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Chokesuwattanaskul A, Jiang H, Bond RL, Jimenez DA, Russell LL, Sivasathiaseelan H, Johnson JCS, Benhamou E, Agustus JL, van Leeuwen JEP, Chokesuwattanaskul P, Hardy CJD, Marshall CR, Rohrer JD, Warren JD. The architecture of abnormal reward behaviour in dementia: multimodal hedonic phenotypes and brain substrate. Brain Commun 2023; 5:fcad027. [PMID: 36942157 PMCID: PMC10023829 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcad027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2022] [Revised: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Abnormal reward processing is a hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases, most strikingly in frontotemporal dementia. However, the phenotypic repertoire and neuroanatomical substrates of abnormal reward behaviour in these diseases remain incompletely characterized and poorly understood. Here we addressed these issues in a large, intensively phenotyped patient cohort representing all major syndromes of sporadic frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease. We studied 27 patients with behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia, 58 with primary progressive aphasia (22 semantic variant, 24 non-fluent/agrammatic variant and 12 logopenic) and 34 with typical amnestic Alzheimer's disease, in relation to 42 healthy older individuals. Changes in behavioural responsiveness were assessed for canonical primary rewards (appetite, sweet tooth, sexual activity) and non-primary rewards (music, religion, art, colours), using a semi-structured survey completed by patients' primary caregivers. Changes in more general socio-emotional behaviours were also recorded. We applied multiple correspondence analysis and k-means clustering to map relationships between hedonic domains and extract core factors defining aberrant hedonic phenotypes. Neuroanatomical associations were assessed using voxel-based morphometry of brain MRI images across the combined patient cohort. Altered (increased and/or decreased) reward responsiveness was exhibited by most patients in the behavioural and semantic variants of frontotemporal dementia and around two-thirds of patients in other dementia groups, significantly (P < 0.05) more frequently than in healthy controls. While food-directed changes were most prevalent across the patient cohort, behavioural changes directed toward non-primary rewards occurred significantly more frequently (P < 0.05) in the behavioural and semantic variants of frontotemporal dementia than in other patient groups. Hedonic behavioural changes across the patient cohort were underpinned by two principal factors: a 'gating' factor determining the emergence of altered reward behaviour and a 'modulatory' factor determining how that behaviour is directed. These factors were expressed jointly in a set of four core, trans-diagnostic and multimodal hedonic phenotypes: 'reward-seeking', 'reward-restricted', 'eating-predominant' and 'control-like'-variably represented across the cohort and associated with more pervasive socio-emotional behavioural abnormalities. The principal gating factor was associated (P < 0.05 after correction for multiple voxel-wise comparisons over the whole brain) with a common profile of grey matter atrophy in anterior cingulate, bilateral temporal poles, right middle frontal and fusiform gyri: the cortical circuitry that mediates behavioural salience and semantic and affective appraisal of sensory stimuli. Our findings define a multi-domain phenotypic architecture for aberrant reward behaviours in major dementias, with novel implications for the neurobiological understanding and clinical management of these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthipa Chokesuwattanaskul
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
- Division of Neurology, Department of Internal Medicine, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok, Thailand
- Cognitive Clinical and Computational Neuroscience Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Harmony Jiang
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Rebecca L Bond
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Daniel A Jimenez
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Lucy L Russell
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Harri Sivasathiaseelan
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Jeremy C S Johnson
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Elia Benhamou
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Jennifer L Agustus
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Janneke E P van Leeuwen
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | | | - Chris J D Hardy
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Charles R Marshall
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
- Preventive Neurology Unit, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Jason D Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE Behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) is associated with social and criminal transgressions; studies from countries around the world have documented such behavior in persons with this condition. An overview and analysis of social and criminal transgressions in bvFTD and their potential neurobiological mechanisms can provide a window for understanding the relationship of antisocial behavior and the brain. METHODS This review evaluated the literature on the frequency of social and criminal transgressions in bvFTD and the neurobiological disturbances that underlie them. RESULTS There is a high frequency of transgressions among patients with bvFTD due to impairments in neurocognition, such as social perception, behavioral regulation, and theory of mind, and impairments in social emotions, such as self-conscious emotions and empathy. Additionally, there is significant evidence for a specific impairment in an innate sense of morality. Alterations in these neurobiological processes result from predominantly right-hemisphere pathology in frontal (ventromedial, orbitofrontal, inferolateral frontal), anterior temporal (amygdala, temporal pole), limbic (anterior cingulate, amygdala), and insular regions. CONCLUSIONS Overlapping disturbances in neurocognition, social emotions, and moral reasoning result from disease in the mostly mesial and right-sided frontotemporal network necessary for responding emotionally to others and for behavioral control. With increased sophistication in neurobiological interventions, future goals may be the routine evaluation of these processes among individuals with bvFTD who engage in social and criminal transgressions and the targeting of these neurobiological mechanisms with behavioral, pharmacological, and other interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario F Mendez
- Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles; and Neurology Service, Neurobehavior Unit, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System
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Belder CRS, Chokesuwattanaskul A, Marshall CR, Hardy CJD, Rohrer JD, Warren JD. The problematic syndrome of right temporal lobe atrophy: Unweaving the phenotypic rainbow. Front Neurol 2022; 13:1082828. [PMID: 36698890 PMCID: PMC9868162 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2022.1082828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Christopher R S Belder
- Department of Neurology, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, United Kingdom.,Adelaide Medical School, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Anthipa Chokesuwattanaskul
- Division of Neurology, Department of Internal Medicine, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thai Red Cross Society, Bangkok, Thailand.,Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Charles R Marshall
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom.,Preventive Neurology Unit, Wolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Chris J D Hardy
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jason D Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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Benhamou E, Zhao S, Sivasathiaseelan H, Johnson JCS, Requena-Komuro MC, Bond RL, van Leeuwen JEP, Russell LL, Greaves CV, Nelson A, Nicholas JM, Hardy CJD, Rohrer JD, Warren JD. Decoding expectation and surprise in dementia: the paradigm of music. Brain Commun 2021; 3:fcab173. [PMID: 34423301 PMCID: PMC8376684 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcab173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/31/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Making predictions about the world and responding appropriately to unexpected events are essential functions of the healthy brain. In neurodegenerative disorders, such as frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer's disease, impaired processing of 'surprise' may underpin a diverse array of symptoms, particularly abnormalities of social and emotional behaviour, but is challenging to characterize. Here, we addressed this issue using a novel paradigm: music. We studied 62 patients (24 female; aged 53-88) representing major syndromes of frontotemporal dementia (behavioural variant, semantic variant primary progressive aphasia, non-fluent-agrammatic variant primary progressive aphasia) and typical amnestic Alzheimer's disease, in relation to 33 healthy controls (18 female; aged 54-78). Participants heard famous melodies containing no deviants or one of three types of deviant note-acoustic (white-noise burst), syntactic (key-violating pitch change) or semantic (key-preserving pitch change). Using a regression model that took elementary perceptual, executive and musical competence into account, we assessed accuracy detecting melodic deviants and simultaneously recorded pupillary responses and related these to deviant surprise value (information-content) and carrier melody predictability (entropy), calculated using an unsupervised machine learning model of music. Neuroanatomical associations of deviant detection accuracy and coupling of detection to deviant surprise value were assessed using voxel-based morphometry of patients' brain MRI. Whereas Alzheimer's disease was associated with normal deviant detection accuracy, behavioural and semantic variant frontotemporal dementia syndromes were associated with strikingly similar profiles of impaired syntactic and semantic deviant detection accuracy and impaired behavioural and autonomic sensitivity to deviant information-content (all P < 0.05). On the other hand, non-fluent-agrammatic primary progressive aphasia was associated with generalized impairment of deviant discriminability (P < 0.05) due to excessive false-alarms, despite retained behavioural and autonomic sensitivity to deviant information-content and melody predictability. Across the patient cohort, grey matter correlates of acoustic deviant detection accuracy were identified in precuneus, mid and mesial temporal regions; correlates of syntactic deviant detection accuracy and information-content processing, in inferior frontal and anterior temporal cortices, putamen and nucleus accumbens; and a common correlate of musical salience coding in supplementary motor area (all P < 0.05, corrected for multiple comparisons in pre-specified regions of interest). Our findings suggest that major dementias have distinct profiles of sensory 'surprise' processing, as instantiated in music. Music may be a useful and informative paradigm for probing the predictive decoding of complex sensory environments in neurodegenerative proteinopathies, with implications for understanding and measuring the core pathophysiology of these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elia Benhamou
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Sijia Zhao
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, UK
| | - Harri Sivasathiaseelan
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Jeremy C S Johnson
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Maï-Carmen Requena-Komuro
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Rebecca L Bond
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Janneke E P van Leeuwen
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Lucy L Russell
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Caroline V Greaves
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Annabel Nelson
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Jennifer M Nicholas
- Department of Medical Statistics, Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK
| | - Chris J D Hardy
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
| | - Jason D Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London WC1N 3AR, UK
