# Compensatory Neural Networks for the Cognitive Control of Emotion in Youth at Risk for Bipolar Disorder

> **NIH NIH K23** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2021 · $186,583

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY / ABSTRACT
 Offspring of parents with bipolar disorder (“at-risk youth”) are at increased risk for the development of
psychopathology. Many of these at-risk youth have elevated mood lability, frequent and severe changes in
mood state, which contributes to poor functioning and increases risk for mood disorder. However, not all
individuals at familial risk develop psychiatric disorders, and in this project we explore the compensatory
networks that could help to explain individual differences in risk. Several lines of evidence indicate that neural
circuitry supporting working memory (WM) might act as such a compensatory network, and that better working
memory capacity (WMC) in particular is associated with better emotion regulation and less mood lability. The
objective of this project is to better understand the neural circuitry of mood lability, and to then assess potential
compensatory neural mechanisms in youth at risk for bipolar disorder (BD). We propose to first assess
differences between at-risk and healthy youth in the activation and functional connectivity (FxC) of ventral
networks involved in cognitive reappraisal of emotion, and whether the individual differences in these networks
correlate with degree of mood lability in the at-risk youth. We next evaluate if a greater WMC (and FxC of the
central executive network, central to WM) might compensate for these ventral abnormalities, and thus might be
associated with less mood lability in at-risk youth. To provide a probe of the directionality of this relationship,
we conduct a pilot manipulation of WM training (5 weeks) in a subset of at-risk, labile youth. Identification of
such a compensatory network in at-risk youth would provide a target for preventive measures in these youth,
and pave the way for future studies investigating strategies for building resilience.
 In concert with this research plan, training goals will provide the Principal Investigator with a skillset
necessary to further pursue this line of research: specifically, training in developmental cognitive neuroscience,
the implementation of neuroimaging studies in pediatric populations, and sophisticated analysis of
neuroimaging data. To obtain this training, the PI has assembled a mentorship team with expertise in relevant
areas, most notably, her mentor Dr. Mary Phillips (neuroimaging in BD) and co-mentor Dr. Boris Birmaher
(implementation of studies of youth with BD). She has also designed a detailed training plan, which includes
formal collaborations with consultants, coursework, and workshops. Research and training activities will
primarily occur at the University of Pittsburgh, an institution with a commitment to research in pediatric BD, as
well as affective and cognitive neuroscience, and a strong track record for supporting the career development
of junior faculty. This training will build on the PI’s existing background as a child psychiatrist with a strong
knowledge of statistics and clinical neurosc...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10148812
- **Project number:** 5K23MH110421-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** Danella Marie Hafeman
- **Activity code:** K23 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $186,583
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-05-18 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10148812

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10148812, Compensatory Neural Networks for the Cognitive Control of Emotion in Youth at Risk for Bipolar Disorder (5K23MH110421-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10148812. Licensed CC0.

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