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Zha R, Li P, Liu Y, Alarefi A, Zhang X, Li J. The orbitofrontal cortex represents advantageous choice in the Iowa gambling task. Hum Brain Mapp 2022; 43:3840-3856. [PMID: 35476367 PMCID: PMC9294296 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2021] [Revised: 02/19/2022] [Accepted: 03/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
A good‐based model, the central neurobiological model of economic decision‐making, proposes that the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) represents binary choice outcome, that is, the chosen good. A good is defined by a group of determinants characterizing the conditions in which the commodity is offered, including commodity type, cost, risk, time delay, and ambiguity. Previous studies have found that the OFC represents the binary choice outcome in decision‐making tasks involving commodity type, cost, risk, and delay. Real‐life decisions are often complex and involve uncertainty, rewards, and penalties; however, whether the OFC represents binary choice outcomes in a complex decision‐making situation, for example, Iowa gambling task (IGT), remains unclear. Here, we propose that the OFC represents binary choice outcome, that is, advantageous choice versus disadvantageous choice, in the IGT. We propose two hypotheses: first, the activity pattern in the human OFC represents an advantageous choice; and second, choice induces an OFC‐related functional network. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging and advanced machine‐learning tools, we found that the OFC represented an advantageous choice in the IGT. The OFC representation of advantageous choice was related to decision‐making performance. Choice modulated the functional connectivity between the OFC and the superior medial gyrus. In conclusion, the OFC represents an advantageous choice during the IGT. In the framework of a good‐based model, the results extend the role of the OFC to complex decision‐making situation when making a binary choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rujing Zha
- Department of Radiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Department of Psychology, School of Humanities & Social Science, Division of Life Science and Medicine, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Peng Li
- Department of Automation, School of Information Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Ying Liu
- Department of Radiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Department of Psychology, School of Humanities & Social Science, Division of Life Science and Medicine, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Abdulqawi Alarefi
- Department of Radiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Department of Psychology, School of Humanities & Social Science, Division of Life Science and Medicine, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Xiaochu Zhang
- Department of Radiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Department of Psychology, School of Humanities & Social Science, Division of Life Science and Medicine, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China.,Application Technology Center of Physical Therapy to Brain Disorders, Institute of Advanced Technology, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China.,Hefei Medical Research Center on Alcohol Addiction, Affiliated Psychological Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei Fourth People's Hospital, Anhui Mental Health Center, Hefei, Anhui, China.,Biomedical Sciences and Health Laboratory of Anhui Province, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Jun Li
- Department of Automation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
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2
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Genetic Factors of Nitric Oxide's System in Psychoneurologic Disorders. Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21051604. [PMID: 32111088 PMCID: PMC7084194 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21051604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2020] [Revised: 02/21/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
According to the recent data, nitric oxide (NO) is a chemical messenger that mediates functions such as vasodilation and neurotransmission, as well as displaying antimicrobial and antitumoral activities. NO has been implicated in the neurotoxicity associated with stroke and neurodegenerative diseases; neural regulation of smooth muscle, including peristalsis; and penile erections. We searched for full-text English publications from the past 15 years in Pubmed and SNPedia databases using keywords and combined word searches (nitric oxide, single nucleotide variants, single nucleotide polymorphisms, genes). In addition, earlier publications of historical interest were included in the review. In our review, we have summarized information regarding all NOS1, NOS2, NOS3, and NOS1AP single nucleotide variants (SNVs) involved in the development of mental disorders and neurological diseases/conditions. The results of the studies we have discussed in this review are contradictory, which might be due to different designs of the studies, small sample sizes in some of them, and different social and geographical characteristics. However, the contribution of genetic and environmental factors has been understudied, which makes this issue increasingly important for researchers as the understanding of these mechanisms can support a search for new approaches to pathogenetic and disease-modifying treatment.
