children

Development of working memory and inhibitory control in early childhood: Cross-sectional analysis by age intervals and gender in Ecuadorian preschoolers

Working memory (WM) and inhibitory control (IC) play a crucial role in learning during early childhood. The literature suggests a non-linear developmental trajectory of executive functions (EFs) with varied results according to gender, usually attributed to environmental factors. However, there is insufficient and inconclusive data on whether this pattern is reproduced in the Latin American preschool population since most studies have been conducted in English-speaking, European, and Asian environments. Thus, objectively comparing children's executive performance across diverse international geographical contexts becomes challenging. This study aimed to conduct a cross-sectional analysis of the performance in WM and IC of 982 Ecuadorian preschoolers aged between 42 and 65 months (M = 53.71; SD = 5.714) and belonging to medium-high, medium, and low-medium socioeconomic strata. The participants consisted of 496 boys (M = 53.77; SD = 5.598) and 486 girls (M = 53.65; SD = 5.834), representing nine cities in Ecuador. To assess the effect of age and gender on performance in these two domains, the sample was divided into four 6-month age intervals. Two tests were administered to the participants, and a survey was conducted with 799 of their usual caregivers. Viewing the cross-sectional mean scores of the WM and IC tests as a temporal continuum reveals an upward trend in each age interval studied. Girls outperformed boys on the IC test, showing statistically significant differences in the earliest age interval. The gender differences in executive performance reported in the literature emphasize the need to explore the modulating effect of environmental variables on early childhood development. This information could offer valuable insights for adapting and optimizing cognitive and didactic strategies in early childhood tailored to the characteristics and needs of the preschool population.

Structural and functional brain correlates of socioeconomic status across the life span: A systematic review

It is well-established that higher socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with improved brain health. However, the effects of SES across different life stages on brain structure and function is still equivocal. In this systematic review, we aimed to synthesise findings from life course neuroimaging studies that investigated the structural and functional brain correlates of SES across the life span. The results indicated that higher SES across different life stages were independently and cumulatively related to neural outcomes typically reflective of greater brain health (e.g., increased cortical thickness, grey matter volume, fractional anisotropy, and network segregation) in adult individuals. The results also demonstrated that the corticolimbic system was most commonly impacted by socioeconomic disadvantages across the life span. This review highlights the importance of taking into account SES across the life span when studying its effects on brain health. It also provides directions for future research including the need for longitudinal and multimodal research that can inform effective policy interventions tailored to specific life stages.

[Formula: see text] Environmental predictors of children's executive functioning development

Executive functioning (EF) abilities develop through childhood, but this development can be impacted by various psychosocial environmental influences. Using longitudinal data from the Health Outcome and Measures of the Environment (HOME) Study, a prospective pregnancy and birth cohort study, we examined if psychosocial environmental factors were significant predictors of EF development. Study participants comprised 271 children and their primary caregivers (98.5% mothers) followed from birth to age 12. We identified four distinct EF developmental trajectory groups comprising a consistently impaired group (13.3%), a descending impairment group (27.7%), an ascending impairment group (9.95%), and a consistently not impaired group (49.1%). Higher levels of maternal ADHD and relational frustration appear to be risk factors for increased EF difficulty over time, while higher family income may serve as a protective factor delaying predisposed EF impairment. Important intervention targets might include teaching positive and effective parenting strategies to mothers whose children are at risk for EF dysfunction.

Greater attention to socioeconomic status in developmental research can improve the external validity, generalizability, and replicability of developmental science

Psychological researchers have been criticized for making broad presumptions about human behavior based on limited sampling. In part, presumptive generalizability is reflected in the limited representation of sociodemographic variation in research reports. In this analysis, we examine time-trends in reporting of a key sociodemographic construct relevant to many aspects of child development-socioeconomic status (SES)-across six mainstream developmental journals (Infancy, Child Development, Developmental Science, Developmental Psychology, Infant and Child Development, and Infant Behavior & Development) between 2016 and 2022. Findings point to limited reporting of SES across developmental journals and across time. Reporting rates varied significantly by region and by topic of development. In terms of specific indicators of SES, there was consistent use of income and caregiver education as SES indicators. The epistemic costs of the lack of integration of socio-economic factors in developmental research are addressed. Pathways to greater integration of SES are proposed. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: We analyzed reporting and representation of socioeconomic status in published studies on early child development. A large proportion of published studies did not report any socio-economic information. Suggestions for greater attention to socioeconomic status are proposed.

The Neurobiology of Life Course Socioeconomic Conditions and Associated Cognitive Performance in Middle to Late Adulthood

Despite major advances, our understanding of the neurobiology of life course socioeconomic conditions is still scarce. This study aimed to provide insight into the pathways linking socioeconomic exposures-household income, last known occupational position, and life course socioeconomic trajectories-with brain microstructure and cognitive performance in middle to late adulthood. We assessed socioeconomic conditions alongside quantitative relaxometry and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging indicators of brain tissue microstructure and cognitive performance in a sample of community-dwelling men and women (N = 751, aged 50-91 years). We adjusted the applied regression analyses and structural equation models for the linear and nonlinear effects of age, sex, education, cardiovascular risk factors, and the presence of depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders. Individuals from lower-income households showed signs of advanced brain white matter (WM) aging with greater mean diffusivity (MD), lower neurite density, lower myelination, and lower iron content. The association between household income and MD was mediated by neurite density (B = 0.084, p = 0.003) and myelination (B = 0.019, p = 0.009); MD partially mediated the association between household income and cognitive performance (B = 0.017, p < 0.05). Household income moderated the relation between WM microstructure and cognitive performance, such that greater MD, lower myelination, or lower neurite density was only associated with poorer cognitive performance among individuals from lower-income households. Individuals from higher-income households showed preserved cognitive performance even with greater MD, lower myelination, or lower neurite density. These findings provide novel mechanistic insights into the associations between socioeconomic conditions, brain anatomy, and cognitive performance in middle to late adulthood.

Differences in educational opportunity predict white matter development

Coarse measures of socioeconomic status, such as parental income or parental education, have been linked to differences in white matter development. However, these measures do not provide insight into specific aspects of an individual's environment and how they relate to brain development. On the other hand, educational intervention studies have shown that changes in an individual's educational context can drive measurable changes in their white matter. These studies, however, rarely consider socioeconomic factors in their results. In the present study, we examined the unique relationship between educational opportunity and white matter development, when controlling other known socioeconomic factors. To explore this question, we leveraged the rich demographic and neuroimaging data available in the ABCD study, as well the unique data-crosswalk between ABCD and the Stanford Education Data Archive (SEDA). We find that educational opportunity is related to accelerated white matter development, even when accounting for other socioeconomic factors, and that this relationship is most pronounced in white matter tracts associated with academic skills. These results suggest that the school a child attends has a measurable relationship with brain development for years to come.

Multimodal neuroimaging correlates of physical-cognitive covariation in Chilean adolescents. The Cogni-Action Project

Health-related behaviours have been related to brain structural features. In developing settings, such as Latin America, high social inequality has been inversely associated with several health-related behaviours affecting brain development. Understanding the relationship between health behaviours and brain structure in such settings is particularly important during adolescence when critical habits are acquired and ingrained. In this cross-sectional study, we carry out a multimodal analysis identifying a brain region associated with health-related behaviours (i.e., adiposity, fitness, sleep problems and others) and cognitive/academic performance, independent of socioeconomic status in a large sample of Chilean adolescents. Our findings suggest that the relationship between health behaviours and cognitive/academic performance involves a particular brain phenotype that could play a mediator role. These findings fill a significant gap in the literature, which has largely focused on developed countries and raise the possibility of promoting healthy behaviours in adolescence as a means to influence brain structure and thereby cognitive/academic achievement, independently of socioeconomic factors. By highlighting the potential impact on brain structure and cognitive/academic achievement, policymakers could design interventions that are more effective in reducing health disparities in developing countries.