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Mendez MF. Degenerative dementias: Alterations of emotions and mood disorders. HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL NEUROLOGY 2021; 183:261-281. [PMID: 34389121 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-822290-4.00012-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Degenerative dementias such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia result in distinct alterations in emotional processing, emotional experiences, and mood. The neuropathology of these dementias extends to structures involved in emotional processing, including the basolateral limbic network (orbitofrontal cortex, anterior temporal lobe, amygdala, and thalamus), the insula, and ventromedial frontal lobe. Depression is the most common emotion and mood disorder affecting patients with Alzheimer's disease. The onset of depression can be a prodromal sign of this dementia. Anxiety can also be present early in the course of Alzheimer's disease and especially among patients with early-onset forms of the disease. In contrast, patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia demonstrate hypoemotionality, deficits in the recognition of emotion, and decreased psychophysiological reactivity to emotional stimuli. They typically have a disproportionate impairment in emotional and cognitive empathy. One other unique feature of behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia is the frequent occurrence of bipolar disorder. The management strategies for these alterations of emotion and mood in degenerative dementias primarily involve the judicious use of the psychiatric armamentarium of medications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario F Mendez
- Behavioral Neurology Program, Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, United States; Neurology Service, Veteran Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA, United States.
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Jimenez DA, Bond RL, Requena-Komuro MC, Sivasathiaseelan H, Marshall CR, Russell LL, Greaves C, Moore KM, Woollacott IO, Shafei R, Hardy CJ, Rohrer JD, Warren JD. Altered phobic reactions in frontotemporal dementia: A behavioural and neuroanatomical analysis. Cortex 2020; 130:100-110. [PMID: 32650059 PMCID: PMC7447974 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2020.05.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2020] [Revised: 05/24/2020] [Accepted: 05/28/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Abnormal behavioural and physiological reactivity to emotional stimuli is a hallmark of frontotemporal dementia (FTD), particularly the behavioural variant (bvFTD). As part of this repertoire, altered phobic responses have been reported in some patients with FTD but are poorly characterised. METHODS We collected data (based on caregiver reports) concerning the prevalence and nature of any behavioural changes related to specific phobias in a cohort of patients representing canonical syndromes of FTD and Alzheimer's disease (AD), relative to healthy older controls. Neuroanatomical correlates of altered phobic reactivity were assessed using voxel-based morphometry. RESULTS 46 patients with bvFTD, 20 with semantic variant primary progressive aphasia, 25 with non-fluent variant primary progressive aphasia, 29 with AD and 55 healthy age-matched individuals participated. Changes in specific phobia were significantly more prevalent in the combined FTD cohort (15.4% of cases) and in the bvFTD group (17.4%) compared both to healthy controls (3.6%) and patients with AD (3.5%). Attenuation of phobic reactivity was reported for individuals in all participant groups, however new phobias developed only in the FTD cohort. Altered phobic reactivity was significantly associated with relative preservation of grey matter in left posterior middle temporal gyrus, right temporo-occipital junction and right anterior cingulate gyrus, brain regions previously implicated in contextual decoding, salience processing and reward valuation. CONCLUSION Altered phobic reactivity is a relatively common issue in patients with FTD, particularly bvFTD. This novel paradigm of strong fear experience has broad implications: clinically, for diagnosis and patient well-being; and neurobiologically, for our understanding of the pathophysiology of aversive sensory signal processing in FTD and the neural mechanisms of fear more generally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel A Jimenez
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Neurological Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Rebecca L Bond
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mai-Carmen Requena-Komuro
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Harri Sivasathiaseelan
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Charles R Marshall
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Preventive Neurology Unit, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lucy L Russell
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Caroline Greaves
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Katrina M Moore
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Ione Oc Woollacott
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Rachelle Shafei
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Chris Jd Hardy
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jason D Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
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Understanding empathy and its disorders through a focus on the neural mechanism. Cortex 2020; 127:347-370. [PMID: 32278184 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2020.03.001] [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: 06/26/2019] [Revised: 03/02/2020] [Accepted: 03/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Empathy is a complex, multi-dimensional process. As such, it can be impaired at multiple stages, producing disorders of empathy with separable underlying causes. Studies often divide empathy into emotional and cognitive components to simplify the large space of empathic processes. This practice can be helpful, but also causes people to misunderstand their interdependence at the level of the mechanism and how they correspond to surveys and tasks. As a result, inferences made from experimental results are often incorrect and cannot be integrated across studies. We explain how emotional and cognitive empathy overlap through the proximate mechanism and clarify their operationalization in common surveys and tasks. A systematic review of three clinical disorders is used to highlight this issue and reinterpret and unite results according to the proximate framework--Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD), and Frontotemporal Dementia (FTD). Aligning constructs through the proximate mechanism allows us to understand both empathy and its disorders.
