Brain scans reveal differences in brain structure in teenagers with severe antisocial behavior
Brain scans of aggressive and antisocial teenage boys with conduct disorder (CD) have revealed differences in the structure of the developing brain that could link to their behaviour problems.
The study, funded jointly by the Wellcome Trust and the Medical Research Council, reveals that the brain differences were present regardless of the age of onset of the disorder, challenging the view that adolescence-onset CD is merely a consequence of imitating badly behaved peers.
CD is a psychiatric condition characterised by increased aggressive and antisocial behaviour. It can develop in childhood or in adolescence and affects around five out of every 100 teenagers in the UK. Those affected are at greater risk of developing further mental and physical health problems in adulthood.
Neuroscientists at the University of Cambridge and the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit used magnetic resonance imaging to measure the size of particular regions in the brains of 65 teenage boys with CD compared with 27 teenage boys who did not display symptoms of behavioural disorder.
Their findings revealed that the amygdala and insula regions of the brain that contribute to emotion perception, empathy and recognising when other people are in distress were strikingly smaller in teenagers with antisocial behaviour. The changes were present in childhood-onset CD and in adolescence-onset CD, and the greater the severity of the behaviour problems, the greater the reduction in the volume of the insula.
Smaller volume of structures in the brain involved in emotional behaviour has been linked to childhood-onset CD, in which behavioural problems manifest early in life. However, adolescence-onset CD was previously thought to be caused solely by the imitation of badly behaved peers. The current findings cast doubt on this view and suggest a potential neurological basis for these serious and challenging conditions, whether they emerge in childhood or adolescence.
Ian Goodyer, Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, and Dr Graeme Fairchild, now based at the University of Southampton, led the research. Dr Fairchild explained: "Changes in grey matter volume in these areas of the brain could explain why teenagers with conduct disorder have difficulties in recognising emotions in others. Further studies are now needed to investigate whether these changes in brain structure are a cause or a consequence of the disorder."
Professor Goodyer added: 'We hope that our results will contribute to existing psychosocial strategies for detecting children at high risk for developing antisocial behaviour."
Dr Andy Calder from the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, who co-led the research, commented: "Studies such as this are tremendously important in understanding the causes of conduct disorder. Only when we are confident that we understand why the disorder develops can we apply this knowledge to the further development and evaluation of treatments. The disorder has a devastating impact on families and communities, and at the moment, we have few effective treatments."
The group have previously shown that individuals with both forms of conduct disorder display abnormal patterns of brain activity, but this new work marks an important advance in understanding the biology of aggression and violence by showing that differences in brain structure are linked to the disorder.
The study will appear online today in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Provided by
Wellcome Trust
-
From lemons to lemonade: Reaction uses carbon dioxide to make carbon-based semiconductor,
32 comments
-
Thioridazine kills cancer stem cells in human while avoiding toxic side-effects of conventional cancer treatments,
3 comments
-
SpaceX private rocket blasts off for space station (Update),
42 comments
-
Climate scientists say they have solved riddle of rising sea,
30 comments
-
Research team claims to have found evidence Lake Cheko is impact crater for Tunguska Event,
18 comments
-
Potential Breakthrough in Seizure Control
23 hours ago
-
Popping/Cracked sternum.
May 25, 2012
-
Which Mental Illness Encompasses This Problem?
May 25, 2012
-
A question about drug tolerance
May 23, 2012
-
Poor nutrition leading to overeating?
May 23, 2012
-
Math and dyslexia?
May 21, 2012
- More from Physics Forums - Medical Sciences
More news stories
Keep food safety in mind this memorial day weekend
(HealthDay) -- Picnics, parades and cookouts are as much a part of Memorial Day weekend as tributes to the United States' war veterans.
9 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Family history of Alzheimer's affects functional connectivity
(HealthDay) -- Cognitively normal individuals with a family history of late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) may display lower resting state functional connectivity in the default mode network (DMN) of the brain, ...
Medicine & Health / Alzheimer's disease & dementia
18 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Transvaginal mesh op restores pelvic organ prolapse at price
(HealthDay) -- Transvaginal mesh (TVM) procedures are effective for anatomical restoration of pelvic organ prolapse (POP), but patients report a worsening of sexual function following surgery, according to ...
18 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Travel to high altitudes tied to Crohn's, colitis flare-ups
(HealthDay) -- People with inflammatory bowel disease, which includes Crohn's disease and colitis, may be at increased risk for flare-ups when they fly or travel to high altitudes for skiing or mountain climbing, ...
Medicine & Health / Inflammatory disorders
19 hours ago |
not rated yet |
1
|
Weight struggles? Blame new neurons in your hypothalamus
New nerve cells formed in a select part of the brain could hold considerable sway over how much you eat and consequently weigh, new animal research by Johns Hopkins scientists suggests in a study published in the May issue ...
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
May 21, 2012 |
5 / 5 (1) |
6
|
Scientist: Evolution debate will soon be history
(AP) -- Richard Leakey predicts skepticism over evolution will soon be history. Not that the avowed atheist has any doubts himself.
Dell tablet leak: 10.1-inch display, two-battery choice
(Phys.org) -- Headline after headline talks about vendors tablets in the wings as likely number-one contenders for the iPad. Such claims have justifiably been taken with a grain of salt, considering ...
SpotterRF debuts Radar Backpack Kit (w/ Video)
(Phys.org) -- SpotterRF has announced a special radar backpack kit designed to enhance situational awareness for soldiers on the ground. The company says its special radar is designed for warfighters as part ...
SpaceX capsule has 'new car' smell, astronauts say (Update)
SpaceX's Dragon cargo vessel smells like a new car, said astronauts at the International Space Station after opening the hatches Saturday following the spacecraft's landmark mission to the orbiting lab.
Thousands of shellfish found dead in Peru
Thousands of crustaceans were found dead off the coast of Lima following the mystery mass death of dolphins and pelicans, the Peruvian Navy said Friday.
Astronomers seize last chance in lifetime for Venus Transit
Astronomers are gearing for one the rarest events in the Solar System: an alignment of Earth, Venus and the Sun that will not be seen for another 105 years.