Global topology of human connectome is insensitive to early life environments - A prospective longitudinal study of the general population

The widely acknowledged detrimental impact of early adversity on child development has driven efforts to understand the underlying mechanisms that may mediate these effects within the developing brain. Recent efforts have begun to move beyond associating adversity with the morphology of individual brain regions towards determining if and how adversity might shape their interconnectivity. However, whether adversity effects a global shift in the organisation of whole-brain networks remains unclear. In this study, we assessed this possibility using parental questionnaire and diffusion imaging data from The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC, N = 913), a prospective longitudinal study spanning more than 20 years. We tested whether a wide range of adversities-including experiences of abuse, domestic violence, physical and emotional cruelty, poverty, neglect, and parental separation-measured by questionnaire within the first seven years of life were significantly associated with the tractography-derived connectome in young adulthood. We tested this across multiple measures of organisation and using a computational model that simulated the wiring economy of the brain. We found no significant relationships between early exposure to any form of adversity and the global organisation of the structural connectome in young adulthood. We did detect local differences in the medial prefrontal cortex, as well as an association between weaker brain wiring constraints and greater externalising behaviour in adolescence. Our results indicate that further efforts are necessary to delimit the magnitude and functional implications of adversity-related differences in connectomic organization. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Diverse prospective measures of the early-life environment do not predict the organisation of the DTI tractography-derived connectome in young adulthood Wiring economy of the connectome is weakly associated with externalising in adolescence, but not internalising or cognitive ability Further work is needed to establish the scope and significance of global adversity-related differences in the structural connectome.

Perceived Stress of Mothers, Harsh Discipline, and Early Childhood Mental Health: Insights from a Cross-Sectional Study in Marginalized Roma Communities

Objectives: This study aims to compare the early childhood mental health of children from marginalized Roma communities (MRCs) in Slovakia with that of the majority and explore possible mediating pathways of mothers' perceived stress and harsh discipline practices. Methods: We used data from the first wave of the longitudinal RomaREACH study collected in 2021-2022. Two populations were included in the sample: 94 mother-child dyads from MRCs and 79 from the majority population (children aged 14-18 months). Data were analysed using linear regression, and mediation was tested using PROCESS Macro in SPSS. Results: Belonging to MRCs vs. the majority, perceived stress of mothers and harsh discipline were found to be associated with early mental health problems in children. Perceived stress of mothers partially mediates the relationship between belonging to MRCs vs. majority and harsh discipline and harsh discipline partially mediates the relationship between perceived stress of mothers and the mental health of children. Conclusion: Mothers from MRCs perceive more stress, which is associated with more frequent use of harsh discipline practices having a negative impact on the mental health of young children.

Making Connections: Neurodevelopmental Changes in Brain Connectivity After Adverse Experiences in Early Adolescence

Adverse childhood experiences have been linked to detrimental mental health outcomes in adulthood. This study investigates a potential neurodevelopmental pathway between adversity and mental health outcomes: brain connectivity. We used data from the prospective, longitudinal Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study (N ≍ 12.000, participants aged 9-13 years, male and female) and assessed structural brain connectivity using fractional anisotropy (FA) of white matter tracts. The adverse experiences modeled included family conflict and traumatic experiences. K-means clustering and latent basis growth models were used to determine subgroups based on total levels and trajectories of brain connectivity. Multinomial regression was used to determine associations between cluster membership and adverse experiences. The results showed that higher family conflict was associated with higher FA levels across brain tracts (e.g., t (3) = -3.81, β = -0.09, p bonf = 0.003) and within the corpus callosum (CC), fornix, and anterior thalamic radiations (ATR). A decreasing FA trajectory across two brain imaging timepoints was linked to lower socioeconomic status and neighborhood safety. Socioeconomic status was related to FA across brain tracts (e.g., t (3) = 3.44, β = 0.10, p bonf = 0.01), the CC and the ATR. Neighborhood safety was associated with FA in the Fornix and ATR (e.g., t (1) = 3.48, β = 0.09, p bonf = 0.01). There is a complex and multifaceted relationship between adverse experiences and brain development, where adverse experiences during early adolescence are related to brain connectivity. These findings underscore the importance of studying adverse experiences beyond early childhood to understand lifespan developmental outcomes.

HTKS-Kids: A tablet-based self-regulation measure to equitably assess young children's school readiness

Background

Technology advances make it increasingly possible to adapt direct behavioral assessments for classroom use. This study examined children's scores on HTKS-Kids, a new, largely child-led version of the established individual research assessment of self-regulation, Head-Toes-Knees-Shoulders-Revised task (HTKS-R). For the HTKS-Kids tablet-based assessment, which was facilitated by children's preschool teachers, we examined (1) preliminary reliability and validity; (2) variation in scores predicted by child age and background characteristics; and (3) indication that HTKS-Kids provides different information from teacher ratings of children.

Method

Participants included n = 79 4-year-old children from two urban areas in upstate New York, USA. Average parent education was 12.5 years, ranging 3-20. A researcher administered the HTKS-R to individual children, and teachers (eight white, two Latino) were trained to use the HTKS-Kids tablet-based assessment and asked to play once with each study child. Teachers also rated each child on 10 Child Behavior Rating Scale (CBRS) items about classroom self-regulation.

Results

We found evidence that (1) the HTKS-Kids captures variation in children's self-regulation and correlates positively with established measures, (2) parent education was the best predictor of HTKS-Kids scores, and (3) teachers rated Black children significantly worse and white children better on the CBRS, with the magnitude of group differences similar to the contribution of parent education. In contrast, Black and white children showed no score differences on HTKS-Kids.

Implications

The HTKS-Kids is a promising new tablet-based assessment of self-regulation that could replace or supplement traditional teacher ratings, which are often subject to implicit bias.

Socioeconomic Disparities in Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Regulation and Prefrontal Cortical Structure

Socioeconomic disadvantage during childhood predicts an increased risk for mental health problems across the life span. Socioeconomic disadvantage shapes multiple aspects of children's proximal environments and increases exposure to chronic stressors. Drawing from multiple literatures, we propose that childhood socioeconomic disadvantage may lead to adaptive changes in the regulation of stress response systems including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. These changes, in turn, affect the development of prefrontal cortical (PFC) circuitry responsible for top-down control over cognitive and emotional processes. Translational findings indicate that chronic stress reduces dendritic complexity and spine density in the medial PFC and anterior cingulate cortex, in part through altered HPA axis regulation. Socioeconomic disadvantage has frequently been associated with reduced gray matter in the dorsolateral and ventrolateral PFC and anterior cingulate cortex and lower fractional anisotropy in the superior longitudinal fasciculus, cingulum bundle, and uncinate fasciculus during middle childhood and adolescence. Evidence of socioeconomic disparities in hair cortisol concentrations in children has accumulated, although null findings have been reported. Coupled with links between cortisol levels and reduced gray matter in the PFC and anterior cingulate cortex, these results support mechanistic roles for the HPA axis and these PFC circuits. Future longitudinal studies should simultaneously consider multiple dimensions of proximal factors, including cognitive stimulation, while focusing on epigenetic processes and genetic moderators to elucidate how socioeconomic context may influence the HPA axis and PFC circuitry involved in cognitive and emotional control. These findings, which point to modifiable factors, can be harnessed to inform policy and more effective prevention strategies.

Relative brain age is associated with socioeconomic status and anxiety/depression problems in youth

Brain age, a measure of biological aging in the brain, has been linked to psychiatric illness, principally in adult populations. Components of socioeconomic status (SES) associate with differences in brain structure and psychiatric risk across the lifespan. This study aimed to investigate the influence of SES on brain aging in childhood and adolescence, a period of rapid neurodevelopment and peak onset for many psychiatric disorders. We reanalyzed data from the Healthy Brain Network to examine the influence of SES components (occupational prestige, public assistance enrollment, parent education, and household income-to-needs ratio [INR]) on relative brain age (RBA). Analyses included 470 youth (5-17 years; 61.3% men), self-identifying as White (55%), African American (15%), Hispanic (9%), or multiracial (17.2%). Household income was 3.95 ± 2.33 (mean ± SD) times the federal poverty threshold. RBA quantified differences between chronological age and brain age using covariation patterns of morphological features and total volumes. We also examined associations between RBA and psychiatric symptoms (Child Behavior Checklist [CBCL]). Models covaried for sex, scan location, and parent psychiatric diagnoses. In a linear regression, lower RBA is associated with lower parent occupational prestige (p = .01), lower public assistance enrollment (p = .03), and more parent psychiatric diagnoses (p = .01), but not parent education or INR. Lower parent occupational prestige (p = .02) and lower RBA (p = .04) are associated with higher CBCL anxious/depressed scores. Our findings underscore the importance of including SES components in developmental brain research. Delayed brain aging may represent a potential biological pathway from SES to psychiatric risk. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Within-subject changes in methylome profile identify individual signatures of early-life adversity, with a potential to predict neuropsychiatric outcome

Background

Adverse early-life experiences (ELA), including poverty, trauma and neglect, affect a majority of the world's children. Whereas the impact of ELA on cognitive and emotional health throughout the lifespan is well-established, it is not clear how distinct types of ELA influence child development, and there are no tools to predict for an individual child their vulnerability or resilience to the consequences of ELAs. Epigenetic markers including DNA-methylation profiles of peripheral cells may encode ELA and provide a predictive outcome marker. However, the rapid dynamic changes in DNA methylation in childhood and the inter-individual variance of the human genome pose barriers to identifying profiles predicting outcomes of ELA exposure. Here, we examined the relation of several dimensions of ELA to changes of DNA methylation, using a longitudinal within-subject design and a high threshold for methylation changes in the hope of mitigating the above challenges.

