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Thakkar KN, Silverstein SM, Fattal J, Bao J, Slate R, Roberts D, Brascamp JW. Stronger tilt aftereffects in individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders but not bipolar disorder. Schizophr Res 2024; 264:345-353. [PMID: 38218020 PMCID: PMC10923089 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2023.12.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 12/04/2023] [Accepted: 12/25/2023] [Indexed: 01/15/2024]
Abstract
An altered use of context and experience to interpret incoming information has been posited to explain schizophrenia symptoms. The visual system can serve as a model system for examining how context and experience guide perception and the neural mechanisms underlying putative alterations. The influence of prior experience on current perception is evident in visual aftereffects, the perception of the "opposite" of a previously viewed stimulus. Aftereffects are associated with neural adaptation and concomitant change in strength of lateral inhibitory connections in visually responsive neurons. In a previous study, we observed stronger aftereffects related to orientation (tilt aftereffects) but not luminance (negative afterimages) in individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia, which we interpreted as potentially suggesting altered cortical (but not subcortical) adaptability and local changes in excitatory-inhibitory interactions. Here, we tested whether stronger tilt aftereffects were specific to individuals with schizophrenia or extended to individuals with bipolar disorder. We measured tilt aftereffects and negative afterimages in 32 individuals with bipolar disorder, and compared aftereffect strength to a previously reported group of 36 individuals with schizophrenia and 22 healthy controls. We observed stronger tilt aftereffects, but not negative afterimages, in individuals with schizophrenia as compared to both controls and individuals with bipolar disorder, who did not differ from each other. These results mitigate concerns that stronger tilt aftereffects in schizophrenia are a consequence of medication or of the psychosocial consequences of a severe mental illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharine N Thakkar
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States of America; Division of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI, United States of America.
| | - Steven M Silverstein
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, United States of America
| | - Jessica Fattal
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States of America
| | - Jacqueline Bao
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States of America; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Rachael Slate
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States of America
| | - Dominic Roberts
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States of America
| | - Jan W Brascamp
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States of America
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Thakkar KN, Ghermezi L, Silverstein SM, Slate R, Yao B, Achtyes ED, Brascamp JW. Stronger tilt aftereffects in persons with schizophrenia. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY 2020; 130:186-197. [PMID: 33301337 DOI: 10.1037/abn0000653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Individuals with schizophrenia may fail to appropriately use temporal context and apply past environmental regularities to the interpretation of incoming sensory information. Here we use the visual system as a test bed for investigating how prior experience shapes perception in individuals with schizophrenia. Specifically, we use visual aftereffects, illusory percepts resulting from prior exposure to visual input, to measure the influence of prior events on current processing. At a neural level, visual aftereffects arise due to attenuation in the responses of neurons that code the features of the prior stimulus (neuronal adaptation) and subsequent disinhibition of neurons signaling activity at the opposite end of the feature dimension. In the current study, we measured tilt aftereffects and negative afterimages, 2 types of aftereffects that reflect, respectively, adaptation of cortical orientation-coding neurons and adaptation of subcortical and retinal luminance-coding cells in persons with schizophrenia (PSZ; n = 36) and demographically matched healthy controls (HC; n = 22). We observed stronger tilt aftereffects in PSZ compared to HC, but no difference in negative afterimages. Stronger tilt aftereffects were related to more severe negative symptoms. These data suggest oversensitivity to recent regularities, in the form of stronger visual adaptation, at cortical, but not subcortical, levels in schizophrenia. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Phi Van VD, Krause ET, Phi-Van L. Modulation of Fear and Arousal Behavior by Serotonin Transporter (5-HTT) Genotypes in Newly Hatched Chickens. Front Behav Neurosci 2018; 12:284. [PMID: 30524254 PMCID: PMC6256247 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2018] [Accepted: 11/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The serotonin transporter (5-HTT) plays a key role in regulating serotonergic transmission via removal of serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) from synaptic clefts. Alterations in 5-HTT expression and 5-HT transmission have been shown to cause changes to adult behavior including fear. The objective of the present study was to investigate the 5-HTT role in fear in birds at the very early stages of post-hatching life. Using an avoidance test with an elevated balance beam, which was based on depth perception and the respective fear of heights, we assessed fear-related avoidance behaviors of newly hatched chicks of the three functional 5-HTT genotypes W/W, W/D and D/D. Newly hatched chicks of the genotype D/D, which was linked to high 5-HTT expression, showed less intensive avoidance responses as measured by decreased latency to jump than W/W and W/D chicks. Further, significantly fewer D/D hens than W/W hens showed fear-like behavior that resembled a freezing response. Furthermore, in an arousal test the arousal reaction of the chicks in response to an acute short-term visual social deprivation in the home compartment was assessed 5 weeks after hatching, which also revealed that D/D chicks exhibited decreased arousal reaction, compared to W/W chicks. Thus, the results indicate that fear responses differ in D/D chicks in the early post-hatching periods, possibly due to the different expression of 5-HTT respectively 5-HT levels in this strain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valerie D Phi Van
- Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University Hospital Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - E Tobias Krause
- Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI), Celle, Germany
| | - Loc Phi-Van
- Institute of Animal Welfare and Animal Husbandry, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut (FLI), Celle, Germany
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Parrott AC, Downey LA, Roberts CA, Montgomery C, Bruno R, Fox HC. Recreational 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine or 'ecstasy': Current perspective and future research prospects. J Psychopharmacol 2017; 31:959-966. [PMID: 28661257 DOI: 10.1177/0269881117711922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
AIMS The purpose of this article is to debate current understandings about the psychobiological effects of recreational 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or 'ecstasy'), and recommend theoretically-driven topics for future research. METHODS Recent empirical findings, especially those from novel topic areas were reviewed. Potential causes for the high variance often found in group findings were also examined. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS The first empirical reports into psychobiological and psychiatric aspects from the early 1990s concluded that regular users demonstrated some selective psychobiological deficits, for instance worse declarative memory, or heightened depression. More recent research has covered a far wider range of psychobiological functions, and deficits have emerged in aspects of vision, higher cognitive skill, neurohormonal functioning, and foetal developmental outcomes. However, variance levels are often high, indicating that while some recreational users develop problems, others are less affected. Potential reasons for this high variance are debated. An explanatory model based on multi-factorial causation is then proposed. FUTURE DIRECTIONS A number of theoretically driven research topics are suggested, in order to empirically investigate the potential causes for these diverse psychobiological deficits. Future neuroimaging studies should study the practical implications of any serotonergic and/or neurohormonal changes, using a wide range of functional measures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew C Parrott
- 1 Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, UK.,2 Centre for Human Psychopharmacology, Swinburne University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Luke A Downey
- 2 Centre for Human Psychopharmacology, Swinburne University, Melbourne, Australia.,3 Institute for Breathing and Sleep, Austin Health, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Carl A Roberts
- 4 Institute of Psychology, Health and Society, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Cathy Montgomery
- 5 School of Natural Sciences and Psychology, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
| | - Raimondo Bruno
- 6 School of Medicine, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia
| | - Helen C Fox
- 7 Department of Psychiatry, Stony Brook University, New York, USA
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White C, Edwards M, Brown J, Bell J. The impact of recreational MDMA 'ecstasy' use on global form processing. J Psychopharmacol 2014; 28:1018-29. [PMID: 25142406 DOI: 10.1177/0269881114546709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The ability to integrate local orientation information into a global form percept was investigated in long-term ecstasy users. Evidence suggests that ecstasy disrupts the serotonin system, with the visual areas of the brain being particularly susceptible. Previous research has found altered orientation processing in the primary visual area (V1) of users, thought to be due to disrupted serotonin-mediated lateral inhibition. The current study aimed to investigate whether orientation deficits extend to higher visual areas involved in global form processing. Forty-five participants completed a psychophysical (Glass pattern) study allowing