Dr. Stan Kutcher

Katie Radchuck

Jillian Soh

Sun Life Financial Chair in

Adolescent Mental Health

Dalhousie University

IWK Health Centre

A Primer on the Brainand its Functions

The Human Brain: A Brief Tour

The brain is a remarkable organ,

controlling everything from heart rate to

digestion to sexual functioning, and

everything in-between! It produces our

thoughts and speech, and allows us to

create works of art – complex activities

which help define our humanity.

The Human Brain: A Brief Tour

The human brain weighs approximately

1100-1200 grams, or around 2.5 pounds.

Your body and organs are made up of

cells, and the brain is no different.

Neurons are a type of nerve cell which form networks in your

brain to relay information. Glial cells tend to provide support to the

brain (nourishment, mechanical support, immune response, etc.).

DID YOU KNOW?

The brain contains an estimated 100 BILLION nerve

cells, more cells than there are stars in the Milky Way

galaxy. That’s not all, glial cells are thought to outnumber

the nerve cells by as many as 10 to 50 times!

Source: Encyclopedia Britannica. Astronomy. 2000

The Human Brain: A Brief Tour

Neurons are cells specialized to send and receive information.

Generally, a neuron is made up of three basic parts:

Dendrites: consisting of many branches, this is

the area where the cell receives information

Soma (Cell Body): contains the cell nucleus,

which acts like a blueprint for the production of

proteins and other materials that keeps the cell

running smoothly

Axon: carries information received by the

dendrites, sometimes over long distances, to other

cells. The axon is sometimes covered in myelin

sheaths, another type of cell that speeds up the

signal.

What’s This “Information” Anyway?

In the same way humans use sounds to talk to one another and

share information, neurons use both electricity and chemicals to

talk to each other. These chemical messengers are called

neurotransmitters.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Anselm Hook

Just a few examples of neurotransmitters:

(Glutamate)

(Acetylcholine)

(Dopamine)

(Serotonin)

(Epinephrine/

Adrenaline)

What’s This “Information” Anyway?

These neurotransmitters play a major role in the brain and heavily

influence consciousness, emotions, and behavior. In a group of

people, if someone is whispering their ideas may not be heard. In

the same way, too little of a neurotransmitter may cause

communication failures between brain areas, affecting how we

think, feel, and act.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Anselm Hook

What’s This “Information” Anyway?

You can see then, how important

communication is in the brain. If it is

disrupted, either through chemical

imbalances or problems with the

neurons themselves, this may

contribute to brain dysfunction and

mental illness.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Anselm Hook

The Human Brain: A Brief Tour

Two basic layers of the brain can be

seen with the naked eye. There is the

outer layer, known as grey matter, as

well as the inner layer, known as white

matter.

The gray matter is made up of densely packed neuronal bodies,

whose long axons make up the white matter. Remember how axons

are sometimes covered in myelin sheaths? This myelin is quite fatty,

giving the tissue a white-ish color.

White matter, containing those long axons, are like a super highway. They transport information to different parts of your brain.

Grey matter, containing the cell bodies, is where all the thinking

happens. This is your brain’s processing centre.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): facemepls, MSVG

The Central and Peripheral Nervous System

The brain, along with your spinal

cord, makes up your body’s

Central Nervous System (CNS).

From the spinal cord extend nerve

cells that receive sensory

information (such as the roughness

and heat of the beach) and transmit

that to the brain. These outside

nerves make up the Peripheral

Nervous System (PNS). It’s a two-

way street, The brain can also

send signals through the spinal

cord and PNS to control the

movement of your limbs and trunk.

The CNS and PNS

It takes around11.5 milliseconds to transmit a signal from the tip

of your toe to your brain. This may seem pretty fast but in some

cases – like when accidentally putting your hand on a hot stovetop

– this delay is too long and would cause your hand to burn.

Instead of sending a signal all the way to the brain and waiting for

a return signal to move your hand away, a network of cells within

the spinal cord receive the sensory information, then pass it on to

motor neurons, which are cells that control your muscles.

Bypassing the brain like this is called a reflex. Your muscle will

contract causing you to pull away from the hot stovetop – it is only

after a short delay that your brain catches up and realizes your

hand hurts!

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Ndecam

The CNS and PNS

Speaking of signal transmission speeds, some nerve fibers

transmit signals faster than others. Usually it depends on

whether they are myelinated or not (remember that myelin

speeds up transmission!).

