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Risk Decision Making and Executive Function among Adolescents and Young Adults. Behav Sci (Basel) 2023; 13:bs13020142. [PMID: 36829371 PMCID: PMC9952781 DOI: 10.3390/bs13020142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2023] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/04/2023] [Indexed: 02/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The dual theory establishes that the decision-making process relies on two different systems, the affective system and the executive function (EF), developed during adolescence. This study analyzes the relationship between the decision-making and EF processes in a group of early adolescents (mean age = 12.51 years, SD = 0.61), where more affective impulse processes are developed, and in young adults (mean age = 19.38 years, SD = 1.97), where cognitive control processes have already matured. For this purpose, 140 participants in Spain completed the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) to measure their risky decisions and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task (WCST) to measure their EF. Performance on the IGT improves over blocks; however, adolescents received lower mean scores than young adults. However, controlling for age, perseverative errors were negatively associated with the mean net score on the risky blocks of IGT; thus, those who committed more perseverative errors in the WCST were more likely to take cards from the disadvantageous decks on the last blocks of the IGT. The current study shows that adolescents and adults solve ambiguous decisions by trial and error; however, adolescents are more likely to make risky decisions without attending to the long-term consequences. Following the dual theory hypothesis, the maturation of EF with age partly accounts for this difference in risky decision-making between adolescents and adults.
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2
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Harper J, Wilson S, Malone SM, Hunt RH, Thomas KM, Iacono WG. Orbitofrontal cortex thickness and substance use disorders in emerging adulthood: causal inferences from a co-twin control/discordant twin study. Addiction 2021; 116:2548-2558. [PMID: 33620763 PMCID: PMC8328872 DOI: 10.1111/add.15447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIMS Research linking orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) structure and substance use disorders (SUDs) is largely correlational and often implies a causal effect of addiction/substance exposure on the brain, but familial risk factors (e.g. genetic liability) may confound these associations. We tested whether associations between alcohol, cannabis and tobacco use disorders and OFC thickness reflected the potential causal effects of familial risk or SUDs-related consequences (e.g. substance exposure). DESIGN A co-twin control/discordant twin design separated familial risk confounding from SUD-related consequences. SETTING/PARTICIPANTS A population-based sample of 436 24-year-old twins (62% monozygotic) from the Minnesota Twin Family Study, USA. MEASUREMENTS Alcohol, cannabis and tobacco use disorders were assessed using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview-Substance Abuse Module. Cortical thickness of the medial and lateral OFC (mOFC and lOFC, respectively) was assessed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). FINDINGS Lower mOFC (P-values ≤ 0.006) but not lOFC (P-values ≥ 0.190) thickness was observed in diagnosed individuals (n = 185) relative to non-SUD controls (n = 251). Co-twin control analyses offered evidence that mOFC associations were consistent with familial risk across SUDs (between-pair effect: P-values ≤ 0.047) and the independent consequences of having an alcohol or cannabis use disorder (within-pair effect: P-values ≤ 0.024). That is, within alcohol/cannabis discordant twin pairs, affected twins had significantly lower mOFC thickness compared with their unaffected co-twins. CONCLUSIONS A confounder-adjusted analysis of the Minnesota Twin Family Study appeared to indicate that, beyond a substance use disorders general familial risk effect, the experience of an alcohol or cannabis use disorder in emerging adulthood reduces the thickness of the medial orbitofrontal cortex, a region associated with value-guided decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Harper
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
| | - Sylia Wilson
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
| | | | - Ruskin H. Hunt
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
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3
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Dannenhoffer CA, Robertson MM, Macht VA, Mooney SM, Boettiger CA, Robinson DL. Chronic alcohol exposure during critical developmental periods differentially impacts persistence of deficits in cognitive flexibility and related circuitry. INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF NEUROBIOLOGY 2021; 160:117-173. [PMID: 34696872 DOI: 10.1016/bs.irn.2021.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Cognitive flexibility in decision making depends on prefrontal cortical function and is used by individuals to adapt to environmental changes in circumstances. Cognitive flexibility can be measured in the laboratory using a variety of discrete, translational tasks, including those that involve reversal learning and/or set-shifting ability. Distinct components of flexible behavior rely upon overlapping brain circuits, including different prefrontal substructures that have separable impacts on decision making. Cognitive flexibility is impaired after chronic alcohol exposure, particularly during development when the brain undergoes rapid maturation. This review examines how cognitive flexibility, as indexed by reversal and set-shifting tasks, is impacted by chronic alcohol exposure in adulthood, adolescent, and prenatal periods in humans and animal models. We also discuss areas for future study, including mechanisms that may contribute to the persistence of cognitive deficits after developmental alcohol exposure and the compacting consequences from exposure across multiple critical periods.
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Affiliation(s)
- C A Dannenhoffer
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - M M Robertson
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Victoria A Macht
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - S M Mooney
- Nutrition Research Institute and Department of Nutrition, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - C A Boettiger
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Neuroscience Curriculum, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Donita L Robinson
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Neuroscience Curriculum, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States.
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Malone SM, Wilson S, Bair JL, McGue M, Iacono WG. A co-twin-control analysis of adolescent and young adult drinking effects on learning and memory. Addiction 2021; 116:1689-1699. [PMID: 33197098 PMCID: PMC8124080 DOI: 10.1111/add.15334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2020] [Revised: 07/07/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS Existing evidence for a link between alcohol use and memory impairments in adolescents and young adults is largely correlational. We aimed to determine whether associations between drinking and episodic memory were consistent with a causal effect of drinking or accounted for by familial factors confounding such associations. Because cannabis use is associated with a similar pattern of performance on episodic memory measures, we assessed whether any associations might be attributable to concurrent cannabis use. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS Observational study of individuals aged approximately 20-29 years, comprising two independent population-based cohorts of twins. A co-twin-control design permitted an estimate of alcohol exposure effects free of shared genetic and environmental confounding influences. Significant associations were followed-up with twin-difference analyses. Propensity scores derived from measures collected at age 11 were used to adjust for unshared confounders. Participants in both cohorts were assessed from the age of 11 (n = 1251) under the auspices of the Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research. MEASUREMENTS Regression analyses with cumulative alcohol use as the predictor of interest. Multiple measures of attention, learning and memory from a widely used episodic memory task constituted dependent variables. FINDINGS Drinking was associated with poorer attention (P ≤ 0.003) and learning (P ≤ 0.008). Results were similar across the two cohorts. The within-pair effect in twin-difference analyses was significant only for measures of learning (P-values ≤ 0.004). Results were not due to measured unshared confounders or cannabis use. Drinking in adolescence (to age 20) and early adulthood (between 20 and 29) exerted independent effects on learning. CONCLUSIONS There appears to be a robust and specific association between drinking and learning that can be reproduced across cohorts, is not easily accounted for by confounding factors or concurrent cannabis use and is consistent with a causal influence of drinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen M. Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455,Corresponding author ()
| | - Sylia Wilson
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota 51 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455
| | - Jessica L. Bair
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455
| | - Matt McGue
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455
| | - William G. Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN, 55455
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5
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Harper J, Malone SM, Wilson S, Hunt RH, Thomas KM, Iacono WG. The Effects of Alcohol and Cannabis Use on the Cortical Thickness of Cognitive Control and Salience Brain Networks in Emerging Adulthood: A Co-twin Control Study. Biol Psychiatry 2021; 89:1012-1022. [PMID: 33726938 PMCID: PMC8106644 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2021.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Impairments in inhibitory control and its underlying brain networks (control/salience areas) are associated with substance misuse. Research often assumes a causal substance exposure effect on brain structure. This assumption remains largely untested, and other factors (e.g., familial risk) may confound exposure effects. We leveraged a genetically informative sample of twins aged 24 years and a quasi-experimental co-twin control design to separate alcohol or cannabis exposure effects during emerging adulthood from familial risk on control/salience network cortical thickness. METHODS In a population-based sample of 436 twins aged 24 years, dimensional measures of alcohol and cannabis use (e.g., frequency, density, quantity, intoxications) across emerging adulthood were assessed. Cortical thickness of control/salience network areas were assessed using magnetic resonance imaging and defined by a fine-grained cortical atlas. RESULTS Greater alcohol, but not cannabis, misuse was associated with reduced thickness of prefrontal (e.g., dorso/ventrolateral, right frontal operculum) and frontal medial cortices, as well as temporal lobe, intraparietal sulcus, insula, parietal operculum, precuneus, and parietal medial areas. Effects were predominately (pre)frontal and right lateralized. Co-twin control analyses suggested that the effects likely reflect both the familial predisposition to misuse alcohol and, specifically for lateral prefrontal, frontal/parietal medial, and right frontal operculum, an alcohol exposure effect. CONCLUSIONS This study provides novel evidence that alcohol-related reductions in cortical thickness of control/salience brain networks likely represent the effects of alcohol exposure and premorbid characteristics of the genetic predisposition to misuse alcohol. The dual effects of these two alcohol-related causal influences have important and complementary implications regarding public health and prevention efforts to curb youth drinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Harper
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
| | | | - Sylia Wilson
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
| | - Ruskin H. Hunt
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
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6
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Alcohol Consumption during Adulthood Does Not Impair Later Go/No-Go Reversal Learning in Male Rats. NEUROSCI 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/neurosci2020012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Reversal learning tasks are used to model flexible decision-making in laboratory animals, and exposure to drugs of abuse can cause long-term impairments in reversal learning. However, the long-term effects of alcohol on reversal learning have varied. We evaluated whether six weeks of voluntary alcohol consumption through chronic intermittent alcohol access (elevated by food restriction) in adult male rats would impair rats in a go/no-go reversal learning task when tested at an interval beyond acute withdrawal. In our go/no-go task, rats were reinforced for pressing one lever or withholding from pressing another lever, and the identities of the two levers were switched twice (once rats reached an accuracy criterion). We found no evidence that prior alcohol consumption altered discrimination or reversal learning in our task. This replicates previous patterns from our laboratory that higher alcohol consumption in food-restricted rats did not impair discrimination or reversal learning in a different go/no-go task and that alcohol consumption in free-fed adolescent/early adult rats did not impair go/no-go discrimination or reversal learning in the same task. It is unclear whether this represents an insensitivity of this task to alcohol exposure generally or whether an alcohol exposure procedure that leads to higher blood ethanol concentration (BEC) levels would impair learning. More research is needed to investigate these possibilities.