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3
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Rovný R, Marko M, Katina S, Murínová J, Roháriková V, Cimrová B, Repiská G, Minárik G, Riečanský I. Association between genetic variability of neuronal nitric oxide synthase and sensorimotor gating in humans. Nitric Oxide 2018; 80:32-36. [PMID: 30096361 DOI: 10.1016/j.niox.2018.08.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2018] [Revised: 06/15/2018] [Accepted: 08/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Research increasingly suggests that nitric oxide (NO) plays a role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. One important line of evidence comes from genetic studies, which have repeatedly detected an association between the neuronal isoform of nitric oxide synthase (nNOS or NOS1) and schizophrenia. However, the pathogenetic pathways linking nNOS, NO, and the disorder remain poorly understood. A deficit in sensorimotor gating is considered to importantly contribute to core schizophrenia symptoms such as psychotic disorganization and thought disturbance. We selected three candidate nNOS polymorphisms (Ex1f-VNTR, rs6490121 and rs41279104), associated with schizophrenia and cognition in previous studies, and tested their association with the efficiency of sensorimotor gating in healthy human adults. We found that risk variants of Ex1f-VNTR and rs6490121 (but not rs41279104) were associated with a weaker prepulse inhibition (PPI) of the acoustic startle reflex, a standard measure of sensorimotor gating. Furthermore, the effect of presence of risk variants in Ex1f-VNTR and rs6490121 was additive: PPI linearly decreased with increasing number of risk alleles, being highest in participants with no risk allele, while lowest in individuals who carry three risk alleles. Our findings indicate that NO is involved in the regulation of sensorimotor gating, and highlight one possible pathogenetic mechanism for NO playing a role in the development of schizophrenia psychosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rastislav Rovný
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Martin Marko
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Stanislav Katina
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia; Institute of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Murínová
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Veronika Roháriková
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Barbora Cimrová
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Gabriela Repiská
- Institute of Molecular Biomedicine, Faculty of Medicine, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Gabriel Minárik
- Department of Molecular Biology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius University in Bratislava, Bratislava, Slovakia
| | - Igor Riečanský
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology, Centre of Experimental Medicine, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia; Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Basic Psychological Research and Research Methods, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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4
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Cosgrove D, Mothersill O, Kendall K, Konte B, Harold D, Giegling I, Hartmann A, Richards A, Mantripragada K, Owen MJ, O’Donovan MC, Gill M, Rujescu D, Walters J, Corvin A, Morris DW, Donohoe G. Cognitive Characterization of Schizophrenia Risk Variants Involved in Synaptic Transmission: Evidence of CACNA1C's Role in Working Memory. Neuropsychopharmacology 2017; 42:2612-2622. [PMID: 28607492 PMCID: PMC5686488 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2017.123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2017] [Revised: 04/13/2017] [Accepted: 05/19/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
With >100 common variants associated with schizophrenia risk, establishing their biological significance is a priority. We sought to establish cognitive effects of risk variants at loci implicated in synaptic transmission by (1) identifying GWAS schizophrenia variants whose associated gene function is related to synaptic transmission, and (2) testing for association between these and measures of neurocognitive function. We selected variants, reported in the largest GWAS to date, associated with genes involved in synaptic transmission. Associations between genotype and cognitive test score were analyzed in a discovery sample (988 Irish participants, including 798 with psychosis), and replication samples (528 UK patients with schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder; 921 German participants including 362 patients with schizophrenia). Three loci showed significant associations with neuropsychological performance in the discovery samples. This included an association between the rs2007044 (risk allele G) within CACNA1C and poorer working memory performance (increased errors B (95% CI)=0.635-4.535, p=0.012), an effect driven mainly by the psychosis groups. In an fMRI analysis of working memory performance (n=84 healthy participants, a subset of the discovery sample), we further found evidence that the same CACNA1C allele was associated with decreased functional connectivity between the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right superior occipital gyrus/cuneus and anterior cingulate cortex. In conclusion, these data provide evidence to suggest that the CACNA1C risk variant rs2007044 is associated with poorer memory function that may result from risk carriers' difficulty with top-down initiated responses caused by dysconnectivity between the right DLPFC and several cortical regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donna Cosgrove
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
| | - Omar Mothersill
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
| | - Kimberley Kendall
- Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Bettina Konte
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany
| | - Denise Harold
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- School of Biotechnology, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Ina Giegling
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany
| | - Annette Hartmann
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany
| | - Alex Richards
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Kiran Mantripragada
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | | | - Michael J Owen
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Michael C O’Donovan
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Michael Gill
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Dan Rujescu
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Martin-Luther-University Halle-Wittenberg, Halle, Germany
| | - James Walters
- Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Aiden Corvin
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Derek W Morris
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
| | - Gary Donohoe
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland Galway, Galway, Ireland
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5
