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Subgenual anterior cingulate responses to peer rejection: A marker of adolescents' risk for depression

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 January 2011

Carrie L. Masten ,
Naomi I. Eisenberger ,
Larissa A. Borofsky ,
Kristin McNealy ,
Jennifer H. Pfeifer  and
Mirella Dapretto
Carrie L. Masten*
Affiliation:
University of California, Los Angeles
Naomi I. Eisenberger
Affiliation:
University of California, Los Angeles
Larissa A. Borofsky
Affiliation:
University of Southern California
Kristin McNealy
Affiliation:
Duke University
Jennifer H. Pfeifer
Affiliation:
University of Oregon
Mirella Dapretto
Affiliation:
University of California, Los Angeles
*
Address correspondence and reprint requests to: Carrie L. Masten, c/o Naomi I. Eisenberger, Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, 1285 Franz Hall, Box 951563, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1563; E-mail: cmasten@ucla.edu.
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Abstract

Extensive developmental research has linked peer rejection during adolescence with a host of psychopathological outcomes, including depression. Moreover, recent neuroimaging research has suggested that increased activity in the subgenual region of the anterior cingulate cortex (subACC), which has been consistently linked with depression, is related to heightened sensitivity to peer rejection among adolescents. The goal of the current study was to directly test the hypothesis that adolescents' subACC responses are predictive of their risk for future depression, by examining the relationship between subACC activity during peer rejection and increases in depressive symptoms during the following year. During a functional magnetic resonance imaging scan, 20 13-year-olds were ostensibly excluded by peers during an online social interaction. Participants' depressive symptoms were assessed via parental reports at the time of the scan and 1 year later. Region of interest and whole-brain analyses indicated that greater subACC activity during exclusion was associated with increases in parent-reported depressive symptoms during the following year. These findings suggest that subACC responsivity to social exclusion may serve as a neural marker of adolescents' risk for future depression and have implications for understanding the relationship between sensitivity to peer rejection and the increased risk of depression that occurs during adolescence.

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Type
Regular Articles
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 23 , Issue 1 , February 2011 , pp. 283 - 292
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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