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Pinheiro-da-Silva J, Araujo-Silva H, Luchiari AC. Does early ethanol exposure increase seeking-like behavior in zebrafish? Int J Dev Neurosci 2021; 81:416-427. [PMID: 33837569 DOI: 10.1002/jdn.10112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is the most common cause of birth defects. The severe variations are in fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) but the most frequent cases are alcohol-related neurodevelopmental disorder (ARND), which is of a difficult diagnosis. ARND characteristics include impaired social behavior, anxiety and depression prevalence, cognitive deficits, and an increased chance for drug addiction. Here, we aimed to test whether early alcohol exposure leads to later alcohol preference. We hypothesize that early alcohol exposure increases the reinforcing effects on later experiences, raising the chance of addiction in adult life. Lately, the zebrafish has been a valuable model on alcohol research, allowing embryonic exposure and the study of the ontogenetic effects. For this, embryos were exposed to three different alcohol treatments: 0.0%, 0.25% and 0.5%, for 2 hr, at 24-hr post-fertilization. Then we evaluated the effects of embryonic alcohol exposure on conditioned place preference in two developmental stage: fry (10 days post-fertilization (dpf)) and young (90 dpf) zebrafish. Results show that control fish presented alcohol associative learning, which means, changes in place preference due to alcohol exposure, at both ontogenetic phases. However, zebrafish exposed to 0.25 and 0.5% alcohol during embryogenesis did not show conditioning response at any evaluated stage. These results suggest perception and cognitive deficits due to embryonic alcohol exposure that can alter alcohol responsiveness throughout a lifetime. Although low alcohol doses do not provoke malformation, it has been shown to induce several neurological and behavioral changes that are termed as Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorders. These results may contribute to future investigations on how embryonic exposure affects the neurocircuitry related to perception and associative learning processing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Heloysa Araujo-Silva
- Departamento de Fisiologia e Comportamento, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil
| | - Ana Carolina Luchiari
- Departamento de Fisiologia e Comportamento, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil
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8
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Wilson S. Commentary: Substance use and the brain: it is not straightforward to differentiate cause from consequence - a commentary on Kim-Spoon et al. (2020). J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2021; 62:437-440. [PMID: 32803755 PMCID: PMC7887115 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
That substance abuse is associated with differences in brain structure and function, and related neurocognitive impairment is undisputed. Causally informative study designs, such as the prospective, longitudinal study leveraged by Kim-Spoon et al. (2020), as well as twin and family studies, are necessary for answering vexing but critical questions about substance use and the developing brain. Investigations that seek to differentiate cause from consequence and identify the factors that initiate the cycle of addiction have the potential to transform our understanding of the development of substance use and abuse, prompt revisions to current models of addiction, guide the most strategic preventive-intervention efforts, and ultimately improve the lives of millions of affected individuals and their families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylia Wilson
- Corresponding author. University of Minnesota, Institute of Child Development, 51 E River Pkwy, Minneapolis, MN 55455;
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9
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Joyner KJ, Yancey JR, Venables NC, Burwell SJ, Iacono WG, Patrick CJ. Reprint of: Using a co-twin control design to evaluate alternative trait measures as indices of liability for substance use disorders. Int J Psychophysiol 2021; 163:58-66. [PMID: 33685652 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2021.02.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2019] [Revised: 11/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
To establish a trait-dispositional variable as an indicator of liability for the development of substance use disorders (SUDs), the trait must share heritable variance with SUDs and its association should not be primarily attributable to a direct impact of SUDs on characteristics that define the trait. The current work applied a co-twin control (CTC) modeling approach to data from two monozygotic twin samples to investigate the degree to which different measures of trait-impulsiveness represent indicants of vulnerability to SUDs (liability indicators), or outcomes or concomitants of SUDs (exposure indicators). The Five Factor Model (FFM) trait of conscientiousness was assessed via self-report, and a counterpart neurobehavioral trait of disinhibition was assessed both through self-report and using self-report and brain response measures combined. FFM trait data were available for one twin sample (N = 298); data for variants of P3 brain response were available along with a scale measure of disinhibition in the other (N = 258). CTC analyses revealed only an exposure effect of SUD symptomatology on FFM conscientiousness, indicating that this self-report assessed trait does not index liability for SUDs. By contrast, the disinhibition scale measure showed pronounced liability and weaker exposure-based associations with SUDs - and when quantified using scale scores together with P3 brain response, the exposure-based association was eliminated, such that this disinhibition measure related to SUD symptoms exclusively as a function of liability influences. These findings highlight a distinct advantage of quantifying traits in neurobehavioral terms - namely, the capacity to effectively index dispositional liability for psychopathological outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keanan J Joyner
- Florida State University, Department of Psychology, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
| | - James R Yancey
- Florida State University, Department of Psychology, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
| | - Noah C Venables
- University of Minnesota, Department of Psychiatry, 2450 Riverside Avenue, South Minneapolis, MN 55454, USA
| | - Scott J Burwell
- University of Minnesota, Department of Psychiatry, 2450 Riverside Avenue, South Minneapolis, MN 55454, USA
| | - William G Iacono
- University of Minnesota, Department of Psychology, 75 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Christopher J Patrick
- Florida State University, Department of Psychology, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA.