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Hua AY, Chen KH, Brown CL, Lwi SJ, Casey JJ, Rosen HJ, Miller BL, Levenson RW. Physiological, behavioral and subjective sadness reactivity in frontotemporal dementia subtypes. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2019; 14:1453-1465. [PMID: 31993653 PMCID: PMC7137727 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2018] [Revised: 10/29/2019] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a neurodegenerative disease broadly characterized by socioemotional impairments, includes three clinical subtypes: behavioral variant FTD (bvFTD), semantic variant primary progressive aphasia (svPPA) and non-fluent variant primary progressive aphasia (nfvPPA). Emerging evidence has shown emotional reactivity impairments in bvFTD and svPPA, whereas emotional reactivity in nfvPPA is far less studied. In 105 patients with FTD (49 bvFTD, 31 svPPA and 25 nfvPPA) and 27 healthy controls, we examined three aspects of emotional reactivity (physiology, facial behavior and subjective experience) in response to a sad film. In a subset of the sample, we also examined the neural correlates of diminished aspects of reactivity using voxel-based morphometry. Results indicated that all three subtypes of FTD showed diminished physiological responding in respiration rate and diastolic blood pressure; patients with bvFTD and svPPA also showed diminished subjective experience, and no subtypes showed diminished facial behavior. Moreover, there were differences among the clinical subtypes in brain regions where smaller volumes were associated with diminished sadness reactivity. These results show that emotion impairments extend to sadness reactivity in FTD and underscore the importance of considering different aspects of sadness reactivity in multiple clinical subtypes for characterizing emotional deficits and associated neurodegeneration in FTD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Y Hua
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
| | - Kuan-Hua Chen
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
| | - Casey L Brown
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
| | - Sandy J Lwi
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
| | - James J Casey
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
| | - Howard J Rosen
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Bruce L Miller
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, USA
| | - Robert W Levenson
- Berkeley Psychophysiology Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, USA
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Assessing Wellbeing in People Living with Dementia Using Reminiscence Music with a Mobile App (Memory Tracks): A Mixed Methods Cohort Study. JOURNAL OF HEALTHCARE ENGINEERING 2019; 2019:8924273. [PMID: 31583068 PMCID: PMC6748176 DOI: 10.1155/2019/8924273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2019] [Revised: 07/08/2019] [Accepted: 08/07/2019] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The number of people living with dementia is growing, leading to increasing pressure upon care providers. The mechanisms to reduce symptoms of dementia can take many forms and have the aim of improving the wellbeing and quality of life of the person living with dementia and those who care for them. Besides the person who has dementia, the condition has a profound impact upon their loved ones and carers. One therapeutic approach is the use of music, an area recognised as having potential benefit, but requiring further research. The present paper reports upon a mixed methods cohort study that examines the use of a musical mobile app as a way to promote song-task association in people living with dementia. The study took place in care home environments in the UK. A total of fourteen participants (N = 14) were recruited. Quantitative measurements were taken on a daily basis prior to, and during, use of the mobile app over several weeks. Metrics came from the complete Self-Assessment Manikin scale (arousal, valence, and dominance), and a subset of three from the Quality of Life in Alzheimer's Disease questionnaire (physical health, memory, and life as a whole). Subsequently, semistructured interviews were conducted with staff at the care home to assess the impact of the app upon their role and the residents they care for. No significant differences were found in the combined quantitative measures for the ten (n = 10) sets of responses sufficient to be analysed. However, the qualitative results suggest that use of the mobile app produced positive changes in terms of behaviour, ability, and routine in the life of residents living with dementia. These findings contribute to the growing body of evidence-based research in the field of musical therapies for reducing symptoms of dementia and highlight elements where further study is warranted.
