Loss aversion and 5HTT gene variants in adolescent anxiety

Loss aversion, a well-documented behavioral phenomenon, characterizes decisions under risk in adult populations. As such, loss aversion may provide a reliable measure of risky behavior. Surprisingly, little is known about loss aversion in adolescents, a group who manifests risk-taking behavior, or in anxiety disorders, which are associated with risk-avoidance. Finally, loss aversion is expected to be modulated by genotype, particularly the serotonin transporter (SERT) gene variant, based on its role in anxiety and impulsivity. This genetic modulation may also differ between anxious and healthy adolescents, given their distinct propensities for risk taking. The present work examines the modulation of loss aversion, an index of risk-taking, and reaction-time to decision, an index of impulsivity, by the serotonin-transporter-gene-linked polymorphisms (5HTTLPR) in healthy and clinically anxious adolescents. Findings show that loss aversion (1) does manifest in adolescents, (2) does not differ between healthy and clinically anxious participants, and (3), when stratified by SERT genotype, identifies a subset of anxious adolescents who are high SERT-expressers, and show excessively low loss-aversion and high impulsivity. This last finding may serve as preliminary evidence for 5HTTLPR as a risk factor for the development of comorbid disorders associated with risk-taking and impulsivity in clinically anxious adolescents

Enhanced Fear Expression in a Psychopathological Mouse Model of Trait Anxiety: Pharmacological Interventions

The propensity to develop an anxiety disorder is thought to be determined by genetic and environmental factors. Here we investigated the relationship between a genetic predisposition to trait anxiety and experience-based learned fear in a psychopathological mouse model. Male CD-1 mice selectively bred for either high (HAB), or normal (NAB) anxiety-related behaviour on the elevated plus maze were subjected to classical fear conditioning. During conditioning both mouse lines showed increased fear responses as assessed by freezing behaviour. However, 24 h later, HAB mice displayed more pronounced conditioned responses to both a contextual or cued stimulus when compared with NAB mice. Interestingly, 6 h and already 1 h after fear conditioning, freezing levels were high in HAB mice but not in NAB mice. These results suggest that trait anxiety determines stronger fear memory and/or a weaker ability to inhibit fear responses in the HAB line. The enhanced fear response of HAB mice was attenuated by treatment with either the α2,3,5-subunit selective benzodiazepine partial agonist L-838,417, corticosterone or the selective neurokinin-1 receptor antagonist L-822,429. Overall, the HAB mouse line may represent an interesting model (i) for identifying biological factors underlying misguided conditioned fear responses and (ii) for studying novel anxiolytic pharmacotherapies for patients with fear-associated disorders, including post-traumatic stress disorder and phobias

Serotonin Transporter Polymorphism in Relation to Depression

Serotonin is regarded as one of the most important factors in modern psychiatry and a significant amount of research is associated with that neurotransmitter in some way. Serotonin transporter and its various polymorphisms are implied to be connected with various psychiatric disorders, mostly depression and suicide. In light of that fact, this review article will try to address new and current data regarding serotonin transporter polymorphisms and their association with depression. As this area of research in psychiatry is constantly growing and nowadays incorporates various other factors than was the case previously it was necessary to provide a brief overview of those factors. Therefore, data regarding serotonin transporter polymorphisms and its relation with gene-environment interactions, biological stress reactivity and personality traits and their possible combined effects on depression are discussed. No matter how big is the quantum of knowledge and research regarding serotonin, the only constant finding when analyzing the possible association of serotonin transporter polymorphism and depression are inconsistent conclusions. Therefore it can be concluded that molecular and neural mechanisms that underlie the interplay of genes, environmental adversity and personality traits that constitute disease risk remain incompletely understood. Due to these inconsistent conclusions, further genotyping of SLC6A4 and other genes is necessary, as well as studies performed on bigger samples of participants. Factors like life stress and environmental factors, which may contribute to increased vulnerability in susceptible individuals, should also be more extensively addressed as they may prove be the key to timely treatment and effective preventive strategies

Biomarkers for Cancer: A Detail Review

When aberrant cells multiply uncontrolled, transcend their normal borders, invade nearby tissues, or spread to other organs, a wide spectrum of illnesses collectively referred to as "cancer" can arise in practically every organ or tissue of the body. The second-leading cause of death globally in 2018, cancer was expected to be responsible for 9.6 million deaths, or one in every six fatalities. A cancer biomarker is a characteristic that can be used to gauge a patient's likelihood of developing cancer or its outcome. Various biomarkers can be used at molecular and cellular level. It is crucial that biomarkers undergo thorough review, including analytical validation, clinical validation, and appraisal of clinical value, prior to being included into normal clinical treatment because of the crucial role they play at all stages of disease. We discuss important steps in the creation of biomarkers in this review, including how to prevent introducing bias and standards to adhere to when presenting the findings of biomarker research

The role of TACR1 genotypes in craving, depression, and alcohol dependence.

