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Zhang H, Liu Y, Xia D, Jiang M, Li Y, Sun J, Guan H, Zhu L, Song X, Wang J, Fan X, Zhou H. The insular cortex is not insular in thyroid eye disease: neuroimaging revelations of central-peripheral system interaction. J Neuroinflammation 2024; 21:51. [PMID: 38368427 PMCID: PMC10874024 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-024-03044-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/19/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Thyroid eye disease (TED) is highly correlated with dysregulated immunoendocrine status. The insular cortex was found to regulate peripheral inflammation and immunomodulation in mice. This study aimed to explore whether the insular cortex in patients with TED played a modulatory role including the aberrant brain functional alteration and its association with immunoendocrine status. METHODS This study included 34 active patients (AP), 30 inactive patients (IP) with TED, and 45 healthy controls (HC) matched for age, sex, and educational level. Comprehensive clinical details (especially immunoendocrine markers) and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data were collected from each participant. The amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) was used to probe the aberrant alterations of local neural activity. The seed-based functional connectivity (FC) analysis was used to explore the relationship between the insular cortex and each voxel throughout the whole brain. The correlation analysis was conducted to assess the association between insular neurobiomarkers and immunoendocrine parameters. RESULTS When compared with the IP and HC groups, the AP group displayed significantly higher ALFF values in the right insular cortex (INS.R) and lower FC values between the INS.R and the bilateral cerebellum. None of the neurobiomarkers differed between the IP and HC groups. Besides, correlations between insular neurobiomarkers and immunoendocrine markers (free thyroxine, the proportion of T cells, and natural killer cells) were identified in both AP and IP groups. CONCLUSIONS This study was novel in reporting that the dysregulation of the insular cortex activity in TED was associated with abnormal peripheral immunoendocrine status. The insular cortex might play a key role in central-peripheral system interaction in TED. Further research is crucial to enhance our understanding of the central-peripheral system interaction mechanisms involved in autoimmune diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haiyang Zhang
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China
| | - Yuting Liu
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China
| | - Duojin Xia
- School of Health Science and Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Shanghai, China
| | - Mengda Jiang
- Department of Radiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Yinwei Li
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China
| | - Jing Sun
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China
| | - Haixia Guan
- Department of Endocrinology, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ling Zhu
- Department of Radiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Xuefei Song
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China
| | - Jue Wang
- Institute of Sports Medicine and Health, Chengdu Sport University, Chengdu, China.
| | - Xianqun Fan
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China.
| | - Huifang Zhou
- Department of Ophthalmology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Orbital Diseases and Ocular Oncology, Shanghai, China.
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2
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Rolls A. Immunoception: the insular cortex perspective. Cell Mol Immunol 2023; 20:1270-1276. [PMID: 37386172 PMCID: PMC10616063 DOI: 10.1038/s41423-023-01051-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023] Open
Abstract
To define the systemic neuroimmune interactions in health and disease, we recently suggested immunoception as a term that refers to the existence of bidirectional functional loops between the brain and the immune system. This concept suggests that the brain constantly monitors changes in immune activity and, in turn, can regulate the immune system to generate a physiologically synchronized response. Therefore, the brain has to represent information regarding the state of the immune system, which can occure in multiple ways. One such representation is an immunengram, a trace that is partially stored by neurons and partially by the local tissue. This review will discuss our current understanding of immunoception and immunengrams, focusing on their manifestation in a specific brain region, the insular cortex (IC).
