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Abstract #0315

GABA Concentration in Frontal Eye Field Predicts Oculomotor Distractibility

Richard AE Edden1,2, Petroc Sumner3, Aline Bompas3, Krish D. Singh3

1Russell H Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Sciences, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States; 2FM Kirby Research Center for Functional MRI, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, United States; 3CUBRIC, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom


Recent developments in the quantitation of GABA through edited MRS allow the behavioural consequences of individual differences in local GABA concentration to be studied. Such studies provide an important window into the workings of the healthy brain and a multimodal probe to investigate pathology. Eye movements, known to be altered in many pathologies, are thought to be planned in frontal eye fields (FEF). In this study we measure GABA concentration in a functionally-localised FEF region and show that GABA predicts saccade distractibility in healthy controls; this novel approach suggests further studies into the biochemical origins of neuropathologic behavioural deficits.