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Dall'Aglio L, Xu B, Tiemeier H, Muetzel RL. Longitudinal Associations Between White Matter Microstructure and Psychiatric Symptoms in Youth. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2023; 62:1326-1339. [PMID: 37400062 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2023.04.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Revised: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Associations between psychiatric problems and white matter (WM) microstructure have been reported in youth. Yet, a deeper understanding of this relation has been hampered by a dearth of well-powered longitudinal studies and a lack of explicit examination of the bidirectional associations between brain and behavior. We investigated the temporal directionality of WM microstructure and psychiatric symptom associations in youth. METHOD In this observational study, we leveraged the world's largest single- and multi-site cohorts of neurodevelopment: the Generation R (GenR) and Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Studies (ABCD) (total n scans = 11,400; total N = 5,700). We assessed psychiatric symptoms with the Child Behavioral Checklist as broad-band internalizing and externalizing scales, and as syndrome scales (eg, Anxious/Depressed). We quantified WM with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), globally and at a tract level. We used cross-lagged panel models to test bidirectional associations of global and specific measures of psychopathology and WM microstructure, meta-analyzed results across cohorts, and used linear mixed-effects models for validation. RESULTS We did not identify any longitudinal associations of global WM microstructure with internalizing or externalizing problems across cohorts (confirmatory analyses) before, and after multiple testing corrections. We observed similar findings for longitudinal associations between tract-based microstructure with internalizing and externalizing symptoms, and for global WM microstructure with specific syndromes (exploratory analyses). Some cross-sectional associations surpassed multiple testing corrections in ABCD, but not in GenR. CONCLUSION Uni- or bi-directionality of longitudinal associations between WM and psychiatric symptoms were not robustly identified. We have proposed several explanations for these findings, including interindividual differences, the use of longitudinal approaches, and smaller effects than expected. STUDY REGISTRATION INFORMATION Bidirectionality Brain Function and Psychiatric Symptoms; https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/PNY92.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenza Dall'Aglio
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Bing Xu
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Henning Tiemeier
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Harvard T. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Ryan L Muetzel
- Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam-Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
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Retzler C, Hallam G, Johnson S, Retzler J. Person-centred Approaches to Psychopathology in the ABCD Study: Phenotypes and Neurocognitive Correlates. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2023:10.1007/s10802-023-01065-w. [PMID: 37119331 PMCID: PMC10368562 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-023-01065-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/12/2023] [Indexed: 05/01/2023]
Abstract
Issues with classifying psychopathology using narrow diagnostic categories have prompted calls for the use of dimensional approaches. Yet questions remain about how closely dimensional approaches reflect the way symptoms cluster in individuals, whether known risk factors (e.g. preterm birth) produce distinct symptom phenotypes, and whether profiles reflecting symptom clusters are associated with neurocognitive factors. To identify distinct profiles of psychopathology, latent class analysis was applied to the syndrome scales of the parent-reported Child Behaviour Checklist for 11,381 9- and 10- year-olds from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study. Four classes were identified, reflecting different profiles, to which children were assigned probabilistically; Class 1 (88.6%) reflected optimal functioning; Class 2 (7.1%), predominantly internalising; Class 3 (2.4%), predominantly externalising; and Class 4 (1.9%), universal difficulties. To investigate the presence of a possible preterm behavioural phenotype, the proportion of participants allocated to each class was cross-tabulated with gestational age category. No profile was specific to preterm birth. Finally, to assess the neurocognitive factors associated with class membership, elastic net regressions were conducted revealing a relatively distinct set of neurocognitive factors associated with each class. Findings support the use of large datasets to identify psychopathological profiles, explore phenotypes, and identify associated neurocognitive factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris Retzler
- Department of Psychology, School of Human and Health Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK.
| | - Glyn Hallam
- Department of Psychology, School of Human and Health Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK
| | - Samantha Johnson
- Department of Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Jenny Retzler
- Department of Psychology, School of Human and Health Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK
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Smigielski L, Stämpfli P, Wotruba D, Buechler R, Sommer S, Gerstenberg M, Theodoridou A, Walitza S, Rössler W, Heekeren K. White matter microstructure and the clinical risk for psychosis: A diffusion tensor imaging study of individuals with basic symptoms and at ultra-high risk. Neuroimage Clin 2022; 35:103067. [PMID: 35679786 PMCID: PMC9178487 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2022.103067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
This DTI cross-sectional study compared UHR, basic symptom & control groups (n = 112). The splenium of UHR individuals exhibited differences in fractional anisotropy (FA). Basic symptoms alone were not associated with white matter microstructure changes. Large differences in FA & radial diffusivity were found in converters to psychosis. Regional FA was inversely correlated with the general psychopathology domain.
