Recent biomarker approaches in the diagnosis of frontotemporal lobar degeneration/Neurochemische Ansätze in der Diagnose der Frontotemporalen Lobärdegeneration

Frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is a heterogeneous group of syndromes with different symptoms. Frontotemporal lobar degeneration is mostly used as a clinical umbrella term for different diseases. In some clinical subtypes of the FTLD spectrum, a close correlation with underlying pathology can be found. Neuroimaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging and position emission tomography help to detect neuroanatomical lesions and therefore obtain relevance for in vivo prediction of neurodegeneration. However, there is still a lack of neurochemical biomarkers helping to differentiate between underlying histopathologies. The following review gives an overview about present neurochemical biomarker studies and perspective approaches in the diagnosis of FTL

Does childhood trauma impact daily psychobiological stress in somatic symptom disorder? An ambulatory assessment study

Objectives: Somatic symptom disorder is characterized by excessive thoughts, feelings, and behaviors dedicated to bodily symptoms, which are often medically unexplained. Although 13% of the population are affected by this disorder, its aetiopathogenesis is not fully understood. Research in medically unexplained conditions (e.g., fibromyalgia) points to increased psychosocial stress and alterations in stress-responsive bodily systems as a potential contributing factor. This pattern has often been hypothesized to originate from early life stress, such as childhood trauma. The aim of this study was to examine, for the first time, whether individuals with somatic symptom disorder exhibit elevated levels of self-reported daily stress and alterations in the autonomic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, both in comparison to healthy controls and individuals with depressive disorders, and whether reports of childhood trauma influence these alterations. Methods: A total of N = 78 individuals were recruited into this study. Of these, n = 27 had a somatic symptom disorder, n = 23 were healthy controls, and n = 28 had a depressive disorder. All individuals underwent a 14-day measurement period at home, with five assessments of self-reported stress, salivary alpha-amylase, and cortisol per day. Childhood trauma was assessed by the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. Results: Individuals with somatic symptom disorder exhibited higher daily stress levels (p = 0.063) as well as a less pronounced alpha-amylase awakening response (p = 0.050), compared to healthy controls (statistical trends). Moreover, they were characterized by significantly attenuated diurnal cortisol concentrations (p < 0.001). A nearly identical pattern was observed in individuals with depression. In individuals with somatic symptom disorder and depressive disorders, childhood trauma was, by trend, associated with a more pronounced alpha-amylase awakening response (b = −0.27, p = 0.077). Conclusions: This study provides preliminary evidence for elevated daily stress and blunted sympathetic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity in individuals with somatic symptom disorder and depressive disorders. Further studies will help to uncover the conditions under which these dysregulations develop into medically unexplained vs. depressive symptoms