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Affiliation(s)
- Asya Rolls
- Department of Immunology, Department of Neuroscience, Technion, Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
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3
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Brasanac J, Hetzer S, Asseyer S, Kuchling J, Bellmann-Strobl J, Ritter K, Gamradt S, Scheel M, Haynes JD, Brandt AU, Paul F, Gold SM, Weygandt M. Central stress processing, T cell responsivity to stress hormones, and disease severity in multiple sclerosis. Brain Commun 2022; 4:fcac086. [PMID: 35441135 PMCID: PMC9014535 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcac086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 11/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Epidemiological, clinical and neuroscientific studies support a link between psychobiological stress and multiple sclerosis. Neuroimaging suggests that blunted central stress processing goes along with higher multiple sclerosis severity, neuroendocrine studies suggest that blunted immune system sensitivity to stress hormones is linked to stronger neuroinflammation. Until now, however, no effort has been made to elucidate whether central stress processing and immune system sensitivity to stress hormones are related in a disease-specific fashion, and if so, whether this relation is clinically meaningful. Consequently, we conducted two functional MRI analyses based on a total of 39 persons with multiple sclerosis and 25 healthy persons. Motivated by findings of an altered interplay between neuroendocrine stress processing and T-cell glucocorticoid sensitivity in multiple sclerosis, we searched for neural networks whose stress task-evoked activity is differentially linked to peripheral T-cell glucocorticoid signalling in patients versus healthy persons as a potential indicator of disease-specific CNS–immune crosstalk. Subsequently, we tested whether this activity is simultaneously related to disease severity. We found that activity of a network comprising right anterior insula, right fusiform gyrus, left midcingulate and lingual gyrus was differentially coupled to T-cell glucocorticoid signalling across groups. This network’s activity was simultaneously linked to patients’ lesion volume, clinical disability and information-processing speed. Complementary analyses revealed that T-cell glucocorticoid signalling was not directly linked to disease severity. Our findings show that alterations in the coupling between central stress processing and T-cell stress hormone sensitivity are related to key severity measures of multiple sclerosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jelena Brasanac
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin, 12203 Berlin, Germany
- Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a cooperation between the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association and Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Lindenberger Weg 80, 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefan Hetzer
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - Susanna Asseyer
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a cooperation between the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association and Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Lindenberger Weg 80, 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Berlin, Germany
| | - Joseph Kuchling
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Neurology, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), 10178 Berlin, Germany
| | - Judith Bellmann-Strobl
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a cooperation between the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association and Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Lindenberger Weg 80, 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Berlin, Germany
| | - Kristin Ritter
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin, 12203 Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefanie Gamradt
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin, 12203 Berlin, Germany
| | - Michael Scheel
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Neuroradiology, 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - John-Dylan Haynes
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin Center for Advanced Neuroimaging, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin Institute of Health, Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, 10117, Berlin, Germany
| | - Alexander U. Brandt
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a cooperation between the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association and Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Lindenberger Weg 80, 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Berlin, Germany
- Department of Neurology, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Friedemann Paul
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a cooperation between the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association and Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Lindenberger Weg 80, 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Neurology, 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - Stefan M. Gold
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Benjamin Franklin, 12203 Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Institute of Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis (INIMS), Center for Molecular Neurobiology Hamburg, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20251 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Martin Weygandt
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, NeuroCure Clinical Research Center, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a cooperation between the Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association and Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany
- Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Experimental and Clinical Research Center, Lindenberger Weg 80, 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Berlin, Germany
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Koren T, Yifa R, Amer M, Krot M, Boshnak N, Ben-Shaanan TL, Azulay-Debby H, Zalayat I, Avishai E, Hajjo H, Schiller M, Haykin H, Korin B, Farfara D, Hakim F, Kobiler O, Rosenblum K, Rolls A. Insular cortex neurons encode and retrieve specific immune responses. Cell 2021; 184:5902-5915.e17. [PMID: 34752731 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.10.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 37.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2020] [Revised: 09/05/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Increasing evidence indicates that the brain regulates peripheral immunity, yet whether and how the brain represents the state of the immune system remains unclear. Here, we show that the brain's insular cortex (InsCtx) stores immune-related information. Using activity-dependent cell labeling in mice (FosTRAP), we captured neuronal ensembles in the InsCtx that were active under two different inflammatory conditions (dextran sulfate sodium [DSS]-induced colitis and zymosan-induced peritonitis). Chemogenetic reactivation of these neuronal ensembles was sufficient to broadly retrieve the inflammatory state under which these neurons were captured. Thus, we show that the brain can store and retrieve specific immune responses, extending the classical concept of immunological memory to neuronal representations of inflammatory information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tamar Koren