Background Widespread white matter abnormalities are a frequent finding in chronic schizophrenia patients. More inconsistent results have been provided by the sparser literature on at-risk states for psychosis, i.e., emerging subclinical symptoms. However, considering risk as a homogenous construct, an approach of earlier studies, may impede our understanding of neuro-progression into psychosis. Methods An analysis was conducted of 3-Tesla MRI diffusion and symptom data from 112 individuals (mean age, 21.97 ± 4.19) within two at-risk paradigm subtypes, only basic symptoms (n = 43) and ultra-high risk (n = 37), and controls (n = 32). Between-group comparisons (involving three study groups and further split based on the subsequent transition to schizophrenia) of four diffusion-tensor-imaging-derived scalars were performed using voxelwise tract-based spatial statistics, followed by correlational analyses with Structured Interview for Prodromal Syndromes responses. Results Relative to controls, fractional anisotropy was lower in the splenium of the corpus callosum of ultra-high-risk individuals, but only before stringent multiple-testing correction, and negatively correlated with General Symptom severity among at-risk individuals. At-risk participants who transitioned to schizophrenia within 3 years, compared to those that did not transition, had more severe WM differences in fractional anisotropy and radial diffusivity (particularly in the corpus callosum, anterior corona radiata, and motor/sensory tracts), which were even more extensive compared to healthy controls. Conclusions These findings align with the subclinical symptom presentation and more extensive disruptions in converters, suggestive of severity-related demyelination or axonal pathology. Fine-grained but detectable differences among ultra-high-risk subjects (i.e., with brief limited intermittent and/or attenuated psychotic symptoms) point to the splenium as a discrete site of emerging psychopathology, while basic symptoms alone were not associated with altered fractional anisotropy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukasz Smigielski
- The Zurich Program for Sustainable Development of Mental Health Services (ZInEP), Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Philipp Stämpfli
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; MR-Center of the Psychiatric Hospital and the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Diana Wotruba
- The Zurich Program for Sustainable Development of Mental Health Services (ZInEP), Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Roman Buechler
- The Zurich Program for Sustainable Development of Mental Health Services (ZInEP), Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Neuroradiology, University Hospital of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Stefan Sommer
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; MR-Center of the Psychiatric Hospital and the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Miriam Gerstenberg
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Anastasia Theodoridou
- The Zurich Program for Sustainable Development of Mental Health Services (ZInEP), Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Susanne Walitza
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Wulf Rössler
- The Zurich Program for Sustainable Development of Mental Health Services (ZInEP), Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité Universitätsmedizin, Campus Charité Mitte, Berlin, Germany; Laboratory of Neuroscience (LIM 27), Institute of Psychiatry, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Karsten Heekeren
- The Zurich Program for Sustainable Development of Mental Health Services (ZInEP), Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy I, LVR-Hospital, Cologne, Germany
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Prenatal depression exposure alters white matter integrity and neurodevelopment in early childhood. Brain Imaging Behav 2022; 16:1324-1336. [PMID: 35000066 PMCID: PMC9107412 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-021-00616-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Prenatal exposure to maternal depression increases the risk for onset of emotional and behavioral disorders in children. We investigated the effects of exposure to prenatal depression on white matter microstructural integrity at birth and at 2-3 years, and associated neurodevelopment. Diffusion-weighted images were acquired for children of the Drakenstein Child Health Study at 2-4 weeks postpartum (n=70, 47% boys) and at 2-3 years of age (n=60, 58% boys). Tract-Based Spatial Statistics was used to compare, using an ROI based approach, diffusion tensor metrics across groups defined by presence (>19 on Beck's Depression Inventory and/or >12 on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale) or absence (below depression thresholds) of depression, and associations with neurodevelopmental measures at age 2-3 years were determined. We did not detect group differences in white matter integrity at neonatal age, but at 2-3 years, children in the exposed group demonstrated higher fractional anisotropy, and lower mean and radial diffusivity in association tracts compared to controls. This was notable in the sagittal stratum (radial diffusivity: p<0.01). Altered white matter integrity metrics were also observed in projection tracts, including the corona radiata, which associated with cognitive and motor outcomes in exposed 2-3-year-olds (p<0.05). Our findings of widespread white matter alterations in 2-3-year-old children with prenatal exposure to depression are consistent with previous findings, as well as with neuroimaging findings in adults with major depression. Further, we identified novel associations of altered white matter integrity with cognitive development in depression-exposed children, suggesting that these neuroimaging findings may have early functional impact.
