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Lawrence S, Scofield RH. Post traumatic stress disorder associated hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis dysregulation and physical illness. Brain Behav Immun Health 2024; 41:100849. [PMID: 39280087 PMCID: PMC11401111 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2024.100849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2023] [Revised: 08/11/2024] [Accepted: 08/17/2024] [Indexed: 09/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Conventional human stress responses are mediated by the sympathetic adrenal medullar (SAM) axis and the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. The SAM axis mediates the immediate response to stress through norepinephrine and epinephrine while the HPA axis mediates the slow response through corticosteroids, primarily cortisol, to effect systemic changes. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a psychiatric disorder that develops in a small subset of people exposed to a traumatic event, may dysregulate these systems and result in increased risk of various clinical conditions. These conditions include but are not limited to cardiovascular disease, metabolic conditions, autoimmune diseases, neurocognitive disorders, and women's health complications such as preterm birth, polycystic ovarian syndrome, and endometriosis to name a few. This review focuses on how PTSD dysregulates the HPA axis, and further, how these alterations affect the immune system and physical health outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Lawrence
- Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
| | - R Hal Scofield
- Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
- Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, Oklahoma City, OK, 73104, USA
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2
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Kalisch R, Russo SJ, Müller MB. Neurobiology and systems biology of stress resilience. Physiol Rev 2024; 104:1205-1263. [PMID: 38483288 PMCID: PMC11381009 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00042.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Stress resilience is the phenomenon that some people maintain their mental health despite exposure to adversity or show only temporary impairments followed by quick recovery. Resilience research attempts to unravel the factors and mechanisms that make resilience possible and to harness its insights for the development of preventative interventions in individuals at risk for acquiring stress-related dysfunctions. Biological resilience research has been lagging behind the psychological and social sciences but has seen a massive surge in recent years. At the same time, progress in this field has been hampered by methodological challenges related to finding suitable operationalizations and study designs, replicating findings, and modeling resilience in animals. We embed a review of behavioral, neuroimaging, neurobiological, and systems biological findings in adults in a critical methods discussion. We find preliminary evidence that hippocampus-based pattern separation and prefrontal-based cognitive control functions protect against the development of pathological fears in the aftermath of singular, event-type stressors [as found in fear-related disorders, including simpler forms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)] by facilitating the perception of safety. Reward system-based pursuit and savoring of positive reinforcers appear to protect against the development of more generalized dysfunctions of the anxious-depressive spectrum resulting from more severe or longer-lasting stressors (as in depression, generalized or comorbid anxiety, or severe PTSD). Links between preserved functioning of these neural systems under stress and neuroplasticity, immunoregulation, gut microbiome composition, and integrity of the gut barrier and the blood-brain barrier are beginning to emerge. On this basis, avenues for biological interventions are pointed out.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raffael Kalisch
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany
- Neuroimaging Center (NIC), Focus Program Translational Neuroscience (FTN), Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany
| | - Scott J Russo
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States
- Brain and Body Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York, United States
| | - Marianne B Müller
- Leibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany
- Translational Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Johannes Gutenberg University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany
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3
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Patas K, Baker DG, Chrousos GP, Agorastos A. Inflammation in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Dysregulation or Recalibration? Curr Neuropharmacol 2024; 22:524-542. [PMID: 37550908 PMCID: PMC10845099 DOI: 10.2174/1570159x21666230807152051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite ample experimental data indicating a role of inflammatory mediators in the behavioral and neurobiological manifestations elicited by exposure to physical and psychologic stressors, causative associations between systemic low-grade inflammation and central nervous system inflammatory processes in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients remain largely conceptual. As in other stress-related disorders, pro-inflammatory activity may play an equivocal role in PTSD pathophysiology, one that renders indiscriminate employment of anti-inflammatory agents of questionable relevance. In fact, as several pieces of preclinical and clinical research convergingly suggest, timely and targeted potentiation rather than inhibition of inflammatory responses may actually be beneficial in patients who are characterized by suppressed microglia function in the face of systemic low-grade inflammation. The deleterious impact of chronic stress-associated inflammation on the systemic level may, thus, need to be held in context with the - often not readily apparent - adaptive payoffs of low-grade inflammation at the tissue level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kostas Patas
- Department of Biopathology and Laboratory Medicine, Eginition University Hospital, Athens, Greece
| | - Dewleen G. Baker
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), La Jolla, CA, USA
- VA Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - George P. Chrousos
- University Research Institute of Maternal and Child Health and Precision Medicine and UNESCO Chair on Adolescent Health Care, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Medical School, Aghia Sophia Children's Hospital, Athens, Greece
| | - Agorastos Agorastos
- VA Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, San Diego, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Division of Neurosciences, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Central Macedonia, Greece
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4
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Wolf S, Melo D, Garske KM, Pallares LF, Lea AJ, Ayroles JF. Characterizing the landscape of gene expression variance in humans. PLoS Genet 2023; 19:e1010833. [PMID: 37410774 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1010833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Gene expression variance has been linked to organismal function and fitness but remains a commonly neglected aspect of molecular research. As a result, we lack a comprehensive understanding of the patterns of transcriptional variance across genes, and how this variance is linked to context-specific gene regulation and gene function. Here, we use 57 large publicly available RNA-seq data sets to investigate the landscape of gene expression variance. These studies cover a wide range of tissues and allowed us to assess if there are consistently more or less variable genes across tissues and data sets and what mechanisms drive these patterns. We show that gene expression variance is broadly similar across tissues and studies, indicating that the pattern of transcriptional variance is consistent. We use this similarity to create both global and within-tissue rankings of variation, which we use to show that function, sequence variation, and gene regulatory signatures contribute to gene expression variance. Low-variance genes are associated with fundamental cell processes and have lower levels of genetic polymorphisms, have higher gene-gene connectivity, and tend to be associated with chromatin states associated with transcription. In contrast, high-variance genes are enriched for genes involved in immune response, environmentally responsive genes, immediate early genes, and are associated with higher levels of polymorphisms. These results show that the pattern of transcriptional variance is not noise. Instead, it is a consistent gene trait that seems to be functionally constrained in human populations. Furthermore, this commonly neglected aspect of molecular phenotypic variation harbors important information to understand complex traits and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott Wolf
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
| | - Diogo Melo
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
| | - Kristina M Garske
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
| | - Luisa F Pallares
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
- Friedrich Miescher Laboratory of the Max Planck Society, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Amanda J Lea
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
- Child and Brain Development, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Canada
| | - Julien F Ayroles
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, United States of America
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5
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von Majewski K, Rohleder N, Ehring T. Peripheral inflammation over the course of a cognitive behavioral intervention in PTSD. Brain Behav Immun Health 2023; 30:100620. [PMID: 37122765 PMCID: PMC10133650 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2023.100620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2022] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Inflammation has an important predictive role for long-term health. This is also true when looking at the specific population of trauma survivors with PTSD. There are emerging findings showing that PTSD is related to reduced somatic health as well as evidence linking inflammation with disease outcomes in this group, such as heart diseases and early mortality, regardless of age, gender or conventional risk factors. The effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for PTSD symptom severity has been demonstrated by several previous studies. In contrast, literature is scarce, yet, whether inflammation improves over the course of treatment for PTSD. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate whether not only PTSD symptoms, but also inflammation changes over the course of psychological treatment. Twenty-nine PTSD patients were followed while attending an outpatient clinic receiving cognitive behavioral therapy. Inflammation, determined by the C-reactive protein (CRP) assessed via the dried blood spot (DBS) technique, and symptom severity, surveyed by the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL) were measured at 5 points before trauma-focused therapy, as well as after four, eight and twelve weeks of intervention; furthermore, a 10-month follow-up assessment was conducted. Results revealed significant improvements of PTSD symptom severity during investigation, but no significant changes in the inflammatory biomarker (CRP). Results in terms of improvement in PTSD symptom severity are in line with prior findings. The results obtained for inflammation may suggest that risk factors for somatic health consequences in PTSD patients remain despite successful psychological treatment. Further longitudinal studies are needed to fully understand the relationship between inflammation and therapeutic outcome and to develop interventions normalizing inflammation in PTSD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristin von Majewski
- Chair of Health Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany
| | - Nicolas Rohleder
- Chair of Health Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Erlangen, Germany
- Corresponding author. Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Nägelsbachstr. 49a, D-91052, Erlangen, Germany.
| | - Thomas Ehring
- Department of Psychology, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
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Kumsta R, Zang JCS, Hummel EM, Müller S, Moser DA, Herpertz S, Kessler H. Treatment-associated mRNA co-expression changes in monocytes of patients with posttraumatic stress disorder. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1181321. [PMID: 37426106 PMCID: PMC10326517 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1181321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/11/2023] Open
Abstract
PTSD is a prevalent mental disorder that results from exposure to extreme and stressful life events and comes at high costs for both the individual and society. Therapeutic treatment presents the best way to deal with PTSD-the mechanisms underlying change after treatment, however, remain poorly understood. While stress and immune associated gene expression changes have been associated with PTSD development, studies investigating treatment effects at the molecular level so far tended to focus on DNA methylation. Here we use gene-network analysis on whole-transcriptome RNA-Seq data isolated from CD14+ monocytes of female PTSD patients (N = 51) to study pre-treatment signatures of therapy response and therapy-related changes at the level of gene expression. Patients who exhibited significant symptom improvement after therapy showed higher baseline expression in two modules involved in inflammatory processes (including notable examples IL1R2 and FKBP5) and blood coagulation. After therapy, expression of an inflammatory module was increased, and expression of a wound healing module was decreased. This supports findings reporting an association between PTSD and dysregulations of the inflammatory and the hemostatic system and mark both as potentially treatment sensitive.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Kumsta
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, Laboratory for Stress and Gene-Environment Interplay, University of Luxemburg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxemburg
| | - Johannes C. S. Zang
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Elisabeth M. Hummel
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Svenja Müller
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Dirk A. Moser
- Department of Genetic Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Stephan Herpertz
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, LWL-University Hospital Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | - Henrik Kessler
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, LWL-University Hospital Ruhr-University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Fulda Hospital, University Medicine Marburg Campus Fulda, Fulda, Germany
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7
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Muhie S, Gautam A, Yang R, Misganaw B, Daigle BJ, Mellon SH, Flory JD, Abu-Amara D, Lee I, Wang K, Rampersaud R, Hood L, Yehuda R, Marmar CR, Wolkowitz OM, Ressler KJ, Doyle FJ, Hammamieh R, Jett M. Molecular signatures of post-traumatic stress disorder in war-zone-exposed veteran and active-duty soldiers. Cell Rep Med 2023; 4:101045. [PMID: 37196634 PMCID: PMC10213980 DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2023.101045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a multisystem syndrome. Integration of systems-level multi-modal datasets can provide a molecular understanding of PTSD. Proteomic, metabolomic, and epigenomic assays are conducted on blood samples of two cohorts of well-characterized PTSD cases and controls: 340 veterans and 180 active-duty soldiers. All participants had been deployed to Iraq and/or Afghanistan and exposed to military-service-related criterion A trauma. Molecular signatures are identified from a discovery cohort of 218 veterans (109/109 PTSD+/-). Identified molecular signatures are tested in 122 separate veterans (62/60 PTSD+/-) and in 180 active-duty soldiers (PTSD+/-). Molecular profiles are computationally integrated with upstream regulators (genetic/methylation/microRNAs) and functional units (mRNAs/proteins/metabolites). Reproducible molecular features of PTSD are identified, including activated inflammation, oxidative stress, metabolic dysregulation, and impaired angiogenesis. These processes may play a role in psychiatric and physical comorbidities, including impaired repair/wound healing mechanisms and cardiovascular, metabolic, and psychiatric diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seid Muhie
- Medical Readiness Systems Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA; The Geneva Foundation, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.
| | - Aarti Gautam
- Medical Readiness Systems Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA
| | - Ruoting Yang
- Medical Readiness Systems Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA
| | - Burook Misganaw
- Medical Readiness Systems Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA; Vysnova Inc., Landover, MD 20785, USA
| | - Bernie J Daigle
- Departments of Biological Sciences and Computer Science, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
| | - Synthia H Mellon
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Janine D Flory
- Office of Mental Health, James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10468, USA
| | - Duna Abu-Amara
- Department of Psychiatry, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Inyoul Lee
- Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Kai Wang
- Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Ryan Rampersaud
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Leroy Hood
- Institute for Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Rachel Yehuda
- Office of Mental Health, James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10468, USA
| | - Charles R Marmar
- Department of Psychiatry, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Owen M Wolkowitz
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Kerry J Ressler
- McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA 02478, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Francis J Doyle
- Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02134, USA
| | - Rasha Hammamieh
- Medical Readiness Systems Biology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA
| | - Marti Jett
- US Army Medical Research and Development Command, HQ, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.