Think about when you stub your toe. You definitely feel it

right away since the touch signals reach your brain almost

instantaneously. However it’ll take a few seconds before the

pain signal will reach your brain, and when it does –

YEOWCH!

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Ndecam

So now we know what the brain is

made of. We know that different

parts of the brain communicate

with one another using

neurotransmitters, and this

communication can extend

down the spinal cord to the rest

of your body.

But what does the brain actually DO

and HOW does it do it?Photo credit (CC 2.0): perpetualplum

There are 6 functions of the Brain

2. Emotion & Feeling

3. Signaling (being responsive and reacting to the environment)

4. Perception & Sensing

5. Physical Functions

6. Behavior

1. Thinking & Cognition

Thinking & Cognition

Communicating

Arithmetic

Insight

Planning

Judgement

Comprehension

Processing

Reading

Focusing

Attending

Memory

Contemplation

Thinking and Cognition includes all of our internal

mental processes and functions

Higher Cognitive Functions

Thinking & CognitionFACT SHEET

Location: Frontal Lobes

Neural Pathways: 2-way

connection between

cortical and limbic areas

Main Neurotransmitters:

Dopamine, serotonin, and

adrenaline

Your frontal lobes are responsible

for the majority of your conscious

thought. This area works closely with

the limbic system, a section deep

within the brain responsible for mood,

emotion, and storage of memories.

Overview

Thinking & Cognition

The limbic system includes several

brain structures: the amygdala,

hippocampus, anterior thalamic

nuclei, and limbic cortex.

The hippocampus, responsible

mainly for the storage of long-term

memory, is one of the first places

affected by Alzheimer’s Disease.

The Limbic System

Thinking & Cognition

Your frontal lobes also include an

area called the prefrontal cortex,

which controls many of your cognitive

abilities, such as attention.

However, this area of the brain changes drastically during

adolescence, and is one of the last brain areas to mature

completely!

Attention

Thinking & Cognition

Is your attention drifting right now? Don’t worry! Scientists

have measured attention in adolescents, and have discovered

that performance increases with age.

Attention

So that means…Yes, attentional

capacity might

improve as you

and your brain

matures!

Anderson et al. (2001)

Thinking & Cognition

We know that some parts of

the brain are specialized for

certain tasks. An injury to

specific, limited parts of the

brain can help scientists know

for sure what that part of the

brain is responsible for. Take

for example the case of poor

Phineas Gage.

Photo credit: From the collection of Jack and Beverly Wilgus.

Phineas Gage

Thinking & Cognition

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Kevin Dooley

In 1848, Phineas was a young man working

on clearing out some rock for the construction of a

railroad. An explosive was set off accidentally, thrusting

a large iron rod under Phineas’ left cheek bone and out

the top of his head. The force of the explosion was so

severe that the rod completely left Phineas to land 90

feet away, taking with it most of the left frontal lobe.

Thinking & Cognition

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Kevin Dooley

His recovery was long and at some points

bleak, but he eventually regained his memory and

physical strength. He suffered no motor or speech

impairments, however a startling change had occurred

with his personality and behavior.

Thinking & Cognition

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Kevin Dooley

“Once a polite and

caring person, Gage

became prone to

selfish behavior and

bursts of profanity.”

He became rash,

where before he was mellow.

He used to be a good worker,

but now his colleagues could

not handle his temper. He had

trouble forming and executing

plans, didn’t think before he

acted, and often made choices

against his best interests.

- Dr. John Harlow, 1848

Thinking & Cognition

Although the front left portion

of his brain was destroyed,

Phineas was still able to

function well. He could walk

and talk, since the brain areas

responsible for that wasn’t

affected.

However, the frontal lobes

are responsible for judgment,

planning, and defining your

personality. All of these

changed after his brain injury.

Photo credit: From the collection of Jack and Beverly Wilgus.

Phineas Gage

Thinking & Cognition

Your brain also has specific

areas dedicated to speech and

language comprehension.

Speech and Comprehension

Broca’s Area

Mainly responsible for language

production. People who have

damage to this area are still able to understand language, and know

what they want to say, they just can’t ‘get it out’.

Wernicke’s Area

Mainly responsible for language comprehension. People who

have damage to this area can still produce speech but it tends to

have no meaning. This is known as ‘word salad’:

Example: “Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.”