Methods

We analyzed DNA methylation in buccal swab samples collected twice for each of 110 infants: neonatally and at 12 months. We identified CpGs differentially methylated across time, calculated methylation changes for each child, and determined whether several indicators of ELA associated with changes of DNA methylation for individual infants. We then correlated select dimensions of ELA with methylation changes as well as with measures of executive function at age 5 years. We examined for sex differences, and derived a sex-dependent 'impact score' based on sites that most contributed to the methylation changes.

Findings

Setting a high threshold for methylation changes, we discovered that changes in methylation between two samples of an individual child reflected age-related trends towards augmented methylation, and also correlated with executive function years later. Among the tested factors and ELA dimensions, including income to needs ratios, maternal sensitivity, body mass index and sex, unpredictability of parental and household signals was the strongest predictor of executive function. In girls, an interaction was observed between a measure of high early-life unpredictability and methylation changes, in presaging executive function.

Interpretation

These findings establish longitudinal, within-subject changes in methylation profiles as a signature of some types of ELA in an individual child. Notably, such changes are detectable beyond the age-associated DNA methylation dynamics. Future studies are required to determine if the methylation profile changes identified here provide a predictive marker of vulnerabilities to poorer cognitive and emotional outcomes.

Prenatal and Postnatal Maternal Depressive Symptoms Are Associated With White Matter Integrity in 5-Year-Olds in a Sex-Specific Manner

BACKGROUND

Prenatal and postnatal maternal psychological distress predicts various detrimental consequences on social, behavioral, and cognitive development of offspring, especially in girls. Maturation of white matter (WM) continues from prenatal development into adulthood and is thus susceptible to exposures both before and after birth.

METHODS

WM microstructural features of 130 children (mean age, 5.36 years; range, 5.04-5.79 years; 63 girls) and their association with maternal prenatal and postnatal depressive and anxiety symptoms were investigated with diffusion tensor imaging, tract-based spatial statistics, and regression analyses. Maternal questionnaires were collected during first, second, and third trimesters and at 3, 6, and 12 months postpartum with the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) for depressive symptoms and Symptom Checklist-90 for general anxiety. Covariates included child's sex; child's age; maternal prepregnancy body mass index; maternal age; socioeconomic status; and exposures to smoking, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, and synthetic glucocorticoids during pregnancy.

RESULTS

Prenatal second-trimester EPDS scores were positively associated with fractional anisotropy in boys (p < .05, 5000 permutations) after controlling for EPDS scores 3 months postpartum. In contrast, postpartum EPDS scores at 3 months correlated negatively with fractional anisotropy (p < .01, 5000 permutations) in widespread areas only in girls after controlling for prenatal second-trimester EPDS scores. Perinatal anxiety was not associated with WM structure.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that prenatal and postnatal maternal psychological distress is associated with brain WM tract developmental alterations in a sex- and timing-dependent manner. Future studies including behavioral data are required to consolidate associative outcomes for these alterations.

Is Birth Method Associated with Sensory Hyperreactivity in Children 3-4 Years in an Upper-Middle-Income Country?

Background

Research has shown that pressure in the vaginal birth process aids the infant's neurophysiological adaption to extrauterine life, including their ability to regulate their responses to diverse sensory stimuli. As pressure is absent in elective caesarean section births, we hypothesised that these children may be at higher risk for developing sensory hyperreactivity (SHR), a sensory modulation difficulty which negatively impacts on the child's engagement in their occupations. This paper reports on a study which investigated associations between birth method and SHR.

Method

In this cross-sectional study, 91 children aged three and four years from various language, cultural, and socioeconomic groups were recruited and categorised based on birth method (caesarean section or vaginal birth). Caregivers of each child completed the Short Sensory Profile-2 and a demographic questionnaire. The prevalence of SHR between the birth method groups was compared.

Results

The prevalence of SHR was greater in the vaginal birth group (29%) than the caesarean section group (9%). Mothers in the vaginal birth group were younger (p ≤ 0.001), of lower-income level (p = 0.003), and more likely to be single (p = 0.037). During data collection with the vaginal birth group, comprehensibility of certain items in the Short Sensory Profile-2 proved challenging for many caregivers.

Conclusion

The statistically significant higher prevalence of SHR in the vaginal birth group supported a null hypothesis. However, the results are questioned due to the challenges related to data collection. Given this, the study supports the need for further investigation of how sociocultural and socioeconomic factors influence the assessment of SHR in the South African context.

Socioeconomic Status and Reading Development: Moving from "Deficit" to "Adaptation" in Neurobiological Models of Experience-Dependent Learning

Childhood socioeconomic status (SES) is one of the strongest predictors of student reading outcomes, and these disparities have persisted for decades. Relatedly, two underlying skills that are required for successful reading-oral language and executive function (EF)-are also the two neurocognitive domains most affected by SES. In this review, we summarize current knowledge on how SES influences the neurobiology of language, EF, and their intersection, including the proximal factors that drive these relationships. We then consider the burgeoning evidence that SES systematically moderates certain brain-behavior relationships for language and EF, underscoring the importance of considering context in investigations of the neurobiological underpinnings of reading development. Finally, we discuss how disparities in reading may be conceptualized as neurobiological adaptations to adversity rather than deficit models. We conclude by suggesting that by harnessing children's stress-adapted relative strengths to support reading development, we may address opportunity gaps both ethically and efficaciously.

Variation in executive function relates to BMI increases in youth who were initially of a healthy weight in the ABCD Study

OBJECTIVE

The study aim was to determine whether (A) differences in executive function (EF) and cognition precede weight gain or (B) weight gain causes changes to EF and cognition.

METHODS

Data were gathered from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (release 4.0; ages 9-12 years old [N = 2794]; 100% had healthy weight at baseline [i.e., 9/10 years old], 12.4% had unhealthy weight by ages 11/12 years). EF and cognition were assessed across several domains (e.g., impulsivity, inhibitory control, processing speed, memory); BMI was calculated from height and weight. Nested random-effects mixed models examined (A) BMI ~ EF × Time (i.e., variation in EF/cognition precedes weight gain) and (B) EF ~ BMI × Time (weight gain causes changes to EF/cognition) and controlled for sex, puberty, and caregiver education; random effects were site and subject.

RESULTS

Variation in impulsivity, memory, learning, and processing speed was associated with greater increases in BMI trajectories from 9 to 12 years old. Weight gain was associated with a decrease in inhibitory control, but no other associations were observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Underlying variation in EF and cognition may be important for weight gain, but 2 years of weight gain may not be enough to have clinical implications for EF and cognition beyond inhibitory control. These findings suggest that more attention should be paid to the inclusion of EF programs in obesity prevention efforts.

The influence of socioeconomic status and appearance-reality understanding on pre-schoolers' sharing and generosity

Prosocial behaviour can be defined as any voluntary action that is performed to benefit another individual. Despite accumulating evidence of the importance of environmental variables (e.g., socioeconomic status; SES), and individual characteristics (e.g., theory of mind - ToM - skills), in influencing prosocial behaviours in young children, it is unknown how these factors relate to the underlying motivations for prosocial behaviours. Accordingly, both extrinsically (sharing) and intrinsically (generosity)-guided prosocial behaviours are measured in this study. We explore the influences of SES and ToM skills on young children's sharing behaviour and generosity, while controlling their age, working memory and language skills. Sixty-six 4- to 6 year olds (Mage  = 5.24 years, SD = 0.73) from diverse SES (measured by parental education level) and ethnic backgrounds in Singapore completed tasks assessing the ToM measures of false belief and appearance-reality understanding, working memory, language skills, generosity, and sharing behaviour. The results of hierarchical regression analyses demonstrate that the father's education level and children's appearance-reality understanding were significant predictors of sharing, after controlling for age, working memory, language skills, and the mother's education level. Children's appearance-reality understanding was the sole predictor of children's generosity. Our findings highlight the impact of children's ability to hold different views of reality and their family's education levels on the development of sharing and generosity in early childhood.

