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Yuan JP, Jaeger EL, Coury SM, Uy JP, Buthmann JL, Ho TC, Gotlib IH. Socioeconomic Disadvantage Moderates the Association of Systemic Inflammation With Amygdala Volume in Adolescents Over a 2-Year Interval: An Exploratory Study. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY. COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2024:S2451-9022(24)00135-6. [PMID: 38815859 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2024.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Revised: 05/03/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Research has demonstrated an association between elevated systemic inflammation and changes in brain function. Affective areas of the brain involved in processing threat (e.g., amygdala) and reward (e.g., nucleus accumbens) appear to be sensitive to inflammation. Early-life stress, such as experiencing low socioeconomic status (SES), may also potentiate this association, but relevant evidence has come primarily from cross-sectional studies of brain function. It is unclear whether similar associations are present between early-life stress, inflammation, and brain structure, particularly in typically developing populations. METHODS We recruited and assessed 50 adolescents (31 females/19 males) from the community (mean [SD] age = 15.5 [1.1] years, range = 13.1-17.5 years) and examined in exploratory analyses whether changes in C-reactive protein (ΔCRP) from blood spots predict changes in gray matter volume (ΔGMV) in the bilateral amygdala and nucleus accumbens over a 2-year period. We also investigated whether experiencing early-life stress, operationalized using a comprehensive composite score of SES disadvantage at the family and neighborhood levels, significantly moderated the association between ΔCRP and ΔGMV. RESULTS We found that ΔCRP was negatively associated with Δamygdala GMV (i.e., increasing CRP levels were associated with decreasing amygdala volume; β = -0.84, p = .012). This effect was stronger in youths who experienced greater SES disadvantage (β = -0.56, p = .025). CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that increases in systemic inflammation are associated with reductions in amygdala GMV in adolescents, potentially signaling accelerated maturation, and that these neuroimmune processes are compounded in adolescents who experienced greater SES disadvantage. Our findings are consistent with theoretical frameworks of neuroimmune associations and suggest that they may influence adolescent neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin P Yuan
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California.
| | - Emma L Jaeger
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California
| | - Saché M Coury
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California; Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | - Jessica P Uy
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California
| | | | - Tiffany C Ho
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California
| | - Ian H Gotlib
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California
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2
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Miller GE, Carroll AL, Armstrong CC, Craske MG, Zinbarg RE, Bookheimer SY, Ka-Yi Chat I, Vinograd M, Young KS, Nusslock R. Major stress in early childhood strengthens the association between peripheral inflammatory activity and corticostriatal responsivity to reward. Brain Behav Immun 2024; 117:215-223. [PMID: 38244947 PMCID: PMC10932835 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2024.01.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Revised: 01/09/2024] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 01/22/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Severe, chronic stress during childhood accentuates vulnerability to mental and physical health problems across the lifespan. To explain this phenomenon, the neuroimmune network hypothesis proposes that childhood stressors amplify signaling between peripheral inflammatory cells and developing brain circuits that support processing of rewards and threats. Here, we conducted a preliminary test of the basic premises of this hypothesis. METHODS 180 adolescents (mean age = 19.1 years; 68.9 % female) with diverse racial and ethnic identities (56.1 % White; 28.3 % Hispanic; 26.1 % Asian) participated. The Childhood Trauma Interview was administered to quantify early adversity. Five inflammatory biomarkers were assayed in antecubital blood - C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-a, and interleukins-6, -8, and -10 - and were averaged to form a composite score. Participants also completed a functional MRI task to measure corticostriatal responsivity to the anticipation and acquisition of monetary rewards. RESULTS Stress exposure and corticostriatal responsivity interacted statistically to predict the inflammation composite. Among participants who experienced major stressors in the first decade of life, higher inflammatory activity covaried with lower corticostriatal responsivity during acquisition of monetary rewards. This relationship was specific to participants who experienced major stress in early childhood, implying a sensitive period for exposure, and were evident in both the orbitofrontal cortex and the ventral striatum, suggesting the broad involvement of corticostriatal regions. The findings were independent of participants' age, sex, racial and ethnic identity, family income, and depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS Collectively, the results are consistent with hypotheses suggesting that major stress in childhood alters brain-immune signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory E Miller
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, United States; Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, United States.