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Re'ee Yifa
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Mariam Amer
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Maria Krot
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Nadia Boshnak
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Tamar L Ben-Shaanan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA; Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Hilla Azulay-Debby
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Itay Zalayat
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Eden Avishai
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Haitham Hajjo
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Maya Schiller
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Hedva Haykin
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Ben Korin
- Department of Research Biology, Genentech, South San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Dorit Farfara
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Fahed Hakim
- Pediatric Pulmonary Unit, Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel; Cancer Research Center, EMMS Hospital, Nazareth, Israel
| | - Oren Kobiler
- Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel
| | - Kobi Rosenblum
- Sagol Department of Neurobiology, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel; Center for Gene Manipulation in the Brain, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Asya Rolls
- Department of Immunology, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel; Department of Neuroscience, Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
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5
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Schiller M, Ben-Shaanan TL, Rolls A. Neuronal regulation of immunity: why, how and where? Nat Rev Immunol 2021; 21:20-36. [PMID: 32811994 DOI: 10.1038/s41577-020-0387-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Neuroimmunology is one of the fastest-growing fields in the life sciences, and for good reason; it fills the gap between two principal systems of the organism, the nervous system and the immune system. Although both systems affect each other through bidirectional interactions, we focus here on one direction - the effects of the nervous system on immunity. First, we ask why is it beneficial to allow the nervous system any control over immunity? We evaluate the potential benefits to the immune system that arise by taking advantage of some of the brain's unique features, such as its capacity to integrate and synchronize physiological functions, its predictive capacity and its speed of response. Second, we explore how the brain communicates with the peripheral immune system, with a focus on the endocrine, sympathetic, parasympathetic, sensory and meningeal lymphatic systems. Finally, we examine where in the brain this immune information is processed and regulated. We chart a partial map of brain regions that may be relevant for brain-immune system communication, our goal being to introduce a conceptual framework for formulating new hypotheses to study these interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maya Schiller
- Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Tamar L Ben-Shaanan
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Asya Rolls
- Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
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Chen Z, Liu NN, Xiao J, Wang YH, Dong R. The amygdala via the paraventricular nucleus regulates asthma attack in rats. CNS Neurosci Ther 2020; 26:730-740. [PMID: 32011093 PMCID: PMC7298979 DOI: 10.1111/cns.13293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Revised: 01/15/2020] [Accepted: 01/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Aims This study aimed to investigate the functions of the amygdala in rat asthma model. Main methods Wheat germ agglutinin‐horseradish peroxidase (WGA‐HRP) was used for tracing from the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) to the amygdala, and nuclear lesions were performed to observe changes in respiratory function and airway inflammation. Results This study showed that the extracellular neuronal discharged in the medial amygdala (MeA) and central amygdala (CeA), and the expression of Fos significantly increased in asthmatic rat compared to control group. The distribution of Fos‐ and oxytocin (OT)‐positive neurons and Fos/OT dual‐positive neurons evidently increased in the PVN. WGA‐HRP was injected into the PVN for tracing, and Fos/HRP‐dual‐positive neurons were observed to be distributed in the MeA. By using kainic acid (KA) to injure the MeA and CeA in asthmatic rats, expiratory and inspiratory times (TE/TI) and airway resistance (Raw) decreased, and minute ventilation volume (MVV) and dynamic pulmonary compliance (Cdyn) increased accordingly. In the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), the number of eosinophils and the concentration of IL‐4 were lower than those of the control group, and the ratio of Th1/Th2 cells was higher than that of the control group. In the PVN, the distribution of Fos‐, OT‐positive cells and Fos/OT double‐positive cells decreased compared with those of the control group. The activities of the MeA and CeA and of OT neurons in the PVN of the rats were correlated with the occurrence of asthma. Conclusions Asthma attack could induce neural activities in the MeA and CeA, and OT neurons in the PVN may be involved in the process of asthma attack.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Chen
- Affiliated Kunshan Hospital of Jiangsu University, Suzhou, China
| | - Ni-Na Liu
- Department of Physiology, Medical School of Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Jian Xiao
- Department of Physiology, Medical School of Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yue-Han Wang
- Department of Physiology, Medical School of Southeast University, Nanjing, China
| | - Rong Dong
- Department of Physiology, Medical School of Southeast University, Nanjing, China
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7
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Wu Y, Chen C, Chen M, Qian K, Lv X, Wang H, Jiang L, Yu L, Zhuo M, Qiu S. The anterior insular cortex unilaterally controls feeding in response to aversive visceral stimuli in mice. Nat Commun 2020; 11:640. [PMID: 32005806 PMCID: PMC6994462 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-14281-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2019] [Accepted: 12/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Reduced food intake is common to many pathological conditions, such as infection and toxin exposure. However, cortical circuits that mediate feeding responses to these threats are less investigated. The anterior insular cortex (aIC) is a core region that integrates interoceptive states and emotional awareness and consequently guides behavioral responses. Here, we demonstrate that the right-side aIC CamKII+ (aICCamKII) neurons in mice are activated by aversive visceral signals. Hyperactivation of the right-side aICCamKII neurons attenuates food consumption, while inhibition of these neurons increases feeding and reverses aversive stimuli-induced anorexia and weight loss. Similar manipulation at the left-side aIC does not cause significant behavioral changes. Furthermore, virus tracing reveals that aICCamKII neurons project directly to the vGluT2+ neurons in the lateral hypothalamus (LH), and the right-side aICCamKII-to-LH pathway mediates feeding suppression. Our studies uncover a circuit from the cortex to the hypothalamus that senses aversive visceral signals and controls feeding behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Wu
