Trajectories of Cortico-Cerebellar Connectivity, Social Competence, and Internalizing Symptoms in Adolescents Born Very Preterm

项目总结：极早产儿（VPT，<32周妊娠）的社会风险增加， 能力障碍相比，他们的任期出生的同龄人，包括社会沟通障碍和贫困 高质量的同伴关系导致同伴受害和社会排斥。此外，内化障碍是2- 在VPT儿童中高3倍，症状在幼儿期明显，并持续到成年。重要的是， 社交能力障碍如何演变并持续到青春期，以及已知的风险因素 与VPT出生相关的，包括心理社会逆境和执行功能障碍，塑造了他们的轨迹， 内化障碍增加的风险仍然未知。此外，小脑是一个关键的结构， VPT出生的不利影响，小脑发育异常现在被认为是一个主要的危险因素 for social社会communication沟通deficits缺陷.改变小脑的发育，沿着其功能性的相互作用， 额顶叶网络和默认模式网络参与社会情绪功能，可能是联系社会情绪功能的关键机制。 VPT出生，社会损害和内化障碍。我们认为个体特有的皮质模式- 小脑连接和相关的白色物质束（即，小脑脚）的发展是 社会能力缺陷的演变，反过来，在14-15岁时持续或恶化的内化障碍， 这是一个关键时期，同龄人之间的互动变得更加复杂和重要。这一过程始于 从婴儿期到青春期，社会心理风险起着关键的调节作用。磁共振成像进展 方法现在能够表征结构和功能的大脑网络与无与伦比的空间 和时间分辨率。我们将创新的MRI技术与详细的社会互动和精神病学相结合， 在一个独特的，纵向队列的VPT和足月出生的青少年评估（N=302; 137 VPT和165足月- 出生），现在14-15岁，心理社会逆境的发生率很高。这群人从出生起就被跟踪， 接受前瞻性高质量新生儿和学龄期结构和功能连接MRI扫描， 社会能力、社会情感功能、心理社会和家庭功能的纵向评估 2岁、5岁和9-10岁时的风险（所有波>80%保留）。继续评价这一有价值的队列 提供了一个前所未有的机会，以确定：1）社会能力和内化的轨迹 症状，以更好地识别青少年在精神病理学的最大风险和2）如何轨迹 皮质-小脑结构和功能连接是这些缺陷的基础。最先进的MRI采集 分析将描述VPT出生对皮质-小脑连接的有害影响， 青春期我们将描述皮质-小脑连接，社会能力， 内化障碍，以阐明可改变的心理社会暴露和提高个人水平 神经影像学、行为和心理社会预测模型，为预防性干预措施的时机提供信息 在大脑和社会情感发展的敏感时期，以减轻内化障碍的风险。

PROJECT SUMMARY: Children born very preterm (VPT, <32 weeks’ gestation) are at increased risk for social competency impairments compared to their term-born peers, including social communication deficits and poorer quality peer relationships leading to peer victimization and social rejection. Further, internalizing disorders are 2- 3 times higher in VPT children, with symptoms evident in early childhood and lasting into adulthood. Critically, how social competence impairments evolve and persist into adolescence, and the extent that known risk factors associated with VPT birth, including psychosocial adversity and executive dysfunction, shape their trajectory to increase risk for internalizing disorders remains unknown. Additionally, the cerebellum is a key structure adversely impacted by VPT birth, and aberrant cerebellar development is now recognized as a major risk factor for social communication deficits. Altered cerebellar development, along with its functional interactions with the Frontoparietal and Default Mode Networks involved in socio-emotional function, may be a key mechanism linking VPT birth, social impairment, and internalizing disorders. We posit that individual-specific patterns of cortico- cerebellar connectivity and related white matter tract (i.e., cerebellar peduncle) development underlie the evolution of social competence deficits, and in turn, internalizing disorders that persist or worsen at age 14-15, a critical period when peer interactions become more sophisticated and central. This process begins during infancy and extends to adolescence, with psychosocial risk playing a pivotal modifying role. Advances in MRI methodology now enable characterization of structural and functional brain networks with unparalleled spatial and temporal resolution. We couple innovative MRI techniques with detailed social-interaction and psychiatric assessments in a unique, longitudinal cohort of VPT and term-born adolescents (N=302; 137 VPT and 165 term- born) with high rates of psychosocial adversity now aged 14-15 years. The cohort has been followed since birth, undergoing prospective high-quality neonatal and school-age structural and functional connectivity MRI scans and longitudinal assessments of social competence, socio-emotional functioning, and psychosocial and familial risk at ages 2, 5, and 9-10 years (>80% retention at all waves). Continued evaluation of this valuable cohort provides an unprecedented opportunity to determine: 1) trajectories of social competence and internalizing symptoms for better identification of adolescents at greatest risk for psychopathology and 2) how trajectories of cortico-cerebellar structural and functional connectivity underlie these deficits. State-of-the-art MRI acquisition and analyses will characterize the deleterious effects of VPT birth on cortico-cerebellar connectivity into adolescence. We will delineate links between cortico-cerebellar connectivity, social competence, and internalizing disorders to elucidate modifiable psychosocial exposures and improve individual-level neuroimaging, behavior, and psychosocial predictive models that inform the timing of preventative interventions during sensitive periods of brain and socio-emotional development to mitigate risk for internalizing disorders.