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10
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Wilson S, Olino TM. A developmental perspective on personality and psychopathology across the life span. J Pers 2021; 89:915-932. [PMID: 33550639 PMCID: PMC10142293 DOI: 10.1111/jopy.12623] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Revised: 01/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Taking a developmental perspective, guided by core principles of developmental science and developmental psychopathology, is necessary to move the fields of personality science and psychopathology forward. Personality and psychopathology can be delineated using hierarchical models of individual differences, as evidenced by decades of converging evidence across community and psychiatric samples, countries and cultures, and ages and developmental periods. A large body of empirical research likewise documents associations between personality and various forms of psychopathology. Cross-sectional investigations of personality-psychopathology links in samples of adults now yield diminishing returns. Prospective, longitudinal investigations that assess personality, psychopathology, and their co-development across the life span are needed to determine their temporal ordering, capture dynamic associations over time and development, and elucidate causal origins and underlying mechanisms. We lay out a developmental framework that integrates across the developmental, personality, and psychopathology literatures in order to further understanding and guide future investigations of the nature of personality-psychopathology links.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylia Wilson
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Thomas M Olino
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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11
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Mahedy L, Suddell S, Skirrow C, Fernandes GS, Field M, Heron J, Hickman M, Wootton R, Munafò MR. Alcohol use and cognitive functioning in young adults: improving causal inference. Addiction 2021; 116:292-302. [PMID: 32335969 DOI: 10.1111/add.15100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Revised: 03/23/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS There have been few longitudinal studies of association between alcohol use and cognitive functioning in young people. We aimed to examine whether alcohol use is a causal risk factor for deficient cognitive functioning in young adults. DESIGN Linear regression was used to examine the relationship between longitudinal latent class patterns of binge drinking and subsequent cognitive functioning. Two-sample Mendelian randomization (MR) tested evidence for the causal relationship between alcohol use and cognitive functioning. SETTING South West England. PARTICIPANTS The observational study included 3155 adolescents and their parents (fully adjusted models) from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Genetic instruments for alcohol use were based on almost 1 000 000 individuals from the genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and Sequencing Consortium of Alcohol and Nicotine use (GSCAN). Genome-wide association studies for cognitive outcomes were based on 2500 individuals from ALSPAC. MEASUREMENTS Binge drinking was assessed at approximately 16, 17, 18, 21 and 23 years. Cognitive functioning comprised working memory, response inhibition and emotion recognition assessed at 24 years of age. Ninety-nine independent genome-wide significant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with 'number of drinks per week' were used as the genetic instrument for alcohol consumption. Potential confounders were included in the observational analyses. FINDINGS Four binge drinking classes were identified: 'low-risk' (41.3%), 'early-onset monthly' (19.1%), 'adult frequent' (22.5%) and 'early-onset frequent' (17.0%). The association between early-onset frequent binge drinking and cognitive functioning: working memory (b = -0.42, 95% confidence interval (CI) = -1.24 to 0.41), response inhibition (b = 31.9, 95% CI = -25.3 to 89.2), and emotion recognition (b = 0.02, 95% CI = -0.07 to 0.10) in comparison to low-risk drinkers were inconclusive as to whether a difference was present. Two-sample MR analyses similarly provided little evidence that alcohol use is associated with deficits in working memory using the inverse variance weight (b = 0.29, 95% CI = -0.42 to 0.99), response inhibition (b = -0.32, 95% CI = -1.04 to 0.39) and emotion recognition (b = 0.03, 95% CI = -0.55 to 0.61). CONCLUSIONS Binge drinking in adolescence and early adulthood may not be causally related to deficiencies in working memory, response inhibition or emotion recognition in youths.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liam Mahedy
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Steph Suddell
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Caroline Skirrow
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,Cambridge Cognition, Cambridge, UK
| | - Gwen S Fernandes
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Matt Field
- Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Jon Heron
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Matthew Hickman
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Robyn Wootton
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
| | - Marcus R Munafò
- School of Psychological Science, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.,National Institute for Health Research Biomedical Research Centre at the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust and the University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
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12
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Harper J, Malone SM, Iacono WG. Parietal P3 and midfrontal theta prospectively predict the development of adolescent alcohol use. Psychol Med 2021; 51:416-425. [PMID: 31736455 PMCID: PMC7231637 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291719003258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Subclinical adolescent alcohol use is highly prevalent and may have deleterious effects on important psychosocial and brain outcomes. Prior research has focused on identifying endophenotypes of pathological drinking, and the predictors of normative drinking remain understudied. This study investigated the incremental predictive value of two potential psychophysiological endophenotypes, P3 amplitude (an index of decision making) and midfrontal theta power (a correlate of attentional control), for prospectively predicting the expression and initiation of alcohol use emerging in adolescence. METHODS A large (N = 594) epidemiological sample was prospectively assessed at ages 11/14/17. Alcohol/substance use was assessed at all ages via a computerized self-report inventory. EEG was recorded at age-14 during a visual oddball task to elicit P3 and theta. RESULTS Reduced target-related P3 and theta at age-14 prospectively predicted drinking at age-17 independent of one another. Among alcohol-naive individuals at age-14, attenuated P3 and theta increased the odds of new-onset alcohol behaviors 3 years later. Importantly, the endophenotypes provided significant incremental predictive power of future non-clinical alcohol use beyond relevant risk factors (prior alcohol use; tobacco/illicit drug initiation; parental alcohol use disorder). CONCLUSIONS The current report is the first of our knowledge to demonstrate that deviations in parietal P3 and midfrontal theta prospectively predict the emergence of normative/non-pathological drinking. P3 and theta provide modest yet significant explanatory variance beyond prominent self-report and familial risk measures. Findings offer strong evidence supporting the predictive utility of P3 and theta as candidate endophenotypes for adolescent drinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Harper
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN55455, USA
| | - Stephen M Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN55455, USA
| | - William G Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN55455, USA
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13
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Pickens CL, Cook A, Gaeddert B. Dose-dependent effects of alcohol injections on omission-contingency learning have an inverted-U pattern. Behav Brain Res 2020; 392:112736. [PMID: 32497681 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2020.112736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2019] [Revised: 05/19/2020] [Accepted: 05/26/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Previous examinations of the long-term effects of alcohol exposure on omission-contingency learning have produced mixed results across different age or sex groups, with evidence for faster learning or no effect. However, none of these experiments made comparisons using the same exposure-dose across the age/sex groups. Here, we exposed rats to 6 weeks of alcohol injections (3 days/week, 1.75 or 3.5 g/kg/24-h, i.p. broken up into 2 injections/day) in adolescent/early adult males or females (PND27-66) or adult males (PND62-101). We then tested the rats in autoshaping and omission-contingency tasks. In contrast to our hypotheses, the low 1.75-g/kg/24-h dose led to slower omission learning and the higher 3.5-g/kg/24-h dose had no effect. There were no age- or sex-differences in omission learning. Additionally, during autoshaping training, rats exposed in adolescence/early adulthood had a faster shift to sign-tracking in their sign-tracking/goal-tracking ratios than rats exposed in adulthood, with no consistent effect of alcohol exposure or sex-differences. Our results suggest complex effects of alcohol on the neural substrates of omission-contingency learning at different doses, which will require future investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles L Pickens
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA.
| | - Anna Cook
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA
| | - Brooke Gaeddert
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA
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14
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Joyner KJ, Yancey JR, Venables NC, Burwell SJ, Iacono WG, Patrick CJ. Using a co-twin control design to evaluate alternative trait measures as indices of liability for substance use disorders. Int J Psychophysiol 2020; 148:75-83. [PMID: 31857192 PMCID: PMC10659239 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2019.11.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2019] [Revised: 11/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
To establish a trait-dispositional variable as an indicator of liability for the development of substance use disorders (SUDs), the trait must share heritable variance with SUDs and its association should not be primarily attributable to a direct impact of SUDs on characteristics that define the trait. The current work applied a co-twin control (CTC) modeling approach to data from two monozygotic twin samples to investigate the degree to which different measures of trait-impulsiveness represent indicants of vulnerability to SUDs (liability indicators), or outcomes or concomitants of SUDs (exposure indicators). The Five Factor Model (FFM) trait of conscientiousness was assessed via self-report, and a counterpart neurobehavioral trait of disinhibition was assessed both through self-report and using self-report and brain response measures combined. FFM trait data were available for one twin sample (N = 298); data for variants of P3 brain response were available along with a scale measure of disinhibition in the other (N = 258). CTC analyses revealed only an exposure effect of SUD symptomatology on FFM conscientiousness, indicating that this self-report assessed trait does not index liability for SUDs. By contrast, the disinhibition scale measure showed pronounced liability and weaker exposure-based associations with SUDs - and when quantified using scale scores together with P3 brain response, the exposure-based association was eliminated, such that this disinhibition measure related to SUD symptoms exclusively as a function of liability influences. These findings highlight a distinct advantage of quantifying traits in neurobehavioral terms - namely, the capacity to effectively index dispositional liability for psychopathological outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keanan J Joyner
- Florida State University, Department of Psychology, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
| | - James R Yancey
- Florida State University, Department of Psychology, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA
| | - Noah C Venables
- University of Minnesota, Department of Psychiatry, 2450 Riverside Avenue, South Minneapolis, MN 55454, USA
| | - Scott J Burwell
- University of Minnesota, Department of Psychiatry, 2450 Riverside Avenue, South Minneapolis, MN 55454, USA
| | - William G Iacono
- University of Minnesota, Department of Psychology, 75 East River Parkway, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Christopher J Patrick
- Florida State University, Department of Psychology, 1107 West Call Street, Tallahassee, FL 32306, USA.
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15
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Abstract
The Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research (MCTFR) comprises multiple longitudinal, community-representative investigations of twin and adoptive families that focus on psychological adjustment, personality, cognitive ability and brain function, with a special emphasis on substance use and related psychopathology. The MCTFR includes the Minnesota Twin Registry (MTR), a cohort of twins who have completed assessments in middle and older adulthood; the Minnesota Twin Family Study (MTFS) of twins assessed from childhood and adolescence into middle adulthood; the Enrichment Study (ES) of twins oversampled for high risk for substance-use disorders assessed from childhood into young adulthood; the Adolescent Brain (AdBrain) study, a neuroimaging study of adolescent twins; and the Siblings Interaction and Behavior Study (SIBS), a study of adoptive and nonadoptive families assessed from adolescence into young adulthood. Here we provide a brief overview of key features of these established studies and describe new MCTFR investigations that follow up and expand upon existing studies or recruit and assess new samples, including the MTR Study of Relationships, Personality, and Health (MTR-RPH); the Colorado-Minnesota (COMN) Marijuana Study; the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study; the Colorado Online Twins (CoTwins) study and the Children of Twins (CoT) study.