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Changwan Chen
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Ming Chen
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Kai Qian
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xinyou Lv
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Haiting Wang
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Lifei Jiang
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Lina Yu
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Min Zhuo
- Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, 1 King's College Circle, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Shuang Qiu
- Center for Neuroscience and Department of Anesthesiology of Second Affiliated Hospital, NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
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8
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Hadamitzky M, Lückemann L, Pacheco-López G, Schedlowski M. Pavlovian Conditioning of Immunological and Neuroendocrine Functions. Physiol Rev 2020; 100:357-405. [DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00033.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The phenomenon of behaviorally conditioned immunological and neuroendocrine functions has been investigated for the past 100 yr. The observation that associative learning processes can modify peripheral immune functions was first reported and investigated by Ivan Petrovic Pavlov and his co-workers. Their work later fell into oblivion, also because so little was known about the immune system’s function and even less about the underlying mechanisms of how learning, a central nervous system activity, could affect peripheral immune responses. With the employment of a taste-avoidance paradigm in rats, this phenomenon was rediscovered 45 yr ago as one of the most fascinating examples of the reciprocal functional interaction between behavior, the brain, and peripheral immune functions, and it established psychoneuroimmunology as a new research field. Relying on growing knowledge about efferent and afferent communication pathways between the brain, neuroendocrine system, primary and secondary immune organs, and immunocompetent cells, experimental animal studies demonstrate that cellular and humoral immune and neuroendocrine functions can be modulated via associative learning protocols. These (from the classical perspective) learned immune responses are clinically relevant, since they affect the development and progression of immune-related diseases and, more importantly, are also inducible in humans. The increased knowledge about the neuropsychological machinery steering learning and memory processes together with recent insight into the mechanisms mediating placebo responses provide fascinating perspectives to exploit these learned immune and neuroendocrine responses as supportive therapies, the aim being to reduce the amount of medication required, diminishing unwanted drug side effects while maximizing the therapeutic effect for the patient’s benefit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Hadamitzky
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany; Health Sciences Department, Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), Campus Lerma, Mexico; and Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Laura Lückemann
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany; Health Sciences Department, Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), Campus Lerma, Mexico; and Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Gustavo Pacheco-López
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany; Health Sciences Department, Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), Campus Lerma, Mexico; and Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Manfred Schedlowski
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany; Health Sciences Department, Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), Campus Lerma, Mexico; and Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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9
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Abstract
The history of the concept of the placebo effect and research into its quantification and mechanisms are reviewed, particularly in relation to psychiatry. Research has demonstrated a notable placebo effect in depression: a large proportion of the clinical effect of antidepressant medication is attributable to the effect. Various mechanisms have been hypothesised: anxiety relief, expectation, transference, ‘meaning effects' and conditioning. Recent research from neuroimaging has unveiled that the effect is associated with biological correlates in the brain. Despite the renewal of research into the placebo effect, many questions remain unanswered. This partly reflects philosophical obstacles such as the mind/body dichotomy, which are inherent in conceptualising the effect. However, it also demonstrates the vast scope for further research into this area. Ultimately, an understanding of the processes that underlie the placebo effect should allow a rationalised therapeutic approach to be developed to maximise the clinical benefit of the therapeutic encounter.
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10
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Gallo M, Ballesteros M, Molero A, Morón I. Taste Aversion Learning as a Tool for the Study of Hippocampal and Non-Hippocampal Brain Memory Circuits Regulating Diet Selection. Nutr Neurosci 2016; 2:277-302. [DOI: 10.1080/1028415x.1999.11747284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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11
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Yi L, Sun H, Ge C, Chen Y, Peng H, Jiang Y, Wu P, Tang Y, Meng Q, Xu S. Role of insular cortex in visceral hypersensitivity model in rats subjected to chronic stress. Psychiatry Res 2014; 220:1138-43. [PMID: 25446465 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2014.09.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2013] [Revised: 08/20/2014] [Accepted: 09/28/2014] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Abnormal processing of visceral sensation at the level of the central nervous system has been proven to be important in the pathophysiologic mechanisms of stress related functional gastrointestinal disorders. However, the specific mechanism is still not clear. The insular cortex (IC) was considered as one important visceral sensory area. Moreover, the IC has been shown to be involved in various neuropsychiatric diseases such as panic disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder. However, whether the IC is important in psychological stress related visceral hypersensitivity has not been studied yet. In our study, through destruction of the bilateral IC, we explored whether the IC played a critical role in the formation of visceral hypersensitivity induced by chronic stress on rats. Chronic partial restraint stress was used to establish viscerally hypersensitive rat model. Bilateral IC lesions were generated by N-methyl-D-day (door) aspartate. After a recovery period of 7 days, 14-day consecutive restraint stress was performed. The visceromotor response to colorectal distension was monitored by recording electromyogram to measure rats׳ visceral sensitivity. We found that bilateral insular cortex lesion could markedly inhibit the formation of visceral hypersensitivity induced by chronic stress. The insular cortex plays a critical role in the pathophysiology of stress-related visceral hypersensitivity.