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The P-factor and its genomic and neural equivalents: an integrated perspective. Mol Psychiatry 2022; 27:38-48. [PMID: 33526822 PMCID: PMC8960404 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-021-01031-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2020] [Revised: 12/01/2020] [Accepted: 01/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
Different psychiatric disorders and symptoms are highly correlated in the general population. A general psychopathology factor (or "P-factor") has been proposed to efficiently describe this covariance of psychopathology. Recently, genetic and neuroimaging studies also derived general dimensions that reflect densely correlated genomic and neural effects on behaviour and psychopathology. While these three types of general dimensions show striking parallels, it is unknown how they are conceptually related. Here, we provide an overview of these three general dimensions, and suggest a unified interpretation of their nature and underlying mechanisms. We propose that the general dimensions reflect, in part, a combination of heritable 'environmental' factors, driven by a dense web of gene-environment correlations. This perspective calls for an update of the traditional endophenotype framework, and encourages methodological innovations to improve models of gene-brain-environment relationships in all their complexity. We propose concrete approaches, which by taking advantage of the richness of current large databases will help to better disentangle the complex nature of causal factors underlying psychopathology.
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Furlong S, Cohen JR, Hopfinger J, Snyder J, Robertson MM, Sheridan MA. Resting-state EEG Connectivity in Young Children with ADHD. JOURNAL OF CLINICAL CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHOLOGY : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL FOR THE SOCIETY OF CLINICAL CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHOLOGY, AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION, DIVISION 53 2021; 50:746-762. [PMID: 32809852 PMCID: PMC7889746 DOI: 10.1080/15374416.2020.1796680] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Objective: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a highly prevalent and impairing neurodevelopmental disorder. While early childhood is a crucial time for early intervention, it is characterized by instability of ADHD diagnosis. Neural correlates of ADHD have potential to improve diagnostic accuracy; however, minimal research has focused on early childhood. Research indicates that disrupted neural connectivity is associated with ADHD in older children. Here, we explore network connectivity as a potential neural correlate of ADHD diagnosis in early childhood.Method: We collected EEG data in 52 medication-naïve children with ADHD and in 77 typically developing controls (3-7 years). Data was collected with the EGI 128 HydroCel Sensor Net System, but to optimize the ICA, the data was down sampled to the 10-10 system. Connectivity was measured as the synchronization of the time series of each pair of electrodes. Subsequent analyses utilized graph theoretical methods to further characterize network connectivity.Results: Increased global efficiency, which measures the efficiency of information transfer across the entire brain, was associated with increased inattentive symptom severity. Further, this association was robust to controls for age, IQ, SES, and internalizing psychopathology.Conclusions: Overall, our findings indicate that increased global efficiency, which suggests a hyper-connected neural network, is associated with elevated ADHD symptom severity. These findings extend previous work reporting disruption of neural network connectivity in older children with ADHD into early childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Furlong
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Jessica R. Cohen
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Joseph Hopfinger
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Jenna Snyder
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Madeline M. Robertson
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Margaret A. Sheridan
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
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Lahey BB, Moore TM, Kaczkurkin AN, Zald DH. Hierarchical models of psychopathology: empirical support, implications, and remaining issues. World Psychiatry 2021; 20:57-63. [PMID: 33432749 PMCID: PMC7801849 DOI: 10.1002/wps.20824] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 29.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
There is an ongoing revolution in psychology and psychiatry that will likely change how we conceptualize, study and treat psychological problems.- Many theorists now support viewing psychopathology as consisting of continuous dimensions rather than discrete diagnostic categories. Indeed, recent papers have proposed comprehensive taxonomies of psychopathology dimensions to replace the DSM and ICD taxonomies of categories. The proposed dimensional taxonomies, which portray psychopathology as hierarchically organized correlated dimensions, are now well supported at phenotypic levels. Multiple studies show that both a general factor of psychopathology at the top of the hierarchy and specific factors at lower levels predict different functional outcomes. Our analyses of data on a large representative sample of child and adolescent twins suggested the causal hypothesis that phenotypic correlations among dimensions of psychopathology are the result of many familial influences being pleiotropic. That is, most genetic variants and shared environmental factors are hypothesized to non-specifically influence risk for multiple rather than individual dimensions of psychopathology. In contrast, person-specific experiences tend to be related to individual dimensions. This hierarchical causal hypothesis has been supported by both large-scale family and molecular genetic studies. Current research focuses on three issues. First, the field has not settled on a preferred statistical model for studying the hierarchy of causes and phenotypes. Second, in spite of encouraging progress, the neurobiological correlates of the hierarchy of dimensions of psychopathology are only partially described. Third, although there are potentially important clinical implications of the hierarchical model, insufficient research has been conducted to date to rec-ommend evidence-based clinical practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin B. Lahey
