The neuropsychology of down syndrome: evidence for hippocampal dysfunction.
Abstract
This study tested prefrontal and hippocampal functions in a sample of 28 school-aged (M = 14.7 years, SD = 2.7) individuals with Down syndrome (DS) compared with 28 (M = 4.9 years, SD = .75) typically developing children individually matched on mental age (MA). Both neuropsychological domains were tested with multiple behavioral measures. Benchmark measures of verbal and spatial function demonstrated that this DS sample was similar to others in the literature. The main finding was a significant Group x Domain interaction effect indicating differential hippocampal dysfunction in the group with DS. However, there was a moderate partial correlation (r = .54, controlling for chronological age) between hippocampal and prefrontal composite scores in the DS group, and both composites contributed unique variance to the prediction of MA and adaptive behavior in that group. In sum, these results indicate a particular weakness in hippocampal functions in DS in the context of overall cognitive dysfunction. It is interesting that these results are similar to what has been found in a mouse model of DS. Such a model will make it easier to understand the neurobiological mechanisms that lead to the development of hippocampal dysfunction in DS.
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Memory impairment in Down syndrome includes deficits in both short-term and long-term declarative memory, with procedural memory comparable to typically developing peers.
“The memory impairment includes deficits in both short-term and long-term declarative memory, with procedural memory comparable to typically developing peers (Carlesimo et al., 1997; Pennington et al., 2003; Vicari et al., 2005, 2000; Godfrey and Lee, 2018).”
From Neurodevelopment in Down syndrome: Concordance in humans and models (2022) · cites this paper as Pennington et al., 2003
Cites
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Chromosome 21 and Down syndrome: from genomics to pathophysiology
Antonarakis, S. E., Lyle, R., Dermitzakis, E. T., Reymond, A., & Deutsch, S. (2004) · Nature Reviews Genetics · doi:10.1038/nrg1448 · Cited by 703 · see citing works
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Communication breaks-Down: From neurodevelopment defects to cognitive disabilities in Down syndrome
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Altered Hippocampal-Prefrontal Neural Dynamics in Mouse Models of Down Syndrome
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Neurodevelopment in Down syndrome: Concordance in humans and models
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“The memory impairment includes deficits in both short-term and long-term declarative memory, with procedural memory comparable to typically developing peers (Carlesimo et al., 1997; Pennington et al., 2003; Vicari et al., 2005, 2000; Godfrey and Lee, 2018).”
BackgroundEvaluating working memory outcome measures for children with Down syndrome
Schworer, E. K., Esbensen, A. J., Fidler, D. J., Beebe, D. W., Carle, A., & Wiley, S. (2022) · Journal of Intellectual Disability Research · doi:10.1111/jir.12833 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
Palit, P., Mukherjee, D., & Mandal, S. C. (2015) · Journal of Ethnopharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.jep.2014.09.008 · Cited by 25 · see citing works
- Authors
- Pennington, B. F., Moon, J., Edgin, J., Stedron, J., & Nadel, L.
- Affiliations
- University of Denver (US)
- University of Arizona (US)
- Venue
- Child Development
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2003-02-01
- Volume
- 74
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 75-93
- ISSN
- 0009-3920 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-8624
- OpenAlex
- W2136582464
- Cited by
- 514
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 33 · 2020: 21 · 2019: 18 · 2018: 19 · 2017: 20 · 2016: 32 · 2015: 31 · 2014: 35 · 2013: 19 · 2012: 38
- FWCI
- 16.58
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Child Development (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD4025, HD17449, P01HD017449)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Down syndrome and intellectual disability research
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Developmental Neuroscience › Williams Syndrome Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology › Developmental and Educational Neuropsychology
- Keywords
- Down syndrome, hippocampal dysfunction, prefrontal function, cognitive impairment, adaptive behavior, mental age, school-aged children
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Cognition Disorders, Down Syndrome, Female, Hippocampus, Humans, Male, Neuropsychological Tests, Severity of Illness Index, Prefrontal Cortex
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