| | - Ann L Carroll
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, United States
| | - Casey C Armstrong
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, United States
| | - Michelle G Craske
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
| | - Richard E Zinbarg
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, United States; The Family Institute at Northwestern University, United States
| | - Susan Y Bookheimer
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
| | - Iris Ka-Yi Chat
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Temple University, United States
| | - Meghan Vinograd
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
| | - Katherine S Young
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, United States
| | - Robin Nusslock
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, United States; Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, United States
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3
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Sanders AFP, Tirado B, Seider NA, Triplett RL, Lean RE, Neil JJ, Miller JP, Tillman R, Smyser TA, Barch DM, Luby JL, Rogers CE, Smyser CD, Warner BB, Chen E, Miller GE. Prenatal exposure to maternal disadvantage-related inflammatory biomarkers: associations with neonatal white matter microstructure. Transl Psychiatry 2024; 14:72. [PMID: 38307841 PMCID: PMC10837200 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-024-02782-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Prenatal exposure to heightened maternal inflammation has been associated with adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes, including atypical brain maturation and psychiatric illness. In mothers experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage, immune activation can be a product of the chronic stress inherent to such environmental hardship. While growing preclinical and clinical evidence has shown links between altered neonatal brain development and increased inflammatory states in utero, the potential mechanism by which socioeconomic disadvantage differentially impacts neural-immune crosstalk remains unclear. In the current study, we investigated associations between socioeconomic disadvantage, gestational inflammation, and neonatal white matter microstructure in 320 mother-infant dyads over-sampled for poverty. We analyzed maternal serum levels of four cytokines (IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, TNF-α) over the course of pregnancy in relation to offspring white matter microstructure and socioeconomic disadvantage. Higher average maternal IL-6 was associated with very low socioeconomic status (SES; INR < 200% poverty line) and lower neonatal corticospinal fractional anisotropy (FA) and lower uncinate axial diffusivity (AD). No other cytokine was associated with SES. Higher average maternal IL-10 was associated with lower FA and higher radial diffusivity (RD) in corpus callosum and corticospinal tracts, higher optic radiation RD, lower uncinate AD, and lower FA in inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and anterior limb of internal capsule tracts. SES moderated the relationship between average maternal TNF-α levels during gestation and neonatal white matter diffusivity. When these interactions were decomposed, the patterns indicated that this association was significant and positive among very low SES neonates, whereby TNF-α was inversely and significantly associated with inferior cingulum AD. By contrast, among the more advantaged neonates (lower-to-higher SES [INR ≥ 200% poverty line]), TNF-α was positively and significantly associated with superior cingulum AD. Taken together, these findings suggest that the relationship between prenatal cytokine exposure and white matter microstructure differs as a function of SES. These patterns are consistent with a scenario where gestational inflammation's effects on white matter development diverge depending on the availability of foundational resources in utero.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashley F P Sanders
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA.
