Candidate genes for temporal lobe epilepsy: a replication study

The objective of this study is to replicate previously published results regarding the involvement of several susceptibility genes in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE): interleukin 1β (IL-1β), interleukin 1β (IL-1α), interleukin 1RA (IL-1RA), apolipoprotein E (ApoE) and prodynorphin (PDYN). We used a case-control approach comparing several polymorphisms within these candidate genes between unrelated TLE patients and matched controls. We were thus able to confirm the role of ApoE, IL-1α and IL-1RA genes in TLE disease, but failed to confirm the involvement of IL-1β and PDYN. This failure should be interpreted with caution, as this may be due to the small size of our study groups and the resultant lack of statistical powe

Genetic association of the Phosphoinositide-3 kinase in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder and interaction with a BDNF gene polymorphism

Phosphoinositide-3-kinase, class III (PIK3C3) is a member of the phosphoinosite-3-kinases family, involved in cell signaling, membrane trafficking, and neurodevelopment. Previous studies have indeed shown an association between PIK3C3 gene variants and both bipolar disorder (BD) and schizophrenia (SZ). Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a neurodevelopmental factor, which can regulate the PI3K signaling pathway. Associations have been reported between BDNF gene polymorphisms and affective and psychotic disorders. The aim of the present study was to replicate an association between PIK3C3 and BDNF gene variants in SZ and BD and a putative epistasis between the two genes. Patients meeting the DSM-IV criteria of BD and SZ were included in this study (98 BD and 79 SZ) as well as 158 healthy controls. Blood DNA was extracted and genotyping was performed either by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique followed by enzymatic digestion or by the high-resolution melt (HRM) method. Genotype and haplotype association was assessed with the UNPHASED statistical program.The results showed one nominal association with BD (P < 0.02) and two risk haplotypes in both SZ (P < 0.001) and BP (P < 0.0005), which survived multiple testing correction. A modest interaction between a BDNF variant and PI3KC3 polymorphism was observed (P < 0.04).These preliminary results confirm the genetic association of PI3K gene variants with both SZ and BD, and support the hypothesis that SZ and BD share a genetic background

The Effects of Cognitive-Affective Switching With Unpredictable Cues in Adults and Adolescents and Their Relation to “Cool” Executive Functioning and Emotion Regulation

The impact of emotion on executive functioning is gaining interest. It has led to the differentiation of “cool” Executive Functioning (EF) processes, such as cognitive flexibility, and “hot” EF processes, such as affective flexibility. But how does affective flexibility, the ability to switch between cognitive and affective information, vary as a function of age and sex? How does this construct relate to “cool” executive functioning and cognitive-emotion regulation processes? In this study, 266 participants, including 91 adolescents (M = 16.08, SD = 1.42 years old) and 175 adults (M = 25.69, SD = 2.17 years old), completed a cognitive–affective switching task with specific (as opposed to general) unpredictable switches, as well as measures of inhibition, attention, and cognitive-emotion coping strategies. We expected cognitive to affective switching to be more costly than affective to cognitive switching in females versus males, as well as higher switch costs in adolescents. Using linear mixed modelling, we analysed the effect of age, sex, and types of switching on reaction time. Results show that adolescents are slower switchers than adults, and demonstrate that females, although faster switchers than males, are slower when switching from cognitive to affective content than when they are switching from affective to cognitive content. Multiple regression analyses revealed age-specific associations between cognitive-affective switching and inhibition. These results converge with reported developmental and gender specificities in EF and emotion processing, respectively. Additionally, affective flexibility could relate to differences in vigilance and inhibition

Body modifications in borderline personality disorder patients: prevalence rates, link with non-suicidal self-injury, and related psychopathology