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8
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Zeng Y, Suo C, Yao S, Lu D, Larsson H, D'Onofrio BM, Lichtenstein P, Fang F, Valdimarsdóttir UA, Song H. Genetic Associations Between Stress-Related Disorders and Autoimmune Disease. Am J Psychiatry 2023; 180:294-304. [PMID: 37002690 DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.20220364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2023]
Abstract
Objective: Emerging evidence supports a bidirectional phenotypic association between stress-related disorders and autoimmune disease. However, the biological underpinnings remain unclear. Here, the authors examined whether and how shared genetics contribute to the observed phenotypic associations. Methods: Based on data from 4,123,631 individuals identified from Swedish nationwide registers, familial coaggregation of stress-related disorders (any disorder or posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]) and autoimmune disease were initially estimated in seven cohorts with different degrees of kinship. Polygenic risk score (PRS) analyses were then performed with individual-level genotyping data from 376,871 participants in the UK Biobank study. Finally, genetic correlation analyses and enrichment analyses were performed with genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary statistics. Results: Familial coaggregation analyses revealed decreasing odds of concurrence of stress-related disorders and autoimmune disease with descending kinship or genetic relatedness between pairs of relatives; adjusted odds ratios were 1.51 (95% CI=1.09–2.07), 1.28 (95% CI=0.97–1.68), 1.16 (95% CI=1.14–1.18), and 1.01 (95% CI=0.98–1.03) for monozygotic twins, dizygotic twins, full siblings, and half cousins, respectively. Statistically significant positive associations were observed between PRSs of stress-related disorders and autoimmune disease, as well as between PRSs of autoimmune disease and stress-related disorders. GWAS summary statistics revealed a genetic correlation of 0.26 (95% CI=0.14–0.38) between these two phenotypes and identified 10 common genes and five shared functional modules, including one module related to G-protein–coupled receptor pathways. Similar analyses performed for PTSD and specific autoimmune diseases (e.g., autoimmune thyroid disease) largely recapitulated the results of the main analyses. Conclusions: This study demonstrated familial coaggregation, genetic correlation, and common biological pathways between stress-related disorders and autoimmune disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Zeng
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Chen Suo
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Shuyang Yao
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Donghao Lu
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Henrik Larsson
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Brian M D'Onofrio
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Paul Lichtenstein
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Fang Fang
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Unnur A Valdimarsdóttir
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
| | - Huan Song
- West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital (Zeng, Lu, Fang, Song), and Med-X Center for Informatics (Zeng, Song), Sichuan University, Chengdu, China; Department of Epidemiology and Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai (Suo); Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (Yao, Larsson, D'Onofrio, Lichtenstein) and Institute of Environmental Medicine (Lu, Fang, Valdimarsdóttir), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston (Lu, Valdimarsdóttir); School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden (Larsson); Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington (D'Onofrio); Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík (Valdimarsdóttir, Song)
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9
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Early life stress, depression and epigenetics. VITAMINS AND HORMONES 2023; 122:307-337. [PMID: 36863799 DOI: 10.1016/bs.vh.2023.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
Abstract
Different factors are essential in increasing the vulnerability to psychiatric disorders, such as genetics. Among these factors, early life stress (ELS), including sexual, physical, emotional abuse, and emotional and physical neglect, enhances the odds of having menial conditions throughout life. Exhaustive research has shown that ELS leads to physiological changes, such as alteration in the HPA axis. During the most critical development period (childhood and adolescence), these changes increase the risk of having child-onset psychiatric disorders. Furthermore, research has suggested a relationship between early life stress and depression, particularly more prolonged episodes of depression with treatment-resistant outcomes. Molecular studies indicate that, in general, the hereditary character of psychiatric disorders is polygenic, multifactorial and highly complex, with innumerable low-effect genetic variants interacting with each other. However, whether there are independent effects among subtypes of ELS remains unclear. This article provides an overview of the interplay of epigenetics, the HPA axis, early life stress and the development of depression. Advances in our knowledge of epigenetics in the context of early life stress and depression provide a new understanding of the genetic influence on psychopathology. Furthermore, they could lead to identifying new targets for clinical intervention.
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10
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Toh H, Bagheri A, Dewey C, Stewart R, Yan L, Clegg D, Thomson JA, Jiang P. A Nile rat transcriptomic landscape across 22 organs by ultra-deep sequencing and comparative RNA-seq pipeline (CRSP). Comput Biol Chem 2023; 102:107795. [PMID: 36436489 DOI: 10.1016/j.compbiolchem.2022.107795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) has been a widely used high-throughput method to characterize transcriptomic dynamics spatiotemporally. However, RNA-seq data analysis pipelines typically depend on either a sequenced genome and/or corresponding reference transcripts. This limitation is a challenge for species lacking sequenced genomes and corresponding reference transcripts. The Nile rat (Arvicanthis niloticus) has two key features - it is daytime active, and it is prone to diet-induced diabetes, which makes it more similar to humans than regular laboratory rodents. However, at the time of this study, neither a Nile rat genome nor a reference transcript set were available, making it technically challenging to perform large-scale RNA-seq based transcriptomic studies. This genome-independent work progressed concurrently with our generation of a Nile rat genome. A well-annotated genome requires several iterations of manually reviewing curated transcripts and takes years to achieve. Here, we developed a Comparative RNA-Seq Pipeline (CRSP), integrating a comparative species strategy independent of a specific sequenced genome or species-matched reference transcripts. We performed benchmarking to validate that our CRSP tool can accurately quantify gene expression levels. In this study, we generated the first ultra-deep (2.3 billion × 2 paired-end) Nile rat RNA-seq data from 59 biopsy samples representing 22 major organs, providing a unique resource and spatial gene expression reference for Nile rat researchers. Importantly, CRSP is not limited to the Nile rat species and can be applied to any species without prior genomic knowledge. To facilitate a general use of CRSP, we also characterized the number of RNA-seq reads required for accurate estimation via simulation studies. CRSP and documents are available at: https://github.com/pjiang1105/CRSP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huishi Toh
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Atefeh Bagheri
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA; Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA
| | - Colin Dewey
- Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Department of Computer Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Ron Stewart
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Lili Yan
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, USA
| | - Dennis Clegg
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - James A Thomson
- Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, WI 53706, USA; Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Peng Jiang
- Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA; Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH 44115, USA; Center for RNA Science and Therapeutics, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, 10900 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
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11
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Kurilova E, Sidorova M, Tuchina O. Single Prolonged Stress Decreases the Level of Adult Hippocampal Neurogenesis in C57BL/6, but Not in House Mice. Curr Issues Mol Biol 2023; 45:524-537. [PMID: 36661521 PMCID: PMC9857367 DOI: 10.3390/cimb45010035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2022] [Revised: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Many people experience traumatic events during their lives, but not all of them develop severe mental pathologies, characterized by high levels of anxiety that persists for more than a month after psychological trauma, such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We used a single prolonged stress protocol in order to model PTSD in long-inbred C57BL/6 and wild-derived (house) female mice. The susceptibility of mice to single prolonged stress was assessed by behavior phenotyping in the Open Field and Elevated Plus Maze, the level of neuroinflammation in the hippocampus was estimated by real-time PCR to TNFα, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, Iba1 and GFAP, as well as immunohistochemical analysis of microglial morphology and mean fluorescence intensity for GFAP+ cells. The level of neurogenesis was analyzed by real-time PCR to Ki67, Sox2 and DCX as well as immunohistochemistry to Ki67. We showed that long-inbread C57BL/6 mice are more susceptible to a single prolonged stress protocol compared to wild-derived (house) mice. Stressed C57BL/6 mice demonstrated elevated expression levels of proinflammatory cytokines TNFα, IL-1β, and IL-6 in the hippocampus, while in house mice no differences in cytokine expression were detected. Expression levels of Iba1 in the hippocampus did not change significantly after single prolonged stress, however GFAP expression increased substantially in stressed C57BL/6 mice. The number of Iba+ cells in the dentate gyrus also did not change after stress, but the morphology of Iba+ microglia in C57BL/6 animals allowed us to suggest that it was activated; house mice also had significantly more microglia than C57BL/6 animals. We suppose that decreased microglia levels in the hippocampus of C57BL/6 compared to house mice might be one of the reasons for their sensitivity to a single prolonged stress. Single prolonged stress reduced the number of Ki67+ proliferating cells in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus but only in C57BL/6 mice, not in house mice, with the majority of cells detected in the dorsal (septal) hippocampus in both. The increase in the expression level of DCX might be a compensatory reaction to stress; however, it does not necessarily mean that these immature neurons will be functionally integrated, and this issue needs to be investigated further.