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Cosgrove D, Harold D, Mothersill O, Anney R, Hill MJ, Bray NJ, Blokland G, Petryshen T, Richards A, Mantripragada K, Owen M, O'Donovan MC, Gill M, Corvin A, Morris DW, Donohoe G. MiR-137-derived polygenic risk: effects on cognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia and controls. Transl Psychiatry 2017; 7:e1012. [PMID: 28117840 PMCID: PMC5545742 DOI: 10.1038/tp.2016.286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2016] [Revised: 11/22/2016] [Accepted: 11/27/2016] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Variants at microRNA-137 (MIR137), one of the most strongly associated schizophrenia risk loci identified to date, have been associated with poorer cognitive performance. As microRNA-137 is known to regulate the expression of ~1900 other genes, including several that are independently associated with schizophrenia, we tested whether this gene set was also associated with variation in cognitive performance. Our analysis was based on an empirically derived list of genes whose expression was altered by manipulation of MIR137 expression. This list was cross-referenced with genome-wide schizophrenia association data to construct individual polygenic scores. We then tested, in a sample of 808 patients and 192 controls, whether these risk scores were associated with altered performance on cognitive functions known to be affected in schizophrenia. A subgroup of healthy participants also underwent functional imaging during memory (n=108) and face processing tasks (n=83). Increased polygenic risk within the empirically derived miR-137 regulated gene score was associated with significantly lower performance on intelligence quotient, working memory and episodic memory. These effects were observed most clearly at a polygenic threshold of P=0.05, although significant results were observed at all three thresholds analyzed. This association was found independently for the gene set as a whole, excluding the schizophrenia-associated MIR137 SNP itself. Analysis of the spatial working memory fMRI task further suggested that increased risk score (thresholded at P=10-5) was significantly associated with increased activation of the right inferior occipital gyrus. In conclusion, these data are consistent with emerging evidence that MIR137 associated risk for schizophrenia may relate to its broader downstream genetic effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Cosgrove
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
| | - D Harold
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - O Mothersill
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
| | - R Anney
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
- Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - M J Hill
- Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - N J Bray
- Institute of Psychological Medicine and Clinical Neurosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - G Blokland
- Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Department of Psychiatry and Center for Human Genetic Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - T Petryshen
- Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Department of Psychiatry and Center for Human Genetic Research, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - A Richards
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - K Mantripragada
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - M Owen
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - M C O'Donovan
- MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - M Gill
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - A Corvin
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - D W Morris
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
| | - G Donohoe
- The Cognitive Genetics & Cognitive Therapy Group, The School of Psychology and Discipline of Biochemistry, The Centre for Neuroimaging & Cognitive Genomics, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
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6
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MAP1B and NOS1 genes are associated with working memory in youths with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2016; 266:359-66. [PMID: 26233433 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-015-0626-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2015] [Accepted: 07/20/2015] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Diverse efforts have been done to improve the etiologic understanding of mental disorders, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It becomes clear that research in mental disorders needs to move beyond descriptive syndromes. Several studies support recent theoretical models implicating working memory (WM) deficits in ADHD complex neuropsychology. The aim of this study was to examine the association between rs2199161 and rs478597 polymorphisms at MAP1B and NOS1 genes with verbal working memory in children and adolescents with ADHD. A total of 253 unrelated ADHD children/adolescents were included. The sample was diagnosed according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-4th edition criteria. Digit Span from the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Third Edition was used to assess verbal WM. The raw scores from both forward and backward conditions of Digit Span were summed and converted into scaled scores according to age. The means of scaled Digit Span were compared according to genotypes by ANOVA. Significant differences in Digit Span scores between MAP1B genotype groups (rs2199161: F = 5.676; p = 0.018) and NOS1 (rs478597: F = 6.833; p = 0.009) genes were detected. For both polymorphisms, the CC genotype carriers showed a worse performance in WM task. Our findings suggest possible roles of NOS1 and MAP1B genes in WM performance in ADHD patients, replicating previous results with NOS1 gene in this cognitive domain in ADHD children.
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7
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Crespi B, Leach E, Dinsdale N, Mokkonen M, Hurd P. Imagination in human social cognition, autism, and psychotic-affective conditions. Cognition 2016; 150:181-99. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2016.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2015] [Revised: 02/01/2016] [Accepted: 02/03/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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8
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Sprooten E, Gupta CN, Knowles EEM, McKay DR, Mathias SR, Curran JE, Kent JW, Carless MA, Almeida MA, Dyer TD, Göring HHH, Olvera RL, Kochunov P, Fox PT, Duggirala R, Almasy L, Calhoun VD, Blangero J, Turner JA, Glahn DC. Genome-wide significant linkage of schizophrenia-related neuroanatomical trait to 12q24. Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet 2015; 168:678-86. [PMID: 26440917 PMCID: PMC4639444 DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2014] [Accepted: 07/31/2015] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The insula and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) share functional, histological, transcriptional, and developmental characteristics, and they serve higher cognitive functions of theoretical relevance to schizophrenia and related disorders. Meta-analyses and multivariate analysis of structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans indicate that gray matter density and volume reductions in schizophrenia are the most consistent and pronounced in a network primarily composed of the insula and mPFC. We used source-based morphometry, a multivariate technique optimized for structural MRI, in a large sample of randomly ascertained pedigrees (N = 887) to derive an insula-mPFC component and to investigate its genetic determinants. Firstly, we replicated the insula-mPFC gray matter component as an independent source of gray matter variation in the general population, and verified its relevance to schizophrenia in an independent case-control sample. Secondly, we showed that the neuroanatomical variation defined by this component is largely determined by additive genetic variation (h(2) = 0.59), and genome-wide linkage analysis resulted in a significant linkage peak at 12q24 (LOD = 3.76). This region has been of significant interest to psychiatric genetics as it contains the Darier's disease locus and other proposed susceptibility genes (e.g., DAO, NOS1), and it has been linked to affective disorders and schizophrenia in multiple populations. Thus, in conjunction with previous clinical studies, our data imply that one or more psychiatric risk variants at 12q24 are co-inherited with reductions in mPFC and insula gray matter concentration. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma Sprooten