Understanding the interplay between executive functions and reading development: A challenge for researchers and practitioners alike

In June of 2022, The Dyslexia Foundation (TDF) organized a convening of dyslexia researchers and practitioners around the topic of executive functions. There was consensus on the importance of executive functions for reading development. However, the difficulty of defining, measuring, and training executive functions emerged as a challenge for researchers and practitioners alike. This special issue presents a collection of articles that survey different perspectives, define the current knowledge base, highlight challenges and inconsistencies in research, and chart a path towards a more nuanced understanding of the role of executive functions in reading and dyslexia.

Profiling intra- and inter-individual differences in brain development across early adolescence

As we move toward population-level developmental neuroscience, understanding intra- and inter-individual variability in brain maturation and sources of neurodevelopmental heterogeneity becomes paramount. Large-scale, longitudinal neuroimaging studies have uncovered group-level neurodevelopmental trajectories, and while recent work has begun to untangle intra- and inter-individual differences, they remain largely unclear. Here, we aim to quantify both intra- and inter-individual variability across facets of neurodevelopment across early adolescence (ages 8.92 to 13.83 years) in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study and examine inter-individual variability as a function of age, sex, and puberty. Our results provide novel insight into differences in annualized percent change in macrostructure, microstructure, and functional brain development from ages 9-13 years old. These findings reveal moderate age-related intra-individual change, but age-related differences in inter-individual variability only in a few measures of cortical macro- and microstructure development. Greater inter-individual variability in brain development were seen in mid-pubertal individuals, except for a few aspects of white matter development that were more variable between prepubertal individuals in some tracts. Although both sexes contributed to inter-individual differences in macrostructure and functional development in a few regions of the brain, we found limited support for hypotheses regarding greater male-than-female variability. This work highlights pockets of individual variability across facets of early adolescent brain development, while also highlighting regional differences in heterogeneity to facilitate future investigations in quantifying and probing nuances in normative development, and deviations therefrom.

Effectiveness of executive functioning training among heterogeneous adolescent samples: A systematic review

The aim of the present systematic review was to discuss the reported efficacy of executive functioning training techniques among adolescents. A systematic review of the literature was conducted to retrieve and consolidate findings from articles evaluating executive functioning training techniques among adolescents. A total of 26 articles were located that examined the role of executive functioning training techniques among adolescents (age 10-19 years). Articles retrieved enabled comparison across psychiatric and medical diagnoses including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as well as adolescents with physical health concerns. Results revealed that among typically developing adolescents, executive functioning training was non-significant or yielded small effect size improvements in executive functioning as measured by behavioral and neuroimaging tasks among 62.5% of studies reviewed. In contrast, in those with medical conditions, ASD, ADHD, and conduct disorder, all but two studies reviewed yielded a medium to large effect size, supporting the effectiveness of EF training. Future research is needed to identify the long-term efficacy of these treatments, as well as their generalizability to real-world conditions.

Associations Between Socioeconomic Status, Obesity, Cognition, and White Matter Microstructure in Children

Importance

Lower neighborhood and household socioeconomic status (SES) are associated with negative health outcomes and altered brain structure in children. It is unclear whether such findings extend to white matter and via what mechanisms.

Objective

To assess whether and how neighborhood and household SES are independently associated with children's white matter microstructure and examine whether obesity and cognitive performance (reflecting environmental cognitive and sensory stimulation) are plausible mediators.

Design, Setting, and Participants

This cross-sectional study used baseline data from participants in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. Data were collected at 21 US sites, and school-based recruitment was used to represent the US population. Children aged 9 to 11 years and their parents or caregivers completed assessments between October 1, 2016, and October 31, 2018. After exclusions, 8842 of 11 875 children in the ABCD study were included in the analyses. Data analysis was conducted from July 11 to December 19, 2022.

Exposures

Neighborhood disadvantage was derived from area deprivation indices at participants' primary residence. Household SES factors were total income and highest parental educational attainment.

Main Outcomes and Measures

A restriction spectrum imaging (RSI) model was used to quantify restricted normalized directional (RND; reflecting oriented myelin organization) and restricted normalized isotropic (RNI; reflecting glial and neuronal cell bodies) diffusion in 31 major white matter tracts. The RSI measurements were scanner harmonized. Obesity was assessed through body mass index (BMI; calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared), age- and sex-adjusted BMI z scores, and waist circumference, and cognition was assessed through the National Institutes of Health Toolbox Cognition Battery. Analyses were adjusted for age, sex, pubertal development stage, intracranial volume, mean head motion, and twin or siblingship.

Results

Among 8842 children, 4543 (51.4%) were boys, and the mean (SD) age was 9.9 (0.7) years. Linear mixed-effects models revealed that greater neighborhood disadvantage was associated with lower RSI-RND in the left superior longitudinal fasciculus (β = -0.055; 95% CI, -0.081 to -0.028) and forceps major (β = -0.040; 95% CI, -0.067 to -0.013). Lower parental educational attainment was associated with lower RSI-RND in the bilateral superior longitudinal fasciculus (eg, right hemisphere: β = 0.053; 95% CI, 0.025-0.080) and bilateral corticospinal or pyramidal tract (eg, right hemisphere: β = 0.042; 95% CI, 0.015-0.069). Structural equation models revealed that lower cognitive performance (eg, lower total cognition score and higher neighborhood disadvantage: β = -0.012; 95% CI, -0.016 to -0.009) and greater obesity (eg, higher BMI and higher neighborhood disadvantage: β = -0.004; 95% CI, -0.006 to -0.001) partially accounted for the associations between SES and RSI-RND. Lower household income was associated with higher RSI-RNI in most tracts (eg, right inferior longitudinal fasciculus: β = -0.042 [95% CI, -0.073 to -0.012]; right anterior thalamic radiations: β = -0.045 [95% CI, -0.075 to -0.014]), and greater neighborhood disadvantage had similar associations in primarily frontolimbic tracts (eg, right fornix: β = 0.046 [95% CI, 0.019-0.074]; right anterior thalamic radiations: β = 0.045 [95% CI, 0.018-0.072]). Lower parental educational attainment was associated with higher RSI-RNI in the forceps major (β = -0.048; 95% CI, -0.077 to -0.020). Greater obesity partially accounted for these SES associations with RSI-RNI (eg, higher BMI and higher neighborhood disadvantage: β = 0.015; 95% CI, 0.011-0.020). Findings were robust in sensitivity analyses and were corroborated using diffusion tensor imaging.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cross-sectional study, both neighborhood and household contexts were associated with white matter development in children, and findings suggested that obesity and cognitive performance were possible mediators in these associations. Future research on children's brain health may benefit from considering these factors from multiple socioeconomic perspectives.

Neurocognitive outcomes in pediatric brain tumors after treatment with proton versus photon radiation: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Advances in cancer treatments, particularly the development of radiation therapy, have led to improvements in survival outcomes in children with brain tumors. However, radiation therapy is associated with significant long-term neurocognitive morbidity. The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to compare the neurocognitive outcomes of children and adolescents with brain tumors treated with photon radiation (XRT) or proton therapy (PBRT).

METHODS

A systematic search was conducted (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane, and Web of Science from inception until 02/01/2022) for studies comparing the neurocognitive outcomes of children and adolescents with brain tumors treated with XRT vs. PBRT. The pooled mean differences (expressed as Z scores) were calculated using a random effects method for those endpoints analyzed by a minimum of three studies.

RESULTS

Totally 10 studies (n = 630 patients, average age range: 1-20 years) met the inclusion criteria. Patients who had received PBRT achieved significantly higher scores (difference in Z scores ranging from 0.29-0.75, all P < 0.05 and significant in sensitivity analyses) after treatment than those who had received XRT for most analyzed neurocognitive outcomes (i.e., intelligence quotient, verbal comprehension and perceptual reasoning indices, visual motor integration, and verbal memory). No robust significant differences (P > 0.05 in main analyses or sensitivity analyses) were found for nonverbal memory, verbal working memory and working memory index, processing speed index, or focused attention.

CONCLUSIONS

Pediatric brain tumor patients who receive PBRT achieve significantly higher scores on most neurocognitive outcomes than those who receive XRT. Larger studies with long-term follow-ups are needed to confirm these results.