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16
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Burwell SJ, Makeig S, Iacono WG, Malone SM. Reduced premovement positivity during the stimulus-response interval precedes errors: Using single-trial and regression ERPs to understand performance deficits in ADHD. Psychophysiology 2019; 56:e13392. [PMID: 31081153 PMCID: PMC6699894 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Revised: 03/19/2019] [Accepted: 04/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Brain mechanisms linked to incorrect response selections made under time pressure during cognitive task performance are poorly understood, particularly in adolescents with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Using subject-specific multimodal imaging (electroencephalogram, magnetic resonance imaging, behavior) during flanker task performance by a sample of 94 human adolescents (mean age = 15.5 years, 50% female) with varying degrees of ADHD symptomatology, we examined the degree to which amplitude features of source-resolved event-related potentials (ERPs) from brain-independent component processes within a critical (but often ignored) period in the action selection process, the stimulus-response interval, were associated with motor response errors (across trials) and error rates (across individuals). Response errors were typically preceded by two smaller peaks in both trial-level and trial-averaged ERP projections from posterior medial frontal cortex (pMFC): a frontocentral P3 peaking about 390 ms after stimulus onset, and a premovement positivity (PMP) peaking about 110 ms before the motor response. Separating overlapping stimulus-locked and response-locked ERP contributions using a "regression ERP" approach showed that trial errors and participant error rates were primarily associated with smaller PMP, and not with frontocentral P3. Moreover, smaller PMP mediated the association between larger numbers of errors and ADHD symptoms, suggesting the possible value of using PMP as an intervention target to remediate performance deficits in ADHD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott J. Burwell
- Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Minneapolis MN 55455
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Minneapolis MN 55454
| | - Scott Makeig
- Swartz Center for Computational Neuroscience, University of California San Diego, La Jolla CA 92093-0559
| | - William G. Iacono
- Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Minneapolis MN 55455
| | - Stephen M. Malone
- Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research, University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Minneapolis MN 55455
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17
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Pickens CL, Kallenberger P, Pajser A, Fisher H. Voluntary alcohol access during adolescence/early adulthood, but not during adulthood, causes faster omission contingency learning. Behav Brain Res 2019; 370:111918. [PMID: 31095991 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2019.111918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2019] [Revised: 03/28/2019] [Accepted: 04/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
In omission contingency training, rodents learn to suppress their natural tendency to approach or touch a reward-predictive cue (termed "autoshaping" or "sign-tracking" responses) if the approach/touching responses lead to the omission of the reward. Previous research has shown that high levels of alcohol exposure (through alcohol vapor exposure) or adolescent alcohol consumption (with some versions of the omission contingency task) can lead to faster omission contingency learning. However, the alcohol exposure procedures and/or omission contingency task parameters differed between these different demonstrations. It was unclear whether the same voluntary alcohol consumption procedures during adolescence/early adulthood and/or adulthood would lead to faster omission contingency learning in one or both age groups. Here, rats received 6 weeks of chronic intermittent access to 20% alcohol or water from PND 26-66 (adolescence/early adulthood in Exp. 1) or PND 68-108 (adulthood in Exp. 2) and began behavioral training (autoshaping training followed by omission contingency training) several days later. We found no evidence that alcohol access at either age altered the number of trials with a sign-tracking response on the levers during autoshaping training. However, alcohol access during adolescence/early adulthood, but not during adulthood, led to faster learning to withhold responding on the lever under omission contingencies during the subsequent phase. We also found no evidence that the level of alcohol consumption was correlated with sign-tracking behavior in the autoshaping phase or with the suppression of lever-pressing during the omission contingency phase. Our results suggest that adolescent/early adult rats have increased vulnerability, compared with adults, to some long-term behavioral effects of voluntary alcohol consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles L Pickens
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA.
| | - Paige Kallenberger
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA
| | - Alisa Pajser
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA
| | - Hayley Fisher
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA
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18
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Jadhav KS, Boutrel B. Prefrontal cortex development and emergence of self-regulatory competence: the two cardinal features of adolescence disrupted in context of alcohol abuse. Eur J Neurosci 2019; 50:2274-2281. [PMID: 30586204 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Revised: 11/29/2018] [Accepted: 12/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Adolescence is a tumultuous period in the lifetime of an individual confronted to major changes in emotional, social and cognitive appraisal. During this period of questioning and doubt, while the executive functions are still maturing, the abstract reasoning remains vague and the response inhibition loose; ultimately the adolescent scarcely resists temptation. Consequently, adolescence is often associated with uninhibited risk-taking, reckless behaviours, among which are alcohol and illicit drugs use. Here, we discuss how the development of the prefrontal cortex (which critically contributes to rational decision-making and temporal processing of complex events) can be associated with the idiosyncratic adolescent behaviour, and potentially uncontrolled alcohol use. Most importantly, we present clinical and preclinical evidence supporting that ethanol exposure has deleterious effects on the adolescent developing brain. Ultimately, we discuss why a late maturing prefrontal cortex represents a ripe candidate to environmental influences that contribute to shape the adolescent brain but, potentially, can also trigger lifelong maladaptive responses, including increased vulnerability to develop substance use disorder later in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kshitij S Jadhav
- Laboratory on the Neurobiology of Addictive and Eating Disorders, Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital, Site de Cery, CH-1008, Prilly, Switzerland
| | - Benjamin Boutrel
- Laboratory on the Neurobiology of Addictive and Eating Disorders, Center for Psychiatric Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital, Site de Cery, CH-1008, Prilly, Switzerland.,Division of Adolescent and Child Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland
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19
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Kawaguchi H, Taguchi M, Sukigara M, Sakuragi S, Sugiyama N, Chiba H, Kawasaki T. Evaluation of cognitive and social functioning in patients requiring long-term inpatient psychiatric care using the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health: a large-scale, multi-institutional observational study. Disabil Rehabil 2018; 40:2538-2544. [DOI: 10.1080/09638288.2017.1340980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hideaki Kawaguchi
- Japan Psychiatric Hospitals Association, Tokyo, Japan
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | | | - Masune Sukigara
- Japan Psychiatric Hospitals Association, Tokyo, Japan
- Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Nagoya City University, Nagoya, Japan
| | | | | | - Hisomu Chiba
- Japan Psychiatric Hospitals Association, Tokyo, Japan
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20
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Luby JL, Agrawal A, Belden A, Whalen D, Tillman R, Barch D. Developmental Trajectories of the Orbitofrontal Cortex and Anhedonia in Middle Childhood and Risk for Substance Use in Adolescence in a Longitudinal Sample of Depressed and Healthy Preschoolers. Am J Psychiatry 2018; 175:1010-1021. [PMID: 29558817 PMCID: PMC6150861 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2018.17070777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Deficits in reward processing are established in mood and substance use disorders and are known risk factors for these disorders. Volume reductions of the orbitofrontal cortex and the striatum, regions that subserve neural response to reward, have been shown to be related to anhedonia in depressive and substance use disorders. The authors sought to investigate how structural maturation of these regions in childhood varies with level of anhedonia and predicts later substance use. METHOD The study employed data from a sample of depressed and healthy preschoolers studied longitudinally that included three waves of neuroimaging from school age to adolescence. Three years after scan 3, at ages 13-18, participants underwent a comprehensive behavioral and substance use assessment. Multilevel modeling was used to investigate the relationship between anhedonia and the growth trajectories of the striatum and orbitofrontal cortex. Zero-inflated Poisson regression models were then used to determine whether the intercepts and slopes of these trajectories predicted later alcohol and marijuana use frequency in adolescence. RESULTS The anhedonia-by-age interaction was significant in the multilevel modeling of orbitofrontal cortical but not striatal volume. Higher anhedonia ratings were significantly associated with steeper decline in orbitofrontal cortical volume with age. Orbitofrontal cortical volume and thickness at age 12 and trajectory over time significantly and negatively predicted subsequent alcohol and marijuana use frequency but not depression during adolescence. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that the development of the orbitofrontal cortex during childhood is strongly linked to experiences of anhedonia and that these growth trajectories predict substance use during a developmentally critical period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joan L. Luby
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA,Corresponding Author: Joan L. Luby, M.D.; Washington University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Box 8511, 660 S. Euclid, St. Louis, MO, 63110; phone 314-286-2730; fax 314-286-2732;
| | - Arpana Agrawal
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Andy Belden
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Diana Whalen
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Rebecca Tillman
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Deanna Barch