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12
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Abstract
Modern medicine has progressed in parallel with the advancement of biochemistry, anatomy, and physiology. By using the tools of modern medicine, the physician today can treat and prevent a number of diseases through pharmacology, genetics, and physical interventions. Besides this materia medica, the patient's mind, cognitions, and emotions play a central part as well in any therapeutic outcome, as investigated by disciplines such as psychoneuroendocrinoimmunology. This review describes recent findings that give scientific evidence to the old tenet that patients must be both cured and cared for. In fact, we are today in a good position to investigate complex psychological factors, like placebo effects and the doctor-patient relationship, by using a physiological and neuroscientific approach. These intricate psychological factors can be approached through biochemistry, anatomy, and physiology, thus eliminating the old dichotomy between biology and psychology. This is both a biomedical and a philosophical enterprise that is changing the way we approach and interpret medicine and human biology. In the first case, curing the disease only is not sufficient, and care of the patient is of tantamount importance. In the second case, the philosophical debate about the mind-body interaction can find some important answers in the study of placebo effects. Therefore, maybe paradoxically, the placebo effect and the doctor-patient relationship can be approached by using the same biochemical, cellular and physiological tools of the materia medica, which represents an epochal transition from general concepts such as suggestibility and power of mind to a true physiology of the doctor-patient interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabrizio Benedetti
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Turin Medical School, and National Institute of Neuroscience, Turin, Italy.
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13
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Vits S, Cesko E, Enck P, Hillen U, Schadendorf D, Schedlowski M. Behavioural conditioning as the mediator of placebo responses in the immune system. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2011; 366:1799-807. [PMID: 21576137 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2010.0392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Current placebo research postulates that conditioning processes are one of the major mechanisms of the placebo response. Behaviourally conditioned changes in peripheral immune functions have been demonstrated in experimental animals, healthy subjects and patients. The physiological mechanisms responsible for this 'learned immune response' are not yet fully understood, but some relevant afferent and efferent pathways in the communication between the brain and the peripheral immune system have been identified. In addition, possible benefits and applicability in clinical settings have been demonstrated where behaviourally conditioned immunosuppression attenuated the exacerbation of autoimmune diseases, prolonged allograft survival and affected allergic responses. Here, we summarize data describing the mechanisms and the potential clinical benefit of behaviourally conditioned immune functions, with particular focus on learned placebo effects on allergic reactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabine Vits
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University Clinic Essen, Essen, Germany.
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14
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Szczytkowski JL, Fuchs RA, Lysle DT. Ventral tegmental area-basolateral amygdala-nucleus accumbens shell neurocircuitry controls the expression of heroin-conditioned immunomodulation. J Neuroimmunol 2011; 237:47-56. [PMID: 21722970 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2011.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2011] [Revised: 06/03/2011] [Accepted: 06/07/2011] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The present investigations sought to determine whether the ventral tegmental area (VTA), basolateral amygdala (BLA), and nucleus accumbens shell (NAC) comprise a circuitry that mediates heroin-induced conditioned immunomodulation. Rats were given conditioning trials in which they received an injection of heroin upon placement into a distinctive environment. Prior to testing, rats received unilateral intra-BLA microinfusion of a D(1) antagonist concomitantly with unilateral intra-NAC shell microinfusion of an NMDA antagonist. Disconnection of the VTA-BLA-NAC circuit impaired the ability of the heroin-paired environment to suppress lipopolysaccharide-induced immune responses, defining for the first time a specific neural circuit involved in conditioned neural-immune interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Szczytkowski
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Department of Psychology, CB#3270, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3270, USA.