Given that stress and major depression are putative causal factors in alcohol consumption, the exploration of the genes and the associated neurobiological mechanisms that influence the relationship between stress, depression, and alcohol dependence (AD) is a first step toward the development of novel medications for AD. The tachykinin receptor 1 (TACR1) gene is a promising candidate gene, showing an association with stress-related behaviors (Thorsell et al., 2010), major depression (Kramer et al., 2004), and AD treatment outcome (George et al., 2008). The purpose of the current study was to determine if TACR1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are associated with (1) blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) activation in response to alcohol cues, (2)DSM-IV-TR AD symptom count,(3) DSM-IV-TR depression diagnoses, and (4) DSM-IV-TR AD symptom count in a large, publicly available dataset. To address these questions, the current study examined relationships between neural responses during a craving task in 326 individuals with alcohol use disorders and SNPs within the TACR1 gene. Of the 70 SNPs tested, rs3771863 was predictive of AD symptom count and BOLD activation in response to alcohol cues, regardless of major depression status, as well as AD symptom count in the SAGE dataset. Additionally, rs3771810 and rs12477553 also predicted BOLD activation in response to alcohol cues, but the relationship between these SNPs and AD symptom count was moderated by major depression status. Finally, rs1106855 is a SNP associated with BOLD activation that should be explored for possible functional significance due to its location within a stop codon. The exploration of TACR1 receptor antagonism as a form of AD treatment should be further examined in less heterogeneous samples, as it might be most effective for those with primary or secondary alcohol dependence in addition to a diagnosis of major depression

The interplay between a dietary preference for fat and sugar, gene expression in the dopaminergic system and executive cognition in humans

Obesity is a health issue of both individual and global importance. Evidence from rodent literature suggests that dietary preferences for fat and sugar might influence dopaminergic signaling in the brain and thus executive cognition. These diet-related changes could provide a mechanistic basis potentially explaining obesity-promoting behaviour. However, valid evidence for this link in humans is still scarce. This thesis aimed to add to this gap by studying dopamine-related gene expression profiles in peripheral cells and executive cognition in a human sample (n = 75). The results provide indications for an association between dietary preference and alterations in dopamingeric sigaling on a peripheral gene expression level even though the group differences were not statistically significant. A link to cognition could not be established with the methods applied. Yet, several targets for future research are suggested to further explore this interplay

Performance Under Pressure: Examination of Relevant Neurobiological and Genetic Influence

Satisfactory human performance demands the complex interaction of multiple factors such as arousal/motivation, emotion expression and regulation, intricate synchronization of central and peripheral motor processes, all recruited in the service of adaptive, moment to moment decision making. The segregation of these various factors aids in the understanding of their complex interactions. Recently, scientific investigation has focused on understanding the integration of these various factors. The complementary role of emotion and cognition in successful human performance is emphasized. As a viable metric of emotion regulation differences in asymmetry of human brain frontal activity have traditionally been utilized to index certain trait predispositions within the approach/withdrawal dimension of emotion/motivation. Researchers have begun to make a case for an acute or state difference in frontal asymmetry. This "Capability Model" posits the neural underpinnings of the relative difference in electrical activity between the left and right frontal lobes as a phasic/situational mechanism possibly sub-serving the integration of emotion and cognition during challenge. The current study demonstrates support for this situational/state model of frontal asymmetry. Thirty channels of EEG were collected along with, skin conductance, heart rate and acoustic startle amplitudes while subjects were engaged in two levels of a working memory task under three increasing levels of stress (final level=electric stimuli/shock). Hierarchical regression results implicate state frontal asymmetry differences as having a mediating role in the adaptive regulation of emotion during enhanced performance on an N-back working memory task but only in the high stress condition. During shock /threat of shock participants with higher state asymmetry scores showed significant attenuation of eye-blink startle magnitudes, faster reaction times and increased accuracy. This suggests an integration of emotion and cognition

Evaluación del programa "Educar con una sonrisa" para el aumento de la salud mental y la satisfacción familiar en las figuras parentales.