| | - Brian Tirado
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Nicole A Seider
- Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Regina L Triplett
- Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Rachel E Lean
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Jeffrey J Neil
- Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - J Philip Miller
- Division of Biostatistics, Institute for Informatics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Rebecca Tillman
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Tara A Smyser
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Deanna M Barch
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63130, USA
| | - Joan L Luby
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Cynthia E Rogers
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Christopher D Smyser
- Department of Neurology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
- Department of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Barbara B Warner
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
- Newborn Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 63110, USA
| | - Edith Chen
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
| | - Gregory E Miller
- Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
- Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA
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Yuan JP, Coury SM, Ho TC, Gotlib IH. Early life stress moderates the relation between systemic inflammation and neural activation to reward in adolescents both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024; 49:532-540. [PMID: 37673968 PMCID: PMC10789786 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-023-01708-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2023] [Revised: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023]
Abstract
Elevated levels of systemic inflammation are associated with altered reward-related brain function in ventral striatal areas of the brain like the nucleus accumbens (NAcc). In adolescents, cross-sectional research indicates that exposure to early life stress (ELS) can moderate the relation between inflammation and neural activation, which may contribute to atypical reward function; however, no studies have tested whether this moderation by ELS of neuroimmune associations persists over time. Here, we conducted a cross-sectional analysis and the first exploratory longitudinal analysis testing whether cumulative severity of ELS moderates the association of systemic inflammation with reward-related processing in the NAcc in adolescents (n = 104; 58F/46M; M[SD] age = 16.00[1.45] years; range = 13.07-19.86 years). For the cross-sectional analysis, we modeled a statistical interaction between ELS and levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) predicting NAcc activation during the anticipation and outcome phases of a monetary reward task. We found that higher CRP was associated with blunted NAcc activation during the outcome of reward in youth who experienced higher levels of ELS (β = -0.31; p = 0.006). For the longitudinal analysis, we modeled an interaction between ELS and change in CRP predicting change in NAcc activation across 2 years. This analysis similarly showed that increasing CRP over time was associated with decreasing NAcc during reward outcomes in youth who experienced higher levels of ELS (β = -0.47; p = 0.022). Both findings support contemporary theoretical frameworks involving associations among inflammation, reward-related brain function, and ELS exposure, and suggest that experiencing ELS can have significant and enduring effects on neuroimmune function and adolescent neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin P Yuan
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
| | - Saché M Coury
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Tiffany C Ho
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ian H Gotlib
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
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Alloy LB, Chat IKY, Grehl MM, Stephenson AR, Adogli ZV, Olino TM, Ellman LM, Miller GE, Nusslock R. Reward and Immune Systems in Emotion (RISE) prospective longitudinal study: Protocol overview of an integrative reward-inflammation model of first onset of major depression in adolescence. Brain Behav Immun Health 2023; 30:100643. [PMID: 37304334 PMCID: PMC10250584 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2023.100643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Depression is associated with a reduced sensitivity to rewards and low reward-related brain function in cortico-striatal circuitry. A separate literature documents elevated peripheral inflammation in depression. Recently, integrated reward-inflammation models of depression have been proposed. These models draw on work indicating that peripheral inflammatory proteins access the brain, where they lower reward responsiveness. This blunted reward responsiveness is proposed to initiate unhealthy behaviors (substance use, poor diet), as well as sleep disruption and stress generation, which further heighten inflammation. Over time, dysregulation in reward responsiveness and immune signaling may synergize in a positive feedback loop, whereby dysregulation in each system exacerbates dysregulation in the other. Project RISE (Reward and Immune Systems in Emotion) provides a first systematic test of reward-immune dysregulation as a synergistic and dynamic vulnerability for first onset of major depressive disorder and increases in depressive symptoms during adolescence. Methods This NIMH-funded R01 study is a 3-year prospective, longitudinal investigation of approximately 300 community adolescents from the broader Philadelphia area, United States of America. Eligible participants must be 13-16 years old, fluent in English, and without a prior major depressive disorder. They are being selected along the entire dimension of self-reported reward responsiveness, with oversampling at the low tail of the dimension in order to increase the likelihood of major depression onsets. At Time 1 (T1), T3, and T5, each a year apart, participants complete blood draws to quantify biomarkers of low-grade inflammation, self-report and behavioral measures of reward responsiveness, and fMRI scans of reward neural activity and functional connectivity. At T1-T5 (with T2 and T4 six months between the yearly sessions), participants also complete diagnostic interviews and measures of depressive symptoms, reward-relevant life events, and behaviors that increase inflammation. Adversity history is assessed at T1 only. Discussion This study is an innovative integration of research on multi-organ systems involved in reward and inflammatory signaling in understanding first onset of major depression in adolescence. It has the potential to facilitate novel neuroimmune and behavioral interventions to treat, and ideally prevent, depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren B. Alloy