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
,Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Institute of Living, Hartford Hospital, CT
| | | | - Emma EM Knowles
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
,Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Institute of Living, Hartford Hospital, CT
| | - D Reese McKay
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
,Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Institute of Living, Hartford Hospital, CT
| | - Samuel R Mathias
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
,Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Institute of Living, Hartford Hospital, CT
| | - Joanne E Curran
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Jack W Kent
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Melanie A Carless
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Marcio A Almeida
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Thomas D Dyer
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Harald HH Göring
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Rene L Olvera
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, TX
| | - Peter Kochunov
- Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD
| | - Peter T Fox
- Research Imaging Institute, University of Texas Health Science Center San Antonio, San Antonio, TX
| | - Ravi Duggirala
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Laura Almasy
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Vince D. Calhoun
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
,The Mind Research Network, Albuquerque, NM
,Department of Psychiatry, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM
,Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM
| | - John Blangero
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, San Antonio, TX
| | - Jessica A Turner
- The Mind Research Network, Albuquerque, NM
,Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA
| | - David C Glahn
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT
,Olin Neuropsychiatry Research Center, Institute of Living, Hartford Hospital, CT
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9
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Freudenberg F, Alttoa A, Reif A. Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (NOS1) and its adaptor, NOS1AP, as a genetic risk factors for psychiatric disorders. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2015; 14:46-63. [PMID: 25612209 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2014] [Revised: 11/17/2014] [Accepted: 12/03/2014] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Nitric oxide (NO) is a gaseous transmitter produced by nitric oxide synthases (NOSs). The neuronal isoform (NOS-I, encoded by NOS1) is the main source of NO in the central nervous system (CNS). Animal studies suggest that nitrinergic dysregulation may lead to behavioral abnormalities. Unfortunately, the large number of animal studies is not adequately reflected by publications concerning humans. These include post-mortem studies, determination of biomarkers, and genetic association studies. Here, we review the evidence for the role of NO in psychiatric disorders by focusing on the human NOS1 gene as well as biomarker studies. Owing to the complex regulation of NOS1 and the varying function of NOS-I in different brain regions, no simple, unidirectional association is expected. Rather, the 'where, when and how much' of NO formation is decisive. Present data, although still preliminary and partially conflicting, suggest that genetically driven reduced NO signaling in the prefrontal cortex is associated with schizophrenia and cognition. Both NOS1 and its interaction partner NOS1AP have a role therein. Also, reduced NOS1 expression in the striatum determined by a length polymorphism in a NOS1 promoter (NOS1 ex1f-VNTR) goes along with a variety of impulsive behaviors. An association of NOS1 with mood disorders, suggested by animal models, is less clear on the genetic level; however, NO metabolites in blood may serve as biomarkers for major depression and bipolar disorder. As the nitrinergic system comprises a relevant target for pharmacological interventions, further studies are warranted not only to elucidate the pathophysiology of mental disorders, but also to evaluate NO function as a biomarker.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Freudenberg
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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10
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Nasyrova RF, Ivashchenko DV, Ivanov MV, Neznanov NG. Role of nitric oxide and related molecules in schizophrenia pathogenesis: biochemical, genetic and clinical aspects. Front Physiol 2015; 6:139. [PMID: 26029110 PMCID: PMC4426711 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2015.00139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2014] [Accepted: 04/18/2015] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Currently, schizophrenia is considered a multifactorial disease. Over the past 50 years, many investigators have considered the role of toxic free radicals in the etiology of schizophrenia. This is an area of active research which is still evolving. Here, we review the recent data and current concepts on the roles of nitric oxide (NO) and related molecules in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. NO is involved in storage, uptake and release of mediators and neurotransmitters, including glutamate, acetylcholine, noradrenaline, GABA, taurine and glycine. In addition, NO diffuses across cell membranes and activates its own extrasynaptic receptors. Further, NO is involved in peroxidation and reactive oxidative stress. Investigations reveal significant disturbances in NO levels in the brain structures (cerebellum, hypothalamus, hippocampus, striatum) and fluids of subjects with schizophrenia. Given the roles of NO in central nervous system development, these changes may result in neurodevelopmental changes associated with schizophrenia. We describe here the recent literature on NOS gene polymorphisms on schizophrenia, which all point to consistent results. We also discuss how NO may be a new target for the therapy of mental disorders. Currently there have been 2 randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trials of L-lysine as an NOS inhibitor in the CNS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Regina F Nasyrova
- V.M. Bekhterev Saint Petersburg Psychoneurological Research Institute Saint Petersburg, Russia
| | - Dmitriy V Ivashchenko
- V.M. Bekhterev Saint Petersburg Psychoneurological Research Institute Saint Petersburg, Russia
| | - Mikhail V Ivanov
- V.M. Bekhterev Saint Petersburg Psychoneurological Research Institute Saint Petersburg, Russia
| | - Nikolay G Neznanov
- V.M. Bekhterev Saint Petersburg Psychoneurological Research Institute Saint Petersburg, Russia
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11
