Maturation of the P3 and concurrent oscillatory processes during adolescence

- Healthy brain development leads to increased precision in timing of event-related neural activation.
- Time-frequency analysis differentiates selective developmental processes underlying the P3.
- Integration of ERPs and brain oscillations provides detailed information about the adolescent brain.

ObjectiveDuring adolescence event-related modulations of the neural response may increase. For slow event-related components, such as the P3, this developmental change may be masked due to increased amplitude levels of ongoing delta and theta oscillations in adolescents.MethodsIn a cross-sectional study design, EEG was measured in 51 participants between 13 and 24 years. A visual oddball paradigm was used to elicit the P3. Our analysis focused on fronto-parietal activations within the P3 time-window and the concurrent time-frequency characteristics in the delta (∼0.5-4 Hz) and theta (∼4-7 Hz) band.ResultsThe parietal P3 amplitude was similar across the investigated age range, while the amplitude at frontal regions increased with age. The pre-stimulus amplitudes of delta and theta oscillations declined with age, while post-stimulus amplitude enhancement and inter-trial phase coherence increased. These changes affected fronto-parietal electrode sites.ConclusionsThe parietal P3 maximum seemed comparable for adolescents and young adults. Detailed analysis revealed that within the P3 time-window brain maturation during adolescence may lead to reduced spontaneous slow-wave oscillations, increased amplitude modulation and time precision of event-related oscillations, and altered P3 scalp topography.SignificanceTime-frequency analyses may help to distinguish selective neurodevelopmental changes within the P3 time window.