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15
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Schedlowski M, Pacheco-López G. The learned immune response: Pavlov and beyond. Brain Behav Immun 2010; 24:176-85. [PMID: 19698779 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2009.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 92] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2009] [Revised: 08/10/2009] [Accepted: 08/14/2009] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The ability to associate physiological changes with a specific flavor was most likely acquired during evolution as an adaptive strategy aimed at protecting the organism while preparing it for danger. The behaviorally conditioned or learned immune response is an exquisite example of the bidirectional communication between the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral immune system. How is it possible that specific immuno-modulating properties of a drug or substance (unconditioned stimulus) can be re-enlisted just by the mere re-exposure to a particular taste, odor or environment (conditioned stimulus)? To answer this key question, we review the neurobiological mechanism mediating this type of associative learning, as well as the pathways and mechanisms employed by the brain to harness the immune system during the execution of the conditioned immune response. Finally, we focus on the potential therapeutic relevance of such learned immune responses, and their re-conceptualization within the framework of "learned placebo effects".
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Affiliation(s)
- Manfred Schedlowski
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Medical Faculty, 45122 Essen, Germany.
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16
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Enck P, Benedetti F, Schedlowski M. New insights into the placebo and nocebo responses. Neuron 2008; 59:195-206. [PMID: 18667148 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2008.06.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 364] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2008] [Revised: 06/07/2008] [Accepted: 06/30/2008] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
In modern medicine, the placebo response or placebo effect has often been regarded as a nuisance in basic research and particularly in clinical research. The latest scientific evidence has demonstrated, however, that the placebo effect and the nocebo effect, the negative effects of placebo, stem from highly active processes in the brain that are mediated by psychological mechanisms such as expectation and conditioning. These processes have been described in some detail for many diseases and treatments, and we now know that they can represent both strength and vulnerability in the course of a disease as well as in the response to a therapy. However, recent research and current knowledge raise several issues that we shall address in this review. We will discuss current neurobiological models like expectation-induced activation of the brain reward circuitry, Pavlovian conditioning, and anxiety mechanisms of the nocebo response. We will further explore the nature of the placebo responses in clinical trials and address major questions for future research such as the relationship between expectations and conditioning in placebo effects, the existence of a consistent brain network for all placebo effects, the role of gender in placebo effects, and the impact of getting drug-like effects without drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Enck
- Department of Internal Medicine VI: Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
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17
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Miranda MI, Quirarte GL, Rodriguez-Garcia G, McGaugh JL, Roozendaal B. Glucocorticoids enhance taste aversion memory via actions in the insular cortex and basolateral amygdala. Learn Mem 2008; 15:468-76. [PMID: 18612067 PMCID: PMC2505314 DOI: 10.1101/lm.964708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2008] [Accepted: 04/17/2008] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
It is well established that glucocorticoid hormones strengthen the consolidation of hippocampus-dependent spatial and contextual memory. The present experiments investigated glucocorticoid effects on the long-term formation of conditioned taste aversion (CTA), an associative learning task that does not depend critically on hippocampal function. Corticosterone (1.0 or 3.0 mg/kg) administered subcutaneously to male Sprague-Dawley rats immediately after the pairing of saccharin consumption with the visceral malaise-inducing agent lithium chloride (LiCl) dose-dependently increased aversion to the saccharin taste on a 96-h retention test trial. In a second experiment, rats received corticosterone either immediately after saccharin consumption or after the LiCl injection, when both stimuli were separated by a 3-h time interval, to investigate whether corticosterone enhances memory of the gustatory or visceral stimulus presentation. Consistent with the finding that the LiCl injection, but not saccharin consumption, increases endogenous corticosterone levels, corticosterone selectively enhanced CTA memory when administered after the LiCl injection. Suppression of this training-induced release of corticosterone with the synthesis-inhibitor metyrapone (35 mg/kg) impaired CTA memory, and was dose-dependently reversed by post-training supplementation of corticosterone. Moreover, direct post-training infusions of corticosterone into the insular cortex or basolateral complex of the amygdala, two brain regions that are critically involved in the acquisition and consolidation of CTA, also enhanced CTA retention, whereas post-training infusions into the dorsal hippocampus were ineffective. These findings provide evidence that glucocorticoid effects on memory consolidation are not limited to hippocampus-dependent spatial/contextual information, but that these hormones also modulate memory consolidation of discrete-cue associative learning via actions in other brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Isabel Miranda
