The Neurobiology of Childhood (Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences Book 16)

During the past years there has been rapid progress in the understanding of how early life stress impacts psychopathology in children. The first two parts of this book present the basic principles of brain development and describe the most important neuronal systems. This includes systems involved in emotion processing, cognitive control, and social processes. These first two general sections are followed by an overview about recent research on various neuronal and psychiatric disorders, where environmental exposures and altered brain development play an important role: sleep, autism, ADHD and other developmental forms of psychopathology. Front Matter....Pages i-viii The Neurobiology of Childhood Structural Brain Development: Conception Through Adulthood....Pages 3-17 Signaling Mechanisms of Axon Guidance and Early Synaptogenesis....Pages 19-48 Connectivity....Pages 49-77 Sensitive Periods for Hormonal Programming of the Brain....Pages 79-108 The Importance of Early Experiences for Neuro-Affective Development....Pages 109-129 The Role of Corticolimbic Circuitry in the Development of Anxiety Disorders in Children and Adolescents....Pages 133-148 The Emergence of Cognitive Control Abilities in Childhood....Pages 149-166 Neural Systems Underlying Reward and Approach Behaviors in Childhood and Adolescence....Pages 167-188 What the Laboratory Rat has Taught us About Social Play Behavior: Role in Behavioral Development and Neural Mechanisms....Pages 189-212 Building a Social Neuroscience of Autism Spectrum Disorder....Pages 215-233 Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder....Pages 235-266 Neurobiology of Schizophrenia Onset....Pages 267-295 A Systems Neuroscience Approach to the Pathophysiology of Pediatric Mood and Anxiety Disorders....Pages 297-317 Disruptive Behavior Disorders: Taking an RDoC(ish) Approach....Pages 319-336 Sleep in Childhood and Adolescence: Age-Specific Sleep Characteristics, Common Sleep Disturbances and Associated Difficulties....Pages 337-365 Back Matter....Pages 367-370 Brain development, whether typical or atypical, provides the foundation for all behavior and possible psychopathology. This volume takes a comprehensive and translational approach in describing how basic neuronal patterning occurs, organizes into systems, and forms functional and inter-connected networks. The role that hormones and genes play in influencing brain development is also described. The resultant emotional, cognitive, reward, and social systems show how typical development proceeds. The second part of the book describes when the process of development goes awry. Here, a number of childhood disorders are covered. Autism, ADHD, emotional syndromes of bipolar disorder and depression, oppositional defiant disorder and conduct disorder, and sleep and schizophrenia are included in this volume. Written by leading experts in their respective fields, this volume will be a valuable resource to mental health professionals as well as preclinical investigators hoping to gain additional understanding about the neurobiology of the developing brain