Emotion is the ability to experience feelings and to express those feelings

to others.

We can also call our emotions and feelings “MOODS”

Happy Excited Calm Peaceful Content Serene Joyful Pleased Carefree

Sad Depressed Guilty Ashamed Angry Irritated Annoyed Resentful Frustrated

Anxious Worried Fearful Nervous Panicky Inferior Inadequate Lonely Discouraged

Emotion & FeelingsFACT SHEET

Location: Prefrontal

cortex, amygdala

Main Neurotransmitters:

Serotonin and dopamine

Regulating your emotions is yet

another complex thing your brain has

to do. Your prefrontal cortex

produces cognitive emotions

(“thinking with you head”) while the

amygdala produces instinctive

emotions (“thinking with your heart”).

Serotonin and dopamine and two

very important neurotransmitters

needed to regulate your emotional

state.

Overview

Emotion & Feelings

Different parts of your brain are

active depending on what type of

emotion you are feeling.

For example, the top brain scan

shows which areas of our brain are

active when we feel sadness. The

bottom brain scan shows which areas

of our brain are active when we feel

happiness.

The brain really does create all of

our emotions.

Neural Correlates

Emotions & Feelings

Since the brain produces much of

what we feel, when something goes

wrong with the brain our

emotions can get messed up.

Clinical depression is

characterized by a persistent,

intense negative mood,

which affects a person’s

normal life.Photo credit (CC 2.0): Alejandro Cordon

Serotonin and Mood

Emotions & Feelings

Research has found that

serotonin is important for

communication between the

prefrontal cortex and

amygdala areas of

the brain. Remember how

those two areas are

important for regulating

emotions?Photo credit (CC 2.0): Alejandro Cordon

Serotonin and Mood

Emotions & Feelings

Some people with major depression don’t

have a good connection between the

prefrontal cortex and amygdala.

By increasing the amount of

serotonin in the brain with drugs,

this connection can be

strengthened and help people

regain a better mood.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Alejandro Cordon

Serotonin and Mood

Signaling is the brain’s way of responding to a perceived threat, danger, or stress from

the environment.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): GE Healthcare

SignalingFACT SHEET

Location: Cortex,

thalamus, amygdala,

hippocampus

Main Neurotransmitters:

Adrenalin, serotonin

Your brain is constantly alert, taking

note of your surroundings. When it

perceives a danger, such as an

oncoming car, the brain begins a

physiologic cascade with the help of

neurotransmitters like adrenalin and

serotonin. Your heart rate and

alertness go up, more blood is

pumped to your muscles, and your

senses become sharper. Your brain

then makes a decision whether to run

from the danger, or stay and fight it.

Overview

SignalingFight or Flight

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Mangpages, Phillipe Put

Sensory Perception

(Ears, eyes, smell, taste, touch)

InternalSignals+

When faced with DANGER, your 5 senses perceive it and sends a signal to the BRAIN

Your brain initiates a Physiologic

Cascade

Heart Rate

Tension

Alertness

PerceptionNow you are ready to

FIGHT or FLEE for your safety and protection

SignalingAnxiety

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Mangpages, flequi

Sensory Perception

(Ears, eyes, smell, taste, touch)

InternalSignals+

Anxiety happens when the brain believes there is danger, but there isn’t any

Your brain initiates a Physiologic

Cascade

Heart Rate

Tension

Alertness

Perception

This produces feelings of ANXIETY

Signaling

Normal anxiety happens to all of us.

Anxiety

A situation

can trigger it:

First date

Preparing for an exam

Performing at a concert

Giving a speech

Moving from home

Climbing a tall ladder

Etc.

Which causes

feelings of

anxiety:

Apprehension

Nervousness

Tension

Edginess

Nausea

Sweating

Trembling

SignalingAnxiety

Normal anxiety:

Is transient, which means that it will go away after a while

Does not significantly interfere with a person’s well-being

Does not prevent a person from achieving their goals

Signaling

Some people suffer from pathologic anxiety.

Anxiety

A situation, or nothing

can trigger it:

First date

Preparing for an exam

Performing at a concert

Giving a speech

Moving from home

Climbing a tall ladder

NOTHING!

Which causes

intense anxiety:

Feels like a heart attack

Feels like you’re dying

Feels like you’re going

crazy or having a

nervous breakdown

This happens when there

is a dysfunction in the

signaling mechanisms.