- Departamento de Neurobiología Conductual y Cognitiva, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Querétaro, 76230, México
| | - Gina L. Quirarte
- Departamento de Neurobiología Conductual y Cognitiva, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Querétaro, 76230, México
| | - Gabriela Rodriguez-Garcia
- Departamento de Neurobiología Conductual y Cognitiva, Instituto de Neurobiología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Querétaro, 76230, México
| | - James L. McGaugh
- Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California, Irvine, California 92697-3800, USA
| | - Benno Roozendaal
- Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California, Irvine, California 92697-3800, USA
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18
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19
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Pacheco-López G, Engler H, Niemi MB, Schedlowski M. Expectations and associations that heal: Immunomodulatory placebo effects and its neurobiology. Brain Behav Immun 2006; 20:430-46. [PMID: 16887325 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2006.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2006] [Revised: 05/29/2006] [Accepted: 05/29/2006] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The use of placebo may have accompanied healing and medical practices since their origins (Plato; Charmides, 155-156). Recent experimental data indicate that we would be well advised to further consider placebo effects in future therapeutic strategies, with a better knowledge of their potency, psychological basis and underlying neurobiological mechanisms. Current research in the areas of pain, depression and Parkinson's disease has uncovered some of the potential neurobiological mechanisms of placebo effects. These data indicate that conscious expectation and unconscious behavioral conditioning processes appear to be the major neurobiological mechanisms capable of releasing endogenous neurotransmitters and/or neurohormones that mimic the expected or conditioned pharmacological effects. To date, research on placebo responses affecting immune-related diseases is scarce, but there are consistent indications that skin and mucosal inflammatory diseases, in particular, are strongly modulated by placebo treatments. However, the brain's capability to modulate peripheral immune reactivity has been impressively demonstrated by paradigms of behavioral conditioning in animal experiments and human studies. Thus, placebo effects can benefit end organ functioning and the overall health of the individual through positive expectations and behavioral conditioning processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gustavo Pacheco-López
- Chair of Psychology and Behavioral Immunobiology, Institute for Behavioral Sciences, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
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20
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Pacheco-López G, Niemi MB, Kou W, Härting M, Fandrey J, Schedlowski M. Neural substrates for behaviorally conditioned immunosuppression in the rat. J Neurosci 2006; 25:2330-7. [PMID: 15745959 PMCID: PMC6726099 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.4230-04.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
We have previously demonstrated behaviorally conditioned immunosuppression using cyclosporin A as an unconditioned stimulus and saccharin as a conditioned stimulus. In the current study, we examined the central processing of this phenomenon generating excitotoxic lesions before and after acquisition to discriminate between learning and memory processes. Three different brain areas were analyzed: insular cortex (IC), amygdala (Am), and ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH). The results demonstrate that IC lesions performed before and after acquisition disrupted the behavioral component of the conditioned response (taste aversion). In contrast, Am and VMH lesions did not affect conditioned taste aversion. The behaviorally conditioned suppression of splenocyte proliferation and cytokine production (interleukin-2 and interferon-gamma) was differentially affected by the excitotoxic lesions, showing that the IC is essential to acquire and evoke this conditioned response of the immune system. In contrast, the Am seems to mediate the input of visceral information necessary at the acquisition time, whereas the VMH appears to participate within the output pathway to the immune system necessary to evoke the behavioral conditioned immune response. The present data reveal relevant neural mechanisms underlying the learning and memory processes of behaviorally conditioned immunosuppression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gustavo Pacheco-López
- Department of Medical Psychology, University Duisburg-Essen, D-45122 Essen, Germany.
