Differential expression of cytoskeletal regulatory factors in the adolescent prefrontal cortex: Implications for cortical development.

ABSTRACT: The prevalence of depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, and drug and alcohol use disorders peaks during adolescence. Further, up to 50% of "adult" mental health disorders emerge in adolescence. During adolescence, the prefrontal cortex (PFC) undergoes dramatic structural reorganization, in which dendritic spines and synapses are refined, pruned, and stabilized. Understanding the molecular mechanisms that underlie these processes should help to identify factors that influence the development of psychiatric illness. Here we briefly discuss the anatomical connections of the medial and orbital prefrontal cortex (mPFC and OFC, respectively). We then present original findings suggesting that dendritic spines on deep-layer excitatory neurons in the mouse mPFC and OFC prune at different adolescent a

SUBMITTER: Shapiro LP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5352542 | biostudies-literature | 2017 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature