Multi-modal neuroimaging of adolescents with non-suicidal self-injury: Amygdala functional connectivity
Open accessAbstract
Background Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is a significant mental health problem among adolescents. Research is needed to clarify the neurobiology of NSSI and identify candidate neurobiological targets for interventions. Based on prior research implicating heightened negative affect and amygdala hyperactivity in NSSI, we pursued a systems approach to characterize amygdala functional connectivity networks during rest (resting-state functional connectivity [RSFC)]) and a task (task functional connectivity [TFC]) in adolescents with NSSI.Method We examined amygdala networks in female adolescents with NSSI and healthy controls (n = 45) using resting-state fMRI and a negative emotion face-matching fMRI task designed to activate the amygdala. Connectivity analyses included amygdala RSFC, amygdala TFC, and psychophysiological interactions (PPI) between amygdala connectivity and task conditions.Results Compared to healthy controls, adolescents with NSSI showed atypical amygdala-frontal connectivity during rest and task; greater amygdala RSFC in supplementary motor area (SMA) and dorsal anterior cingulate; and differential amygdala-occipital connectivity between rest and task. After correcting for depression symptoms, amygdala-SMA RSFC abnormalities, among others, remained significant.Limitations This study's limitations include its cross-sectional design and its absence of a psychiatric control group.Conclusions Using a multi-modal approach, we identified widespread amygdala circuitry anomalies in adolescents with NSSI. While deficits in amygdala-frontal connectivity (driven by depression symptoms) replicates prior work in depression, hyperconnectivity between amygdala and SMA (independent of depression symptoms) has not been previously reported. This circuit may represent an important mechanism underlying the link between negative affect and habitual behaviors. These abnormalities may represent intervention targets for adolescents with NSSI.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Youth with NSSI show frontolimbic alterations.
“self-injurers exhibit frontolimbic alterations.”
From Neural correlates associated with suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury in youth (2021) · cites this paper as [96]
During an emotion face-matching task, there is no evidence of emotion-specific effects.
“During an emotion face-matching task, there is no evidence of emotion-specific effects.”
From Neural correlates associated with suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury in youth (2021) · cites this paper as [96]
Findings suggest amygdala-seed connectivity is altered in adolescents with NSSI history, particularly with ACC.
“Although limited, findings suggest that amygdala-seed connectivity is altered in adolescents with an NSSI history, particularly with the ACC (96, 109).”
From Neural correlates associated with suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury in youth (2021) · cites this paper as [96]
NSSI and healthy youth show divergent amygdala task-connectivity, but it is unclear whether this reflects NSSI or MDD or other comorbid disorders.
“However, NSSI and healthy youth show divergent amygdala task-connectivity, but it is not clear whether this reflects NSSI or MDD (or other comorbid disorders) (96).”
From Neural correlates associated with suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury in youth (2021) · cites this paper as [96]
Relative to healthy females, adolescents with NSSI history exhibit reduced left amygdala-seed RSFC with a cluster spanning ACC and SMA, and increased RSFC with angular gyrus and a temporal gyrus cluster.
“Relative to healthy females, adolescents with an NSSI history exhibit reduced left amygdala-seed RSFC with a cluster spanning ACC and supramarginal gyrus (SMA), as well as increased RSFC with angular gyrus and a temporal gyrus cluster (96).”
From Neural correlates associated with suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury in youth (2021) · cites this paper as [96]
NSSI research reveals ACC structural alterations and disruptions in amygdala and ACC connectivity, which contribute to hyperarousal and reduced impulse control, central features of NSSI.
“By contrast, NSSI research reveals ACC structural alterations (64, 69) as well as disruptions in amygdala and ACC connectivity (96), which contributes to hyperarousal and reduced impulse control—central features of NSSI (110, 111).”
From Neural correlates associated with suicide and nonsuicidal self-injury in youth (2021) · cites this paper as [96]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
The citation lists haven’t been fetched yet
References 49 · Cited by 126
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- First MB Spitzer RL Gibbon M Williams JBW 2002b Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV-TR Axis I Disorders, Research Version, Non-patient Edition. (SCID-I/NP)
- Authors
- Westlund Schreiner, M., Klimes-Dougan, B., Mueller, B. A., Eberly, L. E., Reigstad, K. M., Carstedt, P. A., Thomas, K. M., Hunt, R. H., Lim, K. O., & Cullen, K. R.
- Affiliations
- University of Minnesota (US)
- ORCID
- Venue
- Journal of Affective Disorders
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2017-10
- Volume
- 221
- Pages
- 47-55
- ISSN
- 0165-0327 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC5555154
- OpenAlex
- W2625425867
- Cited by
- 126
- References
- 49
- Citations by year
- 2026: 25 · 2025: 19 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 23 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1
- FWCI
- 2.36
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Affective Disorders (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (1R21MH094558)
- University of Minnesota Academic Health Center Faculty Research Development Grant Program (#11.12)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Suicide and Self-Harm Studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Mental Health Research Topics
- Keywords
- non-suicidal self-injury, adolescents, amygdala, functional connectivity, supplementary motor area, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, negative affect, depressive symptoms, psychophysiological interaction
- MeSH terms
- Facial Recognition, Adolescent, Amygdala, Brain Mapping, Cerebral Cortex, Cross-Sectional Studies, Emotions, Female, Gyrus Cinguli, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Rest, Self-Injurious Behavior, Functional Neuroimaging
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