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University in St. Louis, 660 S. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA,Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, One Brookings Dr., St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA
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21
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Mahedy L, Field M, Gage S, Hammerton G, Heron J, Hickman M, Munafò MR. Alcohol Use in Adolescence and Later Working Memory: Findings From a Large Population-Based Birth Cohort. Alcohol Alcohol 2018; 53:251-258. [PMID: 29329371 PMCID: PMC5913665 DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agx113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2017] [Accepted: 12/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Aims The study aimed to examine the association between adolescent alcohol use and working memory (WM) using a large population sample. Methods Data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children were used to investigate the association between alcohol use at age 15 years and WM 3 years later, assessed using the N-back task (N ~ 3300). A three-category ordinal variable captured mutually exclusive alcohol groupings ranging in order of severity (i.e. low alcohol users, frequent drinkers and frequent/binge drinkers). Differential dropout was accounted for using multiple imputation and inverse probability weighting. Adjustment was made for potential confounders. Results There was evidence of an association between frequent/binge drinking (compared to the low alcohol group) and poorer performance on the 3-back task after adjusting for sociodemographic confounding variables, WM at age 11 years, and experience of a head injury/unconsciousness before age 11 years (β = −0.23, 95% CI = −0.37 to −0.09, P = 0.001). However, this association was attenuated (β = −0.12, 95% CI = −0.27 to 0.03, P = 0.11) when further adjusted for baseline measures of weekly cigarette tobacco and cannabis use. Weaker associations were found for the less demanding 2-back task. We found no evidence to suggest frequent drinking was associated with performance on either task. Conclusions We found weak evidence of an association between sustained heavy alcohol use in mid-adolescence and impaired WM 3 years later. Although we cannot fully rule out the possibility of reverse causation, several potential confounding variables were included to address the directionality of the relationship between WM and alcohol use problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liam Mahedy
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Oakfield Grove, Bristol BS8 2BN, UK
| | - Matt Field
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Bedford Street South, Liverpool L69 7ZA, UK.,UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Suzanne Gage
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Liverpool, Bedford Street South, Liverpool L69 7ZA, UK
| | - Gemma Hammerton
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Oakfield Grove, Bristol BS8 2BN, UK
| | - Jon Heron
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Oakfield Grove, Bristol BS8 2BN, UK
| | - Matt Hickman
- Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Oakfield Grove, Bristol BS8 2BN, UK
| | - Marcus R Munafò
- School of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, Priory Road, Bristol, BS8 1TU, UK.,MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit (IEU), University of Bristol, Oakfield Grove, Bristol BS8 2BN, UK.,UK Centre for Tobacco and Alcohol Studies, School of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, Priory Road, Bristol BS8 ITU, UK
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22
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Ray MH, Hite T, Gallo M, Pickens CL. Operant over-responding is more sensitive than reversal learning for revealing behavioral changes after withdrawal from alcohol consumption. Physiol Behav 2018; 196:176-184. [PMID: 30189181 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.08.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2018] [Revised: 08/28/2018] [Accepted: 08/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
In humans, prior alcohol use is linked with impulsivity and impaired decision-making, but the nature of this relationship is unclear. In a previous study in rats, we found that prior alcohol access led to over-responding in go/no-go discrimination training, but had no effect on discrimination learning. It was unclear whether this over-responding effect would occur in a reversal learning task, or whether prior alcohol would impair reversal learning in our task. In the present experiments, we determined whether six weeks of chronic intermittent alcohol access would induce over-responding or impair reversal learning in our task. Our task allowed for multiple responses/trial with limited reinforcement, so over-responding could be assessed. In Exp. 1, we gave three days of discrimination training prior to access to 20% alcohol or water, then reversed task contingencies starting 4 days after the end of alcohol access. In Exp. 2, we gave either three or six days of discrimination training prior to the same alcohol access and reversal learning procedures to determine if the original training length would affect alcohol's behavioral effects. We found no reversal learning deficits in either experiment. Across both experiments, we found that the Alcohol group exhibited over-responding to the active lever, but this effect was smaller than in our previous discrimination experiments. Our data suggest that there are behavioral changes after voluntary alcohol access that can be missed by some discrimination/reversal learning assessments, and our over-responding task can detect these transient changes. However, over-responding is more pronounced in discrimination than reversal learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madelyn H Ray
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, 492 Bluemont Hall, 1114 Mid-Campus Dr. North, Manhattan, KS, United States, 66506..
| | - Tyler Hite
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, 492 Bluemont Hall, 1114 Mid-Campus Dr. North, Manhattan, KS, United States, 66506..
| | - Mark Gallo
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, 492 Bluemont Hall, 1114 Mid-Campus Dr. North, Manhattan, KS, United States, 66506..
| | - Charles L Pickens
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Kansas State University, 492 Bluemont Hall, 1114 Mid-Campus Dr. North, Manhattan, KS, United States, 66506..
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23
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Obst E, Schad DJ, Huys QJ, Sebold M, Nebe S, Sommer C, Smolka MN, Zimmermann US. Drunk decisions: Alcohol shifts choice from habitual towards goal-directed control in adolescent intermediate-risk drinkers. J Psychopharmacol 2018; 32:855-866. [PMID: 29764270 DOI: 10.1177/0269881118772454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Studies in humans and animals suggest a shift from goal-directed to habitual decision-making in addiction. We therefore tested whether acute alcohol administration reduces goal-directed and promotes habitual decision-making, and whether these effects are moderated by self-reported drinking problems. METHODS Fifty-three socially drinking males completed the two-step task in a randomised crossover design while receiving an intravenous infusion of ethanol (blood alcohol level=80 mg%), or placebo. To minimise potential bias by long-standing heavy drinking and subsequent neuropsychological impairment, we tested 18- to 19-year-old adolescents. RESULTS Alcohol administration consistently reduced habitual, model-free decisions, while its effects on goal-directed, model-based behaviour varied as a function of drinking problems measured with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. While adolescents with low risk for drinking problems (scoring <8) exhibited an alcohol-induced numerical reduction in goal-directed choices, intermediate-risk drinkers showed a shift away from habitual towards goal-directed decision-making, such that alcohol possibly even improved their performance. CONCLUSIONS We assume that alcohol disrupted basic cognitive functions underlying habitual and goal-directed decisions in low-risk drinkers, thereby enhancing hasty choices. Further, we speculate that intermediate-risk drinkers benefited from alcohol as a negative reinforcer that reduced unpleasant emotional states, possibly displaying a novel risk factor for drinking in adolescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabeth Obst
- 1 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany
| | - Daniel J Schad
- 2 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.,3 Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Potsdam, Germany
| | - Quentin Jm Huys
- 4 Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Zürich, Switzerland.,5 Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zürich, Switzerland.,6 Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Miriam Sebold
- 2 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.,3 Social and Preventive Medicine, University of Potsdam, Germany
| | - Stephan Nebe
- 1 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany
| | - Christian Sommer
- 1 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany
| | - Michael N Smolka
- 1 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany
| | - Ulrich S Zimmermann
- 1 Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany
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Luciana M, Bjork JM, Nagel BJ, Barch DM, Gonzalez R, Nixon SJ, Banich MT. Adolescent neurocognitive development and impacts of substance use: Overview of the adolescent brain cognitive development (ABCD) baseline neurocognition battery. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2018; 32:67-79. [PMID: 29525452 PMCID: PMC6039970 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2018.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 277] [Impact Index Per Article: 46.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2017] [Revised: 02/11/2018] [Accepted: 02/13/2018] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Adolescence is characterized by numerous social, hormonal and physical changes, as well as a marked increase in risk-taking behaviors. Dual systems models attribute adolescent risk-taking to tensions between developing capacities for cognitive control and motivational strivings, which may peak at this time. A comprehensive understanding of neurocognitive development during the adolescent period is necessary to permit the distinction between premorbid vulnerabilities and consequences of behaviors such as substance use. Thus, the prospective assessment of cognitive development is fundamental to the aims of the newly launched Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) Consortium. This paper details the rationale for ABC'lected measures of neurocognition, presents preliminary descriptive data on an initial sample of 2299 participants, and provides a context for how this large-scale project can inform our understanding of adolescent neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Luciana
- University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, United States.
| | - J M Bjork
- Virginia Commonwealth University, United States.
| | - B J Nagel
- Oregon Health Sciences University, United States.
| | - D M Barch
- Washington University, St. Louis, United States.
| | - R Gonzalez
- Florida International University, United States.
| | - S J Nixon
- University of Florida, United States.
| | - M T Banich
- University of Colorado, Boulder, United States.