Comparison of mothers' perceptions of hunger cues in 3-month-old infant under different feeding methods

BACKGROUND

Mothers' perception of infant hunger cues is a critical content of responsive feeding, which is central to the promotion of early childhood development. However, only a few studies have examined responsive feeding in China, especially lacking the studies on perceptions of infant hunger cues. Consider the cultural differences, the aim of this study was to describe the perceptions of infant hunger cues of Chinese mothers for infants aged 3 months, and explore the relationship between maternal perceptions of infant hunger cues and different feeding methods.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 326 mothers of healthy 3-month-old infants, including 188 exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) mothers and 138 formula feeding (FF) mothers. It was implemented in four provincial and municipal maternal and child health hospitals. The mothers' perceptions of infant hunger cues were surveyed by self-reporting questionnaires. Chi-square tests and logistic analysis were applied to analyze the differences in maternal perceptions of infant hunger cues, including the number of hunger cues and the specific cues, between EBF group and FF group by controlling sociodemographic variables and the daily nursing indicators.

RESULTS

We found that a higher proportion of EBF mothers could perceive multiple hunger cues (≥ 2) than FF mothers (66.5% vs.55.1%). For specific cues, the EBF mothers had higher perceptions of infant's "hand sucking" (67.6% vs. 53.6%) and "moving head frantically from side to side" (34.6% vs. 23.9%), all p < 0.05. Regression analysis revealed that EBF might support mothers to perceive infant hunger cues than FF mothers, with the number of infant hunger cues (OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.01-2.85), "hand sucking" (OR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.04-2.87), "moving head frantically from side to side" (OR = 2.07, 95% CI: 1.19-3.62). The number of infant hunger cues perceived by mothers was also associated with their educational level and family structure.

CONCLUSION

EBF mothers of 3-month-old infants may be more likely to perceive infant hunger cues than FF mothers in China. It is necessary to increase the health education about infant hunger and satiety cues to caregivers in China, especially among mothers with lower education levels, mothers living in nuclear families, and FF mothers.

The effect of non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation on memory recall in reading: A pilot study

Expert reading acquisition is marked by fluent, effortless decoding, and adequate comprehension skills and is required for modern daily life. In spite of its importance, many individuals struggle with reading comprehension even when decoding skills are adequate. Unfortunately, effective reading comprehension interventions are limited, especially for adults. A growing body of research suggests that non-invasive transcutaneous stimulation of the auricular vagus nerve (taVNS) may drive neural plasticity for low-level reading skills such as speech sound perception and letter-sound learning, but it is unknown whether taVNS can improve higher level skills as well. Thus, the current pilot study was designed to evaluate the effect of taVNS paired with passage reading on reading comprehension performance. Twenty-four typically developing young adults were recruited and screened for baseline reading and working memory skills. Participants received either sham or active taVNS while reading short passages out loud. Immediately following each passage, participants answered a series of test questions that required either direct recall of passage details or more complete comprehension of the passage content. While taVNS did not improve the mechanics of reading (e.g., reading rate or accuracy), there was a significant effect of active taVNS on test performance. This effect was driven by significant improvement on accuracy for memory questions while there was no effect of taVNS on comprehension question accuracy. These findings suggest that taVNS may be beneficial for enhancing memory, but its efficacy may be limited in higher cognitive domains.

Associations between socioeconomic status and white matter microstructure in children: indirect effects via obesity and cognition

Importance

Both neighborhood and household socioeconomic disadvantage relate to negative health outcomes and altered brain structure in children. It is unclear whether such findings extend to white matter development, and via what mechanisms socioeconomic status (SES) influences the brain.

Objective

To test independent associations between neighborhood and household SES indicators and white matter microstructure in children, and examine whether body mass index and cognitive function (a proxy of environmental cognitive/sensory stimulation) may plausibly mediate these associations.

Design

This cross-sectional study used baseline data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, an ongoing 10-year cohort study tracking child health.

Setting

School-based recruitment at 21 U.S. sites.

Participants

Children aged 9 to 11 years and their parents/caregivers completed baseline assessments between October 1 ^st , 2016 and October 31 ^st , 2018. Data analysis was conducted from July to December 2022.

Exposures

Neighborhood disadvantage was derived from area deprivation indices at primary residence. Household SES indicators were total income and the highest parental education attainment.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Thirty-one major white matter tracts were segmented from diffusion-weighted images. The Restriction Spectrum Imaging (RSI) model was implemented to measure restricted normalized directional (RND; reflecting oriented myelin organization) and isotropic (RNI; reflecting glial/neuronal cell bodies) diffusion in each tract. Obesity-related measures were body mass index (BMI), BMI z -scores, and waist circumference, and cognitive performance was assessed using the NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery. Linear mixed-effects models tested the associations between SES indicators and scanner-harmonized RSI metrics. Structural equation models examined indirect effects of obesity and cognitive performance in the significant associations between SES and white mater microstructure summary principal components. Analyses were adjusted for age, sex, pubertal development stage, intracranial volume, and head motion.

Results

The analytical sample included 8842 children (4299 [48.6%] girls; mean age [SD], 9.9 [0.7] years). Greater neighborhood disadvantage and lower parental education were independently associated with lower RSI-RND in forceps major and corticospinal/pyramidal tracts, and had overlapping associations in the superior longitudinal fasciculus. Lower cognition scores and greater obesity-related measures partially accounted for these SES associations with RSI-RND. Lower household income was related to higher RSI-RNI in almost every tract, and greater neighborhood disadvantage had similar effects in primarily frontolimbic tracts. Lower parental education was uniquely linked to higher RSI-RNI in forceps major. Greater obesity-related measures partially accounted for these SES associations with RSI-RNI. Findings were robust in sensitivity analyses and mostly corroborated using traditional diffusion tensor imaging (DTI).

Conclusions and Relevance

These cross-sectional results demonstrate that both neighborhood and household contexts are relevant to white matter development in children, and suggest cognitive performance and obesity as possible pathways of influence. Interventions targeting obesity reduction and improving cognition from multiple socioeconomic angles may ameliorate brain health in low-SES children.

Key Points

Question: Are neighborhood and household socioeconomic levels associated with children’s brain white matter microstructure, and if so, do obesity and cognitive performance (reflecting environmental stimulation) mediate the associations?Findings: In a cohort of 8842 children, higher neighborhood disadvantage, lower household income, and lower parental education had independent and overlapping associations with lower restricted directional diffusion and greater restricted isotropic diffusion in white matter. Greater body mass index and poorer cognitive performance partially mediated these associations.Meaning: Both neighborhood and household poverty may contribute to altered white matter development in children. These effects may be partially explained by obesity incidence and poorer cognitive performance.

Associations between Socioeconomic Status, Cognition, and Brain Structure: Evaluating Potential Causal Pathways Through Mechanistic Models of Development

Differences in socioeconomic status (SES) correlate both with differences in cognitive development and in brain structure. Associations between SES and brain measures such as cortical surface area and cortical thickness mediate differences in cognitive skills such as executive function and language. However, causal accounts that link SES, brain, and behavior are challenging because SES is a multidimensional construct: correlated environmental factors, such as family income and parental education, are only distal markers for proximal causal pathways. Moreover, the causal accounts themselves must span multiple levels of description, employ a developmental perspective, and integrate genetic effects on individual differences. Nevertheless, causal accounts have the potential to inform policy and guide interventions to reduce gaps in developmental outcomes. In this article, we review the range of empirical data to be integrated in causal accounts of developmental effects on the brain and cognition associated with variation in SES. We take the specific example of language development and evaluate the potential of a multiscale computational model of development, based on an artificial neural network, to support the construction of causal accounts. We show how, with bridging assumptions that link properties of network structure to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measures of brain structure, different sets of empirical data on SES effects can be connected. We use the model to contrast two possible causal pathways for environmental influences that are associated with SES: differences in prenatal brain development and differences in postnatal cognitive stimulation. We then use the model to explore the implications of each pathway for the potential to intervene to reduce gaps in developmental outcomes. The model points to the cumulative effects of social disadvantage on multiple pathways as the source of the poorest response to interventions. Overall, we highlight the importance of implemented models to test competing accounts of environmental influences on individual differences.

