Ventral striatum dysfunction in children and adolescents with reactive attachment disorder: functional MRI study
Shinichiro Takiguchi,
Takashi X. Fujisawa,
Sakae Mizushima,
Daisuke N. Saito,
Yuko Okamoto,
Koji Shimada,
Michiko Koizumi,
Hirokazu Kumazaki,
Minyoung Jung,
Hirotaka Kosaka,
Michio Hiratani,
Yusei Ohshima,
Martin H. Teicher,
Akemi Tomoda
Affiliations
Shinichiro Takiguchi
Advanced Biomedical Sciences Course, Graduate School of Medical Sciences, and Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Takashi X. Fujisawa
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, and Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Sakae Mizushima
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, and Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Daisuke N. Saito
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, University of Fukui, Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, and Biomedical Imaging Research Center, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Yuko Okamoto
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui
Koji Shimada
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, University of Fukui, Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, and Biomedical Imaging Research Center, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Michiko Koizumi
Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Hirokazu Kumazaki
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, and Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Minyoung Jung
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, and Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Hirotaka Kosaka
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, University of Fukui, Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, and Department of Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Michio Hiratani
Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Hiratani Clinic for Developmental Disorders of Children, Fukui, Japan
Yusei Ohshima
Research Center for Child Mental Development, and Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Fukui, Fukui, Japan
Martin H. Teicher
Developmental Biopsychiatry Research Program, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Akemi Tomoda
Division of Developmental Higher Brain Functions, United Graduate School of Child Development, and Research Center for Child Mental Development, University of Fukui, Fukui
Background Child maltreatment is a major risk factor for psychopathology, including reactive attachment disorder (RAD). Aims To examine whether neural activity during reward processing was altered in children and adolescents with RAD. Method Sixteen children and adolescents with RAD and 20 typically developing (TD) individuals performed tasks with high and low monetary rewards while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging. Results Significantly reduced activity in the caudate and nucleus accumbens was observed during the high monetary reward condition in the RAD group compared with the TD group (P=0.015, family-wise error-corrected cluster level). Significant negative correlations between bilateral striatal activity and avoidant attachment were observed in the RAD and TD groups. Conclusions Striatal neural reward activity in the RAD group was markedly decreased. The present results suggest that dopaminergic dysfunction occurs in the striatum of children and adolescents with RAD, leading towards potential future risks for psychopathology.