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Hua AY, Sible IJ, Perry DC, Rankin KP, Kramer JH, Miller BL, Rosen HJ, Sturm VE. Enhanced Positive Emotional Reactivity Undermines Empathy in Behavioral Variant Frontotemporal Dementia. Front Neurol 2018; 9:402. [PMID: 29915557 PMCID: PMC5994409 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2018.00402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2018] [Accepted: 05/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by profound changes in emotions and empathy. Although most patients with bvFTD become less sensitive to negative emotional cues, some patients become more sensitive to positive emotional stimuli. We investigated whether dysregulated positive emotions in bvFTD undermine empathy by making it difficult for patients to share (emotional empathy), recognize (cognitive empathy), and respond (real-world empathy) to emotions in others. Fifty-one participants (26 patients with bvFTD and 25 healthy controls) viewed photographs of neutral, positive, negative, and self-conscious emotional faces and then identified the emotions displayed in the photographs. We used facial electromyography to measure automatic, sub-visible activity in two facial muscles during the task: Zygomaticus major (ZM), which is active during positive emotional reactions (i.e., smiling), and Corrugator supercilii (CS), which is active during negative emotional reactions (i.e., frowning). Participants rated their baseline positive and negative emotional experience before the task, and informants rated participants' real-world empathic behavior on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. The majority of participants also underwent structural magnetic resonance imaging. A mixed effects model found a significant diagnosis X trial interaction: patients with bvFTD showed greater ZM reactivity to neutral, negative (disgust and surprise), self-conscious (proud), and positive (happy) faces than healthy controls. There was no main effect of diagnosis or diagnosis X trial interaction on CS reactivity. Compared to healthy controls, patients with bvFTD had impaired emotion recognition. Multiple regression analyses revealed that greater ZM reactivity predicted worse negative emotion recognition and worse real-world empathy. At baseline, positive emotional experience was higher in bvFTD than healthy controls and also predicted worse negative emotion recognition. Voxel-based morphometry analyses found that smaller volume in the thalamus, midcingulate cortex, posterior insula, anterior temporal pole, amygdala, precentral gyrus, and inferior frontal gyrus—structures that support emotion generation, interoception, and emotion regulation—was associated with greater ZM reactivity in bvFTD. These findings suggest that dysregulated positive emotional reactivity may relate to reduced empathy in bvFTD by making patients less likely to tune their reactions to the social context and to share, recognize, and respond to others' feelings and needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Y Hua
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Isabel J Sible
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - David C Perry
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Katherine P Rankin
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Joel H Kramer
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Bruce L Miller
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Howard J Rosen
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
| | - Virginia E Sturm
- Department of Neurology, Memory and Aging Center, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
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Marshall CR, Hardy CJD, Volkmer A, Russell LL, Bond RL, Fletcher PD, Clark CN, Mummery CJ, Schott JM, Rossor MN, Fox NC, Crutch SJ, Rohrer JD, Warren JD. Primary progressive aphasia: a clinical approach. J Neurol 2018; 265:1474-1490. [PMID: 29392464 PMCID: PMC5990560 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-018-8762-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 136] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2017] [Revised: 01/18/2018] [Accepted: 01/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The primary progressive aphasias are a heterogeneous group of focal 'language-led' dementias that pose substantial challenges for diagnosis and management. Here we present a clinical approach to the progressive aphasias, based on our experience of these disorders and directed at non-specialists. We first outline a framework for assessing language, tailored to the common presentations of progressive aphasia. We then consider the defining features of the canonical progressive nonfluent, semantic and logopenic aphasic syndromes, including 'clinical pearls' that we have found diagnostically useful and neuroanatomical and other key associations of each syndrome. We review potential diagnostic pitfalls and problematic presentations not well captured by conventional classifications and propose a diagnostic 'roadmap'. After outlining principles of management, we conclude with a prospect for future progress in these diseases, emphasising generic information processing deficits and novel pathophysiological biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles R Marshall
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
| | - Chris J D Hardy
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Anna Volkmer
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Lucy L Russell
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Rebecca L Bond
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Phillip D Fletcher
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Camilla N Clark
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Catherine J Mummery
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jonathan M Schott
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Martin N Rossor
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Nick C Fox
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Sebastian J Crutch
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jason D Warren
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
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12