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12
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D'Elia ATD, Juruena MF, Coimbra BM, Mello MF, Mello AF. Increased immuno-inflammatory mediators in women with post-traumatic stress disorder after sexual assault: 1-Year follow-up. J Psychiatr Res 2022; 155:241-251. [PMID: 36113394 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.08.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2022] [Revised: 08/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Sexual violence is a traumatic event that can trigger post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and generate biological responses to stress characterized by inhibiting the hypothalamic-pituitary axis (HPA), altering immune activity, and changing the structure and function of the brain. PTSD is associated with increased levels of inflammatory markers. This study aimed to measure differences in inflammatory markers and HPA hormone levels between women with PTSD due to sexual violence and controls at baseline and after 1-year follow-up. METHODS Fifty-eight women with PTSD resulting from sexual assault occurring up to 6 months prior were compared to 41 female controls. The patients were followed for 1 year. At baseline (T1), we measured inflammatory biomarkers. We also applied the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI), the Clinician-Administered Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Scale-5, the Beck Depression Inventory, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire. The patients were randomized to receive treatment with sertraline or interpersonal psychotherapy for 14 weeks (T2) and then continued the usual treatment if deemed necessary for 1 year. The same interviews and examinations were repeated after 1 year (T3). RESULTS At baseline, the patients had significantly higher adrenocorticotropic hormone levels, compared to controls; however, there was no baseline difference in inflammatory markers or cortisol. After 1 year, there were significantly higher levels of interleukin-1β (p < 0.0001), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (p < 0.0001), tumor necrosis factor-α (p < 0.0001), c-reactive protein (p < 0.0001), and cortisol (p = 0.046) in the patient group. In addition to PTSD, 56 patients presented with a major depressive episode at T1 (according to the MINI). At the end of 1 year, there was a significant improvement in depressive (p < 0.001), anxiety (p = 0.03), and PTSD symptoms (p < 0.001) regardless of the treatment received. DISCUSSION The increase of the inflammatory markers after 1 year, even with symptomatic improvement, may indicate that PTSD following sexual violence is associated with high depressive symptoms. This association may have a different pattern of immunoendocrine alterations than PTSD only. Furthermore, these alterations may persist in the long term, even with the improvement of the symptoms, probably generating an immunological imprint that can lead to future clinical consequences. This study adds to the current knowledge of PTSD neurobiology and contributes to broadening approaches to this disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Teresa D D'Elia
- Department of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
| | - Mario F Juruena
- Department of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil; Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neurosciences, Kings College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Bruno M Coimbra
- Department of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil; Amsterdam UMC, location University of Amsterdam, Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute and Amsterdam Neuroscience Research Institute, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Marcelo F Mello
- Department of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Andrea F Mello
- Department of Psychiatry, Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), São Paulo, SP, Brazil
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Seah C, Breen MS, Rusielewicz T, Bader HN, Xu C, Hunter CJ, McCarthy B, Deans PJM, Chattopadhyay M, Goldberg J, Desarnaud F, Makotkine I, Flory JD, Bierer LM, Staniskyte M, Noggle SA, Huckins LM, Paull D, Brennand KJ, Yehuda R. Modeling gene × environment interactions in PTSD using human neurons reveals diagnosis-specific glucocorticoid-induced gene expression. Nat Neurosci 2022; 25:1434-1445. [PMID: 36266471 PMCID: PMC9630117 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-022-01161-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop following severe trauma, but the extent to which genetic and environmental risk factors contribute to individual clinical outcomes is unknown. Here, we compared transcriptional responses to hydrocortisone exposure in human induced pluripotent stem cell (hiPSC)-derived glutamatergic neurons and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from combat veterans with PTSD (n = 19 hiPSC and n = 20 PBMC donors) and controls (n = 20 hiPSC and n = 20 PBMC donors). In neurons only, we observed diagnosis-specific glucocorticoid-induced changes in gene expression corresponding with PTSD-specific transcriptomic patterns found in human postmortem brains. We observed glucocorticoid hypersensitivity in PTSD neurons, and identified genes that contribute to this PTSD-dependent glucocorticoid response. We find evidence of a coregulated network of transcription factors that mediates glucocorticoid hyper-responsivity in PTSD. These findings suggest that induced neurons represent a platform for examining the molecular mechanisms underlying PTSD, identifying biomarkers of stress response, and conducting drug screening to identify new therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina Seah
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience or Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Michael S Breen
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Tom Rusielewicz
- The New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Heather N Bader
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Changxin Xu
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Barry McCarthy
- The New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - P J Michael Deans
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Mitali Chattopadhyay
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jordan Goldberg
- The New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Frank Desarnaud
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Iouri Makotkine
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Janine D Flory
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Linda M Bierer
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Migle Staniskyte
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Scott A Noggle
- The New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Laura M Huckins
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Daniel Paull
- The New York Stem Cell Foundation Research Institute, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Kristen J Brennand
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience or Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, Division of Molecular Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Rachel Yehuda
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Department of Psychiatry or Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience or Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
- James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA.
- Center for Psychedelic Psychotherapy and Trauma Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
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Hoyt JE, Teja N, Jiang T, Rozema L, Gui J, Watts BV, Shiner B, Gradus JL. Changes in Alcohol Consumption following Direct-Acting Antiviral Treatment for Hepatitis C in VA Patients with Comorbid Alcohol Use Disorder and PTSD. J Dual Diagn 2022; 18:185-198. [PMID: 36151743 PMCID: PMC9719291 DOI: 10.1080/15504263.2022.2123119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To investigate whether direct-acting antivirals (DAA) for hepatitis C viral infection (HCV): glecaprevir/pibrentasvir (GLE/PIB), ledipasvir/sofosbuvir (LDV/SOF), and sofosbuvir/velpatasvir (SOF/VEL) are associated with reduced alcohol consumption among veterans with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and co-occurring post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). METHODS We measured change in Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test-Consumption Module (AUDIT-C) scores in a retrospective cohort of veterans with PTSD and AUD receiving DAAs for HCV. RESULTS One thousand two hundred and eleven patients were included (GLE/PIB n = 174, LDV/SOF n = 808, SOF/VEL n = 229). Adjusted frequencies of clinically meaningful improvement were 30.5% for GLE/PIB, 45.5% for LDV/SOF, and 40.5% for SOF/VEL. The frequency was lower for GLE/PIB than for LDV/SOF (OR = 0.59; 95% CI [0.40, 0.87]) or SOF/VEL (OR = 0.66; 95% CI [0.42, 1.04]). CONCLUSIONS DAA treatment for HCV was associated with a substantial reduction in alcohol use in patients with AUD and co-occurring PTSD. Further exploration of the role of DAAs in AUD treatment is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica E Hoyt
- White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
| | - Nikhil Teja
- White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
| | - Tammy Jiang
- Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Luke Rozema
- White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
| | - Jiang Gui
- White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
- Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Bradley V Watts
- White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
- Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Brian Shiner
- White River Junction Veterans Affairs Medical Center, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
- Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
- Veterans Administration National Center for PTSD, White River Junction, Vermont, USA
| | - Jaimie L Gradus
- Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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15
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Katrinli S, Oliveira NCS, Felger JC, Michopoulos V, Smith AK. The role of the immune system in posttraumatic stress disorder. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:313. [PMID: 35927237 PMCID: PMC9352784 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-02094-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2021] [Revised: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) develops in a subset of individuals upon exposure to traumatic stress. In addition to well-defined psychological and behavioral symptoms, some individuals with PTSD also exhibit elevated concentrations of inflammatory markers, including C-reactive protein, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor-α. Moreover, PTSD is often co-morbid with immune-related conditions, such as cardiometabolic and autoimmune disorders. Numerous factors, including lifetime trauma burden, biological sex, genetic background, metabolic conditions, and gut microbiota, may contribute to inflammation in PTSD. Importantly, inflammation can influence neural circuits and neurotransmitter signaling in regions of the brain relevant to fear, anxiety, and emotion regulation. Given the link between PTSD and the immune system, current studies are underway to evaluate the efficacy of anti-inflammatory treatments in those with PTSD. Understanding the complex interactions between PTSD and the immune system is essential for future discovery of diagnostic and therapeutic tools.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seyma Katrinli
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Nayara C. S. Oliveira
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA USA ,National Institute of Woman, Child, and Adolescence Health Fernandes Figueira, Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brazil ,grid.418068.30000 0001 0723 0931Department of Violence and Health Studies Jorge Careli, National School of Public Health, Fiocruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brazil
| | - Jennifer C. Felger
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA USA ,grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502The Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA USA
| | - Vasiliki Michopoulos
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA USA
| | - Alicia K. Smith
- grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA USA ,grid.189967.80000 0001 0941 6502Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA USA
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16
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Dunsmoor JE, Cisler JM, Fonzo GA, Creech SK, Nemeroff CB. Laboratory models of post-traumatic stress disorder: The elusive bridge to translation. Neuron 2022; 110:1754-1776. [PMID: 35325617 PMCID: PMC9167267 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2022.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2022] [Revised: 02/18/2022] [Accepted: 02/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating mental illness composed of a heterogeneous collection of symptom clusters. The unique nature of PTSD as arising from a precipitating traumatic event helps simplify cross-species translational research modeling the neurobehavioral effects of stress and fear. However, the neurobiological progress on these complex neural circuits informed by animal models has yet to produce novel, evidence-based clinical treatment for PTSD. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview of popular laboratory models of PTSD and provide concrete ideas for improving the validity and clinical translational value of basic research efforts in humans. We detail modifications to simplified animal paradigms to account for myriad cognitive factors affected in PTSD, which may contribute to abnormalities in regulating fear. We further describe new avenues for integrating different areas of psychological research underserved by animal models of PTSD. This includes incorporating emerging trends in the cognitive neuroscience of episodic memory, emotion regulation, social-emotional processes, and PTSD subtyping to provide a more comprehensive recapitulation of the human experience to trauma in laboratory research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph E Dunsmoor
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA; Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA.
| | - Josh M Cisler
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA; Institute for Early Life Adversity Research, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Gregory A Fonzo
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA; Institute for Early Life Adversity Research, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Suzannah K Creech
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA; Institute for Early Life Adversity Research, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Charles B Nemeroff
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA; Institute for Early Life Adversity Research, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy, University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, Austin, TX, USA.
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17
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Wackerhagen C, Veer IM, van Leeuwen JMC, Reppmann Z, Riepenhausen A, Bögemann SA, Mor N, Puhlmann LM, Uściƚko A, Zerban M, Yuen KSL, Köber G, Pooseh S, Weermeijer J, Marciniak MA, Arias-Vásquez A, Binder H, de Raedt W, Kleim B, Myin-Germeys I, Roelofs K, Timmer J, Tüscher O, Hendler T, Kobylińska D, Hermans EJ, Kalisch R, Walter H. Study protocol description: Dynamic Modelling of Resilience - Observational Study (DynaM-OBS) (Preprint). JMIR Res Protoc 2022. [DOI: 10.2196/39817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
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18
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Ma W, Sharma S, Jin P, Gourley SL, Qin ZS. LRcell: detecting the source of differential expression at the sub-cell-type level from bulk RNA-seq data. Brief Bioinform 2022; 23:bbac063. [PMID: 35272348 PMCID: PMC9116223 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbac063] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2021] [Revised: 01/23/2022] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Given most tissues are consist of abundant and diverse (sub-)cell types, an important yet unaddressed problem in bulk RNA-seq analysis is to identify at which (sub-)cell type(s) the differential expression occurs. Single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) technologies can answer the question, but they are often labor-intensive and cost-prohibitive. Here, we present LRcell, a computational method aiming to identify specific (sub-)cell type(s) that drives the changes observed in a bulk RNA-seq experiment. In addition, LRcell provides pre-embedded marker genes computed from putative scRNA-seq experiments as options to execute the analyses. We conduct a simulation study to demonstrate the effectiveness and reliability of LRcell. Using three different real datasets, we show that LRcell successfully identifies known cell types involved in psychiatric disorders. Applying LRcell to bulk RNA-seq results can produce a hypothesis on which (sub-)cell type(s) contributes to the differential expression. LRcell is complementary to cell type deconvolution methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjing Ma
- Department of Computer Science, Emory University, 400 Dowman Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Sumeet Sharma
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Emory University, 1462 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Peng Jin
- Department of Human Genetics, Emory University, 1365 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Shannon L Gourley
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Emory University, 100 Woodruff Circle, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Zhaohui S Qin
- Department of Computer Science, Emory University, 400 Dowman Drive, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, 1518 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
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19
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Núñez-Rios DL, Martínez-Magaña JJ, Nagamatsu ST, Andrade-Brito DE, Forero DA, Orozco-Castaño CA, Montalvo-Ortiz JL. Central and Peripheral Immune Dysregulation in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Convergent Multi-Omics Evidence. Biomedicines 2022; 10:biomedicines10051107. [PMID: 35625844 PMCID: PMC9138536 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines10051107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2022] [Revised: 04/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a chronic and multifactorial disorder with a prevalence ranging between 6–10% in the general population and ~35% in individuals with high lifetime trauma exposure. Growing evidence indicates that the immune system may contribute to the etiology of PTSD, suggesting the inflammatory dysregulation as a hallmark feature of PTSD. However, the potential interplay between the central and peripheral immune system, as well as the biological mechanisms underlying this dysregulation remain poorly understood. The activation of the HPA axis after trauma exposure and the subsequent activation of the inflammatory system mediated by glucocorticoids is the most common mechanism that orchestrates an exacerbated immunological response in PTSD. Recent high-throughput analyses in peripheral and brain tissue from both humans with and animal models of PTSD have found that changes in gene regulation via epigenetic alterations may participate in the impaired inflammatory signaling in PTSD. The goal of this review is to assess the role of the inflammatory system in PTSD across tissue and species, with a particular focus on the genomics, transcriptomics, epigenomics, and proteomics domains. We conducted an integrative multi-omics approach identifying TNF (Tumor Necrosis Factor) signaling, interleukins, chemokines, Toll-like receptors and glucocorticoids among the common dysregulated pathways in both central and peripheral immune systems in PTSD and propose potential novel drug targets for PTSD treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana L. Núñez-Rios
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; (D.L.N.-R.); (J.J.M.-M.); (S.T.N.); (D.E.A.-B.)