Why doesn't executive function training improve academic achievement? Rethinking individual differences, relevance, and engagement from a contextual framework

Performance on lab assessments of executive functions predicts academic achievement and other positive life outcomes. A primary goal of research on executive functions has been to design interventions that improve outcomes like academic achievement by improving executive functions. These interventions typically involve extensive practice on abstract lab-based tasks and lead to improvements on these practiced tasks. However, interventions rarely improve performance on non-practiced tasks and rarely benefit outcomes like academic achievement. Contemporary frameworks of executive function development suggest that executive functions develop and are engaged within personal, social, historical, and cultural contexts. Abstract lab-based tasks do not well-capture the real-world contexts that require executive functions and should not be expected to provide generalized benefits outside of the lab. We propose a perspective for understanding individual differences in performance on executive function assessments that focuses on contextual influences on executive functions. We extend this contextual approach to training executive function engagement, rather than training executive functions directly. First, interventions should incorporate task content that is contextually relevant to the targeted outcome. Second, interventions should encourage engaging executive functions through reinforcement and contextual relevance, which may better translate to real-world outcomes than training executive functions directly. While such individualized executive functions interventions do not address systemic factors that greatly impact outcomes like academic achievement, given the extensive resources devoted to improving executive functions, we hypothesize that interventions designed to encourage children's engagement of executive functions hold more promise for impacting real-world outcomes than interventions designed to improve executive function capacities.

Access to quality health resources and environmental toxins affect the relationship between brain structure and BMI in a sample of pre and early adolescents

Background

Environmental resources are related to childhood obesity risk and altered brain development, but whether these relationships are stable or if they have sustained impact is unknown. Here, we utilized a multidimensional index of childhood neighborhood conditions to compare the influence of various social and environmental disparities (SED) on body mass index (BMI)-brain relationships over a 2-year period in early adolescence.

Methods

Data were gathered the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study® (n = 2,970, 49.8% female, 69.1% White, no siblings). Structure magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI), anthropometrics, and demographic information were collected at baseline (9/10-years-old) and the 2-year-follow-up (11/12-years-old). Region of interest (ROIs; 68 cortical, 18 subcortical) estimates of cortical thickness and subcortical volume were extracted from sMRI T1w images using the Desikan atlas. Residential addresses at baseline were used to obtain geocoded estimates of SEDs from 3 domains of childhood opportunity index (COI): healthy environment (COIHE), social/economic (COISE), and education (COIED). Nested, random-effects mixed models were conducted to evaluate relationships of BMI with (1) ROI * COI[domain] and (2) ROI * COI[domain] * Time. Models controlled for sex, race, ethnicity, puberty, and the other two COI domains of non-interest, allowing us to estimate the unique variance explained by each domain and its interaction with ROI and time.

Results

Youth living in areas with lower COISE and COIED scores were heavier at the 2-year follow-up than baseline and exhibited greater thinning in the bilateral occipital cortex between visits. Lower COISE scores corresponded with larger volume of the bilateral caudate and greater BMI at the 2-year follow-up. COIHE scores showed the greatest associations (n = 20 ROIs) with brain-BMI relationships: youth living in areas with lower COIHE had thinner cortices in prefrontal regions and larger volumes of the left pallidum and Ventral DC. Time did not moderate the COIHE x ROI interaction for any brain region during the examined 2-year period. Findings were independent of family income (i.e., income-to-needs).

Conclusion

Collectively our findings demonstrate that neighborhood SEDs for health-promoting resources play a particularly important role in moderating relationships between brain and BMI in early adolescence regardless of family-level financial resources.

The Critical Roles of Early Development, Stress, and Environment in the Course of Psychosis

Psychotic disorders are highly debilitating with poor prognoses and courses of chronic illness. In recent decades, conceptual models have shaped understanding, informed treatment, and guided research questions. However, these models have classically focused on the adolescent and early adulthood stages immediately preceding onset while conceptualizing early infancy through all of childhood as a unitary premorbid period. In addition, models have paid limited attention to differential effects of types of stress; contextual factors such as local, regional, and country-level characteristics or sociocultural contexts; and the timing of the stressor or environmental risk. This review discusses emerging research suggesting that (a) considering effects specific to neurodevelopmental stages prior to adolescence is highly informative, (b) understanding specific stressors and levels of environmental exposures (i.e., systemic or contextual features) is necessary, and (c) exploring the dynamic interplay between development, levels and types of stressors, and environments can shed new light, informing a specified neurodevelopmental and multifaceted diathesis-stress model.

White matter integrity as a mediator between socioeconomic status and executive function

Introduction

Lower socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with poorer executive function, but the neural mechanisms of this association remain unclear. As healthy brain communication is essential to our cognitive abilities, white matter integrity may be key to understanding socioeconomic disparities.

Methods

Participants were 201 African American and White adults (ages 33-72) from the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span (HANDLS) SCAN study. Diffusion tensor imaging was used to estimate regional fractional anisotropy as a measure of white matter integrity. Adjusting for age, analyses examined if integrity of the anterior limb of the internal capsule (ALIC), external capsule (EC), superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), and cingulum mediated SES-executive function relations.

Results

Lower SES was related to poorer cognitive performance and white matter integrity. Lower Trails B performance was related to poorer integrity of the ALIC, EC, and SLF, and lower Stroop performance was associated with poorer integrity of the ALIC and EC. ALIC mediated the SES-Trails B relation, and EC mediated the SES-Trails B and SES-Stroop relations. Sensitivity analyses revealed that (1) adjustment for race rendered the EC mediations non-significant, (2) when using poverty status and continuous education as predictors, results were largely the same, (3) at least some of the study's findings may generalize to processing speed, (4) mediations are not age-dependent in our sample, and (5) more research is needed to understand the role of cardiovascular risk factors in these models.

Discussion

Findings demonstrate that poorer white matter integrity helps explain SES disparities in executive function and highlight the need for further clarification of the biopsychosocial mechanisms of the SES-cognition association.

Anxiety in children and youth with autism spectrum disorder and the association with amygdala subnuclei structure

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is clinically characterized by social and communication difficulties as well as repetitive behaviors. Many children with ASD also suffer from anxiety, which has been associated with alterations in amygdala structure. In this work, the association between amygdala subnuclei volumes and anxiety was assessed in a cohort of 234 participants (mean age = 11.0 years, SD = 3.9, 95 children with ASD, 139 children were non-autistic). Children underwent magnetic resonance imaging. Amygdala subnuclei volumes were extracted automatically. Anxiety was assessed using the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders, the Child Behavior Checklist, and the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire. Children with ASD had higher anxiety scores relative to non-autistic children on all anxiety measures (all, p < 0.05). Anxiety levels were significantly predicted in children with ASD by right basal (right: B = 0.235, p = 0.002) and paralaminar (PL) (B = −0.99, p = 0.009) volumes. Basal nuclei receive multisensory information from cortical and subcortical areas and have extensive projections within the limbic system while the PL nuclei are involved in emotional processing. Alterations in basal and PL nuclei in children with ASD and the association with anxiety may reflect morphological changes related to in the neurocircuitry of anxiety in ASD.

Lay abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is clinically characterized by social communication difficulties as well as restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior. In addition, children with ASD are more likely to experience anxiety compared with their peers who do not have ASD. Recent studies suggest that atypical amygdala structure, a brain region involved in emotions, may be related to anxiety in children with ASD. However, the amygdala is a complex structure composed of heterogeneous subnuclei, and few studies to date have focused on how amygdala subnuclei relate to in anxiety in this population. The current sample consisted of 95 children with ASD and 139 non-autistic children, who underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and assessments for anxiety. The amygdala volumes were automatically segmented. Results indicated that children with ASD had elevated anxiety scores relative to peers without ASD. Larger basal volumes predicted greater anxiety in children with ASD, and this association was not seen in non-autistic children. Findings converge with previous literature suggesting ASD children suffer from higher levels of anxiety than non-autistic children, which may have important implications in treatment and interventions. Our results suggest that volumetric estimation of amygdala’s subregions in MRI may reveal specific anxiety-related associations in children with ASD.

Executive functions as mediators between socioeconomic status and academic performance in Chinese school-aged children☆

Background

It is well-documented that socioeconomic status (SES) and academic performance in school-aged children are closely related. However, little is known about how the three core executive functions (EFs), inhibition, working memory, and cognitive flexibility, mediate the association between the two. Moreover, most previous studies examined SES disparities in Western countries, how such disparities in EF and academic performance manifest in the Chinese context, where a distinctive EF profile and learning experience are observed, remains uncertain. The current study explored: (1) the mediating effects of the three core EFs in the association between SES and academic performance; and (2) the differences in EF and academic performance in three core subjects between Chinese children who are below and above the poverty line.