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25
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Waldron JS, Malone SM, McGue M, Iacono WG. A Co-Twin Control Study of the Relationship Between Adolescent Drinking and Adult Outcomes. J Stud Alcohol Drugs 2018; 79:635-643. [PMID: 30079880 PMCID: PMC6090105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2017] [Accepted: 02/24/2018] [Indexed: 03/30/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The effect of drinking during adolescence on adult functioning is a public health concern. A variety of mechanisms have been proposed where drinking in adolescence has an adverse impact on later outcomes; unfortunately, few studies have included methodologies that account for confounding influences that might link adolescent drinking with subsequent problems. To address this limitation, the current study used a co-twin control design, which uses members of twin pairs that differ from each other on their adolescent drinking. METHOD We used a prospective longitudinal sample drawn from the Minnesota Twin Family Study, consisting of 2,764 twins (1,434 female) assessed at regular follow-ups from age 17 to age 29. Adolescent drinking was defined by measures of early initiation of use and a measure of overall consumption at age 17. Adult outcomes included indicators of substance use, antisocial behavior, personality, socioeconomic status, and social functioning. RESULTS The co-twin control analyses suggested that many of the associations between adolescent drinking and later outcomes were largely influenced by genetic confounding. However, for the measure of adolescent alcohol consumption, results were consistent with a small causal impact of drinking on multiple domains of adult functioning. This pattern was less consistently observed for the measures of early initiation. CONCLUSIONS These results provide empirical justification for policies designed to alleviate long-term consequences associated with adolescent drinking by reducing the level of alcohol consumption in adolescence. In contrast, the evidence did not suggest that delaying drinking would have a broad impact on later-life adjustment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan Sparks Waldron
- College of Applied Behavioral Sciences, University of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana
| | - Stephen M. Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
| | - Matt McGue
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
| | - William G. Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
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26
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Wilson S, Malone SM, Hunt RH, Thomas KM, Iacono WG. Problematic alcohol use and hippocampal volume in a female sample: disentangling cause from consequence using a co-twin control study design. Psychol Med 2018; 48:1673-1684. [PMID: 29108528 PMCID: PMC5938157 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291717003166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although there is extensive evidence that problematic alcohol use is associated with smaller hippocampal volume, the typical cross-sectional study design cannot determine whether hippocampal deviations reflect pre-existing liability toward problematic alcohol use or instead reflect an alcohol exposure-related effect. We used the co-twin control study design, which capitalizes upon differences within a twin pair in levels of drinking, to differentiate pre-existing liability from an effect of alcohol exposure. METHODS The sample included 100 female twins, prospectively assessed from ages 11 to 24. Problematic alcohol use was assessed dimensionally and included indicators of quantity, frequency, and density of alcohol use and intoxication. Hippocampal volume was assessed using magnetic resonance imaging. RESULTS Problematic alcohol use (proximal and cumulative) was associated with significantly smaller left and right hippocampal volume. Follow-up co-twin control analyses that partitioned individual-level alcohol effects into pre-existing, familial liability and non-shared alcohol exposure-related effects indicated that this association reflected alcohol exposure. Greater alcohol using twins had smaller hippocampal volume relative to lesser alcohol using co-twins, beyond effects of their shared genetic and environmental liability toward problematic alcohol use. Results held accounting for recent alcohol use, other substance use, externalizing and internalizing psychopathology, personality traits, trauma exposure, and menstrual phase. CONCLUSIONS The association between problematic alcohol use and smaller hippocampal volume likely reflects an alcohol exposure-related effect. Differentiating pre-existing brain deviations that confer risk for problematic alcohol use from those that reflect effects of alcohol on the brain will inform etiological models of addiction and further prevention and intervention efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylia Wilson
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Rd, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Stephen M. Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Rd, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Ruskin H. Hunt
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Rd, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Kathleen M. Thomas
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, 51 E River Rd, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - William G. Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Rd, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
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Waldron JS, Malone SM, McGue M, Iacono WG. A Co-Twin Control Study of the Relationship Between Adolescent Drinking and Adult Outcomes. J Stud Alcohol Drugs 2018; 79:635-643. [PMID: 30079880 PMCID: PMC6090105 DOI: 10.15288/jsad.2018.79.635] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2017] [Accepted: 02/24/2018] [Indexed: 07/23/2024] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The effect of drinking during adolescence on adult functioning is a public health concern. A variety of mechanisms have been proposed where drinking in adolescence has an adverse impact on later outcomes; unfortunately, few studies have included methodologies that account for confounding influences that might link adolescent drinking with subsequent problems. To address this limitation, the current study used a co-twin control design, which uses members of twin pairs that differ from each other on their adolescent drinking. METHOD We used a prospective longitudinal sample drawn from the Minnesota Twin Family Study, consisting of 2,764 twins (1,434 female) assessed at regular follow-ups from age 17 to age 29. Adolescent drinking was defined by measures of early initiation of use and a measure of overall consumption at age 17. Adult outcomes included indicators of substance use, antisocial behavior, personality, socioeconomic status, and social functioning. RESULTS The co-twin control analyses suggested that many of the associations between adolescent drinking and later outcomes were largely influenced by genetic confounding. However, for the measure of adolescent alcohol consumption, results were consistent with a small causal impact of drinking on multiple domains of adult functioning. This pattern was less consistently observed for the measures of early initiation. CONCLUSIONS These results provide empirical justification for policies designed to alleviate long-term consequences associated with adolescent drinking by reducing the level of alcohol consumption in adolescence. In contrast, the evidence did not suggest that delaying drinking would have a broad impact on later-life adjustment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan Sparks Waldron
- College of Applied Behavioral Sciences, University of Indianapolis, Indianapolis, Indiana
| | - Stephen M. Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
| | - Matt McGue
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
| | - William G. Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota
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A Discordance Weighting Approach Estimating Occupational and Income Returns to Education. Twin Res Hum Genet 2018; 21:191-202. [DOI: 10.1017/thg.2018.20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Schooling differences between identical twins are often utilized as a natural experiment to estimate returns to education. Despite longstanding doubts about the truly random nature of within-twin-pair schooling discordance, such discordance has not yet been understood comprehensively, in terms of diverse between- and within-family peer, academic, familial, social, and health exposures. Here, a predictive analysis using national U.S. midlife twin data shows that within-pair schooling differences are endogenous to a variety of childhood exposures. Using discordance propensities, returns to education under a true natural experiment are simulated. Results for midlife occupation and income reveal differences in estimated returns to education that are statistically insignificant, suggesting that twin-based estimates of causal effects are robust. Moreover, identical and fraternal twins show similar levels of discordance endogeneity and similar responses to propensity weighting, suggesting that the identical twins may not provide demonstrably better leverage in the causal identification of educational returns.
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Relationship of low doses of alcohol voluntarily consumed during adolescence and early adulthood with subsequent behavioral flexibility. Behav Pharmacol 2018; 28:531-544. [PMID: 28906303 DOI: 10.1097/fbp.0000000000000331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Previous alcohol use is associated with impaired decision-making and impulsivity in humans, but the relationship between alcohol use and decision-making/impulsivity is unclear. In two experiments, we determined whether chronic intermittent access to alcohol during adolescence and early adulthood would alter or be correlated with performance in a go/no-go reversal task, a devaluation task, or operant extinction. Rats received 6 weeks of chronic intermittent access to 20% alcohol or water from postnatal day 26 to 66 and then behavioral testing was initiated 1.5-2.5 weeks later. We found no evidence that voluntary alcohol consumption altered behavior in either task. However, we found that rats that consumed more alcohol made fewer commission errors in reversal learning compared with rats that drank less. There was no relationship between alcohol consumption and reversal learning omission errors. Alcohol consumption was not correlated with the magnitude of the devaluation effect, but rats that consumed more alcohol showed faster extinction during the devaluation test. Our results suggest that the relationships between behavioral flexibility and alcohol consumption may represent individual differences. Future work will determine the neurobiological and genetic bases of these behavioral differences.
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Almy B, Kuskowski M, Malone SM, Myers E, Luciana M. A longitudinal analysis of adolescent decision-making with the Iowa Gambling Task. Dev Psychol 2018; 54:689-702. [PMID: 29154644 PMCID: PMC5886802 DOI: 10.1037/dev0000460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Many researchers have used the standard Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) to assess decision-making in adolescence given increased risk-taking during this developmental period. Most studies are cross-sectional and do not observe behavioral trajectories over time, limiting interpretation. This longitudinal study investigated healthy adolescents' and young adults' IGT performance across a 10-year span. A total of 189 individuals (aged 9-23 at baseline) completed a baseline session and were followed at 2-year intervals yielding 5 time-points. IGT deck contingencies were shuffled over time to reduce practice effects. IGT performance (good minus bad decisions) was measured at each assessment point and separated into 3 metrics: overall performance (all blocks), decision-making under ambiguity (blocks 1 and 2), and decision-making under risk (blocks 3, 4, and 5). Covariates included estimated intelligence and affective dispositions as measured by the Behavioral Inhibition and Activation System (BIS/BAS) Scales. A linear effect of age yielded the best fit when comparing linear and quadratic effects of age on overall IGT performance. Age and intelligence positively predicted overall performance, whereas affective approach tendencies (BAS) negatively predicted overall performance. Practice effects were observed and controlled for. Models of ambiguity and risk metrics yielded different patterns of significant predictors. Age predicted better performance and affective approach tendencies predicted worse performance for both metrics. Intelligence was a significant predictor for risk, but not ambiguity. This longitudinal study extends prior work by showing age-related improvements in reward-based decision-making and associating those improvements with cognitive and affective variables. Implications of the results for adolescent development are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon Almy
- Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, 51 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, 717 Delaware Street SE, Ste. 333, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
| | - Michael Kuskowski
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Stephen M. Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Evan Myers
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Monica Luciana
- Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, 717 Delaware Street SE, Ste. 333, Minneapolis, MN 55414, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 East River Road, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
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Meda SA, Hawkins KA, Dager AD, Tennen H, Khadka S, Austad CS, Wood RM, Raskin S, Fallahi CR, Pearlson GD. Longitudinal Effects of Alcohol Consumption on the Hippocampus and Parahippocampus in College Students. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY: COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2018; 3:610-617. [PMID: 29680476 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2018.02.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2018] [Accepted: 02/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The hazardous effects of alcohol consumption on both the hippocampus and memory have been well established. However, the longitudinal effects of ethanol on the developing brain and related consequences on memory are not well explored. Given the above, we investigated the longitudinal effects of college drinking on hippocampal volume in emerging college adults. METHODS Data were derived from the longitudinal Brain and Alcohol Research with College Students study. A subset of 146 freshmen (mean age at baseline = 18.5 years) underwent brain magnetic resonance imaging scans at baseline and 24 months later. Four drinking-related measures derived from monthly surveys were reduced to a single alcohol use index using principal component analysis. Gray matter volumetric change (GMV-c) data were derived using a longitudinal pipeline. Voxelwise hippocampal/para-hippocampal GMV-c associations with the drinking index were derived using a multiple regression framework within SPM12. Supplementary associations were assessed between GMV-c and memory scores computed from the California Verbal Learning Test-II (assessed at the end of the study), and between GMV-c and total alcohol-induced memory blackouts. RESULTS Larger alcohol use index was associated with an accelerated GMV decline in the hippocampus/para-hippocampus. Also, larger hippocampal volume decline was associated with poorer memory performance and more memory blackouts. CONCLUSIONS Our study extends prior cross-sectional literature by showing that a heavier drinking burden while in college is associated with greater hippocampal GMV decline that is in turn associated with poorer memory scores, all of which could ultimately have a significant impact on student success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shashwath A Meda
- Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Hartford HealthCare Corporation, Hartford, Connecticut.
