Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2007 May 15;45(9):2104-13.
doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2007.01.019. Epub 2007 Feb 3.

Amygdala function in adolescents with congenital adrenal hyperplasia: a model for the study of early steroid abnormalities

Monique Ernst  1 , Françoise S Maheu, Elizabeth Schroth, Julie Hardin, Liza Green Golan, Jennifer Cameron, Rachel Allen, Stuart Holzer, Eric Nelson, Daniel S Pine, Deborah P Merke
Affiliations

Amygdala function in adolescents with congenital adrenal hyperplasia: a model for the study of early steroid abnormalities

Monique Ernst et al. Neuropsychologia. .

Abstract

Early disruption of steroids affects the development of mammalian neural circuits underlying affective processes. In humans, patients with classic congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) can serve as a natural model to study early hormonal alterations on functional brain development. CAH is characterized by congenital glucocorticoid insufficiency, leading to altered hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) function, and hyperandrogenism. Using fMRI, we compared fourteen adolescents with CAH to 14 healthy controls on amygdala response to a face viewing task. In response to negative facial emotions, CAH females activated the amygdala significantly more than healthy females, whereas CAH males did not differ from control males. Furthermore, females with CAH showed a similar pattern of amygdala activation to control males, suggesting virilized amygdala function in females with CAH. These findings suggest a prominent effect of early hyperandrogenism on the development and function of the amygdala in females with CAH, whereas no effects were detected in males with CAH. This study provides data that can be further tested in a model of the neurobiological mechanisms underlying early androgen organizational effects on amygdala function.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Means (standard error) of ratings (left) and reaction times (right) for negative (fearful and angry) and neutral facial expressions.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Bilateral amygdala activation in the contrast of diagnosis-by-gender interaction rendered on a single subject T1 image provided by SPM99 (left amygdala peak activation at the intersection of vertical and horizontal axis: MNI -18 -8 -6 mm).
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Scatter plots of individual fMRI BOLD signal changes in the right (MNI 18, -8, -6 mm) and left amygdala (MNI -18, -8, -6 mm) by Gender and Diagnosis. Means of BOLD signal differences are depicted by plain circles, and standard errors of the means by horizontal lines on each side of the means.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Voxel-wise whole brain analyses (SPM 99, Puncorrected<0.001): A. Significant main effect of Diagnosis. B. Significant interactions of Diagnosis-by-Sex
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Adolphs R. Neural systems for recognizing emotion. Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2002;12:169–177. - PubMed
    1. Berenbaum SA. Effects of early androgens on sex-typed activities and interests in adolescents with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Horm Behav. 1999;35:102–110. - PubMed
    1. Berenbaum SA, Duck SC, Bryk K. Behavioral effects of prenatal versus postnatal androgen excess in children with 21-hydroxylase-deficient congenital adrenal hyperplasia. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2000;85:727–733. - PubMed
    1. Berenbaum SA, Resnick SM. Early androgen effects on aggression in children and adults with congenital adrenal hyperplasia. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 1997;22:505–515. - PubMed
    1. Berenbaum SA, Snyder E. Early Hormonal influences on childhood sex-typed activity and playmate preferences: implications for the development of sexual orientation. Dev Psychol. 1995;31:31–42.

Publication types