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Zhang Z, Chen X, Yu P, Zhang Q, Sun X, Gu H, Zhang H, Zhai J, Chen M, Du B, Deng X, Ji F, Wang C, Xiang Y, Li D, Wu H, Li J, Dong Q, Chen C. Evidence for the contribution of NOS1 gene polymorphism (rs3782206) to prefrontal function in schizophrenia patients and healthy controls. Neuropsychopharmacology 2015; 40:1383-94. [PMID: 25490993 PMCID: PMC4397396 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2014.323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2014] [Revised: 12/02/2014] [Accepted: 12/04/2014] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Nitric oxide (NO), a gaseous neurotransmitter, has been implicated in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. Accordingly, several polymorphisms of the gene that codes for the main NO-producing enzyme, the nitric oxide synthase 1 (NOS1), have been found to convey a risk for schizophrenia. This study examined the role of NOS1 gene polymorphisms in cognitive functions and related neural mechanism. First, with a sample of 580 schizophrenia patients and 720 healthy controls, we found that rs3782206 genotype had main effects on the 1-back task (P=0.005), the 2-back task (P=0.049), the AY condition of the dot-pattern expectancy (DPX) task (P=0.001), and the conflict effect of the attention network (ANT) test (P<0.001 for RT differences and P=0.002 for RT ratio) and interaction effects with diagnosis on the BX condition of the DPX (P=0.009), the AY condition of the DPX (P<0.001), and the Stroop conflict effect (P=0.003 for RT differences and P=0.038 for RT ratio). Simple effect analyses further showed that the schizophrenia risk allele (T) of rs3782206 was associated with poorer performance in five measures for the patients (1-back, P=0.025; BX, P=0.017; AY, P<0.001; ANT conflict effect (RT differences), P=0.005; Stroop conflict effect (RT differences), P=0.019) and three measures for the controls ( for the 2-back task, P=0.042; for the ANT conlict effect (RT differences), P=0.013; for the ANT conflict effect (RT ratios), P=0.028). Then, with a separate sample of 78 healthy controls, we examined the association between rs3782206 and brain activation patterns during the N-back task and the Stroop task. Whole brain analyses found that the risk allele carriers showed reduced activation at the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) during both tasks. Finally, we examined functional connectivity seeded from the right IFG to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and anterior cingulate cortex under three conditions (the N-back task, the Stroop task, and the resting state). Results showed reduced connectivity with the DLPFC for the risk allele carriers mainly in the Stroop task and the resting state. Taken together, results of this study strongly suggested a link between NOS1 gene polymorphism at rs3782206 and cognitive functions and their neural underpinnings at the IFG. These results have important implications for our understanding of the neural mechanism underlying the association between NOS1 gene polymorphism and schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhifang Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Xiongying Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Ping Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Qiumei Zhang
- School of Mental Health, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong Province, P.R. China
| | - Xiaochen Sun
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Huang Gu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Hao Zhang
- College of Precision Instrument and Optoelectronics Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, P. R. China,Key Laboratory of Opto-electronics Information Technology, Ministry of Education, Tianjin, China
| | - Jinguo Zhai
- School of Mental Health, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong Province, P.R. China
| | - Min Chen
- School of Mental Health, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong Province, P.R. China
| | - Boqi Du
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaoxiang Deng
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Feng Ji
- School of Mental Health, Jining Medical University, Jining, Shandong Province, P.R. China
| | | | - Yutao Xiang
- Beijing Anding Hospital, Beijing, China,Faculty of Health Sciences, Macau University of Science and Technology, Taipa, Macau, China
| | - Dawei Li
- Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Hongjie Wu
- Shengli Hospital of Shengli Petroleum Administration Bureau, Dongying, Shandong province, P.R. China
| | - Jun Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, 19# Xinjiekouwai Road, Beijing 100875, China, Tel: +86 10 58801755, Fax: +86 10 58801755, E-mail:
| | - Qi Dong
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Chuansheng Chen
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
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12
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Hippocampal Pruning as a New Theory of Schizophrenia Etiopathogenesis. Mol Neurobiol 2015; 53:2065-2081. [PMID: 25902861 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-015-9174-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2014] [Accepted: 04/13/2015] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Pruning in neurons has been suggested to be strongly involved in Schizophrenia's (SKZ) etiopathogenesis in recent biological, imaging, and genetic studies. We investigated the impact of protein-coding genes known to be involved in pruning, collected by a systematic literature research, in shaping the risk for SKZ in a case-control sample of 9,490 subjects (Psychiatric Genomics Consortium). Moreover, their modifications through evolution (humans, chimpanzees, and rats) and subcellular localization (as indicative of their biological function) were also investigated. We also performed a biological pathways (Gene Ontology) analysis. Genetics analyses found four genes (DLG1, NOS1, THBS4, and FADS1) and 17 pathways strongly involved in pruning and SKZ in previous literature findings to be significantly associated with the sample under analysis. The analysis of the subcellular localization found that secreted genes, and so regulatory ones, are the least conserved through evolution and also the most associated with SKZ. Their cell line and regional brain expression analysis found that their areas of primary expression are neuropil and the hippocampus, respectively. At the best of our knowledge, for the first time, we were able to describe the SKZ neurodevelopmental hypothesis starting from a single biological process. We can also hypothesize how alterations in pruning fine regulation and orchestration, strongly related with the evolutionary newest (and so more sensitive) secreted proteins, may be of particular relevance in the hippocampus. This early alteration may lead to a mis-structuration of neural connectivity, resulting in the different brain alteration that characterizes SKZ patients.
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13
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Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (NOS1) polymorphisms interact with financial hardship to affect depression risk. Neuropsychopharmacology 2014; 39:2857-66. [PMID: 24917196 PMCID: PMC4200496 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2014.137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2014] [Revised: 05/11/2014] [Accepted: 05/12/2014] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
There is increasing evidence that genetic factors have a role in differential susceptibility to depression in response to severe or chronic adversity. Studies in animals suggest that nitric oxide (NO) signalling has a key role in depression-like behavioural responses to stress. This study investigated whether genetic variation in the brain-expressed nitric oxide synthase gene NOS1 modifies the relationship between psychosocial stress and current depression score. We recruited a population sample of 1222 individuals who provided DNA and questionnaire data on symptoms and stress. Scores on the List of Life-Threatening Experiences (LTE) questionnaire for the last year and self-rated current financial hardship were used as measures of recent/ongoing psychosocial stress. Twenty SNPs were genotyped. Significant associations between eight NOS1 SNPs, comprising two regional haplotypes, and current depression score were identified that survived correction for multiple testing when current financial hardship was used as the interaction term. A smaller three-SNP haplotypes (rs10507279, rs1004356 and rs3782218) located in a regulatory region of NOS1 showed one of the strongest effects, with the A-C-T haplotype associating with higher depression scores at low adversity levels but lower depression scores at higher adversity levels (p=2.3E-05). These results suggest that NOS1 SNPs interact with exposure to economic and psychosocial stressors to alter individual's susceptibility to depression.