Methods

Of the 385 students sampled, 205 are in the low-SES group and 180 are in the middle-high SES group.

Results

A structural equation model showed that the SES-academic performance relationship was fully mediated by cognitive flexibility and working memory but not inhibition. Working memory was a much stronger mediator than cognitive flexibility, suggesting that working memory may correlate with childhood SES and academic performance in Chinese children. An analysis of covariance suggested that compared to the middle-high SES group, the low-SES group demonstrated poorer working memory and academic performance in all three subjects after controlling for age and IQ. Interestingly, children with low-SES were found to have better cognitive flexibility than children with middle-high SES.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that interventions targeting working memory may be an important area to improve children's academic performance.

•

This study examined (1) the mediating effects of executive function in the association between socioeconomic status and academic performance; and (2) the differences in executive function and academic performance in three core subjects between Chinese children who are below and above the poverty line.

•

Both socioeconomic status groups exhibited differences in cognitive flexibility, working memory, and academic performance in all three core subjects.

•

The socioeconomic status-achievement relationship was mediated by cognitive flexibility and working memory but not inhibition. Working memory was a stronger mediator than cognitive flexibility in explaining academic performance.

White matter microstructure shows sex differences in late childhood: Evidence from 6797 children

Sex differences in white matter microstructure have been robustly demonstrated in the adult brain using both conventional and advanced diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging approaches. However, sex differences in white matter microstructure prior to adulthood remain poorly understood; previous developmental work focused on conventional microstructure metrics and yielded mixed results. Here, we rigorously characterized sex differences in white matter microstructure among over 6000 children from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study who were between 9 and 10 years old. Microstructure was quantified using both the conventional model-diffusion tensor imaging (DTI)-and an advanced model, restriction spectrum imaging (RSI). DTI metrics included fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean, axial, and radial diffusivity (MD, AD, RD). RSI metrics included normalized isotropic, directional, and total intracellular diffusion (N0, ND, NT). We found significant and replicable sex differences in DTI or RSI microstructure metrics in every white matter region examined across the brain. Sex differences in FA were regionally specific. Across white matter regions, boys exhibited greater MD, AD, and RD than girls, on average. Girls displayed increased N0, ND, and NT compared to boys, on average, suggesting greater cell and neurite density in girls. Together, these robust and replicable findings provide an important foundation for understanding sex differences in health and disease.

A Mega-analytic Study of White Matter Microstructural Differences Across 5 Cohorts of Youths With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

BACKGROUND

While attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been associated with differences in the structural connections formed by the brain's white matter tracts, studies of such differences have yielded inconsistent findings, likely reflecting small sample sizes. Thus, we conducted a mega-analysis on in vivo measures of white matter microstructure obtained through diffusion tensor imaging of more than 6000 participants from 5 cohorts.

METHODS

In a mega-analysis, linear mixed models were used to test for associations between the fractional anisotropy of 42 white matter tracts and ADHD traits and diagnosis. Contrasts were made against measures of mood, anxiety, and other externalizing problems.

RESULTS

Overall, 6993 participants (ages 6-18 years, mean age 10.62 years [SD 1.99]; 3368 girls, 3625 boys; 764 African American, 4146 non-Hispanic White, and 2083 other race/ethnicities) had measures of ADHD and other emotional/behavioral symptoms (N = 6933) and/or enough clinical data to allow a diagnosis of ADHD (n = 951) or its absence (n = 4884). Both the diagnosis and symptoms of ADHD were associated with lower fractional anisotropy of the inferior longitudinal and left uncinate fasciculi (at a false discovery rate-adjusted p < .05). Associated effect sizes were small (the strongest association with ADHD traits had an effect size of partial r = -0.14, while the largest case-control difference was associated with an effect size of d = -0.3). Similar microstructural anomalies were not present for anxiety, mood, or externalizing problems. Findings held when ADHD cases and control subjects were matched on in-scanner motion.

CONCLUSIONS

While present across cohorts, ADHD-associated microstructural differences had small effects, underscoring the limited clinical utility of this imaging modality used in isolation.

Brain default mode network mediates the association between negative perfectionism and exercise dependence

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Perfectionism is correlated with the occurrence of exercise dependence. We aim to reveal the role of functional connectivity (FC) between gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) networks in the association between perfectionism and exercise dependence.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, one hundred ten participants with exercise dependence underwent behavioral evaluation and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Perfectionism and exercise dependence were quantified using the Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS) and Exercise Dependence Scale (EDS). We used a K-means clustering algorithm to identify functional GM and WM networks and obtained the FCs of the GM-GM, GM-WM, and WM-WM networks. Partial correlation and mediation analyses were performed to explore the relationships among FCs, FMPS, and EDS.

RESULTS

We identified ten stable GM networks and nine WM networks. Of these, FCs existed between the corona radiata network (WM1) and default mode network (DMN, GM8), WM1 network and WM DMN (WM4), WM1 network and midbrain WM network (WM7), and WM4 network and inferior longitudinal fasciculus network (WM9). The WM1-GM8 and WM1-WM4 FCs were positively correlated with the EDS and negative FMPS. The mediating effects of the WM1-GM8 and WM1-WM4 FCs were established in the association between the negative dimensional FMPS and EDS.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

The WM1 network anatomically linked the subregions within the GM8 and WM4 networks, and WM1-GM8 and WM1-WM4 FCs mediated the association between negative dimensional FMPS and EDS. These findings indicated that DMN function might be involved in the increased risks of exercise dependence promoted by negative perfectionism.

Robust determinants of neurocognitive development in children: evidence from the Pune Maternal Nutrition Study

Neurocognitive development is a dynamic process over the life course and is influenced by intrauterine factors as well as later life environment. Using data from the Pune Maternal Nutrition Study from 1994 to 2008, we investigate the association of in utero, birth, and childhood conditions with offspring neurocognitive development in 686 participants of the cohort, at age 12 years. The life course exposure variables in the analysis include maternal pre-pregnancy size and nutrition during pregnancy, offspring birth measurements, nutrition and physical growth at age 12 years along with parental education and socio-economic status. We used the novel Bayesian Model Averaging (BMA) approach; which has been shown to have better predictive performance over traditional tests of associations. Our study employs eight standard neurocognitive tests that measure intelligence, working memory, visuo-conceptual and verbal learning, and decision-making/attention at 12 years of age. We control for nutritional-metabolic information based on blood measurements from the pregnant mothers and the children at 12 years of age. Our findings highlight the critical role of parental education and socio-economic background in determining child neurocognitive performance. Maternal characteristics (pre-pregnancy BMI, fasting insulin during pregnancy) and child height at 12 years were also robust predictors on the BMA. A range of early factors - such as maternal folate and ferritin concentrations during pregnancy, and child's head circumference at birth - remained important determinants of some dimensions of child's neurocognitive development, but their associations were not robust once we account for model uncertainty. Our results suggest that intrauterine influences on long- term neurocognitive outcomes may be potentially reversible by post-birth remediation. In addition to the current nutritional interventions, public health policy should also consider social interventions in children born into families with low socio-economic status to improve human capital.

Pattern learning reveals brain asymmetry to be linked to socioeconomic status

Socioeconomic status (SES) anchors individuals in their social network layers. Our embedding in the societal fabric resonates with habitus, world view, opportunity, and health disparity. It remains obscure how distinct facets of SES are reflected in the architecture of the central nervous system. Here, we capitalized on multivariate multi-output learning algorithms to explore possible imprints of SES in gray and white matter structure in the wider population (n ≈ 10,000 UK Biobank participants). Individuals with higher SES, compared with those with lower SES, showed a pattern of increased region volumes in the left brain and decreased region volumes in the right brain. The analogous lateralization pattern emerged for the fiber structure of anatomical white matter tracts. Our multimodal findings suggest hemispheric asymmetry as an SES-related brain signature, which was consistent across six different indicators of SES: degree, education, income, job, neighborhood and vehicle count. Hence, hemispheric specialization may have evolved in human primates in a way that reveals crucial links to SES.

Level and Relationships of Life Satisfaction with Cognitive Flexibility and Resilience in IT Professionals

Introduction:

Information Technology (IT) professionals commonly encounter occupation-related issues that adversely affect psychological health and well-being.

Aim and Objective:

To study the level and relationships of life satisfaction with cognitive flexibility and resilience in IT professionals.