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Chen J, Lin W, Wang W, Shao F, Yang J, Wang B, Kuang F, Duan X, Ju G. Enhancement of antibody production and expression of c-Fos in the insular cortex in response to a conditioned stimulus after a single-trial learning paradigm. Behav Brain Res 2004; 154:557-65. [PMID: 15313045 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2004.03.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/25/2003] [Revised: 03/25/2004] [Accepted: 03/26/2004] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Immune responses can be modulated by Pavlovian conditioning techniques. In this study, to evaluate the conditionability of antibody response via a single-trial conditioning paradigm, we used a protein antigen ovalbumin as an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) that was paired with a novel taste of saccharin in a single-trial learning protocol. A significant enhancement of anti-ovalbumin antibody production was observed in the conditioned rats at Days 15, 20 and 25 after re-exposure to the conditioned stimulus. The pattern of conditioned antibody response is similar to that of antigen-induced antibody response. Furthermore, to identify the involvement of a limbic brain structure in the expression of conditioned antibody response, immediate-early gene c-fos expression was used as a marker of neuronal activation to detect the functional activation in the insular cortex (IC) in response to the conditioned stimulus. The re-exposure of conditioned rats to the conditioned stimulus resulted in a significant increase of c-Fos immunoreactivity in all three areas of the IC including the agranular, dysgranular, and granular areas, suggesting that IC is involved in the neural mechanism of expression of conditioned immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jihuan Chen
- Brain-Behavior Research Center, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
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22
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Pacheco-López G, Niemi MB, Kou W, Härting M, Del Rey A, Besedovsky HO, Schedlowski M. Behavioural endocrine immune-conditioned response is induced by taste and superantigen pairing. Neuroscience 2004; 129:555-62. [PMID: 15541877 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2004.08.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/09/2004] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Administration of bacterial superantigen, such as staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB), induces in vivo stimulation of T cell proliferation and cytokine production such as interleukin-2 (IL-2). It has been previously reported that SEB administration induces fever, c-Fos expression in the brain, and hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis activation, demonstrating that the brain is able to sense and respond to SEB. Previously it had been shown that immune functions can be behaviourally conditioned pairing a novel gustatory stimulus together with an immunomodulatory drug or an antigen. We designed an experimental protocol using Dark Agouti rats in which saccharin taste, as conditioned stimulus, was paired with an i.p. injection of SEB (2 mg/kg), as unconditioned stimulus. Six days later, when conditioned animals were re-exposed to the conditioned stimulus they displayed strong conditioned taste avoidance to the saccharin. More importantly, re-exposure to the conditioned stimulus significantly increased IL-2, interferon-gamma and corticosterone plasma levels, in comparison with conditioned animals which had not been re-exposed to saccharin taste. These results demonstrate a behavioural-immune-endocrine conditioned response using a superantigen as unconditioned stimulus. In addition, they illustrate the brain abilities to mimic the unconditioned effects of a superantigen by yet unknown mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Pacheco-López
- Department of Medical Psychology, IG-1, Medical Faculty, University Duisburg-Essen, Hufelandstrasse 55, 45122 Essen, Germany.
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Hucklebridge F. Behavioral conditioning of the immune system. INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF NEUROBIOLOGY 2003; 52:325-51. [PMID: 12498110 DOI: 10.1016/s0074-7742(02)52015-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Frank Hucklebridge
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Westminster, London W1M 8JS, United Kingdom
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24
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Abstract
Conditioned food aversion (CFA) and taste aversion (CTA) are widely occurring phenomena mediating rejection of solids or liquids, the ingestion of which has induced the onset of post-ingestional malaise. It is a powerful and durable imprint learning that may influence food choice and intake in all animals, including humans. For ethical reasons, CTA has been extensively investigated in a wide variety of laboratory animal's species but only incidentally in humans. Nevertheless, convincing evidence has been provided that CFA and CTA learning are possible in a wide range of human subjects. The results in humans may have some limitations in accuracy since data are sparse, sometimes indirect, and poorly controlled. There is only limited information on the extent of CFA in the elderly since most studies have employed questionnaire and/or interview methods on young people (i.e. college students). The present review evaluates the literature derived both from laboratory animals and humans. In the first instance, the salient features of food and taste aversion learning and the neural mechanisms involved in this learning behavior will be examined. Then, the problems encountered when trying to assess the role of learned food and taste aversions in the nutritional status of healthy as well as sick young or elderly people will be considered. In particular, the importance of CFA on the nutritional status of cancer patients and treatment of alcoholism will be examined. It is concluded that the data are compelling enough to warrant further research and, some indications and recommendations are suggested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giuseppe Scalera
- Dip. Scienze Biomediche, Sez. Fisiologia, Universitá di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
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Ramírez-Amaya V, Bermúdez-Rattoni F. Conditioned enhancement of antibody production is disrupted by insular cortex and amygdala but not hippocampal lesions. Brain Behav Immun 1999; 13:46-60. [PMID: 10371677 DOI: 10.1006/brbi.1998.0547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Pavlovian conditioning procedures can be used to activate the immune system. A reliable conditioned increase of antibody production can be obtained in rats that have previously received a gustative or odor stimulus as the conditioned stimulus paired with an antigen, by exposing the animals to the conditioned stimulus alone. We showed evidence that an excitotoxic lesion bilaterally applied into the insular cortex or the amygdala, but not into the dorsal hippocampus, impaired the acquisition of both odor and gustatory conditioned immune enhancement. We found no effects of lesions on normal antibody production. These results suggest that the amygdala and the insular cortex are involved in the neural-immune interactions that mediate conditioned immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- V Ramírez-Amaya
- Instituto de Fisiología Celular, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apartado Postal 70-253, México DF, 04510, México
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