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14
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Rose EJ, Morris DW, Fahey C, Cannon D, McDonald C, Scanlon C, Kelly S, Gill M, Corvin A, Donohoe G. The miR-137 schizophrenia susceptibility variant rs1625579 does not predict variability in brain volume in a sample of schizophrenic patients and healthy individuals. Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet 2014; 165B:467-71. [PMID: 25044277 DOI: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2013] [Accepted: 05/27/2014] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The micro RNA 137 (miR-137) variant rs1625579 has been identified as a genome-wide significant risk variant for schizophrenia. miR-137 has an established role in neurodevelopment and may mediate cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia. This role of miR-137 may be related to changes in brain morphology for risk-related genotypes; however this has not yet been delineated. Here we considered whether rs1625579 genotype was predictive of indices of brain structure in patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls. Structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI) data (i.e. 3T T1-TFE or 1.5T T1-MPRAGE) were acquired from 150 healthy controls and 163 schizophrenic patients. Two volumetric analyses that considered the impact of miR-137/rs1625579 genotype were carried out on sMRI data. In the first analysis, voxel based morphometry was employed to consider genotype-related variability in local grey and white matter across the entire brain volume. Our secondary analysis utilized the FIRST protocol in FSL to consider the volume of subcortical structures (i.e. bilateral accumbens, amygdala, caudate, hippocampus, pallidum, putamen and thalamus). Several brain regions in both analyses demonstrated the expected main effect of participant group (i.e. schizophrenics < controls), yet there were no regions where we observed an impact of rs1635579 genotype on brain volume. Our analyses suggest that the mechanism by which miR-137 confers risk for schizophrenia and impacts upon cognitive function may not be mediated by changes in local brain volume. However, it remains to be determined whether or not alternative measures of brain structure are related to these functions of miR-137.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma J Rose
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group & Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, St. James Hospital, Dublin, 8, Ireland; Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College, Dublin, 2, Ireland
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15
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Mothersill O, Morris DW, Kelly S, Rose EJ, Bokde A, Reilly R, Gill M, Corvin AP, Donohoe G. Altered medial prefrontal activity during dynamic face processing in schizophrenia spectrum patients. Schizophr Res 2014; 157:225-30. [PMID: 24888525 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2014.05.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2014] [Revised: 04/30/2014] [Accepted: 05/18/2014] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Processing the emotional content of faces is recognised as a key deficit of schizophrenia, associated with poorer functional outcomes and possibly contributing to the severity of clinical symptoms such as paranoia. At the neural level, fMRI studies have reported altered limbic activity in response to facial stimuli. However, previous studies may be limited by the use of cognitively demanding tasks and static facial stimuli. To address these issues, the current study used a face processing task involving both passive face viewing and dynamic social stimuli. Such a task may (1) lack the potentially confounding effects of high cognitive demands and (2) show higher ecological validity. METHODS Functional MRI was used to examine neural activity in 25 patients with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder and 21 age- and gender-matched healthy controls while they participated in a face processing task, which involved viewing videos of angry and neutral facial expressions, and a non-biological baseline condition. RESULTS While viewing faces, patients showed significantly weaker deactivation of the medial prefrontal cortex, including the anterior cingulate, and decreased activation in the left cerebellum, compared to controls. Patients also showed weaker medial prefrontal deactivation while viewing the angry faces relative to baseline. DISCUSSION Given that the anterior cingulate plays a role in processing negative emotion, weaker deactivation of this region in patients while viewing faces may contribute to an increased perception of social threat. Future studies examining the neurobiology of social cognition in schizophrenia using fMRI may help establish targets for treatment interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omar Mothersill
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Derek W Morris
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; School of Psychology, National University of Ireland Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland
| | - Sinead Kelly
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Emma Jane Rose
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Transdisciplinary Science and Translational Prevention Program (TSTPP), Research Triangle Institute International, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Arun Bokde
- Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Richard Reilly
- Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Michael Gill
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Aiden P Corvin
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Gary Donohoe
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; Trinity College Institute for Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, College Green, Dublin 2, Ireland; School of Psychology, National University of Ireland Galway, University Road, Galway, Ireland.
