White Matter Microstructure in Youths With Conduct Disorder: Effects of Sex and Variation in Callous Traits

Abstract

Objective: Studies using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to investigate white matter (WM) microstructure in youths with conduct disorder (CD) have reported disparate findings. We investigated WM alterations in a large sample of youths with CD, and examined the influence of sex and callousunemotional (CU) traits. Method: DTI data were acquired from 124 youths with CD (59 female) and 174 typically developing (TD) youths (103 female) 9 to 18 years of age.Tract-based spatial statistics tested for effects of diagnosis and sex-by-diagnosis interactions. Associations with CD symptoms, CU traits, a task measuring impulsivity, and the impact of comorbidity, and age-and puberty-related effects were examined. Results: Youths with CD exhibited higher axial diffusivity in the corpus callosum and lower radial diffusivity and mean diffusivity in the anterior thalamic radiation relative to TD youths. Female and male youths with CD exhibited opposite changes in the left hemisphere within the internal capsule, fornix, posterior thalamic radiation, and uncinate fasciculus. Within the CD group, CD symptoms and callous traits exerted opposing influences on corpus callosum axial diffusivity, with callous traits identified as the unique clinical feature predicting higher axial diffusivity and lower radial diffusivity within the corpus callosum and anterior thalamic radiation, respectively. In an exploratory analysis, corpus callosum axial diffusivity partially mediated the association between callous traits and impulsive responses to emotional faces. Results were not influenced by symptoms of comorbid disorders, and no age-or puberty-related interactions were observed. Conclusion: WM alterations within the corpus callosum represent a reliable neuroimaging marker of CD. Sex and callous traits are important factors to consider when examining WM in CD.

Aggression subtypes relate to distinct resting state functional connectivity in children and adolescents with disruptive behavior

“…On the other hand, the larger sample size and the multi-center approach might have increased the reliability and generalizability of our results. Finally, sex-dependent effects were supported by our exploratory analyses, in line with earlier brain imaging studies on aggressive behavior [ 63 ]. They should be investigated more in-depth in the future in study samples with comparable sex distributions.…”

Offending patterns – alone or in a group – and severe conduct problems: secondary analysis of cross-sectional questionnaire data

“…The construct of subtypes within anti-social youth, with marked psychiatric vulnerabilities, resonates with results from this study and is echoed in current research into the CU traits, childhood-onset CD and neuroscientific differences in the brains of young people exhibiting CU traits (Hughes et al , 2015; Rogers et al , 2019; Milone et al , 2019). The CU traits are recognized as increasing the likelihood of severe CD and violent offending (Waller et al , 2020).…”

Role of Callous and Unemotional (CU) Traits on the Development of Youth with Behavioral Disorders: A Systematic Review

“…Table S1 in Supplementary Materials provides an overview of the 52 studies published from 2015 to 2020, included in the review for analysis. Among the 52 studies, most authors reported results on more than one dimension of the model, e.g., [ 69 , 70 ], 47 reported effects on mental health, e.g., [ 71 , 72 , 73 ] or on neurobiological features, e.g., [ 69 , 74 , 75 ], 22 on social contexts, e.g., [ 36 , 76 ], eight on social adjustment, e.g., [ 77 , 78 ], 10 on social roles and social interactions, e.g., [ 79 , 80 ] and 19 on executive functions or cognition, e.g., [ 81 , 82 ]. The majority (k = 17) were carried out in the USA, e.g., [ 83 , 84 ], two in Canada [ 70 , 85 ], two in Australia, two in Israel, the one in Europe (Spain, Germany, Netherlands, etc.).…”

“…The majority (k = 17) were carried out in the USA, e.g., [ 83 , 84 ], two in Canada [ 70 , 85 ], two in Australia, two in Israel, the one in Europe (Spain, Germany, Netherlands, etc.). Four studies were conducted in Switzerland in partnership with other countries, e.g., [ 82 , 86 ]. The review did not allow to identify any study, including a French-speaking sample.…”

“…Summary of results—cognitive dimension. References [ 7 , 21 , 36 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 94 , 96 , 99 , 101 , 104 , 105 , 106 , 107 , 108 , 109 , 110 , 111 , 112 , 113 , 114 , 115 , 116 , 117 , 118 , 119 , 120 , 121 , 122 , 123 , 124 , 125 , 126 , 127 , 128 ] are cited in the Supplementary Materials.…”