Binge drinking in adolescence predicts an atypical cortisol stress response in young adulthood

Why So Lonely? The Direct and Indirect Associations between Developmental Trajectories of Fear of Negative Evaluation, Prosocial Behavior and Loneliness in Adolescence

Fear of negative evaluation and prosocial behavior have been identified as predictive factors influencing the development of loneliness in adolescence, representing typical factors in the cognitive and behavioral processes of re-affiliation. The elucidation of plausible direct and indirect pathways linking these pivotal factors to adolescents' loneliness need further exploration. This study aimed to investigate the direct and indirect relationships between the fear of negative evaluation, prosocial behavior, and adolescents' loneliness through the lens of developmental changes. A total of 533 adolescents (49.0% girls, Mage = 15.18 years, SD = 0.71) participated in this longitudinal study, assessed at three timepoints over a span of two years with 12-month intervals. Latent growth modeling uncovered direct associations between the developmental trajectories of both fear of negative evaluation and prosocial behavior with the developmental trajectory of adolescents' loneliness. The developmental trajectory of fear of negative evaluation exhibited an indirect association with the developmental trajectory of loneliness through the mediating role of prosocial behavior. These findings highlighted the roles of cognitive and behavioral re-affiliation processes, both independently and as mediators, in influencing adolescent loneliness, suggesting that interventions aimed at reducing fear of negative evaluation and promoting prosocial behavior could effectively mitigate adolescents' loneliness.

Sex-related differences in young binge drinkers on the neurophysiological response to stress in virtual reality

Background

Stress is one of the main environmental factors involved in the onset of different psychopathologies. In youth, stressful life events can trigger inappropriate and health-damaging behaviors, such as binge drinking. This behavior, in turn, can lead to long-lasting changes in the neurophysiological response to stress and the development of psychological disorders late in life, e.g., alcohol use disorder. Our aim was to analyze the pattern of neurophysiological responses triggered with the exposition to a stressful virtual environment in young binge drinkers.

Methods

AUDIT-3 (third question from the full AUDIT) was used to detect binge drinking (BD) in our young sample (age 18-25 years). According to the score, participants were divided into control (CO) and BD group. Next, a standardized virtual reality (VR) scenario (Richie's Plank) was used for triggering the stress response while measuring the following neurophysiological variables: brain electrical activity by electroencephalogram (EEG) and cortisol levels through saliva samples both measurements registered before and after the stressful situation. Besides, heart rate (HR) with a pulsometer and electrodermal response (EDA) through electrodes placed on fingers were analyzed before, during and after the VR task.

Results

Regarding the behavior assessed during the VR task, BD group spent significantly less amount of time walking forward the table and a tendency toward more time walking backwards. There was no statistically significant difference between the BD and the CO group regarding time looking down, but when we controlled the variable sex, the BD women group displayed higher amount of time looking down than the rest of the groups. Neurophysiological measurements revealed that there was not any statistically significant difference between groups in any of the EEG registered measures, EDA response and cortisol levels. Sex-related differences were found in HR response to VR scenario, in which BD women displayed the highest peak of response to the stressor. Also, the change in heartbeat was higher in BD women than men.

Conclusion

Unveiling the neurophysiological alterations associated with BD can help us to prevent and detect early onset of alcohol use disorder. Also, from our data we conclude that participants' sex can modulate some stress responses, especially when unhealthy behaviors such as BD are present. Nevertheless, the moment of registration of the neurophysiological variables respect to the stressor seems to be a crucial variable.

Early parent-child interactions and substance use disorder: An attachment perspective on a biopsychosocial entanglement

This review aims to elucidate environmental and genetic factors, as well as their epigenetic and neuroendocrine moderators, that may underlie the association between early childhood experiences and Substance Use Disorders (SUD), through the lens of parental attachment. Here we review those attachment-related studies that examined the monoaminergic systems, the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal stress response system, the oxytoninergic system, and the endogenous opioid system from a genetic, epigenetic, and neuroendocrine perspective. Overall, the selected studies point to a moderating effect of insecure attachment between genetic vulnerability and SUD, reasonably through epigenetic modifications. Preliminary evidence suggests that vulnerability to SUDs is related with hypo-methylation (e.g. hyper-expression) of high-risk polymorphisms on the monoaminergic and hypothalamic pituitary adrenal system and hyper-methylation (e.g. hypo-expressions) of protective polymorphisms on the opioid and oxytocin system. These epigenetic modifications may induce a cascade of neuroendocrine changes contributing to the subclinical and behavioural manifestations that precede the clinical onset of SUD. Protective and supportive parenting could hence represent a key therapeutic target to prevent addiction and moderate insecure attachment.

Perceived friendship and binge drinking in young adults: A study of the Human Connectome Project data

BACKGROUND

Peer influences figure prominently in young adult binge drinking. Women have trended to show a level of alcohol use on par with men during the last decades. It would be of interest to investigate the neural processes of social cognition that may underlie binge drinking and the potential sex differences.

METHODS

Here, we examined the data of the Human Connectome Project where we identified a total of 175 binge drinkers (125 men) and 285 non-binge drinkers (97 men) performing a social cognition task during brain imaging. We analyzed the imaging data with published routines and evaluated the results at a corrected threshold.

RESULTS

Both male and female binge relative to non-binge drinkers showed higher perceived friendship. Binge relative to non-binge drinkers demonstrated diminished activations in the anterior medial orbitofrontal cortex (amOFC) during perception of social vs. random interaction, with a more prominent effect size in women. Further, whole-brain regression identified activity of the right posterior insula (rPI) in negative correlation with perceived friendship score in non-binge drinking women. Post-hoc analyses showed significant correlation of rPI activity with perceived friendship, amOFC activity, and a summary measure of alcohol use severity identified by principal component analysis, across all subjects. Mediation and path analysis demonstrated a significant model: amOFC activity → rPI activity → perceived friendship → severity of alcohol use.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings support peer influences on binge drinking and suggest neural correlates that may relate altered social cognitive processing to alcohol misuse in young adults.

Sex and Age Effects on Neurobehavioral Toxicity Induced by Binge Alcohol

Historically, most alcohol neurotoxicity studies were conducted in young adult males and focused on chronic intake. There has been a shift towards studying the effects of alcohol on the adolescent brain, due to alcohol consumption during this formative period disrupting the brain's developmental trajectory. Because the most typical pattern of adolescent alcohol intake is heavy episodic (binge) drinking, there has also been a shift towards the study of binge alcohol-induced neurobehavioral toxicity. It has thus become apparent that binge alcohol damages the adolescent brain and there is increasing attention to sex-dependent effects. Significant knowledge gaps remain in our understanding of the effects of binge alcohol on the female brain, however. Moreover, it is unsettling that population-level studies indicate that the prevalence of binge drinking is increasing among American women, particularly those in older age groups. Although study of adolescents has made it apparent that binge alcohol disrupts ongoing brain maturational processes, we know almost nothing about how it impacts the aging brain, as studies of its effects on the aged brain are relatively scarce, and the study of sex-dependent effects is just beginning. Given the rapidly increasing population of older Americans, it is crucial that studies address age-dependent effects of binge alcohol, and given the increase in binge drinking in older women who are at higher risk for cognitive decline relative to men, studies must encompass both sexes. Because adolescence and older age are both characterized by age-typical brain changes, and because binge drinking is the most common pattern of alcohol intake in both age groups, the knowledge that we have amassed on binge alcohol effects on the adolescent brain can inform our study of its effects on the aging brain. In this review, we therefore cover the current state of knowledge of sex and age-dependent effects of binge alcohol, as well as statistical and methodological considerations for studies aimed at addressing them.