Background: Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is a potentially severe personality disorder, characterized by difficulties in emotion regulation and control of behaviors. It is often associated with non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI). Borderline personality features have also been linked to body modifications (BMs). However, the prevalence of BMs, the link between BMs and NSSI, and between BMs and several psychopathology dimensions (e.g. borderline severity, emotion regulation, impulsivity …) remains understudied in patients with BPD. This study aims to fill this gap, and to provide further evidence on the link between NSSI and BMs. Methods: We used data from a psychiatric outpatient center located in Switzerland (n = 116), specialized in the assessment and treatment of BPD patients. Patients underwent several semi-structured interviews and self-report psychometric scales at the arrival, and the data were retrospectively analyzed. Results: We found that 70.69% of the patients had one piercing or more, and 69.83% were tattooed. The total score of body modifications and the total number of piercings score of piercings were significantly positively associated with NSSI and the SCID BPD total score. The association with the SCID score was mainly driven by the “suicide and self-damaging behaviors” item and the “chronic feeling of emptiness” item. A significant association was found between total number of piercings and emotion dysregulation. On the other hand, the self-reported percentage of body covered by tattoos score was specifically associated with the sensation seeking subscale of the UPPS-P. Conclusion: This study provides evidence on the prevalence of BMs in BPD patients, and on the link between BMs and NSSI in this population, suggesting a role of emotion regulation in the link between both constructs. These results also suggests that tattoos and piercings may be differentially linked to specific underlying psychological mechanisms. This calls for further considerations of body modifications in the assessment and care of BPD patients

Mentalizing in Adolescents and Young Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Associations with Age and Attention Problems

Introduction: Growing, albeit heterogenous evidence questions whether attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with socio-cognitive impairments, especially beyond childhood. This study focuses on mentalizing - the socio-cognitive ability to attribute and reason in terms of mental states. We aimed to characterize mentalizing performance in terms of correct scores and types of errors in adolescents and young adults with ADHD. Methods: Forty-nine adolescents and adults with ADHD and 49 healthy controls matched for age and gender completed a computerized naturalistic mentalizing task, the Movie for Assessment of Social Cognition (MASC). Repeated measures analyses of variance examined the effects of age group and ADHD diagnosis on MASC performance. Additionally, associations between mentalizing scores, the severity of attention problems, and the presence of comorbidity were explored in the ADHD group. Results: Results showed an increased prevalence of hypomentalizing errors in adolescents with ADHD. Lower mentalizing scores in adolescents with ADHD were correlated with indices of inattentiveness, impulsivity, and vigilance problems. Hypomentalizing errors in adolescents showed to be particularly associated with inattentiveness, after controlling for age and comorbidity. In contrast, adults with ADHD performed similarly to controls and their scores on the mentalizing task were not correlated to attention problems. Conclusion: These findings highlight potential developmental differences in mentalizing abilities in ADHD youths and their association with attentional impairments

Evolution of spirituality and religiousness in chronic schizophrenia or schizo-affective disorders: a 3-years follow-up study

Purpose: Spirituality and religiousness have been shown to be highly prevalent in patients with schizophrenia. Religion can help instil a positive sense of self, decrease the impact of symptoms and provide social contacts. Religion may also be a source of suffering. In this context, this research explores whether religion remains stable over time. Methods: From an initial cohort of 115 out-patients, 80% completed the 3-years follow-up assessment. In order to study the evolution over time, a hierarchical cluster analysis using average linkage was performed on factorial scores at baseline and follow-up and their differences. A sensitivity analysis was secondarily performed to check if the outcome was influenced by other factors such as changes in mental states using mixed models. Results: Religion was stable over time for 63% patients; positive changes occurred for 20% (i.e., significant increase of religion as a resource or a transformation of negative religion to a positive one) and negative changes for 17% (i.e., decrease of religion as a resource or a transformation of positive religion to a negative one). Change in spirituality and/or religiousness was not associated with social or clinical status, but with reduced subjective quality of life and self-esteem; even after controlling for the influence of age, gender, quality of life and clinical factors at baseline. Conclusions: In this context of patients with chronic schizophrenia, religion appeared to be labile. Qualitative analyses showed that those changes expressed the struggles of patients and suggest that religious issues need to be discussed in clinical setting

Prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in detention settings: A systematic review and meta-analysis