La presente tesis dirigida a la evaluación del programa “Educar Con Una Sonrisa” (en adelante ECUS), centra su principal objetivo en la mejora de la salud mental de las figuras parentales y el aumento de la satisfacción familiar a través del entrenamiento en habilidades y dimensiones psicológicas. ECUS es un programa estructurado de intervención psicoeducativa dirigido a padres1 e implementado en un formato grupal de entre cinco y diez participantes. Debido al carácter clínico que marca la intervención, es necesario que sea impartido por psicólogos expertos en psicología clínica y educativa. Este programa se encuentra encuadrado dentro de los criterios de calidad establecidos para la elaboración del Programa de Entrenamiento a Padres (en adelante PEP) en relación a su estructura, contenidos, número de sesiones y materiales utilizados. Para la evaluación de su eficacia, se realizó un estudio dirigido desde la Universidad Católica de Murcia (UCAM) cuya metodología siguió los estándares exigidos por el método científico para el diseño y aplicación de programas de intervención. La muestra final estuvo formada por 68 padres residentes en la Región de Murcia, 55 madres con un rango de edad que osciló entre los 30 y los 48 años y 13 padres cuya edad oscilaba entre los 34 y los 53 años. El total de hijos entre todos los padres que asistieron al programa ascendió a 134, de los cuales el 61.19% eran niños y el 38.81% niñas. Las familias fueron reclutadas en una escuela infantil, dos colegios de educación primaria, una empresa privada y una clínica psicológica. Los criterios de inclusión establecidos fueron: (a) ser mayor de 18 años y (b) tener al menos un hijo con una edad comprendida entre los 0 y los 12 años. En cuanto a los criterios de exclusión se estableció que: (a) los padres no debían presentar ninguna dificultad que impidiera el entendimiento de los contenidos del programa ni el proceso de evaluación requerido, y (b) los padres no debían tener hijos con diagnósticos previos de retraso en el desarrollo, enfermedades crónicas o trastornos psicológicos. La estructura definitiva del PEP ECUS quedó terminada en junio de 2016, realizando la implantación del programa y la recogida de datos entre marzo de 2017 y diciembre de 2017. Dicho programa consta de 3 módulos: (a) La salud de los padres; (b) Habilidades de crianza y cambio de actitud; y (c) Niveles de adaptación y funcionamiento psicosocial de los hijos. Estos módulos quedan distribuidos en cuatro sesiones, incorporando dos más para la recogida de los datos requeridos para el estudio realizado, una pre-intervención y otra post-intervención. Las sesiones se establecieron bajo una metodología basada en la Psicoeducación, con una estructura organizada y secuenciada que permite su réplica. Al inicio del programa, se entrega el manual “Educar con una sonrisa” (Pérez-Saussol, 2015), material que permite recurrir al temario impartido en cualquier momento. El estudio realizado se llevó a cabo bajo el modelo manipulativo-experimental utilizando un diseño cuasi-experimental de un solo grupo con medidas pretest y postest. El muestreo aplicado fue de tipo no probabilístico incidental. Todos los padres completaron la batería de test establecida para la valoración de: (a) la sintomatología clínica, a través de la Escala Abreviada de Depresión, Ansiedad y Estrés (DASS-21) (Antony et al., 1998); (b) la satisfacción familiar, mediante la Escala de Satisfacción Familiar por Adjetivos (ESFA) (Barraca y López-Yarto, 2017); y (c) el nivel de calidad de las habilidades y dimensiones psicológicas, para lo que se utilizó el Cuestionario para la Evaluación de Adoptantes, Cuidadores, Tutores y Mediadores (CUIDA) (Bermejo et al., 2014). Los datos fueron codificados y analizados con el software estadístico IBM SPSS 21.0 y para la estimación del modelo Partial Least Square de ecuaciones estructurales se utilizó el software SmartPLS 3.2.8. Los resultados obtenidos tras el estudio estadístico realizado han permitido constatar la eficacia del PEP ECUS para: (a) la mejora de la salud mental de las figuras parentales, confirmándose así la capacidad de este programa para la reducción de los niveles de ansiedad, depresión y estrés; (b) el aumento de la satisfacción familiar; y (c) el incremento de la calidad de las habilidades y dimensiones psicológicas relacionadas con: altruismo, asertividad, flexibilidad, reflexividad, sociabilidad, independencia, capacidad de resolución de problemas, empatía, apertura, equilibrio emocional, tolerancia a la frustración, capacidad de establecer vínculos afectivos y la capacidad de resolución del duelo (Bermejo et al. 2014). Asimismo, ha sido posible constatar un descenso en la tendencia a actuar de modo agresivo. Los resultados obtenidos avanzan en la misma línea de Vergara-Barra (et al., 2020) hacia el fortalecimiento de las habilidades de crianza tras la asistencia a los PEP. Debido al tamaño muestral del experimento, se han considerado umbrales de significatividad por encima del 5%, tal como señala Kim (2015). En consecuencia, el análisis e interpretación de los resultados obtenidos con el modelo de ecuaciones estructurales utilizado permite concluir: (a) que la reducción de la sensibilidad excesiva a situaciones externas al sistema familiar induce al aumento de la satisfacción familiar; (b) que el incremento del índice de calidad de las acciones parentales hacia el cuidado afectivo de los hijos, evidenciado por el aumento en los niveles de autoestima, equilibrio emocional y capacidad de establecer vínculos, genera un aumento en la satisfacción familiar; (c) que el aumento en los niveles de satisfacción familiar unido a la reducción de los niveles de agresividad, son factores clave para la mejora de la salud mental de los padres. Este trabajo pretende contribuir con la comunidad científica hacia la certificación del reconocimiento de los PEP como herramientas de intervención psicológica cuya finalidad sea el aumento del bienestar psicológico y, como consecuencia de ello, la mejora de la salud mental parental.Psicologí