SignalingAnxiety

Pathological anxiety:

Is persistent, meaning symptoms stay around for a lot longer

than they should

Is excessive, intense, and inappropriate to the situation –

feeling like you are having a heart attack before giving a

speech is not how the brain should react

Leads to impairment in a person’s everyday life, where they

may avoid people and act withdrawn in an attempt to avoid

trigger situations

Perception is the way your five senses work with your brain to take in your surroundings.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Mohamed Malik

Perception & SensingOverview

We have five senses that work together to give awareness of

our environment:

See Hear Smell Taste Touch

Perception & SensingVision

For us to see, light must enter into our

pupils and hit the retina lining the back

of the eye.

Cones are cells in the retina that give

us our color vision, while rods are cells

that give us black and white (night)

vision.

The optic nerve carries the signal

through the lateral geniculate nucleus to

the back of the brain, the primary

visual cortex.

Perception & SensingVision

The primary visual cortex transmits the

signal to two different areas of the brain:

Temporal lobes

Responsible for object recognition,

“what” the object is

Conscious processing

Parietal Lobes

Responsible for object location,

“where” the object is

Unconscious processing of the relationship

between the object and your body

Perception & SensingVision: Blindsight

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Jim Simonson

Since the temporal lobes are responsible for the conscious

processing of vision, they would not be able to ‘see’ normally, and

would be considered legally blind. However, their unconscious,

spatial processing has not been damaged, so even though they

may not be able to identify objects in a room they can walk

around tables and chairs without bumping into them. They can

follow objects with their fingers and may even be able to catch a

ball thrown at them.

People who sustain damage to their temporal lobes may develop a condition known as blindsight.

Perception & SensingHearing

Many tiny hairs in your inner

ear vibrate to sounds in the

environment. Those vibrations

are felt by cells in the ear and the

signal is transferred along the

brain to eventually reach the

primary auditory cortex.

DID YOU KNOW?

As people age, their ability to hear very low and high

frequency noises diminishes. An anti-loitering alarm was

developed that plays a high-pitched, annoying noise that

only teenagers can hear. Talk about discrimination!

Perception & SensingSmell

Smell exists as tiny

molecular odorants that travel

up your nose to be detected

by cells in the olfactory

epithelium. This signal travels

through the olfactory nerve to

your brain, where the signal

Photo credit (CC 2.0): DrJimiGlide

is processed by the olfactory cortex. Some of the signal makes it to

the limbic system, where long-term, emotional memories are stored.

This is why smells can sometimes help you remember strong

memories, maybe of your home or childhood!

Perception & SensingTaste

Taste buds which cover the surface

of the tongue allows us to distinguish

different flavors in our food. There are

five basic tastes:

Sweet

Sour

Salty

Bitter

Umami (savoury)

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Zoe Shuttleworth

Perception & SensingTaste

Information from the taste buds travel up cranial nerves to reach

the brain stem, where the signal is passed onwards to the primary

gustatory cortex.

Tepper et al. 2009; Photo credit: Zoe Shuttleworth

DID YOU KNOW?

Not everyone perceives food the same way! Some

people have a lot more taste buds than average, and

are known as ‘super tasters’. Your genes determine

whether you are a ‘super taster’, ‘taster’, or even a

‘non-taster’. Super tasters tend to be very sensitive to

different foods, especially bitter things like broccoli

and coffee, and may be picky eaters.

Perception & SensingTouch

Photo credit (CC 3.0): btarski

Your body is full of touch

receptor cells near the surface of

the skin. When activated, they

send a signal up to your brain to

let it know. Some areas of your

body have many more touch

receptors than others, and thus

have a larger representation in

the brain, in a place called the

somatosensory cortex.

Perception & SensingTouch

A homunculus is a

representation of what a human

would look like if made in the same

proportions as the brain area

assigned to it. The hands and facial

areas, especially the lips and

tongue, are highly sensitive!

Dr. Penfield, the famous Canadian

neuroscientist (yes, the ‘burnt toast’

guy!) came up with the homunculus

by mapping limb locations to different

areas of the brain.

Signaling is the brain’s way of responding to a perceived threat, danger, or stress from

the environment.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): GE Healthcare

Your brain takes care of many

different physical functions, such as

digestion, breathing, controlling your

muscles, etc.