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, USA
| | - Iris K.-Y. Chat
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, USA
| | - Mora M. Grehl
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, USA
| | | | - Zoe V. Adogli
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, USA
| | - Thomas M. Olino
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, USA
| | - Lauren M. Ellman
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, USA
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6
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Chat IKY, Mac Giollabhui N, Bart CP, Graham AA, Coe CL, Abramson LY, Olino TM, Alloy LB. Concurrent and prospective associations of inflammatory signaling, specific depressive symptoms, and substance use in adolescence. Brain Behav Immun 2023; 110:85-94. [PMID: 36822378 PMCID: PMC10106427 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2022] [Revised: 01/28/2023] [Accepted: 02/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Substance use and depression frequently co-occur. Adolescence appears to be a vulnerable developmental period for increases in both substance use and depressive symptoms, often attributed to rapid maturation of reward and motivation systems. Another contributing factor could be inflammatory signaling, which has been associated with both substance use disorder and depression. Prior research indicates that an increase in inflammatory activity can cause physical and emotional malaise, which resembles depression, and the anhedonia and somatic symptoms could lead to substance use. This perspective that substance use is a type of self-medication in response to anhedonia and subjective experiencing of increased inflammatory physiology has not been investigated previously. To test these associations, we used path analysis to examine concurrent and prospective associations between three pro-inflammatory markers, specific depressive symptoms, and substance use frequency in a diverse sample of older adolescents. Participants completed repeated self-report measures of specific depressive symptoms (i.e., dysphoria, anhedonia, somatic concerns, negative cognitions, and functional difficulties) and substance use frequency. Blood was collected to quantify circulating levels of interleukin (IL)-6, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and C-reactive protein (CRP). This analysis showed an indirect effect of IL-6 and TNF-α levels on future substance use, but only via functional difficulties. Substance use also predicted future functional difficulties. Only anhedonia directly predicted future substance use frequency. These findings help to more precisely identify pathways through which inflammatory physiology and specific depressive symptoms synergistically confer risk for substance use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris Ka-Yi Chat
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Naoise Mac Giollabhui
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Corinne P Bart
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Amber A Graham
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Christopher L Coe
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, United States
| | - Lyn Y Abramson
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, United States
| | - Thomas M Olino
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Lauren B Alloy
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, United States.
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Yuan JP, Ho TC, Coury SM, Chahal R, Colich NL, Gotlib IH. Early life stress, systemic inflammation, and neural correlates of implicit emotion regulation in adolescents. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 105:169-179. [PMID: 35842188 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2022.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Revised: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 07/09/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Exposure to early life stress (ELS) increases the risk for developing psychopathology; however, the mechanisms underlying this association are not clear. In this study we examined systemic inflammation as a pathway that may link exposure to stress to altered neural correlates of implicit emotion regulation in adolescents with varying levels of exposure to ELS (n = 83; 52 females, 31 males; 15.63 ± 1.10 years). We measured ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (vlPFC) activation and functional connectivity (FC) between the bilateral amygdala and the vlPFC as adolescents completed an affect labeling task in the scanner and assessed concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP) using a dried blood spot protocol. We found that CRP levels were negatively associated with vlPFC activation during implicit regulation of negatively-valenced stimuli, and that cumulative severity of ELS exposure moderated this neuroimmune association. Severity of ELS also significantly moderated the association between CRP levels and FC between the bilateral amygdala and l-vlPFC during implicit emotion regulation: in adolescents who had been exposed to more severe ELS, higher CRP was associated with more negative frontoamygdala FC during implicit regulation of negatively-valenced stimuli. Thus, ELS may disrupt the normative association between the immune system and the neural processes that underlie socioemotional functioning potentially increasing adolescents' risk for maladaptive outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin P Yuan
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, United States.
| | - Tiffany C Ho
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, United States
| | - Saché M Coury
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, United States
| | - Rajpreet Chahal
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, United States
| | - Natalie L Colich
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, United States; Department of Psychology, Harvard University, United States
| | - Ian H Gotlib
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, United States
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Barch DM. Introduction to the Special Issue on the Exposome—Understanding Environmental Impacts on Brain Development and Risk for Psychopathology. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 2:193-196. [PMID: 36325035 PMCID: PMC9616313 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2022.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
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