- Department of Public Health SciencesUniversity of ChicagoChicagoILUSA
| | - Tyler M. Moore
- Neuropsychiatry Section, Perelman School of MedicineUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPAUSA
| | | | - David H. Zald
- Departments of Psychology and PsychiatryVanderbilt UniversityNashvilleTNUSA
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Fonagy P, Campbell C. Future directions in personality pathology. Curr Opin Psychol 2021; 37:145-151. [PMID: 33571731 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
This article suggests two areas of future development in the realm of personality pathology. First, a reconceptualization of personality pathology in the context of research evidence suggestive of a single model for psychopathology. Recent work on the 'p factor', in combination with findings from clinical research, behavior genetics, molecular biology, and neurobiological models are considered in relation to this reconceptualization of personality pathology. Second, a cultural-developmental model for personality pathology is proposed, based on Gergely and Csibra's work on natural pedagogy, Tomasello's work on joint attention and intentionality, and our recent work on epistemic trust and the social-communicative nature of psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Fonagy
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK; Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, UK.
| | - Chloe Campbell
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK; Anna Freud National Centre for Children and Families, London, UK
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Lahey BB, Hinton KE, Meyer FC, Villalta-Gil V, Van Hulle CA, Applegate B, Yang X, Zald DH. Sex differences in associations of socioemotional dispositions measured in childhood and adolescence with brain white matter microstructure 12 years later. PERSONALITY NEUROSCIENCE 2020; 3:e5. [PMID: 32524066 PMCID: PMC7253690 DOI: 10.1017/pen.2020.3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2019] [Revised: 11/22/2019] [Accepted: 02/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Predictive associations were estimated between socioemotional dispositions measured at 10-17 years using the Child and Adolescent Dispositions Scale (CADS) and future individual differences in white matter microstructure measured at 22-31 years of age. Participants were 410 twins (48.3% monozygotic) selected for later neuroimaging by oversampling on risk for psychopathology from a representative sample of child and adolescent twins. Controlling for demographic covariates and total intracranial volume (TICV), each CADS disposition (negative emotionality, prosociality, and daring) rated by one of the informants (parent or youth) significantly predicted global fractional anisotropy (FA) averaged across the major white matter tracts in brain in adulthood, but did so through significant interactions with sex after false discovery rate (FDR) correction. In females, each 1 SD difference in greater parent-rated prosociality was associated with 0.43 SD greater FA (p < 0.0008). In males, each 1 SD difference in greater parent-rated daring was associated with 0.24 SD lower FA (p < 0.0008), and each 1 SD difference in greater youth-rated negative emotionality was associated with 0.18 SD greater average FA (p < 0.0040). These findings suggest that CADS dispositions are associated with FA, but associations differ by sex. Exploratory analyses suggest that FA may mediate the associations between dispositions and psychopathology in some cases. These associations over 12 years could reflect enduring brain-behavior associations in spite of transactions with the environment, but could equally reflect processes in which dispositional differences in behavior influence the development of white matter. Future longitudinal studies are needed to resolve the causal nature of these sex-moderated associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin B. Lahey
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Kendra E. Hinton
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | | | | | - Carol A. Van Hulle
- School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Brooks Applegate
- Department of Educational Leadership, Research, and Technology, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, USA
| | - Xiaochan Yang
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - David H. Zald
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
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England-Mason G, Grohs MN, Reynolds JE, MacDonald A, Kinniburgh D, Liu J, Martin JW, Lebel C, Dewey D. White matter microstructure mediates the association between prenatal exposure to phthalates and behavior problems in preschool children. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2020; 182:109093. [PMID: 32069753 PMCID: PMC7050961 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2019.109093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2019] [Revised: 11/27/2019] [Accepted: 12/26/2019] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous research reports associations between prenatal exposure to phthalates and childhood behavior problems; however, the neural mechanisms that may underlie these associations are relatively unexplored. OBJECTIVE This study examined microstructural white matter as a possible mediator of the associations between prenatal phthalate exposure and behavior problems in preschool-aged children. METHODS Data are from a subsample of a prospective pregnancy cohort, the Alberta Pregnancy Outcomes and Nutrition (APrON) study (n = 76). Mother-child pairs were included if mothers provided a second trimester urine sample, if the child completed a