They claim that a hormone, which is usually responsible for easing stress in adults and young children, turns rogue in teenagers and eggs their crankiness.

Anxiety is basically under the regulation of the inhibitory neurotransmitter, GABA (gamma-amino-butyric-acid). The principal function of GABA is to oppose the effect of glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain. Whenever an individual is stressed, a hormone called THP (allopregnanolone) is released. This hormone mimics the effect of GABA in adults and young children.

But this hormone has the opposite effect in teenagers and increases anxiety in this group, researchers at the State University of New York claimed. Lead researcher Sheryl Smith, a physiologist at the University, reached these conclusions after their study on female adolescent mice.

According to the findings of Smith and colleagues, THP appears to play a dual role in the brain. In the limbic system, the hormone exerts a calming effect, while it stirs things up in the hippocampus. It may be noted that hippocampus is the primary site of emotional regulation in the brain.

Writing in Nature Neuroscience, Smith said that the study was a vital pointer in furthering the understanding of teenage behavior among parents and teachers.

The researchers found that GABA receptors which are the target for THP are found in less numbers in hippocampus in adults and pre-adolescents. However in adolescents the number of GABAA receptors is high in hippocampus and negates the calming effect of THP in the limbic system.

By genetically shifting the number of receptors, the researchers were able to reverse the "puberty" effect in mice. The researchers added that further studies were needed to determine if THP had a similar effect in humans as well.

"This research has revealed that there is a biological basis for a teenager's mood swings," said Smith. "They can be frustrating for parents and teachers - as well as the adolescents. As adults, we just deal with things, but it is harder for teenagers because of their biology. I think it's important for people to know that."

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