Impaired functional but preserved structural connectivity in limbic white matter tracts in youth with conduct disorder or oppositional defiant disorder plus psychopathic traits

Abstract

Youths with conduct disorder or oppositional defiant disorder and psychopathic traits (CD/ODD+PT) are at high risk of adult anti-social behaviour and psychopathy. Neuroimaging studies demonstrate functional abnormalities in orbitofrontal cortex and the amygdala in both youths and adults with psychopathic traits. Diffusion tensor imaging in psychopathic adults demonstrates disrupted structural connectivity between these regions (uncinate fasiculus). The current study examined whether functional neural abnormalities present in youths with CD/ODD+PT are associated with similar white matter abnormalities. Youths with CD/ODD+PT and comparison participants completed 3.0 T diffusion tensor scans and functional MRI scans. Diffusion tensor imaging did not reveal disruption in structural connections within the uncinate fasiculus or other white matter tracts in youths with CD/ODD+PT, despite the demonstration of disrupted amygdala-prefrontal functional connectivity in these youths. These results suggest that disrupted amygdala-frontal white matter connectivity as measured by fractional anisotropy is less sensitive than imaging measurements of functional perturbations in youths with psychopathic traits. If white matter tracts are intact in youths with this disorder, childhood may provide a critical window for intervention and treatment, before significant structural brain abnormalities solidify.

Abnormal interhemispheric connectivity in male psychopathic offenders

“…Given the possible neurodevelopmental aspect of interhemispheric connectivity deficits in individuals with psychopathy, 9 research in children or adolescents with psychopathic traits may provide more conclusive evidence. In line with this, Finger and colleagues 47 have shown that adolescents with conduct disorder or oppositional defiant disorder combined with psychopathic (i.e, callous-unemotional) traits have intact microstructural integrity of white matter tracts. However, deficits in functional connectivity are already present in these youths.…”

Dissociable relations between amygdala subregional networks and psychopathy trait dimensions in conduct‐disordered juvenile offenders

“…Within these theories, the amygdala is generally hyporesponsive to negative affective stimuli and lacks optimal functional interactions with paralimbic neurocircuits, leading to deficient affective reactivity (particularly to fear), biased attention modulation, and poor associative learning [Anderson and Kiehl, 2012; Blair, 2013a; Blair, 2015]. Very few studies, though, have actually investigated amygdala functional networks in relation to psychopathy, yielding conflicting results of both enhanced and diminished network integrity [Aghajani et al, 2016; Contreras‐Rodriguez et al, 2015; Decety et al, 2013a; Finger et al, 2012; Marsh et al, 2011; Motzkin et al, 2011; Yoder et al, 2015]. Most of these studies additionally examined psychopathy as a categorical or unidimensional construct, overlooking its behaviorally and neuronally separable trait assemblies [Carre et al, 2013; Cohn et al, 2014, 2015; Philippi et al, 2015; Sadeh and Verona, 2008; Seara‐Cardoso and Viding, 2014].…”

Development of Psychopathy from Childhood

“…Another imaging study showed that youths with CD or ODD and high levels of psychopathic traits showed disruptions in amygdala-prefrontal functional connectivity [78]. The same research group reported that youths with both conduct problems (aged 10-17 years) and elevated CU traits demonstrated increased activity bilaterally in the medial frontal gyri and abnormal activity within the ventromedial prefrontal cortex during punished reversal errors compared to normal controls.…”