successful magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan at age 3-5 years, and if the Child Behavior Checklist was completed within 6 months of the MRI scan. Molar sums of high (HMWP) and low molecular weight phthalates (LMWP) were calculated from levels in urine samples. Associations between prenatal phthalate concentrations, fractional anisotropy (FA) and mean diffusivity (MD) in 10 major white matter tracts, and preschool behavior problems were investigated. RESULTS Maternal prenatal phthalate concentrations were associated with MD of the right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFO), right pyramidal fibers, left and right uncinate fasciculus (UF), and FA of the left inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF). Mediation analyses showed that prenatal exposure to HMWP was indirectly associated with Internalizing (path ab = 0.09, CI.95 = 0.02, 0.20) and Externalizing Problems (path ab = 0.09, CI.95 = 0.01, 0.19) through MD of the right IFO, and to Internalizing Problems (path ab = 0.11, CI.95 = 0.01, 0.23) through MD of the right pyramidal fibers. DISCUSSION This study provides the first evidence of childhood neural correlates of prenatal phthalate exposure. Results suggest that prenatal phthalate exposure may be related to microstructural white matter in the IFO, pyramidal fibers, UF, and ILF. Further, MD of the right IFO and pyramidal fibers may transmit childhood risk for behavioral problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gillian England-Mason
- Department of Paediatrics, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Owerko Centre, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Melody N Grohs
- Owerko Centre, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Department of Neuroscience, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Jess E Reynolds
- Owerko Centre, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Department of Radiology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Canada
| | - Amy MacDonald
- Alberta Centre for Toxicology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - David Kinniburgh
- Alberta Centre for Toxicology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Jiaying Liu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
| | - Jonathan W Martin
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada; Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Analytical Chemistry and Environmental Sciences, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Catherine Lebel
- Owerko Centre, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Department of Radiology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Canada
| | - Deborah Dewey
- Department of Paediatrics, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Owerko Centre, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Canada; Department of Community Health Sciences, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada.
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11
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Vanes LD, Moutoussis M, Ziegler G, Goodyer IM, Fonagy P, Jones PB, Bullmore ET, Dolan RJ. White matter tract myelin maturation and its association with general psychopathology in adolescence and early adulthood. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:827-839. [PMID: 31661180 PMCID: PMC7268015 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Adolescence is a time period associated with marked brain maturation that coincides with an enhanced risk for onset of psychiatric disorder. White matter tract myelination, a process that continues to unfold throughout adolescence, is reported to be abnormal in several psychiatric disorders. Here, we ask whether psychiatric vulnerability is linked to aberrant developmental myelination trajectories. We assessed a marker of myelin maturation, using magnetisation transfer (MT) imaging, in 10 major white matter tracts. We then investigated its relationship to the expression of a general psychopathology "p-factor" in a longitudinal analysis of 293 healthy participants between the ages of 14 and 24. We observed significant longitudinal MT increase across the full age spectrum in anterior thalamic radiation, hippocampal cingulum, dorsal cingulum and superior longitudinal fasciculus. MT increase in the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, inferior longitudinal fasciculus and uncinate fasciculus was pronounced in younger participants but levelled off during the transition into young adulthood. Crucially, longitudinal MT increase in dorsal cingulum and uncinate fasciculus decelerated as a function of mean p-factor scores over the study period. This suggests that an increased expression of psychopathology is closely linked to lower rates of myelin maturation in selective brain tracts over time. Impaired myelin growth in limbic association fibres may serve as a neural marker for emerging mental illness during the course of adolescence and early adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy D Vanes
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, London, UK.,Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, London, UK
| | - Michael Moutoussis
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, London, UK.,Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, London, UK
| | - Gabriel Ziegler
- Institute of Cognitive Neurology and Dementia Research, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Ian M Goodyer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge Clinical School, Cambridge, UK
| | - Peter Fonagy
- Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Peter B Jones
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge Clinical School, Cambridge, UK
| | - Edward T Bullmore
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge Clinical School, Cambridge, UK
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- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge Clinical School, Cambridge, UK
| | - Raymond J Dolan
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, London, UK.,Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, London, UK
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