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Marshall CR, Hardy CJD, Russell LL, Clark CN, Bond RL, Dick KM, Brotherhood EV, Mummery CJ, Schott JM, Rohrer JD, Kilner JM, Warren JD. Motor signatures of emotional reactivity in frontotemporal dementia. Sci Rep 2018; 8:1030. [PMID: 29348485 PMCID: PMC5773553 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-19528-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 01/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Automatic motor mimicry is essential to the normal processing of perceived emotion, and disrupted automatic imitation might underpin socio-emotional deficits in neurodegenerative diseases, particularly the frontotemporal dementias. However, the pathophysiology of emotional reactivity in these diseases has not been elucidated. We studied facial electromyographic responses during emotion identification on viewing videos of dynamic facial expressions in 37 patients representing canonical frontotemporal dementia syndromes versus 21 healthy older individuals. Neuroanatomical associations of emotional expression identification accuracy and facial muscle reactivity were assessed using voxel-based morphometry. Controls showed characteristic profiles of automatic imitation, and this response predicted correct emotion identification. Automatic imitation was reduced in the behavioural and right temporal variant groups, while the normal coupling between imitation and correct identification was lost in the right temporal and semantic variant groups. Grey matter correlates of emotion identification and imitation were delineated within a distributed network including primary visual and motor, prefrontal, insular, anterior temporal and temporo-occipital junctional areas, with common involvement of supplementary motor cortex across syndromes. Impaired emotional mimesis may be a core mechanism of disordered emotional signal understanding and reactivity in frontotemporal dementia, with implications for the development of novel physiological biomarkers of socio-emotional dysfunction in these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles R Marshall
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
- Sobell Department of Motor Neuroscience and Movement Disorders, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
| | - Chris J D Hardy
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Lucy L Russell
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Camilla N Clark
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Rebecca L Bond
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Katrina M Dick
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Emilie V Brotherhood
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Cath J Mummery
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jonathan M Schott
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - James M Kilner
- Sobell Department of Motor Neuroscience and Movement Disorders, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Jason D Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
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13
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Clark CN, Nicholas JM, Agustus JL, Hardy CJD, Russell LL, Brotherhood EV, Dick KM, Marshall CR, Mummery CJ, Rohrer JD, Warren JD. Auditory conflict and congruence in frontotemporal dementia. Neuropsychologia 2017; 104:144-156. [PMID: 28811257 PMCID: PMC5637159 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.08.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2017] [Revised: 07/31/2017] [Accepted: 08/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Impaired analysis of signal conflict and congruence may contribute to diverse socio-emotional symptoms in frontotemporal dementias, however the underlying mechanisms have not been defined. Here we addressed this issue in patients with behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD; n = 19) and semantic dementia (SD; n = 10) relative to healthy older individuals (n = 20). We created auditory scenes in which semantic and emotional congruity of constituent sounds were independently probed; associated tasks controlled for auditory perceptual similarity, scene parsing and semantic competence. Neuroanatomical correlates of auditory congruity processing were assessed using voxel-based morphometry. Relative to healthy controls, both the bvFTD and SD groups had impaired semantic and emotional congruity processing (after taking auditory control task performance into account) and reduced affective integration of sounds into scenes. Grey matter correlates of auditory semantic congruity processing were identified in distributed regions encompassing prefrontal, parieto-temporal and insular areas and correlates of auditory emotional congruity in partly overlapping temporal, insular and striatal regions. Our findings suggest that decoding of auditory signal relatedness may probe a generic cognitive mechanism and neural architecture underpinning frontotemporal dementia syndromes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camilla N Clark
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jennifer M Nicholas
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom; London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, University of London, London, United Kingdomt
| | - Jennifer L Agustus
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Christopher J D Hardy
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lucy L Russell
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Emilie V Brotherhood
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Katrina M Dick
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Charles R Marshall
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Catherine J Mummery
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jason D Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
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14