| | - Keith A Hawkins
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
| | - Alecia D Dager
- Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Hartford HealthCare Corporation, Hartford, Connecticut; Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
| | - Howard Tennen
- Department of Community Medicine, University of Connecticut School of Medicine, Farmington, Connecticut
| | - Sabin Khadka
- Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Hartford HealthCare Corporation, Hartford, Connecticut
| | - Carol S Austad
- Department of Psychology, Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, Connecticut
| | - Rebecca M Wood
- Department of Psychology, Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, Connecticut
| | - Sarah Raskin
- Department of Psychology and Neurosciences, Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut
| | - Carolyn R Fallahi
- Department of Psychology, Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, Connecticut
| | - Godfrey D Pearlson
- Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Hartford HealthCare Corporation, Hartford, Connecticut; Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
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Harper J, Malone SM, Iacono WG. Impact of alcohol use on EEG dynamics of response inhibition: a cotwin control analysis. Addict Biol 2018; 23:256-267. [PMID: 27859998 DOI: 10.1111/adb.12481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2016] [Revised: 10/24/2016] [Accepted: 11/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Research indicates that alcohol misuse is associated with behavioral disinhibition, but the neurophysiological mechanisms governing this relationship remain largely unknown. Recent work suggests that successful inhibition and cognitive control involve electrophysiological theta-band dynamics, including medial frontal cortex (MFC) power enhancement and functional connectivity between the MFC and dorsal prefrontal cortex (dPFC) regions, which may be disrupted by alcohol misuse. In addition, research suggests that, compared to men, women are at heightened risk of experiencing the negative physical and neurocognitive correlates of drinking. The present study tested the hypothesis that alcohol misuse has a deleterious effect on theta-band response inhibition EEG dynamics in a sample of 300 24-year-old same-sex twins. A cotwin control (CTC) design was used to disentangle premorbid risk for alcohol use from the causal effects of alcohol exposure. Drinking was negatively associated with theta-band MFC power and MFC-dPFC connectivity during response inhibition, and this effect was stronger among women. The CTC analysis suggested that, for women, reduced nogo-related theta-band MFC power and MFC-dPFC connectivity were both consistent with the potential deleterious causal effects of alcohol exposure. These findings suggest that diminished theta-band MFC power and MFC-dPFC connectivity may be neurophysiological mechanisms underlying alcohol-related disinhibition. Although preliminary, these results suggest that normative levels of alcohol use during emerging adulthood have potential sex-specific causal effects on response inhibition EEG dynamics, and thus have potentially significant public health implications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Harper
- Department of Psychology; University of Minnesota; USA
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Effects of acute alcohol ingestion on eye movements and cognition: A double-blind, placebo-controlled study. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0186061. [PMID: 29023550 PMCID: PMC5638320 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2016] [Accepted: 09/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Alcohol is one of the most consumed psychoactive substances in the world, and the negative impact related to alcohol use has become a worldwide public health issue. Alcohol is able to affect diffusely several areas of the Central Nervous System, which could impair visual functions, including eye movements, and cognitive processes. The objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of moderate alcohol intake in eyes movements, as an indicator of cognitive processing underlying the visual search in a the Maze task. We investigated the concentration of 0.08% blood alcohol concentration (BAC), using an intra-subject, double-blind, and placebo-controlled experimental design with a sample size of 20 young adults (11 men and nine women). All volunteers participated in both conditions, i.e., alcohol (0.08%) and placebo (0.00%), in a counterbalanced order. We use the Tobii TX300 eye tracker to evaluate eye movements during completion of Visual Maze Test. The results showed significant differences in the following eye movement patterns: the first fixation latency, number and duration of fixations (mean and total), the number and duration of saccades (mean and total), and the total execution time in the test. In addition, we investigate the areas of interest (AOI), decision points in which the participant must decide which course to follow. We verified that the participants in the alcohol condition had a significantly greater number of fixations in both AOI, in comparison to the placebo condition. Overall, our findings confirm that moderate doses of alcohol can change the eye movements of young adults. These alterations may evidence the influence of alcohol in cognitive processes, such as flexibility, attention, and planning, which are required during resolution of Maze Task.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND A number of studies reports reduced hippocampal volume in individuals who engage in problematic alcohol use. However, the magnitude of the difference in hippocampal volume between individuals with v. without problematic alcohol use has varied widely, and there have been null findings. Moreover, the studies comprise diverse alcohol use constructs and samples, including clinically significant alcohol use disorders and subclinical but problematic alcohol use (e.g. binge drinking), adults and adolescents, and males and females. METHODS We conducted the first quantitative synthesis of the published empirical research on associations between problematic alcohol use and hippocampal volume. In total, 23 studies were identified and selected for inclusion in the meta-analysis; effects sizes were aggregated using a random-effects model. RESULTS Problematic alcohol use was associated with significantly smaller hippocampal volume (d = -0.53). Moderator analyses indicated that effects were stronger for clinically significant v. subclinical alcohol use and among adults relative to adolescents; effects did not differ among males and females. CONCLUSIONS Problematic alcohol use is associated with reduced hippocampal volume. The moderate overall effect size suggests the need for larger samples than are typically included in studies of alcohol use and hippocampal volume. Because the existing literature is almost entirely cross-sectional, future research using causally informative study designs is needed to determine whether this association reflects premorbid risk for the development of problematic alcohol use and/or whether alcohol has a neurotoxic effect on the hippocampus.
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Affiliation(s)
- S. Wilson
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 E River Rd, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - J. L. Bair
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 E River Rd, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - K. M. Thomas
- Institute of Child Development, 51 E River Rd, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - W. G. Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, 75 E River Rd, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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The utility of twins in developmental cognitive neuroscience research: How twins strengthen the ABCD research design. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2017; 32:30-42. [PMID: 29107609 PMCID: PMC5847422 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2017.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2017] [Revised: 08/31/2017] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The ABCD twin study will elucidate the genetic and environmental contributions to a wide range of mental and physical health outcomes in children, including substance use, brain and behavioral development, and their interrelationship. Comparisons within and between monozygotic and dizygotic twin pairs, further powered by multiple assessments, provide information about genetic and environmental contributions to developmental associations, and enable stronger tests of causal hypotheses, than do comparisons involving unrelated children. Thus a sub-study of 800 pairs of same-sex twins was embedded within the overall Adolescent Brain and Cognitive Development (ABCD) design. The ABCD Twin Hub comprises four leading centers for twin research in Minnesota, Colorado, Virginia, and Missouri. Each site is enrolling 200 twin pairs, as well as singletons. The twins are recruited from registries of all twin births in each State during 2006-2008. Singletons at each site are recruited following the same school-based procedures as the rest of the ABCD study. This paper describes the background and rationale for the ABCD twin study, the ascertainment of twin pairs and implementation strategy at each site, and the details of the proposed analytic strategies to quantify genetic and environmental influences and test hypotheses critical to the aims of the ABCD study.
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Harper J, Malone SM, Iacono WG. Testing the effects of adolescent alcohol use on adult conflict-related theta dynamics. Clin Neurophysiol 2017; 128:2358-2368. [PMID: 28935223 DOI: 10.1016/j.clinph.2017.08.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2017] [Revised: 08/07/2017] [Accepted: 08/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Adolescent alcohol use (AAU) is associated with brain anomalies, but less is known about long-term neurocognitive effects. Despite theoretical models linking AAU to diminished cognitive control, empirical work testing this relationship with specific cognitive control neural correlates (e.g., prefrontal theta-band EEG dynamics) remains scarce. A longitudinal twin design was used to test the hypothesis that greater AAU is associated with reduced conflict-related EEG theta-band dynamics in adulthood, and to examine the genetic/environmental etiology of this association. METHODS In a large (N=718) population-based prospective twin sample, AAU was assessed at ages 11/14/17. Twins completed a flanker task at age 29 to elicit EEG theta-band medial frontal cortex (MFC) power and medial-dorsal prefrontal cortex (MFC-dPFC) connectivity. Two complementary analytic methods (cotwin control analysis; biometric modeling) were used to disentangle the genetic/shared environmental risk towards AAU from possible alcohol exposure effects on theta dynamics. RESULTS AAU was negatively associated with adult cognitive control-related theta-band MFC power and MFC-dPFC functional connectivity. Genetic influences primarily underlie these associations. CONCLUSIONS Findings provide strong evidence that genetic factors underlie the comorbidity between AAU and diminished cognitive control-related theta dynamics in adulthood. SIGNIFICANCE Conflict-related theta-band dynamics appear to be candidate brain-based endophenotypes/mechanisms for AAU.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy Harper
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, USA.
