Axes of Hierarchical Brain Development Audrey C Luo

Format:

Book

Thesis/Dissertation

Author/Creator:

Luo, Audrey C., author.

Contributor:

University of Pennsylvania. Neuroscience., degree granting institution.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

0317.

0758.

Local Subjects:

0317.

0758.

Physical Description:

1 electronic resource (212 pages)

Contained In:

Dissertations Abstracts International 87-07B

Place of Publication:

Ann Arbor : ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, 2025

Language Note:

English

Summary:

What are the principal patterns of normative brain development in humans? Does brain maturation follow orderly spatiotemporal sequences? This thesis addresses these fundamental questions by identifying parsimonious axes of developmental change in functional connectivity, a widely used proxy for cortical activity, and in long-range white matter tracts. First, we test whether maturation of functional connectivity from childhood through adolescence follows the cortical hierarchy defined by the sensorimotor-association (S-A) axis. Across four large-scale neuroimaging datasets, functional connectivity development systematically varies along this axis: connectivity in sensorimotor regions increases whereas connectivity in association cortices decreases, refining and reinforcing the cortical hierarchy. Second, using three independent datasets, we investigate the hypothesis that white matter tracts do not mature uniformly along their length. Rather, we evaluate if development occurs asynchronously along white matter tracts, varying in part based on the position of a tract's endpoints on the cortical hierarchy. We delineate a deep-to-superficial axis, in which superficial tract regions near the cortical surface exhibit greater age-related change than deep tract regions. Moreover, the development of superficial tract regions aligns with the S-A axis, with tract ends adjacent to sensorimotor cortices maturing earlier than those adjacent to association cortices. Together, this thesis provides a broadly generalizable account of normative human brain development during youth. Moving forward, these findings offer a crucial reference point for identifying deviations that may underlie the emergence of psychiatric disorders

Notes:

Advisors: Satterthwaite, Theodore D.; Detre, John A. Committee members: Mackey, Allyson P.; Alexander-Bloch, Aaron F.; Rokem, Ariel

Source: Dissertations Abstracts International, Volume: 87-07, Section: B.

Ph.D. University of Pennsylvania 2025

Vendor supplied data

Local Notes:

School code: 0175

ISBN:

9798276007236

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license