Myelinated axons increase in the anterior cingulate cortex early in adolescence and are negatively impacted by alcohol

Drinking at a young age —especially heavy episodic binge drinking—is associated with reduced myelinated fiber tracks in the frontal lobes, emotional dysregulation, and an increased risk of alcohol use disorder in adulthood. Our lab has begun delineating these neural and behavioral relationships to examine the hypothesi s that alcohol interrupts myelination of stress circuits to negatively affect mental health trajectories and addiction vulnerability later in life. We have focused on the anterior cingulate cortex—a subregion of the prefrontal cortex that contains axons from the basolateral amygdala and is involve d in emotional and cognitive processing.

Source: Alcohol - May 1, 2017 Category: Addiction Authors: W.M. Vargas, A. Silva-Gotay, E. Tavares, H.N. Richardson Source Type: research