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16
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Impact of neonatal NOS-1 inhibitor exposure on neurobehavioural measures and prefrontal-temporolimbic integration in the rat nucleus accumbens. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2014; 17:275-87. [PMID: 24025168 DOI: 10.1017/s1461145713000990] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Nitric oxide (NO) is a gaseous neurotransmitter that plays a significant role in the establishment and refinement of functional neural circuits. Genetic and post-mortem studies have suggested that neuronal NO synthase (NOS-1) activity may be compromised in frontal and temporal lobes, and related structures, in schizophrenia. The goal of this study was to determine if there is a link between neonatal disruptions in NO signalling and disturbances in the development and function of prefrontal-temporolimbic circuits. Neonatal rats were injected on postnatal days PD3-5 with the selective NOS-1 inhibitor Nω-propyl-L-arginine (NPA) and tested in adulthood (≥PD60) or as juveniles (PD30). Adult rats treated with NPA as neonates exhibited increased amphetamine-induced locomotion compared to animals receiving vehicle as neonates, whereas this was not observed in juvenile rats treated with NPA as neonates. Adult rats exposed to NPA as neonates also exhibited deficits in social interaction and short-term recognition memory, as well as reduced brain weight, compared to vehicle-treated controls. Finally, neonatal NPA exposure increased the responsiveness of nucleus accumbens neurons to prefrontal cortical input and disrupted the modulation of cortico-accumbens circuits by hippocampal afferents that is normally observed in adult animals. These results show for the first time that neonatal inhibition of NOS-1 during a critical neurodevelopmental period leads to aberrant behaviours that manifest in adulthood, as well as electrophysiological abnormalities in prefrontal-temporolimbic circuits. Greater understanding of the role of NOS-1 in the development of these circuits will shed light on how developmental insults translate to pathophysiology associated with schizophrenia.
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17
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Rose EJ, Hargreaves A, Morris D, Fahey C, Tropea D, Cummings E, Caltagirone C, Bossù P, Chiapponi C, Piras F, Spalletta G, Gill M, Corvin A, Donohoe G. Effects of a novel schizophrenia risk variant rs7914558 at CNNM2 on brain structure and attributional style. Br J Psychiatry 2014; 204:115-21. [PMID: 24311551 DOI: 10.1192/bjp.bp.113.131359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A single nucleotide polymorphism (rs7914558) within the cyclin M2 (CNNM2) gene was recently identified as a common risk variant for schizophrenia. The mechanism by which CNNM2 confers risk is unknown. AIMS To determine the impact of the rs7914558 risk 'G' allele [corrected] on measures of neurocognition, social cognition and brain structure. METHOD Patients with schizophrenia (n = 400) and healthy controls (n = 160) completed measures of neuropsychological function and social cognition. Structural magnetic resonance imaging data were also acquired from an overlapping sample of Irish healthy controls (n = 159) and an independent sample of Italian patients (n = 82) and healthy controls (n = 39). RESULTS No effects of genotype on neuropsychological test performance were observed. However, a dosage effect of the risk allele was found for an index of social cognition (i.e. attributional style), such that risk status was associated with reduced self-serving bias across groups (GG>AG>AA, P<0.05). Using voxel-based morphometry to investigate neuroanatomical regions putatively supporting social cognition, risk carriers had relatively increased grey matter volume in the right temporal pole and right anterior cingulate cortex (Pcorrected<0.05) in the Irish healthy controls sample; neuroanatomical associations between CNNM2 and grey matter volume in anterior cingulate cortex were also observed in the Italian schizophrenia and healthy controls samples. CONCLUSIONS Although the biological role of CNNM2 in schizophrenia remains unknown, these data suggest that this CNNM2 risk variant rs7914558 may have an impact on neural systems relevant to social cognition. How such effects may mediate the relationship between genotype and disease risk remains to be established.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma Jane Rose
- Emma Jane Rose, PhD, Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry and Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland, and TSTPP/MEGEH, RTI International, Baltimore, Maryland, USA; April Hargreaves, MSc, Derek Morris, PhD, Ciara Fahey, MSc, Daniela Tropea, PhD, Elizabeth Cummings, MD, Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland; Carlo Caltagirone, MD, IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Department of Clinical and Behavioural Neurology and Department of Neuroscience, Tor Vergata University, Rome, Italy; Paola Bossù, PhD, Chiara Chiapponi, PhD, Fabrizio Piras, PhD, Gianfranco Spalletta, MD, PhD, IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Department of Clinical and Behavioural Neurology, Rome, Italy; Michael Gill, MD, Aiden Corvin, MD, Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry and Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland; Gary Donohoe, PhD, Neuropsychiatric Genetics Group, Department of Psychiatry and Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, and School of Psychology, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland
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18
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Weber H, Klamer D, Freudenberg F, Kittel-Schneider S, Rivero O, Scholz CJ, Volkert J, Kopf J, Heupel J, Herterich S, Adolfsson R, Alttoa A, Post A, Grußendorf H, Kramer A, Gessner A, Schmidt B, Hempel S, Jacob CP, Sanjuán J, Moltó MD, Lesch KP, Freitag CM, Kent L, Reif A. The genetic contribution of the NO system at the glutamatergic post-synapse to schizophrenia: further evidence and meta-analysis. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2014; 24:65-85. [PMID: 24220657 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2013.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2013] [Revised: 08/09/2013] [Accepted: 09/20/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
NO is a pleiotropic signaling molecule and has an important role in cognition and emotion. In the brain, NO is produced by neuronal nitric oxide synthase (NOS-I, encoded by NOS1) coupled to the NMDA receptor via PDZ interactions; this protein-protein interaction is disrupted upon binding of NOS1 adapter protein (encoded by NOS1AP) to NOS-I. As both NOS1 and NOS1AP were associated with schizophrenia, we here investigated these genes in greater detail by genotyping new samples and conducting a meta-analysis of our own and published data. In doing so, we confirmed association of both genes with schizophrenia and found evidence for their interaction in increasing risk towards disease. Our strongest finding was the NOS1 promoter SNP rs41279104, yielding an odds ratio of 1.29 in the meta-analysis. As findings from heterologous cell systems have suggested that the risk allele decreases gene expression, we studied the effect of the variant on NOS1 expression in human post-mortem brain samples and found that the risk allele significantly decreases expression of NOS1 in the prefrontal cortex. Bioinformatic analyses suggest that this might be due the replacement of six transcription factor binding sites by two new binding sites as a consequence of proxy SNPs. Taken together, our data argue that genetic variance in NOS1 resulting in lower prefrontal brain expression of this gene contributes to schizophrenia liability, and that NOS1 interacts with NOS1AP in doing so. The NOS1-NOS1AP PDZ interface may thus well constitute a novel target for small molecules in at least some forms of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Weber
