How teen brains change in responding to social and non-social rewards
Maturation of Social and Non-Social Reward Processing in the Adolescent Amygdala and Orbitofrontal Cortex
This project tracks changes in the adolescent amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex using primate models to learn how teens respond to social and other rewards and why anxiety often increases.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Arizona NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Tucson, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11235155 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This work follows adolescent non-human primates across a 2.5–3 year span to see how their brains change during the teen years. Researchers will take repeated brain recordings from the amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex while the animals perform tasks involving social and non-social rewards. By studying the same individuals over time, the team hopes to link brain changes to behaviors like risk-taking, pleasure-seeking, impulsivity, and emotional reactions to social challenges. The overall aim is to better understand why anxiety and other mental health problems rise during adolescence so future prevention and treatments can be improved.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: This project does not enroll people — it uses non-human primates to model adolescent brain development, so there are no human participants to join.
Not a fit: Because this is basic research using animal models, individual patients with anxiety or depression are unlikely to receive direct clinical benefit from this grant.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal brain mechanisms behind adolescent anxiety and risky behavior that inform new prevention strategies or treatments for teen mental health problems.
How similar studies have performed: Prior human imaging and animal studies have linked amygdala and orbitofrontal changes to adolescent emotional behavior, but long-term within-subject primate neurophysiological recordings are relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
Tucson, United States
- University of Arizona — Tucson, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gothard, Katalin M — University of Arizona
- Study coordinator: Gothard, Katalin M
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.