Sex and pubertal stage as moderators of the association between resting-state connectivity of striatal circuitry and reward sensitivity in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study

Abstract

Altered reward sensitivity (either heightened or blunted) has been observed in a range of psychiatric disorders. Understanding neurodevelopmental pathways associated with individual differences in reward sensitivity will therefore help inform prevention and intervention efforts for a range of disorders. In this Registered Report, we used data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development℠ study (ABCD study®), from the baseline, 2-year follow-up, and 4-year follow-up waves of data collection, when participants were on average aged 10, 12, and 14 years old, respectively, to examine these pathways using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Our aims were to examine whether striatal connectivity with the default mode network and cingulo-opercular network were associated with individual differences in reward sensitivity, and whether effects differed by sex and pubertal stage. Results indicated that reward sensitivity was positively associated with ventral striatum connectivity with the default mode network and negatively associated with ventral striatum connectivity with the cingulo-opercular network. In addition, adolescents with higher connectivity between the dorsal striatum (the caudate and putamen) and the cingulo-opercular network exhibited greater declines in reward sensitivity with pubertal development. Overall, increased striatal connectivity with the cingulo-opercular network may be associated with decreased reward sensitivity due to heightened regulation of reward-related function by the cingulo-opercular network, which plays a role in self-regulation and cognitive control.