© 2018 Baggio, Fructuoso, Guimaraes, Fois, Golay, Heller, Perroud, Aubry, Young, Delessert, Gétaz, Tran and Wolff. Background: Previous studies have reported a high prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among people living in detention (PLD) corresponding to a five- to ten-fold increase compared to the general population. Our main study objective was to provide an updated ADHD prevalence rate for PLD, including PLD in psychiatric units. Sub-objectives included (i) comparing different ways of assessing ADHD, including DSM-5 criteria and (ii) identifying which types of PLD are more likely to have ADHD. Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis following the PRISMA guidelines and the MOOSE checklist. PubMed/Medline, PsycINFO, and Web of Sciences were searched combining "ADHD" and "prison" keywords and synonyms for articles published between January 1, 1966 and January 2, 2018. Potential sources of variation to the meta-analytic ADHD prevalence rate were investigated using meta-regressions and subgroups analyses. Results: The meta-analysis pooled 102 original studies including 69,997 participants. The adult ADHD prevalence rate was 26.2% (95% confidence interval: 22.7-29.6). Retrospective assessments of ADHD in childhood were associated with an increased prevalence estimate (41.1, 95% confidence interval: 34.9-47.2, p < 0.001). There was no significant difference in the prevalence estimate between screenings and clinical interviews in adulthood. Only three studies used the DSM-5 definition of ADHD and results were non-significantly different with other DSM versions. We found no difference according to participants' characteristics. Conclusion: Our results confirmed the high prevalence rate of ADHD among PLD, corresponding to a five-fold increase compared to the general population. In light of such high ADHD prevalence, our results reinforce the importance of addressing this critical public health issue by (i) systematically offering ADHD screening and diagnosis to all individuals entering detention, and (ii) delivering treatment, monitoring, and care for ADHD during and after detention. These strategies may help reduce recidivism and reincarceration, as well as violence in detention settings, in addition to improving the health and wellbeing of people living in detention. Additionally, our study suggests that using screening scales may be a reliable way of assessing ADHD, although caution is needed because a complete evaluation by an experienced clinician is required to provide a formal diagnosis

Transdiagnostic risk of mental disorders in offspring of affected parents:a meta-analysis of family high-risk and registry studies

The offspring of parents with mental disorders are at increased risk for developing mental disorders themselves. The risk to offspring may extend transdiagnostically to disorders other than those present in the parents. The literature on this topic is vast but mixed. To inform targeted prevention and genetic counseling, we performed a comprehensive, PRISMA 2020-compliant meta-analysis. We systematically searched the literature published up to September 2022 to retrieve original family high-risk and registry studies reporting on the risk of mental disorders in offspring of parents with any type of mental disorder. We performed random-effects meta-analyses of the relative risk (risk ratio, RR) and absolute risk (lifetime, up to the age at assessment) of mental disorders, defined according to the ICD or DSM. Cumulative incidence by offspring age was determined using meta-analytic Kaplan-Meier curves. We measured heterogeneity with the I2 statistic, and risk of bias with the Quality In Prognosis Studies (QUIPS) tool. Sensitivity analyses addressed the impact of study design (family high-risk vs. registry) and specific vs. transdiagnostic risks. Transdiagnosticity was appraised with the TRANSD criteria. We identified 211 independent studies that reported data on 3,172,115 offspring of parents with psychotic, bipolar, depressive, disruptive, attention-deficit/hyperactivity, anxiety, substance use, eating, obsessive-compulsive, and borderline personality disorders, and 20,428,575 control offspring. The RR and lifetime risk of developing any mental disorder were 3.0 and 55% in offspring of parents with anxiety disorders; 2.6 and 17% in offspring of those with psychosis; 2.1 and 55% in offspring of those with bipolar disorder; 1.9 and 51% in offspring of those with depressive disorders; and 1.5 and 38% in offspring of those with substance use disorders. The offspring's RR and lifetime risk of developing the same mental disorder diagnosed in their parent were 8.4 and 32% for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; 5.8 and 8% for psychosis; 5.1 and 5% for bipolar disorder; 2.8 and 9% for substance use disorders; 2.3 and 14% for depressive disorders; 2.3 and 1% for eating disorders; and 2.2 and 31% for anxiety disorders. There were 37 significant transdiagnostic associations between parental mental disorders and the RR of developing a different mental disorder in the offspring. In offspring of parents with psychosis, bipolar and depressive disorder, the risk of the same disorder onset emerged at 16, 5 and 6 years, and cumulated to 3%, 19% and 24% by age 18; and to 8%, 36% and 46% by age 28. Heterogeneity ranged from 0 to 0.98, and 96% of studies were at high risk of bias. Sensitivity analyses restricted to prospective family high-risk studies confirmed the pattern of findings with similar RR, but with greater absolute risks compared to analyses of all study types. This study demonstrates at a global, meta-analytic level that offspring of affected parents have strongly elevated RR and lifetime risk of developing any mental disorder as well as the same mental disorder diagnosed in the parent. The transdiagnostic risks suggest that offspring of parents with a range of mental disorders should be considered as candidates for targeted primary prevention.</p