Physical FunctionsVoluntary Movement

In the same way that

different brain regions

are assigned for

sensing different areas

of your body, different

brain regions control

different areas of your

body. Places where fine

motor control isneeded, such as your hands and mouth (for producing speech and

eating), take up a larger area in the brain! This place is called the

motor cortex.

Physical FunctionsVoluntary Movement

Your prefrontal cortex – which if you

remember is where all your thinking

happens – sends a signal to the motor

cortex area assigned to a body part.

This signal travels down the spinal

cord to alpha motor neurons, which

tell muscles to contract. This whole

process allows us to produce thought-

directed, voluntary movements.

This entire complex arrangement is known as the somatic

nervous system.

Physical FunctionsInvoluntary Movement

What about involuntary movement?

Stuff you can’t control consciously?

Your heart needs to keep beating and

your stomach needs to keep churning

for you to stay alive. If you had to

consciously think about every breath

you took you probably would be too

distracted to think about much else.

This is where the autonomic (from

‘automatic’) nervous system comes

in.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): David DeHetre

Physical FunctionsInvoluntary Movement

Your autonomic system is basically in

charge of all your internal organs, and

controls what they do unconsciously

(although some things, like your breathing,

can be taken over by the conscious mind).

It is divided into two parts: the

Sympathetic Nervous System, and the

Parasympathetic Nervous System.

Physical FunctionsInvoluntary Movement

Sympathetic Nervous System

Remember how signaling and anxiety works?

Your sympathetic nervous system controls that

‘fight or flight’ mechanism (makes the heart pump

faster, inhibits digestion, raises blood pressure,

etc.). It also maintains equilibrium, or homeostasis.

Stuff like making sure your body temperature

is just right, and balancing your

blood sugar levels.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Mark Robinson

Physical FunctionsInvoluntary Movement

Parasympathetic Nervous System

While the sympathetic nervous

system is most active when you’re

stressed, the parasympathetic

nervous system works when you are

resting, so it’s known as the ‘rest

and digest’ system. Think of it

working in the opposite direction,

instead of speeding up your heart

rate it slows it down. It lowers your

blood pressure. Since, at rest, your

body can expend energy to relax and

eat, much more saliva is produced.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Jamie Davis

Behavior is simply the way we act, usually in response to our environment. It includes everything from running to joking, from reading to working.

BehaviorOverview

Teens don’t ‘get’ their parents.

What’s with all the rules and

restrictions? And parents don’t like the

things teens do – they always seem to

be experimenting and taking

unnecessary risks.

This seeming rift between teens and

adults has a lot to do with behavior,

and behavior has a lot to do with the

brain.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Ollie Crafoord

BehaviorMotivation

One example of a behavioral difference is

motivation. Motivation is your drive to do

stuff – like studying hard to do well on a test,

or finishing a marathon, or beating one more

level of a video game.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): shirokazin

BehaviorMotivation

Motivation is influenced heavily by

the reward pathway in the brain. A

reward doesn’t have to be

something physical, it can be getting

a good mark or a positive feeling.

Drug addiction causes your brain to

constantly seek out that positive

‘feeling’, and your brain becomes

dependant on it as a reward. The

danger comes when that feeling can

only be achieved by drugs!

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Ollie Crafoord

BehaviorMotivation

In teens, the reward pathway of the

brain is stronger than in adults. Also,

the cognitive parts of the brain that

think about things logically and weighs

the pros and cons are not as

developed in teens. This means teens

may be motivated to try riskier

behaviors and be more impulsive than

adults would be, and are more prone

to push beyond their limits and

boundaries without weighing

consequences (Smith et al., 2011).

BehaviorMotivation

This isn’t always a bad thing.

Since the brain matures in this way,

young people can be extremely

passionate about the things they

care about, they work hard to

achieve things that are important to

them. They open their eyes to the

world and have new experiences,

and become better people for it.

It’s all about the choices you

make.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): James Tosh

So now we know the

six basic functions of the

brain, but how does such

a complex organ develop?

NewScientist (2009)

suggests that there are 5

different ‘ages’ of the brain:

1. Gestation

2. Childhood

3. Adolescence

4. Adulthood

5. Old Age

Photo credit (CC 2.0): Neil Conway

GestationOverview

Gestation is the stage of development

where you are still in your mom’s womb.

It is this time where your brain undergoes

initial development, and your cells

differentiate to create your first neurons

(this process is called neurogenesis).