- VA CT Healthcare Center, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - José J. Martínez-Magaña
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; (D.L.N.-R.); (J.J.M.-M.); (S.T.N.); (D.E.A.-B.)
- VA CT Healthcare Center, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Sheila T. Nagamatsu
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; (D.L.N.-R.); (J.J.M.-M.); (S.T.N.); (D.E.A.-B.)
- VA CT Healthcare Center, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Diego E. Andrade-Brito
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; (D.L.N.-R.); (J.J.M.-M.); (S.T.N.); (D.E.A.-B.)
- VA CT Healthcare Center, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
| | - Diego A. Forero
- Health and Sport Sciences Research Group, School of Health and Sport Sciences, Fundación Universitaria del Área Andina, Bogotá 110231, Colombia; (D.A.F.); (C.A.O.-C.)
| | - Carlos A. Orozco-Castaño
- Health and Sport Sciences Research Group, School of Health and Sport Sciences, Fundación Universitaria del Área Andina, Bogotá 110231, Colombia; (D.A.F.); (C.A.O.-C.)
| | - Janitza L. Montalvo-Ortiz
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA; (D.L.N.-R.); (J.J.M.-M.); (S.T.N.); (D.E.A.-B.)
- VA CT Healthcare Center, West Haven, CT 06516, USA
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-(203)-9325711 (ext. 7491)
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20
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Touchant M, Labonté B. Sex-Specific Brain Transcriptional Signatures in Human MDD and Their Correlates in Mouse Models of Depression. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:845491. [PMID: 35592639 PMCID: PMC9110970 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.845491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is amongst the most devastating psychiatric conditions affecting several millions of people worldwide every year. Despite the importance of this disease and its impact on modern societies, still very little is known about the etiological mechanisms. Treatment strategies have stagnated over the last decades and very little progress has been made to improve the efficiency of current therapeutic approaches. In order to better understand the disease, it is necessary for researchers to use appropriate animal models that reproduce specific aspects of the complex clinical manifestations at the behavioral and molecular levels. Here, we review the current literature describing the use of mouse models to reproduce specific aspects of MDD and anxiety in males and females. We first describe some of the most commonly used mouse models and their capacity to display unique but also shared features relevant to MDD. We then transition toward an integral description, combined with genome-wide transcriptional strategies. The use of these models reveals crucial insights into the molecular programs underlying the expression of stress susceptibility and resilience in a sex-specific fashion. These studies performed on human and mouse tissues establish correlates into the mechanisms mediating the impact of stress and the extent to which different mouse models of chronic stress recapitulate the molecular changes observed in depressed humans. The focus of this review is specifically to highlight the sex differences revealed from different stress paradigms and transcriptional analyses both in human and animal models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maureen Touchant
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Québec, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Benoit Labonté
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Québec, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
- *Correspondence: Benoit Labonté
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21
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Daskalakis NP, Meijer OC, de Kloet ER. Mineralocorticoid receptor and glucocorticoid receptor work alone and together in cell-type-specific manner: Implications for resilience prediction and targeted therapy. Neurobiol Stress 2022; 18:100455. [PMID: 35601687 PMCID: PMC9118500 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2022.100455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2022] [Revised: 03/30/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
'You can't roll the clock back and reverse the effects of experiences' Bruce McEwen used to say when explaining how allostasis labels the adaptive process. Here we will for once roll the clock back to the times that the science of the glucocorticoid hormone was honored with a Nobel prize and highlight the discovery of their receptors in the hippocampus as inroad to its current status as master regulator in control of stress coping and adaptation. Glucocorticoids operate in concert with numerous neurotransmitters, neuropeptides, and other hormones with the aim to facilitate processing of information in the neurocircuitry of stress, from anticipation and perception of a novel experience to behavioral adaptation and memory storage. This action, exerted by the glucocorticoids, is guided by two complementary receptor systems, mineralocorticoid receptors (MR) and glucocorticoid receptors (GR), that need to be balanced for a healthy stress response pattern. Here we discuss the cellular, neuroendocrine, and behavioral studies underlying the MR:GR balance concept, highlight the relevance of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) -axis patterns and note the limited understanding yet of sexual dimorphism in glucocorticoid actions. We conclude with the prospect that (i) genetically and epigenetically regulated receptor variants dictate cell-type-specific transcriptome signatures of stress-related neuropsychiatric symptoms and (ii) selective receptor modulators are becoming available for more targeted treatment. These two new developments may help to 'restart the clock' with the prospect to support resilience.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Onno C. Meijer
- Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - E. Ron de Kloet
- Division of Endocrinology, Department of Medicine, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
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22
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Friend SF, Nachnani R, Powell SB, Risbrough VB. C-Reactive Protein: Marker of risk for post-traumatic stress disorder and its potential for a mechanistic role in trauma response and recovery. Eur J Neurosci 2022; 55:2297-2310. [PMID: 33131159 PMCID: PMC8087722 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15031] [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] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Revised: 09/17/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Increasing evidence indicates that inflammation plays a role in PTSD and stress disorder pathophysiology. PTSD is consistently associated with higher circulating inflammatory protein levels. Rodent models demonstrate that inflammation promotes enduring avoidance and arousal behaviors after severe stressors (e.g., predator exposure and social defeat), suggesting that inflammation may play a mechanistic role in trauma disorders. C-reactive protein (CRP) is an innate acute phase reactant produced by the liver after acute infection and chronic disease. A growing number of investigations report associations with PTSD diagnosis and elevated peripheral CRP, CRP gene mutations, and CRP gene expression changes in immune signaling pathways. CRP is reasonably established as a potential marker of PTSD and trauma exposure, but if and how it may play a mechanistic role is unclear. In this review, we discuss the current understanding of immune mechanisms in PTSD with a particular focus on the innate immune signaling factor, CRP. We found that although there is consistent evidence of an association of CRP with PTSD symptoms and risk, there is a paucity of data on how CRP might contribute to CNS inflammation in PTSD, and consequently, PTSD symptoms. We discuss potential mechanisms through which CRP could modulate enduring peripheral and CNS stress responses, along with future areas of investigation probing the role of CRP and other innate immune signaling factors in modulating trauma responses. Overall, we found that CRP likely contributes to central inflammation, but how it does so is an area for further study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha F. Friend
- Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental HealthSan DiegoCAUSA,Department of PsychiatryUniversity of California San DiegoSan DiegoCAUSA
| | - Rahul Nachnani
- Department of PharmacologyPenn State College of MedicineHersheyPAUSA
| | - Susan B. Powell
- Department of PsychiatryUniversity of California San DiegoSan DiegoCAUSA,Research ServiceVA San Diego Healthcare SystemSan DiegoCAUSA
| | - Victoria B. Risbrough
- Veterans Affairs Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental HealthSan DiegoCAUSA,Department of PsychiatryUniversity of California San DiegoSan DiegoCAUSA
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23
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Marchese S, Cancelmo L, Diab O, Cahn L, Aaronson C, Daskalakis NP, Schaffer J, Horn SR, Johnson JS, Schechter C, Desarnaud F, Bierer LM, Makotkine I, Flory JD, Crane M, Moline JM, Udasin IG, Harrison DJ, Roussos P, Charney DS, Koenen KC, Southwick SM, Yehuda R, Pietrzak RH, Huckins LM, Feder A. Altered gene expression and PTSD symptom dimensions in World Trade Center responders. Mol Psychiatry 2022; 27:2225-2246. [PMID: 35177824 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01457-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2021] [Revised: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Despite experiencing a significant trauma, only a subset of World Trade Center (WTC) rescue and recovery workers developed posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Identification of biomarkers is critical to the development of targeted interventions for treating disaster responders and potentially preventing the development of PTSD in this population. Analysis of gene expression from these individuals can help in identifying biomarkers of PTSD. We established a well-phenotyped sample of 371 WTC responders, recruited from a longitudinal WTC responder cohort using stratified random sampling, by obtaining blood, self-reported and clinical interview data. Using bulk RNA-sequencing from whole blood, we examined the association between gene expression and WTC-related PTSD symptom severity on (i) highest lifetime Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) score, (ii) past-month CAPS score, and (iii) PTSD symptom dimensions using a 5-factor model of re-experiencing, avoidance, emotional numbing, dysphoric arousal and anxious arousal symptoms. We corrected for sex, age, genotype-derived principal components and surrogate variables. Finally, we performed a meta-analysis with existing PTSD studies (total N = 1016), using case/control status as the predictor and correcting for these variables. We identified 66 genes significantly associated with total highest lifetime CAPS score (FDR-corrected p < 0.05), and 31 genes associated with total past-month CAPS score. Our more granular analyses of PTSD symptom dimensions identified additional genes that did not reach statistical significance in our analyses with total CAPS scores. In particular, we identified 82 genes significantly associated with lifetime anxious arousal symptoms. Several genes significantly associated with multiple PTSD symptom dimensions and total lifetime CAPS score (SERPINA1, RPS6KA1, and STAT3) have been previously associated with PTSD. Geneset enrichment of these findings has identified pathways significant in metabolism, immune signaling, other psychiatric disorders, neurological signaling, and cellular structure. Our meta-analysis revealed 10 genes that reached genome-wide significance, all of which were downregulated in cases compared to controls (CIRBP, TMSB10, FCGRT, CLIC1, RPS6KB2, HNRNPUL1, ALDOA, NACA, ZNF429 and COPE). Additionally, cellular deconvolution highlighted an enrichment in CD4 T cells and eosinophils in responders with PTSD compared to controls. The distinction in significant genes between total lifetime CAPS score and the anxious arousal symptom dimension of PTSD highlights a potential biological difference in the mechanism underlying the heterogeneity of the PTSD phenotype. Future studies should be clear about methods used to analyze PTSD status, as phenotypes based on PTSD symptom dimensions may yield different gene sets than combined CAPS score analysis. Potential biomarkers implicated from our meta-analysis may help improve therapeutic target development for PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shelby Marchese
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Leo Cancelmo
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Olivia Diab
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Leah Cahn
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Cindy Aaronson
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Nikolaos P Daskalakis
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Jamie Schaffer
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Sarah R Horn
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Jessica S Johnson
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Clyde Schechter
- Department of Family and Social Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Frank Desarnaud
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Linda M Bierer
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Iouri Makotkine
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Janine D Flory
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Michael Crane
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jacqueline M Moline
- Department of Occupational Medicine, Epidemiology and Prevention, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell, Great Neck, NY, USA
| | - Iris G Udasin
- Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, School of Public Health, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, USA
| | - Denise J Harrison
- Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, NYU School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Panos Roussos
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Centers, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 14068, USA
| | - Dennis S Charney
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.,Department of Pharmacological Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Karestan C Koenen
- Massachusetts General Hospital, Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit (PNGU), Boston, MA, USA.,Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Harvard School of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Steven M Southwick
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.,Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Rachel Yehuda
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, USA
| | - Robert H Pietrzak
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.,Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT, USA
| | - Laura M Huckins
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA. .,Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA. .,Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA. .,Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA. .,Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Centers, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY, 14068, USA. .,Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
| | - Adriana Feder
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, 10029, USA.