Materials and Methods:

In this cross-sectional study, 457 IT professionals were assessed with Sociodemographic proforma, Cognitive Flexibility Scale (CFS), Cognitive Resilience Scale (CRS), and Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS).

Statistical Analysis Used:

Descriptive statistics, Student's t-test, ANOVA, and linear regression analysis.

Results:

The mean score on CRS was high (4.5), whereas on CFS was low (49.36). The mean score on SWLS was also low (17.36) particularly with widowed and disrupted family status, positively linked to the scoring of CFS & CRS, and negatively linked to hours of work.

Conclusions:

Among Indian IT professionals, cognitive flexibility and life satisfaction are low and influenced by family. Life satisfaction is proportionately linked to cognitive flexibility and resilience.

Signatures of life course socioeconomic conditions in brain anatomy

Socioeconomic status (SES) plays a significant role in health and disease. At the same time, early-life conditions affect neural function and structure, suggesting the brain may be a conduit for the biological embedding of SES. Here, we investigate the brain anatomy signatures of SES in a large-scale population cohort aged 45-85 years. We assess both gray matter morphometry and tissue properties indicative of myelin content. Higher life course SES is associated with increased volume in several brain regions, including postcentral and temporal gyri, cuneus, and cerebellum. We observe more widespread volume differences and higher myelin content in the sensorimotor network but lower myelin content in the temporal lobe associated with childhood SES. Crucially, childhood SES differences persisted in adult brains even after controlling for adult SES, highlighting the unique contribution of early-life conditions to brain anatomy, independent of later changes in SES. These findings inform on the biological underpinnings of social inequality, particularly as they pertain to early-life conditions.

Development of inhibition and working memory in school-age Moroccan children

Studies regarding executive functions (EFs) in children rarely focus on populations of North Africa countries. In this context, this research aimed to adapt EFs tests to the Moroccan context and provide preliminary normative data on the development of inhibitory control and working memory (WM). In addition, the executive performance of school-age Moroccan children was examined, as well as the effects of gender, parents' education level and multilingualism. The sample included 115 children at age 7 to 12 from Fes city. Results showed that the translation and adaptation steps were sufficient for the cross-cultural adaptation of the tasks. In addition, an overall effect of age on inhibition and WM performances was found, whereas gender and parents' education level showed non-significant effects. Multilingualism effects had a partial positive influence on EFs, with improved scores on a few executive tasks for multilingual children compared to their bilingual peers. Overall, results suggest that EFs in school-age Moroccan children operate on relatively homogeneous development trajectories, marked by improvements that differ according to tasks. As neuropsychological tools and normative data are still lacking in Morocco, this study helps better understand EFs development of children in this country.

Risk and Resilience Measures Related to Psychopathology in Youth

Childhood adversity places youth at risk for multiple negative outcomes. The current study aimed to understand how a constellation of risk and resilience factors influenced mental health outcomes as a function of adversities: socioeconomic status (SES) and traumatic stressful events (TSEs). Specifically, we examined outcomes related to psychosis and mood disorders, as well as global clinical functioning. The current study is a longitudinal follow up of 140 participants from the Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort (PNC) assessed for adversities at Time 1 (Mean age: 14.11 years) and risk, resilience, and clinical outcomes at Time 2 (mean age: 21.54 years). In the context of TSE, a limited set of predictors emerged as important; a more diverse set of moderators emerged in the context of SES. Across adversities, social support was a unique predictor of psychosis spectrum diagnoses and global functioning; emotion dysregulation was an important predictor for mood diagnoses. The current findings underscore the importance of understanding effects of childhood adversity on maladaptive outcomes within a resilience framework.

Cingulo-opercular and Cingulo-parietal Brain Networks Functional Connectivity in Pre-adolescents: Multiplicative Effects of Race, Ethnicity, and Parental Education

Introduction

A growing body of research has shown a diminished association between socioeconomic status (SES) indicators and a wide range of neuroimaging indicators for racial and ethnic minorities compared to majority groups. However, less is known about these effects for resting-state functional connectivity between various brain networks.

Purpose

This study investigated racial and ethnic variation in the correlation between parental education and resting-state functional connectivity between the cingulo-opercular (CO) and cingulo-parietal (CP) networks in children.

Methods

This cross-sectional study used data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study; we analyzed the resting-state functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (rsfMRI) data of 8,464 American pre-adolescents between the ages of 9 and 10. The main outcome measured was resting-state functional connectivity between the CO and CP networks calculated using rsfMRI. The independent variable was parental education, which was treated as a nominal variable. Age, sex, and family marital status were the study covariates. Race and ethnicity were the moderators. Mixed-effects regression models were used for data analysis, with and without interaction terms between parental education and race and ethnicity.

Results

Higher parental education was associated with higher resting-state functional connectivity between the CO and CP networks. Race and ethnicity both showed statistically significant interactions with parental education on children's resting-state functional connectivity between CO and CP networks, suggesting that the correlation between parental education and the resting-state functional connectivity was significantly weaker for Black and Hispanic pre-adolescents compared to White and non-Hispanic pre-adolescents.

Conclusions

In line with the Minorities' Diminished Returns theory, the association between parental education and pre-adolescents resting-state functional connectivity between CO and CP networks may be weaker in Black and Hispanic children than in White and non-Hispanic children. The weaker link between parental education and brain functional connectivity for Blacks and Hispanics than for Whites and non-Hispanics may reflect racism, racialization, and social stratification that collectively minimize the returns of SES indicators, such as parental education for non-Whites, who become others in the US.

Development of white matter microstructure and executive functions during childhood and adolescence: a review of diffusion MRI studies

Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) provides indirect measures of white matter microstructure that can be used to make inferences about structural connectivity within the brain. Over the last decade, a growing literature of cross-sectional and longitudinal studies have documented relationships between dMRI indices and cognitive development. In this review, we provide a brief overview of dMRI methods and how they can be used to study white matter and connectivity and review the extant literature examining the links between dMRI indices and executive functions during development. We explore the links between white matter microstructure and specific executive functions: inhibition, working memory and cognitive shifting, as well as performance on complex executive function tasks. Concordance in findings across studies are highlighted, and potential explanations for discrepancies between results, together with challenges with using dMRI in child and adolescent populations, are discussed. Finally, we explore future directions that are necessary to better understand the links between child and adolescent development of structural connectivity of the brain and executive functions.

Mediation Role of Physical Fitness and Its Components on the Association Between Distribution-Related Fat Indicators and Adolescents' Cognitive Performance: Exploring the Influence of School Vulnerability. The Cogni-Action Project

Background: Physical fitness and fatness converge simultaneously modulating cognitive skills, which in turn, are associated with children and adolescents’ socioeconomic background. However, both fitness components and fat mass localization are crucial for understanding its implication at the cognitive level.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the mediation role of a global physical fitness score and its components on the association between different fatness indicators related to fat distribution and adolescents’ cognitive performance, and simultaneously explore the influence of school vulnerability.

Methods: In this study, 1,196 Chilean adolescents participated (aged 10–14; 50.7% boys). Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF), muscular fitness (MF), and speed-agility fitness (SAF) were evaluated, and a global fitness score (GFS) was computed adjusted for age and sex (CRF + MF + SAF z-scores). Body mass index z-score (BMIz), sum-of-4-skinfolds (4SKF), and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR) were used as non-specific, peripheral, and central adiposity indicators, respectively. A global cognitive score was computed based on eight tasks, and the school vulnerability index (SVI) was registered as high, mid or low. A total of 24 mediation analyses were performed according to two models, adjusted for sex and peak high velocity (Model 1), and adding the school vulnerability index (SVI) in Model 2. The significance level was set at p < 0.05.

Results: The fitness mediation role was different concerning the fatness indicators related to fat distribution analyzed. Even after controlling for SVI, CRF (22%), and SAF (29%), but not MF, mediated the association between BMIz and cognitive performance. Likewise, CRF, SAF and GFS, but not MF, mediated the association between WHtR and cognitive performance (38.6%, 31.9%, and 54.8%, respectively). No mediations were observed for 4SKF.

Conclusion: The negative association between fatness and cognitive performance is mitigated by the level of adolescents’ physical fitness, mainly CRF and SAF. This mediation role seems to be more consistent with a central fat indicator even in the presence of school vulnerability. Strategies promoting physical fitness would reduce the cognitive gap in children and adolescents related to obesity and school vulnerability.