The transition from adolescence to adulthood is characterized by improvements in higher-order cognitive abilities and corresponding refinements of the structure and function of the brain regions that support them. Whereas the neurobiological mechanisms that govern early development of sensory systems are well-understood, the mechanisms that drive developmental plasticity of association cortices, such as prefrontal cortex (PFC), during adolescence remain to be explained. In this review, we synthesize neurodevelopmental findings at the cellular, circuit, and systems levels in PFC and evaluate them through the lens of established critical period (CP) mechanisms that guide early sensory development. We find remarkable correspondence between these neurodevelopmental processes and the mechanisms driving CP plasticity, supporting the hypothesis that adolescent development is driven by CP mechanisms that guide the rapid development of neurobiology and cognitive ability during adolescence and their subsequent stability in adulthood. Critically, understanding adolescence as a CP not only provides a mechanism for normative adolescent development, it provides a framework for understanding the role of experience and neurobiology in the emergence of psychopathology that occurs during this developmental period.

从青春期过渡到成年期的特征是高阶认知能力得到了改善，并且相应的支持它们的大脑区域的结构和功能也得到了改善。尽管支配感觉系统早期发育的神经生物学机制已广为人知，但在青春期驱动诸如早期额叶皮层（PFC）等皮质皮质的发育可塑性的机制仍有待解释。在这篇综述中，我们在PFC的细胞，电路和系统水平上综合了神经发育的发现，并通过建立指导早期感觉发展的关键时期（CP）机制的镜头对它们进行了评估。我们发现这些神经发育过程与驱动CP可塑性的机制之间存在显着的对应关系，支持以下假设：青春期发育是由CP机制驱动的，CP机制指导青春期神经生物学和认知能力的快速发展及其在成年后的稳定性。至关重要的是，将青春期理解为CP不仅为规范的青春期发展提供了一种机制，而且还为理解经验和神经生物学在此发育时期发生的心理病理学出现中的作用提供了框架。