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24
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Zhou D, Long C, Shao Y, Li F, Sun W, Zheng Z, Wang X, Huang Y, Pan F, Chen G, Guo Y, Huang Y. Integrated Metabolomics and Proteomics Analysis of Urine in a Mouse Model of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:828382. [PMID: 35360173 PMCID: PMC8963102 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.828382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious stress disorder that occurs in individuals who have experienced major traumatic events. The underlying pathological mechanisms of PTSD are complex, and the related predisposing factors are still not fully understood. In this study, label-free quantitative proteomics and untargeted metabolomics were used to comprehensively characterize changes in a PTSD mice model. Differential expression analysis showed that 12 metabolites and 27 proteins were significantly differentially expressed between the two groups. Bioinformatics analysis revealed that the differentiated proteins were mostly enriched in: small molecule binding, transporter activity, extracellular region, extracellular space, endopeptidase activity, zymogen activation, hydrolase activity, proteolysis, peptidase activity, sodium channel regulator activity. The differentially expressed metabolites were mainly enriched in Pyrimidine metabolism, D-Glutamine and D-glutamate metabolism, Alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, Arginine biosynthesis, Glutathione metabolism, Arginine, and proline metabolism. These results expand the existing understanding of the molecular basis of the pathogenesis and progression of PTSD, and also suggest a new direction for potential therapeutic targets of PTSD. Therefore, the combination of urine proteomics and metabolomics explores a new approach for the study of the underlying pathological mechanisms of PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daxue Zhou
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Chengyan Long
- Chongqing Academy of Chinese Materia Medica, Chongqing, China
| | - Yan Shao
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Fei Li
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Wei Sun
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Zihan Zheng
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Xiaoyang Wang
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Yiwei Huang
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Feng Pan
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
| | - Gang Chen
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
- Key Laboratory of Extreme Environmental Medicine, Ministry of Education of China, Chongqing, China
- Chongqing Key Laboratory of Cytomics, Chongqing, China
- *Correspondence: Gang Chen,
| | - Yanlei Guo
- Chongqing Academy of Chinese Materia Medica, Chongqing, China
- Yanlei Guo,
| | - Yi Huang
- Biomedical Analysis Center, Army Medical University, Chongqing, China
- Yi Huang,
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25
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Gan C, Jin Z, Hu G, Li Z, Yan M. Integrated Analysis of miRNA and mRNA Expression Profiles Reveals the Molecular Mechanism of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Therapeutic Drugs. Int J Gen Med 2022; 15:2669-2680. [PMID: 35300145 PMCID: PMC8922041 DOI: 10.2147/ijgm.s334877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a result of trauma exposure and is related to psychological suffering as a long-lasting health issue. Further analysis of the networks and genes involved in PTSD are critical to the molecular mechanisms of PTSD. Methods In this study, we aimed to identify key genes and molecular interaction networks involved in the pathogenesis of PTSD by integrating mRNA and miRNA data. Results By integrating three high-throughput datasets, 5606 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were detected, including five differentially expressed miRNAs (DEmiRNAs) and 5525 differentially expressed mRNAs (DEmRNAs). Nineteen upregulated and 46 downregulated DEmRNAs were identified in both GSE64813 and GSE89866 datasets, while five upregulated DEmiRNAs were found in the GSE87768 dataset. Functional annotations of these DEmRNAs indicated that they were mainly enriched in blood coagulation, cell adhesion, platelet activation, and extracellular matrix (ECM)-receptor interaction. Integrated protein-protein and miRNA-protein interaction networks among the DEGs were established with the help of 65 nodes and 121 interactions. Finally, 286 small molecules were obtained based on the Drug-Gene Interaction database (DGIdb). Three genes, prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 1 (PTGS1), beta-tubulin gene (TUBB1), and cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 1A (CDKN1A), were the most promising targets for PTSD therapy. Additionally, the present study also provided a higher performance diagnostic model for PTSD based on 17 DEmRNAs, which was validated in two independent datasets, GSE109409 and GSE63878. Conclusion Our data provides a new molecular aspect that ECM-receptor interaction and the platelet activation process could be the potential molecular mechanism of PTSD, and the genes involved in this process may be promising therapeutic targets. A higher-performance diagnostic model for PTSD has also been identified.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunchun Gan
- Quzhou College of Technology, Quzhou, Zhejiang, 324000, People’s Republic of China
| | - Zhan Jin
- Quzhou College of Technology, Quzhou, Zhejiang, 324000, People’s Republic of China
| | - Gaobo Hu
- Quzhou College of Technology, Quzhou, Zhejiang, 324000, People’s Republic of China
| | - Zheming Li
- College of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Medical College, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China
- Zheming Li, College of Pharmacy, Hangzhou Medical College, Hanzhou, People’s Republic of China, Email
| | - Minli Yan
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University (Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine), Hangzhou, 310000, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China
- Correspondence: Minli Yan, Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University (Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine), Hangzhou, 310000, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-571-87077785, Email
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Watowich MM, Chiou KL, Montague MJ, Simons ND, Horvath JE, Ruiz-Lambides AV, Martínez MI, Higham JP, Brent LJN, Platt ML, Snyder-Mackler N. Natural disaster and immunological aging in a nonhuman primate. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2121663119. [PMID: 35131902 PMCID: PMC8872742 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2121663119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Weather-related disasters are increasing in frequency and severity, leaving survivors to cope with ensuing mental, financial, and physical hardships. This adversity can exacerbate existing morbidities, trigger new ones, and increase the risk of mortality-features that are also characteristic of advanced age-inviting the hypothesis that extreme weather events may accelerate aging. To test this idea, we examined the impact of Hurricane Maria and its aftermath on immune cell gene expression in large, age-matched, cross-sectional samples from free-ranging rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) living on an isolated island. A cross section of macaques was sampled 1 to 4 y before (n = 435) and 1 y after (n = 108) the hurricane. Hurricane Maria was significantly associated with differential expression of 4% of immune-cell-expressed genes, and these effects were correlated with age-associated alterations in gene expression. We further found that individuals exposed to the hurricane had a gene expression profile that was, on average, 1.96 y older than individuals that were not-roughly equivalent to an increase in 7 to 8 y of a human life. Living through an intense hurricane and its aftermath was associated with expression of key immune genes, dysregulated proteostasis networks, and greater expression of inflammatory immune cell-specific marker genes. Together, our findings illuminate potential mechanisms through which the adversity unleashed by extreme weather and potentially other natural disasters might become biologically embedded, accelerate age-related molecular immune phenotypes, and ultimately contribute to earlier onset of disease and death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina M Watowich
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
| | - Kenneth L Chiou
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
| | - Michael J Montague
- Department of Neuroscience, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| | - Noah D Simons
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708
| | - Julie E Horvath
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708
- Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, North Carolina Central University, Durham, NC 27707
- Research and Collections Section, North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh, NC 27601
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695
| | - Angelina V Ruiz-Lambides
- Caribbean Primate Research Center, Unit of Comparative Medicine, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, PR 00936
| | - Melween I Martínez
- Caribbean Primate Research Center, Unit of Comparative Medicine, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, PR 00936
| | - James P Higham
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY 10003
- New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology, New York, NY 10016
| | - Lauren J N Brent
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QG, United Kingdom
| | - Michael L Platt
- Department of Neuroscience, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
- Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
- Marketing Department, Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| | - Noah Snyder-Mackler
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195;
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85281
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
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27
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Zhu J, Zhang Y, Ren R, Sanford LD, Tang X. Blood transcriptome analysis: Ferroptosis and potential inflammatory pathways in post-traumatic stress disorder. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:841999. [PMID: 36276334 PMCID: PMC9581323 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.841999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Transcriptome-wide analysis of peripheral blood in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) indicates widespread changes in immune-related pathways and function. Ferroptosis, an iron-dependent regulated cell death, is closely related to oxidative stress. However, little is known as to whether ferroptosis plays a role in PTSD. METHODS We conducted a comprehensive analysis of combined data from six independent peripheral blood transcriptional studies in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database, covering PTSD and control individuals. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were extracted by comparing PTSD patients with control individuals, from which 29 ferroptosis-related genes (FRGs) were cross-matched and obtained. The weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), the Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) model with Bayesian Optimization, and the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) Cox regression were utilized to construct a PTSD prediction model. Single-sample Gene Set Enrichment Analysis (ssGSEA) and CIBERSORT revealed the disturbed immunologic state in PTSD high-risk patients. RESULTS Three crucial FRGs (ACSL4, ACO1, and GSS) were identified and used to establish a predictive model of PTSD. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve verifies its risk prediction ability. Remarkably, ssGSEA and CIBERSORT demonstrated changes in cellular immunity and antigen presentation depending on the FRGs model. CONCLUSION These findings collectively provide evidence that ferroptosis may change immune status in PTSD and be related to the occurrence of PTSD, which may help delineate mechanisms and discover treatment biomarkers for PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Zhu
- Sleep Medicine Center, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Mental Health Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Ye Zhang
- Sleep Medicine Center, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Mental Health Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Rong Ren
- Sleep Medicine Center, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Mental Health Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Larry D Sanford
- Sleep Research Laboratory, Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Inflammatory Diseases, Pathology and Anatomy, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, United States
| | - Xiangdong Tang
- Sleep Medicine Center, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Mental Health Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
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28
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McKetney J, Jenkins CC, Minogue C, Mach PM, Hussey EK, Glaros TG, Coon J, Dhummakupt ES. Proteomic and metabolomic profiling of acute and chronic stress events associated with military exercises. Mol Omics 2021; 18:279-295. [PMID: 34860218 DOI: 10.1039/d1mo00271f] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
By characterizing physiological changes that occur in warfighters during simulated combat, we can start to unravel the key biomolecular components that are linked to physical and cognitive performance. Viable field-based sensors for the warfighter must be rapid and noninvasive. In an effort to facilitate this, we applied a multiomics pipeline to characterize the stress response in the saliva of warfighters to correlate biomolecular changes with overall performance and health. In this study, two different stress models were observed - one of chronic stress and one of acute stress. In both models, significant perturbations in the immune, metabolic, and protein manufacturing/processing systems were observed. However, when differentiating between stress models, specific metabolites associated with the "fight or flight" response and protein folding were seen to be discriminate of the acute stress model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin McKetney
- Department of Biomolecular Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, 53706, USA. .,National Center for Quantitative Biology of Complex Systems, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Conor C Jenkins
- DEVCOM Chemical Biological Center, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, MD 21010, USA.
| | - Catie Minogue
- Department of Biomolecular Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, 53706, USA. .,National Center for Quantitative Biology of Complex Systems, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Phillip M Mach
- DEVCOM Chemical Biological Center, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, MD 21010, USA.