Neurogenesis is a hot topic right now,

because while people are really good at making new neurons when

they are fetuses, it gets much harder when they are adults. If we learn

how to create new neurons where we want them, we may be able to

help people with brain diseases and spinal cord injuries.

ChildhoodOverview

Childhood is the stage where our

brains probably undergo the biggest

changes. It is this time where we

learn language, how to store

memories, and how to think.

Timeline:2-3 months:

cortex develops

6-12 months:frontal lobe develops

18 months:develop a sense of self

3-4 years:sense that other people

have minds too

6 years:apply logic and trust, understands

personal thought process

AdolescenceOverview

Adolescence is the teenage

years. It is around this time that your

brain areas start to fully mature and

develop. Your sensory and motor

areas are the first to mature, which is why teens can be ‘sensation

seekers’. Your prefrontal cortex matures last, which helps in decision

making, emotional control, and temper.

Most teens pass through these years without severe or prolonged

difficulties, but 15% of teens will experience significant mental health

problems during their adolescent years.

AdolescenceOverview

Adolescence is the time where

your brain gets rid of neural

pathways that it doesn’t need.

When you’re young, you have

a high volume of gray matter in

your brain. During adolescence,

this gray matter is pruned away.

This is thought to make the brain more efficient. What gets removed

depends a lot on usage. It’s really ‘use it or lose it!’ It is important to

keep your brain active and healthy during these years.

AdulthoodOverview

You’ve finally made it to your adult

years! People’s brains peak around

the age of 22. This is when they can

process things the fastest and learn

new things easier. When you hit 27

years, your brain will progressively

start to decline. However, adults are excellent at crystallized

intelligence, or wisdom, which is the ability to use and apply

everything you’ve learned up till now.

You can keep your brain sharp and slow down that decline by being

mentally and physically active.

Old AgeOverview

In your golden years, you brain is in the

most danger of deteriorating. Death of brain

cells in the hippocampus area can lead to

memory loss. Again, by keeping fit and

eating healthy, you can stimulate brain

cell growth and slow this decline.

The elderly are more prone to diseases

such as Alzheimer’s – plaques and tangles are seen in the brain

wrapped around cells responsible for memory and retrieval.

Parkinson’s is another disease which mainly affects the elderly, and is

caused by the death of cells responsible for movement.

Old AgeOverview

The chance of experiencing a stroke also increases

when you’re older. A stroke occurs when the blood

supply to the brain has been disturbed. A portion of

your brain may lose its functioning (causing paralysis

on one side of the body, loss of speech, etc.).

Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to rearrange

neural pathways and repair itself. It used to be thought

that this could only occur in very young people, but

recent research has shown that neuroplasticity can still

occur in older adults, even in the elderly. There’s a lot of

science being done now to see if we can enhance

neuroplasticity to help treat stroke patients and speed

up their recovery.

Photo credit (CC 2.0): TheArches

Photo credit (CC 2.0): dierk schaefer

Think upon this…

the BrainWe’re using

to study

the BrainAnd there’s still a lot to learn! What

you’ve read here is just the tip of our current knowledge, and our current knowledge is just the tip of what is going on in that spongy mass of tissue. As science advances, the brain will come to better understand itself. So keep learning!

Sun Life Financial ChairIn Adolescent Mental Health

For more information visit

WWW.TEENMENTALHEALTH.ORG

References

Daftarya, S.S., Pankseppb, J., Dongb, Y., and Saal, D.B. 2009. Stress-induced, glucocorticoid-dependent strengthening of glutamatergic synaptic transmission in midbrain dopamine neurons. Neuroscience Letters 452, 3: 273-276.

Lenroot, R.K., Giedd, J.N. 2006. Brain development in children and adolescents: Insights from anatomical magnetic resonance imaging. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. 30: 718-729.

Sowell, E.R., Thompson, P.M., Holmes, C.J., Jernigan, T.L., Toga, A.W. 1999. In vivo evidence for post-adolescent brain maturation in frontal and striatal regions. Nature Neuroscience. 2: 859-861.

Sowell, E.R., Thompson, P.M., Toga, A.W. 2001. Mapping continued brain growth and gray matter density reduction in dorsal frontal cortex: Inverse relationships during postadolescent brain maturation. The Journal of Neuroscience. 21: 8819-8829.

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