Trajectories of functional brain network organization from birth to early adulthood as predictors of executive function and psychopathology - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Executive function (EF) is a critical ability, and low levels of EF are a transdiagnostic risk factor for psychopathology. EF is composed of dissociable components (e.g., inhibition, updating, shifting) that have distinct developmental trajectories, and that may be differentially related to psychopathology. Therefore, characterizing neurocognitive trajectories of distinct components of EF and how they relate to future psychopathology is a public health imperative. The main goal of this proposal is to identify trajectories of neural biomarkers that predict EF and psychopathology in a dimensional sample of youth with varying degrees of risk for psychopathology. Influential theories suggest that transdiagnostic risk for psychopathology is associated with brain network properties of EF-related networks. Crucially, EF-related brain regions and the EF-related brain networks that underlie psychopathology change across development, highlighting the need for longitudinal research to identify when and how neural markers related to EF alter within an individual. To address these fundamental knowledge gaps, we capitalize on the UNC Early Brain Development Study (EBDS), a unique and innovative longitudinal study that has followed children, enrolled prenatally, with rich neural and phenotypic data collected at birth, 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16 years. We propose to conduct novel data collection in 354 participants from this cohort at 18-19 years that includes careful assessment of transdiagnostic psychopathology and completion of tasks separately probing distinct components of EF while undergoing fMRI scans. Critically, EBDS is enriched for infants at high risk for future psychopathology (mothers with psychiatric diagnoses; preterm births), with ~40% of participants considered high risk at enrollment. Thus, we have an unparalleled ability to chart neurocognitive trajectories from birth through adolescence in a sample of participants that is heterogeneous in terms of risk for psychiatric outcomes. We leverage theoretical and computational models of the networks underlying distinct EF components to assess how within-network coherence and integration with other task- relevant networks changes throughout development, with a focus on the two periods that are most important for shaping both EF and mental health outcomes: early life and early adolescence. We propose to implement groundbreaking new methods to use fMRI data to quantify trajectories of neuroplasticity across these two sensitive periods. Finally, we will examine how interactions from birth between brain development and environmental context results in increased risk for (or resilience against) psychopathology in emerging adulthood. The specific aims of this proposal are: 1) to characterize neural and behavioral trajectories of EF from infancy to emerging adulthood; 2) to establish how neural trajectories relate to functional brain organization during EF tasks in emerging adulthood; and 3) to determine how and when EF-related neural trajectories diverge across psychopathology- and environment-related risk levels. This research will provide groundwork that can lead to early identification and, ultimately, targeted intervention in youth at risk for future psychopathology.