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Silveri MM, Dager AD, Cohen-Gilbert JE, Sneider JT. Neurobiological signatures associated with alcohol and drug use in the human adolescent brain. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 70:244-259. [PMID: 27377691 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.06.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 86] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2016] [Revised: 06/17/2016] [Accepted: 06/30/2016] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Magnetic resonance (MR) techniques provide opportunities to non-invasively characterize neurobiological milestones of adolescent brain development. Juxtaposed to the critical finalization of brain development is initiation of alcohol and substance use, and increased frequency and quantity of use, patterns that can lead to abuse and addiction. This review provides a comprehensive overview of existing MR studies of adolescent alcohol and drug users. The most common alterations reported across substance used and MR modalities are in the frontal lobe (63% of published studies). This is not surprising, given that this is the last region to reach neurobiological adulthood. Comparatively, evidence is less consistent regarding alterations in regions that mature earlier (e.g., amygdala, hippocampus), however newer techniques now permit investigations beyond regional approaches that are uncovering network-level vulnerabilities. Regardless of whether neurobiological signatures exist prior to the initiation of use, this body of work provides important direction for ongoing prospective investigations of adolescent brain development, and the significant impact of alcohol and substance use on the brain during the second decade of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisa M Silveri
- Neurodevelopmental Laboratory on Addictions and Mental Health, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA; McLean Imaging Center, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Alecia D Dager
- Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Hartford, CT, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Julia E Cohen-Gilbert
- Neurodevelopmental Laboratory on Addictions and Mental Health, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA; McLean Imaging Center, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jennifer T Sneider
- Neurodevelopmental Laboratory on Addictions and Mental Health, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA; McLean Imaging Center, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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Burwell SJ, Malone SM, Iacono WG. One-year developmental stability and covariance among oddball, novelty, go/no-go, and flanker event-related potentials in adolescence: A monozygotic twin study. Psychophysiology 2016; 53:991-1007. [PMID: 26997525 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2015] [Accepted: 02/19/2016] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
ERP measures may index genetic risk for psychopathology before disorder onset in adolescence, but little is known about their developmental rank-order stability during this period of significant brain maturation. We studied ERP stability in 48 pairs of identical twins (age 14-16 years) tested 1 year apart. Trial-averaged voltage waveforms were extracted from electroencephalographic recordings from oddball/novelty, go/no-go, and flanker tasks, and 16 amplitude measures were examined. Members of twin pairs were highly similar, whether based on ERP amplitude measures (intraclass correlation [ICC] median = .64, range = .44-.86) or three factor scores (all ICCs ≥ .69) derived from them. Stability was high overall, with 69% of the 16 individual measures generating stability coefficients exceeding .70 and all factor scores showing stability above .75. Measures from 10 difference waveforms calculated from paired conditions within tasks were also examined, and were associated with lower twin similarity (ICC median = .52, .38-.64) and developmental stability (only 30% exceeding .70). In a supplemental analysis, we found significant developmental stability for error-related negativity (range = .45-.55) and positivity (.56-.70) measures when average waveforms were based on one or more trials, and that these values were equivalent to those derived from averages using the current field recommendation, which requires six or more trials. Overall, we conclude that the studied brain measures are largely stable over 1 year of mid- to late adolescence, likely reflecting familial etiologic influences on brain functions pertaining to cognitive control and salience recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott J Burwell
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Stephen M Malone
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - William G Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
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Gonzalez R, Schuster RM, Mermelstein RM, Diviak KR. The role of decision-making in cannabis-related problems among young adults. Drug Alcohol Depend 2015; 154. [PMID: 26199058 PMCID: PMC4536096 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.06.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Deficits in decision-making and episodic memory are often reported among heavy cannabis users, yet little is known on how they influence negative consequences from cannabis use. Individual differences in decision-making may explain, in part, why some individuals experience significant problems from their cannabis use whereas others do not. We hypothesized that poor decision-making would moderate relationships between amount of cannabis use and problems from cannabis use whereas episodic memory performance would not. METHOD Young adult cannabis users (n=52) with cannabis as their drug of choice and with minimal comorbidities completed semi-structured interviews, self-report questionnaires, and measures of neurocognitive functioning, with decision-making accessed via the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), episodic memory via the Hopkins Verbal Learning Test - Revised (HVLT) and problems from cannabis use with the Marijuana Problems Scale. RESULTS Strong relationships were observed between amount of cannabis use (lifetime, 12-month, and 30-day) and problems reported from use, but only among participants with low (impaired) decision-making (R(2)=.39 to .51; p<.01). No significant relationships were observed among those with better (low average to high average) decision-making performance (p>.05). In contrast, episodic memory performance was not a significant moderator of the relationship between amount of cannabis use and cannabis problems (p>.05). CONCLUSIONS Cannabis users with poor decision-making may be at greater risk for experiencing significant negative consequences from their cannabis use. Our results lend further support to emerging evidence of decision-making as a risk factor for addiction and extend these findings to cannabis users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raul Gonzalez
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, 11200 SW 8th St, Miami, FL 33199, United States; Center for Children and Families, Florida International University, Miami, 11200 SW 8th St, Miami, FL 33199, United States.
| | - Randi M. Schuster
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, 55 Fruit Street, Boston, MA 02114
| | - Robin M. Mermelstein
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, 1200 W Harrison St, Chicago, IL 60607,Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, 1747 W Roosevelt Rd, Chicago, IL 60608
| | - Kathleen R. Diviak
- Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, 1747 W Roosevelt Rd, Chicago, IL 60608
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Adolescent drinking and brain morphometry: A co-twin control analysis. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2015; 16:130-138. [PMID: 26278682 PMCID: PMC4691358 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2015.07.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2015] [Revised: 07/09/2015] [Accepted: 07/21/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Examined brain structures previously linked to adolescent drinking. Used co-twin control study design to disentangle risk from effects of exposure. Confirmed several previous findings primarily reflecting preexisting vulnerability.
Developmental changes in structure and functioning are thought to make the adolescent brain particularly sensitive to the negative effects of alcohol. Although alcohol use disorders are relatively rare in adolescence, the initiation of alcohol use, including problematic use, becomes increasingly prevalent during this period. The present study examined associations between normative drinking (alcohol initiation, binge drinking, intoxication) and brain morphometry in a sample of 96 adolescent monozygotic twins. A priori regions of interest included 11 subcortical and 20 cortical structures implicated in the existing empirical literature as associated with normative alcohol use in adolescence. In addition, co-twin control analyses were used to disentangle risk for alcohol use from consequences of alcohol exposure on the developing brain. Results indicated significant associations reflecting preexisting vulnerability toward problematic alcohol use, including reduced volume of the amygdala, increased volume of the cerebellum, and reduced cortical volume and thickness in several frontal and temporal regions, including the superior and middle frontal gyri, pars triangularis, and middle and inferior temporal gyri. Results also indicated some associations consistent with a neurotoxic effect of alcohol exposure, including reduced volume of the ventral diencephalon and the middle temporal gyrus.
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Iacono WG, Malone SM, Vaidyanathan U, Vrieze SI. Genome-wide scans of genetic variants for psychophysiological endophenotypes: a methodological overview. Psychophysiology 2014; 51:1207-24. [PMID: 25387703 PMCID: PMC4231489 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
This article provides an introductory overview of the investigative strategy employed to evaluate the genetic basis of 17 endophenotypes examined as part of a 20-year data collection effort from the Minnesota Center for Twin and Family Research. Included are characterization of the study samples, descriptive statistics for key properties of the psychophysiological measures, and rationale behind the steps taken in the molecular genetic study design. The statistical approach included (a) biometric analysis of twin and family data, (b) heritability analysis using 527,829 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), (c) genome-wide association analysis of these SNPs and 17,601 autosomal genes, (d) follow-up analyses of candidate SNPs and genes hypothesized to have an association with each endophenotype, (e) rare variant analysis of nonsynonymous SNPs in the exome, and (f) whole genome sequencing association analysis using 27 million genetic variants. These methods were used in the accompanying empirical articles comprising this special issue, Genome-Wide Scans of Genetic Variants for Psychophysiological Endophenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
- William G Iacono
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
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