| | - Erika K Hussey
- DEVCOM Soldier Center, Natick, MA 01760, USA.,Defense Innovation Unit, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA
| | - Trevor G Glaros
- DEVCOM Chemical Biological Center, Aberdeen Proving Grounds, MD 21010, USA. .,Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA
| | - Joshua Coon
- Department of Biomolecular Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, 53706, USA. .,National Center for Quantitative Biology of Complex Systems, Madison, WI 53706, USA.,Morgridge Institute for Research, Madison, WI 53515, USA.,Department of Chemistry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
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29
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Schrock JM, McDade TW, Carrico AW, D'Aquila RT, Mustanski B. Traumatic events and mental health: The amplifying effects of pre-trauma systemic inflammation. Brain Behav Immun 2021; 98:173-184. [PMID: 34391815 PMCID: PMC8588867 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.08.208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Revised: 08/04/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Traumatic experiences are strongly predictive of adverse mental health outcomes. Experimental studies have demonstrated that systemic inflammation can increase reactivity to threatening stimuli. It is not known whether naturally occurring inflammation amplifies the impact of traumatic experiences on mental health. Here we test whether incident traumatic events are more predictive of adverse mental health outcomes for individuals with greater pre-trauma systemic inflammation in a racially and ethnically diverse cohort study of youth assigned male at birth who identify as sexual or gender minorities (ages 16-29, n = 518), a group at high risk for trauma exposure. METHODS Measures of inflammation, depression symptom severity, and perceived stress were measured at baseline. One year later, depression symptom severity and perceived stress were measured again, and participants reported the traumatic events they had experienced in the intervening year. RESULTS In a model adjusted for baseline depression symptom severity and other key covariates, we found that higher baseline levels of interleukin-1β amplified the effect of incident trauma exposure on depression symptom severity at follow-up (β = 0.234, SE = 0.080, P = 0.004). In a model adjusted for baseline perceived stress and other key covariates, we found that higher baseline scores on a multi-marker inflammatory index amplified the effect of incident trauma exposure on perceived stress at follow-up (β = 0.243, SE = 0.083, P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that greater pre-trauma inflammation may predict poorer mental health following trauma exposure. Understanding how inflammation interacts with trauma to shape mental health may generate novel insights for preventing and treating the debilitating psychological consequences of trauma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua M Schrock
- Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Thomas W McDade
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA; Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Adam W Carrico
- Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Richard T D'Aquila
- Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA; Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Brian Mustanski
- Institute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Medical Social Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
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30
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Gupta S, Guleria RS, Szabo YZ. MicroRNAs as biomarker and novel therapeutic target for posttraumatic stress disorder in Veterans. Psychiatry Res 2021; 305:114252. [PMID: 34739954 PMCID: PMC8857765 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114252] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 10/04/2021] [Accepted: 10/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common psychiatric disorder for military Veterans, characterized by hyperarousal, intrusive thoughts, flashbacks, hypervigilance, and distress after experiencing traumatic events. Some of the known physiological effects of PTSD include hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis imbalance, a cortical function resulting in neuronal deficit and changes in behavior. Moreover, excessive discharge of inflammatory molecules and a dysregulated immune system are implicated in the pathophysiology of PTSD. Due to complex nature of this disorder, the biological underpinnings of PTSD remain inexplicable. Investigating novel biomarkers to understanding the pathogenesis of PTSD may reflect the underlying molecular network for therapeutic use and treatment. Circulatory microRNAs (miRNAs) and exosomes are evolving biomarkers that have shown a key role in psychiatric and neurological disorders including PTSD. Given the unique nature of combat trauma, as well as evidence that a large portion of Veterans do not benefit from frontline treatments, focus on veterans specifically is warranted. In the present review, we delineate the identification and role of several miRNAs in PTSD among veterans. An association of miRNA with HPA-axis regulation through FKBP5, a key modulator in PTSD is discussed as an emerging molecule in psychiatric diseases. We conclude that miRNAs may be used as circulatory biomarker detection in Veterans with PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sudhiranjan Gupta
- VISN 17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans, Biomarkers & Genetics Core, Central Texas Veterans Health Care System, 4800 Memorial Drive (151C), Waco, TX, 76711, USA.
| | - Rakeshwar S. Guleria
- VISN 17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans, Biomarkers & Genetics Core, Central Texas Veterans Health Care System, 4800 Memorial Drive (151C), Waco, Texas, 76711
| | - Yvette Z. Szabo
- VISN 17 Center of Excellence for Research on Returning War Veterans, Biomarkers & Genetics Core, Central Texas Veterans Health Care System, 4800 Memorial Drive (151C), Waco, Texas, 76711
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31
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Johnson E, J M, I L, R S. Asthma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD): Emerging links, potential models and mechanisms. Brain Behav Immun 2021; 97:275-285. [PMID: 34107349 PMCID: PMC8453093 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2020] [Revised: 05/16/2021] [Accepted: 06/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a highly prevalent, debilitating mental health condition. A better understanding of contributory neurobiological mechanisms will lead to effective treatments, improving quality of life for patients. Given that not all trauma-exposed individuals develop PTSD, identification of pre-trauma susceptibility factors that can modulate posttraumatic outcomes is important. Recent clinical evidence supports a strong link between inflammatory conditions and PTSD. A particularly strong association has been reported between asthma and PTSD prevalence and severity. Unlike many other PTSD-comorbid inflammatory conditions, asthma often develops in children, sensitizing them to subsequent posttraumatic pathology throughout their lifetime. Currently, there is a significant need to understand the neurobiology, shared mechanisms, and inflammatory mediators that may contribute to comorbid asthma and PTSD. Here, we provide a translational perspective of asthma and PTSD risk and comorbidity, focusing on clinical associations, relevant rodent paradigms and potential mechanisms that may translate asthma-associated inflammation to PTSD development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily Johnson
- Dept. of Pharmacology & Systems Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, 45220,Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, 45220
| | - McAlees J
- Division of Immunobiology, Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati OH, 45220
| | - Lewkowich I
- Division of Immunobiology, Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati OH, 45220,Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, 45220
| | - Sah R
- Dept. of Pharmacology & Systems Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, 45220,Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH, 45220,VA Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, 45220
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32
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Lori A, Schultebraucks K, Galatzer-Levy I, Daskalakis NP, Katrinli S, Smith AK, Myers AJ, Richholt R, Huentelman M, Guffanti G, Wuchty S, Gould F, Harvey PD, Nemeroff CB, Jovanovic T, Gerasimov ES, Maples-Keller JL, Stevens JS, Michopoulos V, Rothbaum BO, Wingo AP, Ressler KJ. Transcriptome-wide association study of post-trauma symptom trajectories identified GRIN3B as a potential biomarker for PTSD development. Neuropsychopharmacology 2021; 46:1811-1820. [PMID: 34188182 PMCID: PMC8357796 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-021-01073-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Biomarkers that predict symptom trajectories after trauma can facilitate early detection or intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and may also advance our understanding of its biology. Here, we aimed to identify trajectory-based biomarkers using blood transcriptomes collected in the immediate aftermath of trauma exposure. Participants were recruited from an Emergency Department in the immediate aftermath of trauma exposure and assessed for PTSD symptoms at baseline, 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. Three empirical symptom trajectories (chronic-PTSD, remitting, and resilient) were identified in 377 individuals based on longitudinal symptoms across four data points (1, 3, 6, and 12 months), using latent growth mixture modeling. Blood transcriptomes were examined for association with longitudinal symptom trajectories, followed by expression quantitative trait locus analysis. GRIN3B and AMOTL1 blood mRNA levels were associated with chronic vs. resilient post-trauma symptom trajectories at a transcriptome-wide significant level (N = 153, FDR-corrected p value = 0.0063 and 0.0253, respectively). We identified four genetic variants that regulate mRNA blood expression levels of GRIN3B. Among these, GRIN3B rs10401454 was associated with PTSD in an independent dataset (N = 3521, p = 0.04). Examination of the BrainCloud and GTEx databases revealed that rs10401454 was associated with brain mRNA expression levels of GRIN3B. While further replication and validation studies are needed, our data suggest that GRIN3B, a glutamate ionotropic receptor NMDA type subunit-3B, may be involved in the manifestation of PTSD. In addition, the blood mRNA level of GRIN3B may be a promising early biomarker for the PTSD manifestation and development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriana Lori
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Katharina Schultebraucks
- Department of Emergency Medicine, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
- Data Science Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Isaac Galatzer-Levy
- Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Nikolaos P Daskalakis
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Seyma Katrinli
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Alicia K Smith
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Amanda J Myers
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Ryan Richholt
- Neurogenomics Division and Center for Rare Childhood Disorders, Translational Genomics Research Institute, Phoenix, AZ, USA
| | - Matthew Huentelman
- Neurogenomics Division and Center for Rare Childhood Disorders, Translational Genomics Research Institute, Phoenix, AZ, USA
| | - Guia Guffanti
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Stefan Wuchty
- Department of Biology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA
- Department of Computer Science, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA
- Institute of Data Science and Computing, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA
- Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Felicia Gould
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Philip D Harvey
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA
| | | | - Tanja Jovanovic
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | | | | | - Jennifer S Stevens
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Vasiliki Michopoulos
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Barbara O Rothbaum
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Aliza P Wingo
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Division of Mental Health, Atlanta VA Medical Center, Decatur, GA, USA.
| | - Kerry J Ressler
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA.
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33
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Garrett ME, Qin XJ, Mehta D, Dennis MF, Marx CE, Grant GA, Stein MB, Kimbrel NA, Beckham JC, Hauser MA, Ashley-Koch AE. Gene Expression Analysis in Three Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Cohorts Implicates Inflammation and Innate Immunity Pathways and Uncovers Shared Genetic Risk With Major Depressive Disorder. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:678548. [PMID: 34393704 PMCID: PMC8358297 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.678548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a complex psychiatric disorder that can develop following exposure to traumatic events. The Psychiatric Genomics Consortium PTSD group (PGC-PTSD) has collected over 20,000 multi-ethnic PTSD cases and controls and has identified both genetic and epigenetic factors associated with PTSD risk. To further investigate biological correlates of PTSD risk, we examined three PGC-PTSD cohorts comprising 977 subjects to identify differentially expressed genes among PTSD cases and controls. Whole blood gene expression was quantified with the HumanHT-12 v4 Expression BeadChip for 726 OEF/OIF veterans from the Veterans Affairs (VA) Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC), 155 samples from the Injury and Traumatic Stress (INTRuST) Clinical Consortium, and 96 Australian Vietnam War veterans. Differential gene expression analysis was performed in each cohort separately followed by meta-analysis. In the largest cohort, we performed co-expression analysis to identify modules of genes that are associated with PTSD and MDD. We then conducted expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) analysis and assessed the presence of eQTL interactions involving PTSD and major depressive disorder (MDD). Finally, we utilized PTSD and MDD GWAS summary statistics to identify regions that colocalize with eQTLs. Although not surpassing correction for multiple testing, the most differentially expressed genes in meta-analysis were interleukin-1 beta (IL1B), a pro-inflammatory cytokine previously associated with PTSD, and integrin-linked kinase (ILK), which is highly expressed in brain and can rescue dysregulated hippocampal neurogenesis and memory deficits. Pathway analysis revealed enrichment of toll-like receptor (TLR) and interleukin-1 receptor genes, which are integral to cellular innate immune response. Co-expression analysis identified four modules of genes associated with PTSD, two of which are also associated with MDD, demonstrating common biological pathways underlying the two conditions. Lastly, we identified four genes (UBA7, HLA-F, HSPA1B, and RERE) with high probability of a shared causal eQTL variant with PTSD and/or MDD GWAS variants, thereby providing a potential mechanism by which the GWAS variant contributes to disease risk. In summary, we provide additional evidence for genes and pathways previously reported and identified plausible novel candidates for PTSD. These data provide further insight into genetic factors and pathways involved in PTSD, as well as potential regions of pleiotropy between PTSD and MDD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie E Garrett
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Xue Jun Qin
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Divya Mehta
- Queensland University of Technology, Centre for Genomics and Personalised Health, Faculty of Health, Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Kelvin Grove, QLD, Australia
| | - Michelle F Dennis
- Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, NC, United States.,VA Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham, NC United States.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Christine E Marx
- Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, NC, United States.,VA Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham, NC United States.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Gerald A Grant
- Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, United States
| | | | | | | | | | - Murray B Stein
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States.,Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States.,VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Nathan A Kimbrel
- Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, NC, United States.,VA Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham, NC United States.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Jean C Beckham
- Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, NC, United States.,VA Mid-Atlantic Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, Durham, NC United States.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Michael A Hauser
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Allison E Ashley-Koch
- Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
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34
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Zuo Y, Wei D, Zhu C, Naveed O, Hong W, Yang X. Unveiling the Pathogenesis of Psychiatric Disorders Using Network Models. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:1101. [PMID: 34356117 PMCID: PMC8304351 DOI: 10.3390/genes12071101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 07/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Psychiatric disorders are complex brain disorders with a high degree of genetic heterogeneity, affecting millions of people worldwide. Despite advances in psychiatric genetics, the underlying pathogenic mechanisms of psychiatric disorders are still largely elusive, which impedes the development of novel rational therapies. There has been accumulating evidence suggesting that the genetics of complex disorders can be viewed through an omnigenic lens, which involves contextualizing genes in highly interconnected networks. Thus, applying network-based multi-omics integration methods could cast new light on the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders. In this review, we first provide an overview of the recent advances in psychiatric genetics and highlight gaps in translating molecular associations into mechanistic insights. We then present an overview of network methodologies and review previous applications of network methods in the study of psychiatric disorders. Lastly, we describe the potential of such methodologies within a multi-tissue, multi-omics approach, and summarize the future directions in adopting diverse network approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanning Zuo
- Department of Biological Chemistry, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (Y.Z.); (D.W.); (W.H.)
- Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (C.Z.); (O.N.)
| | - Don Wei
- Department of Biological Chemistry, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (Y.Z.); (D.W.); (W.H.)
- Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Semel Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Carissa Zhu
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (C.Z.); (O.N.)
| | - Ormina Naveed
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (C.Z.); (O.N.)
| | - Weizhe Hong
- Department of Biological Chemistry, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (Y.Z.); (D.W.); (W.H.)
- Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Xia Yang
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; (C.Z.); (O.N.)
- Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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35
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Katrinli S, Smith AK. Immune system regulation and role of the human leukocyte antigen in posttraumatic stress disorder. Neurobiol Stress 2021; 15:100366. [PMID: 34355049 PMCID: PMC8322450 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Revised: 05/28/2021] [Accepted: 07/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating condition that adversely affect mental and physical health. Recent studies have increasingly explored the role of the immune system in risk for PTSD and its related symptoms. Dysregulation of the immune system may lead to central nervous system tissue damage and impair learning and memory processes. Individuals with PTSD often have comorbid inflammatory or auto-immune disorders. Evidence shows associations between PTSD and multiple genes that are involved in immune-related or inflammatory pathways. In this review, we will summarize the evidence of immune dysregulation in PTSD, outlining the contributions of distinct cell types, genes, and biological pathways. We use the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) locus to illustrate the contribution of genetic variation to function in different tissues that contribute to PTSD etiology, severity, and comorbidities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seyma Katrinli
- Emory University, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Alicia K Smith
- Emory University, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Atlanta, GA, USA.,Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Atlanta, GA, USA
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36
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Kuan PF, Yang X, Ren X, Che C, Waszczuk M, Kotov R, Clouston S, Singh PK, Glenn ST, Gomez EC, Wang J, Bromet E, Luft BJ. Mapping the transcriptomics landscape of post-traumatic stress disorder symptom dimensions in World Trade Center responders. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:310. [PMID: 34031375 PMCID: PMC8144574 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01431-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Revised: 04/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Gene expression has provided promising insights into the pathophysiology of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); however, specific regulatory transcriptomic mechanisms remain unknown. The present study addressed this limitation by performing transcriptome-wide RNA-Seq of whole-blood samples from 226 World Trade Center responders. The investigation focused on differential expression (DE) at the gene, isoform, and for the first time, alternative splicing (AS) levels associated with the symptoms of PTSD: total burden, re-experiencing, avoidance, numbing, and hyperarousal subdimensions. These symptoms were associated with 76, 1, 48, 15, and 49 DE genes, respectively (FDR < 0.05). Moreover, they were associated with 103, 11, 0, 43, and 32 AS events. Avoidance differed the most from other dimensions with respect to DE genes and AS events. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) identified pathways involved in inflammatory and metabolic processes, which may have implications in the treatment of PTSD. Overall, the findings shed a novel light on the wide range of transcriptomic alterations associated with PTSD at the gene and AS levels. The results of DE analysis associated with PTSD subdimensions highlights the importance of studying PTSD symptom heterogeneity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pei-Fen Kuan
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA.
| | - Xiaohua Yang
- grid.36425.360000 0001 2216 9681Department of Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Xu Ren
- grid.36425.360000 0001 2216 9681Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Chang Che
- grid.36425.360000 0001 2216 9681Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Monika Waszczuk
- grid.262641.50000 0004 0388 7807Department of Psychology, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL USA
| | - Roman Kotov
- Department of Psychiatry, Stony Book University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Sean Clouston
- Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, Stony Book University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Prashant K. Singh
- grid.240614.50000 0001 2181 8635Department of Cancer Genetics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY USA
| | - Sean T. Glenn
- grid.240614.50000 0001 2181 8635Department of Cancer Genetics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY USA
| | - Eduardo Cortes Gomez
- grid.240614.50000 0001 2181 8635Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY USA
| | - Jianmin Wang
- grid.240614.50000 0001 2181 8635Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY USA
| | - Evelyn Bromet
- Department of Psychiatry, Stony Book University, Stony Brook, NY USA
| | - Benjamin J. Luft
- grid.36425.360000 0001 2216 9681Department of Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY USA
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37
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Yu H, Guo Y, Chen J, Chen X, Jia P, Zhao Z. Rewired Pathways and Disrupted Pathway Crosstalk in Schizophrenia Transcriptomes by Multiple Differential Coexpression Methods. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:665. [PMID: 33946654 PMCID: PMC8146818 DOI: 10.3390/genes12050665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2021] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Transcriptomic studies of mental disorders using the human brain tissues have been limited, and gene expression signatures in schizophrenia (SCZ) remain elusive. In this study, we applied three differential co-expression methods to analyze five transcriptomic datasets (three RNA-Seq and two microarray datasets) derived from SCZ and matched normal postmortem brain samples. We aimed to uncover biological pathways where internal correlation structure was rewired or inter-coordination was disrupted in SCZ. In total, we identified 60 rewired pathways, many of which were related to neurotransmitter, synapse, immune, and cell adhesion. We found the hub genes, which were on the center of rewired pathways, were highly mutually consistent among the five datasets. The combinatory list of 92 hub genes was generally multi-functional, suggesting their complex and dynamic roles in SCZ pathophysiology. In our constructed pathway crosstalk network, we found "Clostridium neurotoxicity" and "signaling events mediated by focal adhesion kinase" had the highest interactions. We further identified disconnected gene links underlying the disrupted pathway crosstalk. Among them, four gene pairs (PAK1:SYT1, PAK1:RFC5, DCTN1:STX1A, and GRIA1:MAP2K4) were normally correlated in universal contexts. In summary, we systematically identified rewired pathways, disrupted pathway crosstalk circuits, and critical genes and gene links in schizophrenia transcriptomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Yu
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; (H.Y.); (Y.G.)
| | - Yan Guo
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; (H.Y.); (Y.G.)
| | - Jingchun Chen
- Nevada Institute of Personalized Medicine, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA; (J.C.); (X.C.)
| | - Xiangning Chen
- Nevada Institute of Personalized Medicine, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA; (J.C.); (X.C.)
| | - Peilin Jia
- Center for Precision Health, School of Biomedical Informatics, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA;
| | - Zhongming Zhao
- Center for Precision Health, School of Biomedical Informatics, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA;
- Human Genetics Center, School of Public Health, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37203, USA
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38
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Hoffman GE, Roussos P. Dream: powerful differential expression analysis for repeated measures designs. Bioinformatics 2021; 37:192-201. [PMID: 32730587 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btaa687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/23/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
SUMMARY Large-scale transcriptome studies with multiple samples per individual are widely used to study disease biology. Yet, current methods for differential expression are inadequate for cross-individual testing for these repeated measures designs. Most problematic, we observe across multiple datasets that current methods can give reproducible false-positive findings that are driven by genetic regulation of gene expression, yet are unrelated to the trait of interest. Here, we introduce a statistical software package, dream, that increases power, controls the false positive rate, enables multiple types of hypothesis tests, and integrates with standard workflows. In 12 analyses in 6 independent datasets, dream yields biological insight not found with existing software while addressing the issue of reproducible false-positive findings. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION Dream is available within the variancePartition Bioconductor package at http://bioconductor.org/packages/variancePartition. CONTACT gabriel.hoffman@mssm.edu. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel E Hoffman
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Icahn Institute for Data Science and Genomic Technology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Panos Roussos
- Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Icahn Institute for Data Science and Genomic Technology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA.,Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (VISN 2 South), James J. Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468, USA
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Ponomareva OY, Ressler KJ. Genomic factors underlying sex differences in trauma-related disorders. Neurobiol Stress 2021; 14:100330. [PMID: 33997155 PMCID: PMC8102626 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2021] [Revised: 04/11/2021] [Accepted: 04/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a devastating illness with treatment that is effective in only approximately half of the population. This limited rate of response highlights the necessity for research into underlying individual biological mechanisms that mediate development and progression of this disease, allowing for identification of patient-specific treatments. PTSD has clear sex differences in both risk and symptom patterns. Thus, one approach is to characterize trauma-related changes between men and women who exhibit differences in treatment efficacy and response to trauma. Recent technological advances in sequencing have identified several genomic loci and transcriptional changes that are associated with post-trauma symptomatology. However, although the diagnosis of PTSD is more prevalent in women, the genetic factors underlying sex differences remain poorly understood. Here, we review recent work that highlights current understanding and limitations in the field of sex differences in PTSD and related symptomatology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga Y Ponomareva
- Neuropsychiatry Translational Research Fellowship Program, Boston VA Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA
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40
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Bountress KE, Vladimirov V, McMichael G, Taylor ZN, Hardiman G, Chung D, Adams ZW, Danielson CK, Amstadter AB. Gene Expression Differences Between Young Adults Based on Trauma History and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:581093. [PMID: 33897478 PMCID: PMC8060466 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.581093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Accepted: 03/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: The purpose of this study was to identify gene expression differences associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and trauma exposure (TE) in a three-group study design comprised of those with and without trauma exposure and PTSD. Methods: We conducted gene expression and gene network analyses in a sample (n = 45) composed of female subjects of European Ancestry (EA) with PTSD, TE without PTSD, and controls. Results: We identified 283 genes differentially expressed between PTSD-TE groups. In an independent sample of Veterans (n = 78) a small minority of these genes were also differentially expressed. We identified 7 gene network modules significantly associated with PTSD and TE (Bonferroni corrected p ≤ 0.05), which at a false discovery rate (FDR) of q ≤ 0.2, were significantly enriched for biological pathways involved in focal adhesion, neuroactive ligand receptor interaction, and immune related processes among others. Conclusions: This study uses gene network analyses to identify significant gene modules associated with PTSD, TE, and controls. On an individual gene level, we identified a large number of differentially expressed genes between PTSD-TE groups, a minority of which were also differentially expressed in the independent sample. We also demonstrate a lack of network module preservation between PTSD and TE, suggesting that the molecular signature of PTSD and trauma are likely independent of each other. Our results provide a basis for the identification of likely disease pathways and biomarkers involved in the etiology of PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaitlin E. Bountress
- Virginia Institute for Psychiatry and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Richmond, VA, United States
| | - Vladimir Vladimirov
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, College of Medicine Texas A&M University, Richmond, VA, United States
- Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Gowon McMichael
- Virginia Institute for Psychiatry and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Richmond, VA, United States
| | - Z. Nathan Taylor
- Virginia Institute for Psychiatry and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Richmond, VA, United States
| | - Gary Hardiman
- Institute for Global Food Security, Queens University Belfast, Belfast, United Kingdom
| | - Dongjun Chung
- Department of Public Health Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
| | - Zachary W. Adams
- Department of Psychiatry, Indiana University of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States
| | - Carla Kmett Danielson
- National Crime Victim Research and Treatment Center, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States
| | - Ananda B. Amstadter
- Virginia Institute for Psychiatry and Behavioral Genetics, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Richmond, VA, United States
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41