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany; Microarray Core Unit, IZKF Würzburg, University Hospital of Würzburg, Germany
| | - D Klamer
- Department of Pharmacology, The Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy at University of Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - F Freudenberg
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - S Kittel-Schneider
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - O Rivero
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany; CIBERSAM, Universitat de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - C-J Scholz
- Microarray Core Unit, IZKF Würzburg, University Hospital of Würzburg, Germany
| | - J Volkert
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - J Kopf
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - J Heupel
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - S Herterich
- Comprehensive Heart Failure Center, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - R Adolfsson
- Department of Clinivcal Sciences, Psychiatry, Umeå University, Sweden
| | - A Alttoa
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - A Post
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - H Grußendorf
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - A Kramer
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - A Gessner
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - B Schmidt
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - S Hempel
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - C P Jacob
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - J Sanjuán
- CIBERSAM, Universitat de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - M D Moltó
- CIBERSAM, Universitat de Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - K-P Lesch
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany; Comprehensive Heart Failure Center, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | - C M Freitag
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Frankfurt, Germany
| | - L Kent
- School of Medicine, University of St Andrews, Scotland, UK
| | - A Reif
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Germany; Comprehensive Heart Failure Center, University of Würzburg, Germany.
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Nitric oxide mediates local activity-dependent excitatory synapse development. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 110:E4142-51. [PMID: 24127602 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1311927110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Learning related paradigms play an important role in shaping the development and specificity of synaptic networks, notably by regulating mechanisms of spine growth and pruning. The molecular events underlying these synaptic rearrangements remain poorly understood. Here we identify NO signaling as a key mediator of activity-dependent excitatory synapse development. We find that chronic blockade of NO production in vitro and in vivo interferes with the development of hippocampal and cortical excitatory spine synapses. The effect results from a selective loss of activity-mediated spine growth mechanisms and is associated with morphological and functional alterations of remaining synapses. These effects of NO are mediated by a cGMP cascade and can be reproduced or prevented by postsynaptic expression of vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein phospho-mimetic or phospho-resistant mutants. In vivo analyses show that absence of NO prevents the increase in excitatory synapse density induced by environmental enrichment and interferes with the formation of local clusters of excitatory synapses. We conclude that NO plays an important role in regulating the development of excitatory synapses by promoting local activity-dependent spine-growth mechanisms.
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20
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Campos AC, Piorino EM, Ferreira FR, Guimarães FS. Increased nitric oxide-mediated neurotransmission in the medial prefrontal cortex is associated with the long lasting anxiogenic-like effect of predator exposure. Behav Brain Res 2013; 256:391-7. [PMID: 23948217 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2013.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2013] [Revised: 07/28/2013] [Accepted: 08/02/2013] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder caused by the experience of a severe traumatic event. In rats this disorder has been modeled by exposure to a predator threat. PTSD has been associated to structural and functional changes in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Direct injections into this brain region of glutamate antagonists or inhibitors of the nitric oxide synthase (NOS) enzyme cause anxiolytic-like effects in rodents. In the present work we investigated if the behavioral changes induced by predator exposure are associated with changes in the mPFC nitrergic system. Since the hippocampus, amygdala and dorsal periaqueductal grey have also been associated to anxiety disorders, including PTSD, we also verified if this procedure would modify the nitrergic system in these regions. Male Wistar rats were exposed to a dummy or live cat for ten minutes and tested in the elevated plus maze test (EPM) seven days later. Immediately after the test their brains were removed for neuronal NOS (nNOS) immunohistochemistry detection and measurements of nitrite/nitrate (NOx) levels. Exposure to the live cat increased freezing responses. One week later the animals that froze when confronted with the cat presented a decreased percentage of entries in the open arms of the EPM and an increased number of nNOS positive neurons in the mPFC and basolateral nucleus of amygdala, but not in the hippocampus, central and medial nuclei of amygdaloid complex or dorsal-lateral periaqueductal grey. Moreover, cat exposed animals showed increased NOx levels in the mPFC but not in the hippocampus one week later. The number of nNOS neurons and NOx levels in the mPFC showed a significant correlation with freezing time during cat exposure. Our results suggest that plastic modifications of the nitrergic system in the mPFC could be related to long lasting behavioral changes induced by severe traumatic events such as predator exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alline Cristina Campos
- Departament of Pharmacology, School of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil; Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Applied Neurosciences (NAPNA), University of São Paulo, Brazil; Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine Program, Medical School, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil.
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