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Reduced temporal and spatial stability of neural activity patterns predict cognitive control deficits in children with ADHD

Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This study investigates the neural underpinnings of cognitive control deficits in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), focusing on trial-level variability of neural coding. Using fMRI, we apply a computational approach to single-trial neural decoding on a cued stop-signal task, probing proactive and reactive control within the dual control model. Reactive control involves suppressing an automatic response when interference is detected, and proactive control involves implementing preparatory strategies based on prior information. In contrast to typically developing children (TD), children with ADHD show disrupted neural coding during both proactive and reactive control, characterized by increased temporal variability and diminished spatial stability in neural responses in salience and frontal-parietal network regions. This variability correlates with fluctuating task performance and ADHD symptoms. Additionally, children with ADHD exhibit more heterogeneous neural response patterns across individuals compared to TD children. Our findings underscore the significance of modeling trial-wise neural variability in understanding cognitive control deficits in ADHD.
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-57685-x
Authors: Zhiyao Gao, Katherine Duberg, Stacie L. Warren, Li Zheng, Stephen P. Hinshaw, Vinod Menon, Weidong Cai
Institutions: Stanford Medicine, Stanford University, The University of Texas at Dallas, University of Arizona, University of California, San Francisco, University of California, Berkeley, Stanford Maternal and Child Health Research Institute
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $6,990
Funders: National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, Stanford Maternal and Child Health Research Institute
Awards: G1509393352, G5442262214, G7065234879, Integrative computational models of latent behavioral and neural constructs in children: a longitudinal developmental big-data approach, G9000117755, G9000180249, G9000323132, An integrative framework of cognitive control and reward modulation in children with ADHD: from brain dynamics to clinical symptoms, Computational modeling of dynamic causal brain circuits underlying cognitive dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease
OpenAlex ID: W4408250256
FWCI: 10.5
Cites: 118
Cited by: 17
Related to: 10