Chronotype, Longitudinal Volumetric Brain Variations Throughout Adolescence, and Depressive Symptom Development

• Published in: Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Vol. 62; no. 1; pp. 48 - 58
• Main Authors: Vulser, Hélène, Lemaître, Hervé S., Guldner, Stella, Bezivin-Frère, Pauline, Löffler, Martin, Sarvasmaa, Anna S., Massicotte-Marquez, Jessica, Artiges, Eric, Paillère Martinot, Marie-Laure, Filippi, Irina, Miranda, Ruben, Stringaris, Argyris, van Noort, Betteke Maria, Penttilä, Jani, Grimmer, Yvonne, Becker, Andreas, Banaschewski, Tobias, Bokde, Arun L.W., Desrivières, Sylvane, Fröhner, Juliane H., Garavan, Hugh, Grigis, Antoine, Gowland, Penny A., Heinz, Andreas, Papadopoulos Orfanos, Dimitri, Poustka, Luise, Smolka, Michael N., Spechler, Philip A., Walter, Henrik, Whelan, Robert, Schumann, Gunter, Flor, Herta, Martinot, Jean-Luc, Nees, Frauke
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.01.2023; Elsevier BV; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adolescence; Adolescent; Adolescent girls; Adolescents; Age; Alcohol use; Alzheimer's disease; Brain; Brain - diagnostic imaging; Catechol; Catechol O-Methyltransferase; Catechol O-Methyltransferase - genetics; Cerebrospinal fluid; Change agents; Child development; Chronotype; Circadian rhythm; Circadian rhythms; Cortex; Critical period; Depression; Depression - diagnostic imaging; Female; Genetic factors; gray matter; Habits; Humans; Life Sciences; longitudinal; Longitudinal studies; Magnetic resonance imaging; Male; Medical imaging; Mental depression; Methyltransferase; Moderators; Morningness; Morphometry; MRI; Neuroimaging; Pediatrics; Personality traits; Prefrontal cortex; Psychiatric/Mental Health; Psychopathology; Puberty; Quality control; Regions; Rhythm; Sleep; Substantia grisea; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teenagers; Young Adult; chronotype; adolescent; longitudinal; MRI; gray matter
• ISSN: 0890-8567; 1527-5418; 1527-5418
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2022.06.003

Adolescence is a critical period for circadian rhythm, with a strong shift toward eveningness around age 14. Also, eveningness in adolescence has been found to predict later onset of depressive symptoms. However, no previous study has investigated structural variations associated with chronotype in early adolescence and how this adds to the development of depressive symptoms. Assessment of 128 community-based adolescents (51% girls) at age 14 and 19 years was performed. Using whole-brain voxel-based morphometry, baseline (at age 14) regional gray matter volumes (GMVs), follow-up (at age 19) regional GMVs, and longitudinal changes (between 14 and 19) associated with Morningness/Eveningness Scale in Children score and sleep habits at baseline were measured. The association of GMV with depressive symptoms at 19 years was studied, and the role of potential clinical and genetic factors as mediators and moderators was assessed. Higher eveningness was associated with larger GMV in the right medial prefrontal cortex at ages 14 and 19 in the whole sample. GMV in this region related to depressive symptoms at age 19 in catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) Val/Val, but not in Met COMT, carriers. Larger GMV also was observed in the right fusiform gyrus at age 14, which was explained by later wake-up time during weekends. In adolescence, eveningness and its related sleep habits correlated with distinct developmental patterns. Eveningness was specifically associated with GMV changes in the medial prefrontal cortex; this could serve as a brain vulnerability factor for later self-reported depressive symptoms in COMT Val/Val carriers.