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Hardy CJD, Marshall CR, Golden HL, Clark CN, Mummery CJ, Griffiths TD, Bamiou DE, Warren JD. Hearing and dementia. J Neurol 2016; 263:2339-2354. [PMID: 27372450 PMCID: PMC5065893 DOI: 10.1007/s00415-016-8208-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2016] [Revised: 06/13/2016] [Accepted: 06/14/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Hearing deficits associated with cognitive impairment have attracted much recent interest, motivated by emerging evidence that impaired hearing is a risk factor for cognitive decline. However, dementia and hearing impairment present immense challenges in their own right, and their intersection in the auditory brain remains poorly understood and difficult to assess. Here, we outline a clinically oriented, symptom-based approach to the assessment of hearing in dementias, informed by recent progress in the clinical auditory neuroscience of these diseases. We consider the significance and interpretation of hearing loss and symptoms that point to a disorder of auditory cognition in patients with dementia. We identify key auditory characteristics of some important dementias and conclude with a bedside approach to assessing and managing auditory dysfunction in dementia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris J D Hardy
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Charles R Marshall
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Hannah L Golden
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Camilla N Clark
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Catherine J Mummery
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
- Cognitive Disorders Clinic for the Deaf, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, UK
| | - Timothy D Griffiths
- Auditory Group, Institute of Neuroscience, The Medical School, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
- Central Auditory Disorders Clinic, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, UK
| | - Doris-Eva Bamiou
- Department of Neuro-otology, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, UK
- UCL Ear Institute, University College London, London, UK
- Central Auditory Disorders Clinic, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, UK
| | - Jason D Warren
- Department of Neurodegenerative Disease, Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College London, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.
- Central Auditory Disorders Clinic, National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Queen Square, London, UK.
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15
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Abstract
Accounts of altered eating behavior in semantic dementia generally emphasize gluttony and abnormal food preferences. Here we describe two female patients with no past history of eating disorders who developed early prominent aversion to food in the context of an otherwise typical semantic dementia syndrome. One patient (aged 57) presented features in line with anorexia nervosa while the second patient (aged 58) presented with a syndrome more suggestive of bulimia nervosa. These cases add to the growing spectrum of apparently dichotomous behavior patterns in the frontotemporal dementias and illustrate a potentially under-recognized cause of eating disorders presenting in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra E Thompson
- a Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology , University College London , London , UK.,b Medical School , University of Adelaide , Adelaide , Australia
| | - Camilla N Clark
- a Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology , University College London , London , UK
| | - Christopher J Hardy
- a Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology , University College London , London , UK
| | - Phillip D Fletcher
- a Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology , University College London , London , UK
| | | | - Jonathan D Rohrer
- a Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology , University College London , London , UK
| | - Jason D Warren
- a Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology , University College London , London , UK
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Bond RL, Downey LE, Weston PSJ, Slattery CF, Clark CN, Macpherson K, Mummery CJ, Warren JD. Processing of Self versus Non-Self in Alzheimer's Disease. Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:97. [PMID: 27014028 PMCID: PMC4781858 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2015] [Accepted: 02/22/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite considerable evidence for abnormalities of self-awareness in Alzheimer's disease (AD), the cognitive mechanisms of altered self-processing in AD have not been fully defined. Here we addressed this issue in a detailed analysis of self/non-self-processing in three patients with AD. We designed a novel neuropsychological battery comprising tests of tactile body schema coding, attribution of tactile events to self versus external agents, and memory for self- versus non-self-generated vocal information, administered in conjunction with a daily life measure of self/non-self-processing (the Interpersonal Reactivity Index). Three male AD patients (aged 54-68 years; one with a pathogenic mutation in the Presenilin 1 gene, one with a pathogenic mutation in the Amyloid Precursor Protein gene, and one with a CSF protein profile supporting underlying AD pathology) were studied in relation to a group of eight healthy older male individuals (aged 58-74 years). Compared to healthy controls, all patients had relatively intact tactile body schema processing. In contrast, all patients showed impaired memory for words previously presented using the patient's own voice whereas memory for words presented in other voices was less consistently affected. Two patients showed increased levels of emotional contagion and reduced perspective taking on the Interpersonal Reactivity Index. Our findings suggest that AD may be associated with deficient self/non-self differentiation over time despite a relatively intact body image: this profile of altered self-processing contrasts with the deficit of tactile body schema previously described in frontotemporal dementia associated with C9orf72 mutations. We present these findings as a preliminary rationale to direct future systematic study in larger patient cohorts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Jason D. Warren
- Dementia Research Centre, UCL Institute of Neurology, University College LondonLondon, UK
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