Between the ages of 10–25 years the maturing brain is sensitive to a multitude of changes, including neurochemical variations in metabolites. Of the different metabolites, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) has long been linked neurobiologically to anxiety symptomology, which begins to manifest in adolescence. To prevent persistent anxiety difficulties into adulthood, we need to understand the maturational trajectories of neurochemicals and how these relate to anxiety levels during this sensitive period. We used magnetic resonance spectroscopy in a sample of younger (aged 10–11) and older (aged 18–25) females to estimate GABA and glutamate levels in brain regions linked to emotion regulation processing, as well as a conceptually distinct control region. Within the Bayesian framework, we found that GABA increased and glutamate decreased with age, negative associations between anxiety and glutamate and GABA ratios in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and a positive relationship of GABA with anxiety levels. The results support the neural over-inhibition hypothesis of anxiety based on GABAergic activity.

中文翻译：

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年轻女性焦虑的兴奋性和抑制性神经化学标志物

10 至 25 岁之间，成熟的大脑对多种变化敏感，包括代谢物的神经化学变化。在不同的代谢物中，γ-氨基丁酸（GABA）长期以来在神经生物学上与焦虑症状相关，焦虑症状在青春期开始显现。为了防止成年后出现持续的焦虑困难，我们需要了解神经化学物质的成熟轨迹以及它们与这个敏感时期的焦虑水平的关系。我们在年轻（10-11 岁）和老年（18-25 岁）女性样本中使用磁共振波谱来估计与情绪调节处理相关的大脑区域以及概念上不同的控制区域中的 GABA 和谷氨酸水平。在贝叶斯框架内，我们发现随着年龄的增长，GABA 增加，谷氨酸减少，焦虑与背外侧前额叶皮层谷氨酸和 GABA 比率呈负相关，而 GABA 与焦虑水平呈正相关。结果支持基于 GABA 活性的焦虑神经过度抑制假说。