an investigation into the mechanisms underlying global form processing and sensitivity to changes in the offset of the stimuli (jitter). A subgroup of polydrug-ecstasy users (n=6) with high ecstasy use had significantly higher thresholds for the detection of Glass patterns than controls (n=21, p=0.039) after Bonferroni correction. There was also a significant interaction between jitter level and drug-group, with polydrug-ecstasy users showing reduced sensitivity to alterations in jitter level (p=0.003). These results extend previous research, suggesting disrupted global form processing and reduced sensitivity to orientation jitter with ecstasy use. Further research is needed to investigate this finding in a larger sample of heavy ecstasy users and to differentiate the effects of other drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire White
- The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
| | - Mark Edwards
- The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
| | - John Brown
- The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
| | - Jason Bell
- The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
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Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder and the serotonergic system: a comprehensive review including new MDMA-related clinical cases. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2014; 24:1309-23. [PMID: 24933532 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2014.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2013] [Revised: 04/30/2014] [Accepted: 05/07/2014] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder (HPPD) is a drug-induced condition associated with inaccurate visual representations. Since the underlying mechanism(s) are largely unknown, this review aims to uncover aspects underlying its etiology. Available evidence on HPPD and drug-related altered visual processing was reviewed and the majority of HPPD cases were attributed to drugs with agonistic effects on serotonergic 5-HT₂A receptors. Moreover, we present 31 new HPPD cases that link HPPD to the use of ecstasy (MDMA), which is known to reverse serotonin reuptake and acts as agonist on 5-HT₂A receptors. The available evidence suggests that HPPD symptoms may be a result from a misbalance of inhibitory-excitatory activity in low-level visual processing and GABA-releasing inhibitory interneurons may be involved. However, high co-morbidities with anxiety, attention problems and derealization symptoms add complexity to the etiology of HPPD. Also, other perceptual disorders that show similarity to HPPD cannot be ruled out in presentations to clinical treatment. Taken together, evidence is still sparse, though low-level visual processing may play an important role. A novel finding of this review study, evidenced by our new cases, is that ecstasy (MDMA) use may also induce symptoms of HPPD.
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Terhune DB, Song SM, Duta MD, Cohen Kadosh R. Probing the neurochemical basis of synaesthesia using psychophysics. Front Hum Neurosci 2014; 8:89. [PMID: 24600378 PMCID: PMC3929841 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2014.00089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2013] [Accepted: 02/05/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The neurochemical mechanisms that contribute to synaesthesia are poorly understood, but multiple models implicate serotonin and GABA in the development of this condition. Here we used psychophysical tasks to test the predictions that synaesthetes would display behavioral performance consistent with reduced GABA and elevated serotonin in primary visual cortex. Controls and synaesthetes completed the orientation-specific surround suppression (OSSS) and tilt-after effect (TAE) tasks, previously shown to relate to GABA and serotonin levels, respectively. Controls and synaesthetes did not differ in the performance parameter previously associated with GABA or in the magnitude of the TAE. However, synaesthetes did display lower contrast difference thresholds in the OSSS task than controls when no surround (NS) was present. These results are inconsistent with the hypothesized roles of GABA and serotonin in this condition, but provide preliminary evidence that synaesthetes exhibit enhanced contrast discrimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Devin B Terhune
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford Oxford, UK
| | - Seoho M Song
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford Oxford, UK
| | - Mihaela D Duta
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford Oxford, UK
| | - Roi Cohen Kadosh
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford Oxford, UK
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Parrott AC, Murphy P, Scholey AB. Applied human psychopharmacology: the practical psychobiological consequences of some novel and ancient psychoactive drugs. Hum Psychopharmacol 2012; 27:103-5. [PMID: 22389074 DOI: 10.1002/hup.2221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- AC Parrott
- Department of Psychology; Swansea University; Swansea; UK
| | - P Murphy
- Evidence-based Practice Research Centre and Department of Psychology; Edge Hill University; Ormskirk; UK
| | - AB Scholey
- Centre for Human Psychopharmacology; Swinburne University; Melbourne; Australia
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