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Rajkumar RP. Harnessing the Neurobiology of Resilience to Protect the Mental Well-Being of Healthcare Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Front Psychol 2021; 12:621853. [PMID: 33815205 PMCID: PMC8012770 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.621853] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Accepted: 02/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Healthcare workers are at a high risk of psychological morbidity in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there is significant variability in the impact of this crisis on individual healthcare workers, which can be best explained through an appreciation of the construct of resilience. Broadly speaking, resilience refers to the ability to successfully adapt to stressful or traumatic events, and thus plays a key role in determining mental health outcomes following exposure to such events. A proper understanding of resilience is vital in enabling a shift from a reactive to a proactive approach for protecting and promoting the mental well-being of healthcare workers. Research in the past decade has identified six areas that provide promising leads in understanding the biological basis of individual variations in resilience. These are: (1) the key role played by the monoamines noradrenaline and serotonin, (2) the centrality of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis in influencing stress vulnerability and resilience, (3) the intimate links between the immune system and stress sensitivity, (4) the role of epigenetic modulation of gene expression in influencing the stress response, (5) the role played by certain neuropeptides as a natural “brake” mechanism in the face of stress, and (6) the neurobiological mechanisms by which environmental factors, such as exercise, diet, and social support, influence resilience to subsequent life events. Though much of this research is still in its early stages, it has already provided valuable information on which strategies – including dietary changes, lifestyle modification, environmental modification, psychosocial interventions, and even pharmacological treatments – may prove to be useful in fostering resilience in individuals and groups. This paper examines the above evidence more closely, with a specific focus on the challenges faced by healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, and provides suggestions regarding how it may be translated into real-world interventions, as well as how the more tentative hypotheses advanced in this field may be tested during this critical period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ravi Philip Rajkumar
- Department of Psychiatry, Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, Pondicherry, India
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42
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Sragovich S, Gershovits M, Lam JC, Li VO, Gozes I. Putative Blood Somatic Mutations in Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder-Symptomatic Soldiers: High Impact of Cytoskeletal and Inflammatory Proteins. J Alzheimers Dis 2021; 79:1723-1734. [DOI: 10.3233/jad-201158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Background: We recently discovered autism/intellectual disability somatic mutations in postmortem brains, presenting higher frequency in Alzheimer’s disease subjects, compared with the controls. We further revealed high impact cytoskeletal gene mutations, coupled with potential cytoskeleton-targeted repair mechanisms. Objective: The current study was aimed at further discerning if somatic mutations in brain diseases are presented only in the most affected tissue (the brain), or if blood samples phenocopy the brain, toward potential diagnostics. Methods: Variant calling analyses on an RNA-seq database including peripheral blood samples from 85 soldiers (58 controls and 27 with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD) was performed. Results: High (e.g., protein truncating) as well as moderate impact (e.g., single amino acid change) germline and putative somatic mutations in thousands of genes were found. Further crossing the mutated genes with autism, intellectual disability, cytoskeleton, inflammation, and DNA repair databases, identified the highest number of cytoskeletal-mutated genes (187 high and 442 moderate impact). Most of the mutated genes were shared and only when crossed with the inflammation database, more putative high impact mutated genes specific to the PTSD-symptom cohorts versus the controls (14 versus 13) were revealed, highlighting tumor necrosis factor specifically in the PTSD-symptom cohorts. Conclusion: With microtubules and neuro-immune interactions playing essential roles in brain neuroprotection and Alzheimer-related neurodegeneration, the current mutation discoveries contribute to mechanistic understanding of PTSD and brain protection, as well as provide future diagnostics toward personalized military deployment strategies and drug design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shlomo Sragovich
- The Elton Laboratory for Neuroendocrinology; Department of Human Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Sagol School of Neuroscience and Adams Super Center for Brain Studies, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Michael Gershovits
- The Nancy & Stephen Grand Israel National Center for Personalized Medicine, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Jacqueline C.K. Lam
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
- Department of Computer Science and Technology, The University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Victor O.K. Li
- Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
| | - Illana Gozes
- The Elton Laboratory for Neuroendocrinology; Department of Human Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Sagol School of Neuroscience and Adams Super Center for Brain Studies, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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Linnstaedt SD, Zannas AS, McLean SA, Koenen KC, Ressler KJ. Literature review and methodological considerations for understanding circulating risk biomarkers following trauma exposure. Mol Psychiatry 2020; 25:1986-1999. [PMID: 31863020 PMCID: PMC7305050 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-019-0636-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2019] [Revised: 11/24/2019] [Accepted: 12/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Exposure to traumatic events is common. While many individuals recover following trauma exposure, a substantial subset develop adverse posttraumatic neuropsychiatric sequelae (APNS) such as posttraumatic stress, major depression, and regional or widespread chronic musculoskeletal pain. APNS cause substantial burden to the individual and to society, causing functional impairment and physical disability, risk for suicide, lost workdays, and increased health care costs. Contemporary treatment is limited by an inability to identify individuals at high risk of APNS in the immediate aftermath of trauma, and an inability to identify optimal treatments for individual patients. Our purpose is to provide a comprehensive review describing candidate blood-based biomarkers that may help to identify those at high risk of APNS and/or guide individual intervention decision-making. Such blood-based biomarkers include circulating biological factors such as hormones, proteins, immune molecules, neuropeptides, neurotransmitters, mRNA, and noncoding RNA expression signatures, while we do not review genetic and epigenetic biomarkers due to other recent reviews of this topic. The current state of the literature on circulating risk biomarkers of APNS is summarized, and key considerations and challenges for their discovery and translation are discussed. We also describe the AURORA study, a specific example of current scientific efforts to identify such circulating risk biomarkers and the largest study to date focused on identifying risk and prognostic factors in the aftermath of trauma exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah D Linnstaedt
- Institute for Trauma Recovery, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Anesthesiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Anthony S Zannas
- Institute for Trauma Recovery, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Departments of Psychiatry and Genetics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Samuel A McLean
- Institute for Trauma Recovery, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Anesthesiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Emergency Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Karestan C Koenen
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kerry J Ressler
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA, USA.
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Kuan PF, Clouston S, Yang X, Kotov R, Bromet E, Luft BJ. Molecular linkage between post-traumatic stress disorder and cognitive impairment: a targeted proteomics study of World Trade Center responders. Transl Psychiatry 2020; 10:269. [PMID: 32753605 PMCID: PMC7403297 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-020-00958-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2020] [Revised: 07/10/2020] [Accepted: 07/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Existing work on proteomics has found common biomarkers that are altered in individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). The current study expands our understanding of these biomarkers by profiling 276 plasma proteins with known involvement in neurobiological processes using the Olink Proseek Multiplex Platform in individuals with both PTSD and MCI compared to either disorder alone and with unaffected controls. Participants were World Trade Center (WTC) responders recruited through the Stony Brook WTC Health Program. PTSD and MCI were measured with the PTSD Checklist (PCL) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment, respectively. Compared with unaffected controls, we identified 16 proteins associated with comorbid PTSD-MCI at P < 0.05 (six at FDR < 0.1), 20 proteins associated with PTSD only (two at FDR < 0.1), and 24 proteins associated with MCI only (one at FDR < 0.1), for a total of 50 proteins. The multiprotein composite score achieved AUCs of 0.84, 0.77, and 0.83 for PTSD-MCI, PTSD only, and MCI only versus unaffected controls, respectively. To our knowledge, the current study is the largest to profile a large set of proteins involved in neurobiological processes. The significant associations across the three case-group analyses suggest that shared biological mechanisms may be involved in the two disorders. If findings from the multiprotein composite score are replicated in independent samples, it has the potential to add a new tool to help classify both PTSD and MCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pei-Fen Kuan
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Sean Clouston
- Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, Stony Book University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Xiaohua Yang
- Department of Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Roman Kotov
- Department of Psychiatry, Stony Book University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Evelyn Bromet
- Department of Psychiatry, Stony Book University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Benjamin J Luft
- Department of Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA.
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Lutz MW, Luo S, Williamson DE, Chiba-Falek O. Shared genetic etiology underlying late-onset Alzheimer's disease and posttraumatic stress syndrome. Alzheimers Dement 2020; 16:1280-1292. [PMID: 32588970 DOI: 10.1002/alz.12128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Revised: 04/30/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD) manifests comorbid neuropsychiatric symptoms and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with an increased risk for dementia in late life, suggesting the two disorders may share genetic etiologies. METHODS We performed genetic pleiotropy analysis using LOAD and PTSD genome-wide association study (GWAS) datasets from white and African-American populations, followed by functional-genomic analyses. RESULTS We found an enrichment for LOAD across increasingly stringent levels of significance with the PTSD GWAS association (LOAD|PTSD) in the discovery and replication cohorts and a modest enrichment for the reverse conditional association (PTSD|LOAD). LOAD|PTSD association analysis identified and replicated the MS4A genes region. These genes showed similar expression pattern in brain regions affected in LOAD, and across-brain-tissue analysis identified a significant association for MS4A6A. The African-American samples showed moderate enrichment; however, no false discovery rate-significant associations. DISCUSSION We demonstrated common genetic signatures for LOAD and PTSD and suggested immune response as a common pathway for these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael W Lutz
- Division of Translational Brain Sciences, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Sheng Luo
- Department of Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Douglas E Williamson
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Research Service, Durham VA Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Center for Applied Genomics and Precision Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Ornit Chiba-Falek
- Division of Translational Brain Sciences, Department of Neurology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Center for Genomic and Computational Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
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Huckins LM, Chatzinakos C, Breen MS, Hartmann J, Klengel T, da Silva Almeida AC, Dobbyn A, Girdhar K, Hoffman GE, Klengel C, Logue MW, Lori A, Maihofer AX, Morrison FG, Nguyen HT, Park Y, Ruderfer D, Sloofman LG, van Rooij SJH, Baker DG, Chen CY, Cox N, Duncan LE, Geyer MA, Glatt SJ, Im HK, Risbrough VB, Smoller JW, Stein DJ, Yehuda R, Liberzon I, Koenen KC, Jovanovic T, Kellis M, Miller MW, Bacanu SA, Nievergelt CM, Buxbaum JD, Sklar P, Ressler KJ, Stahl EA, Daskalakis NP. Analysis of Genetically Regulated Gene Expression Identifies a Prefrontal PTSD Gene, SNRNP35, Specific to Military Cohorts. Cell Rep 2020; 31:107716. [PMID: 32492425 PMCID: PMC7359754 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2019] [Revised: 10/07/2019] [Accepted: 05/09/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
To reveal post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) genetic risk influences on tissue-specific gene expression, we use brain and non-brain transcriptomic imputation. We impute genetically regulated gene expression (GReX) in 29,539 PTSD cases and 166,145 controls from 70 ancestry-specific cohorts and identify 18 significant GReX-PTSD associations corresponding to specific tissue-gene pairs. The results suggest substantial genetic heterogeneity based on ancestry, cohort type (military versus civilian), and sex. Two study-wide significant PTSD associations are identified in European and military European cohorts; ZNF140 is predicted to be upregulated in whole blood, and SNRNP35 is predicted to be downregulated in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, respectively. In peripheral leukocytes from 175 marines, the observed PTSD differential gene expression correlates with the predicted differences for these individuals, and deployment stress produces glucocorticoid-regulated expression changes that include downregulation of both ZNF140 and SNRNP35. SNRNP35 knockdown in cells validates its functional role in U12-intron splicing. Finally, exogenous glucocorticoids in mice downregulate prefrontal Snrnp35 expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura M Huckins
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Centers, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468, USA.
| | - Chris Chatzinakos
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478, USA; Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Michael S Breen
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Jakob Hartmann
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478, USA
| | - Torsten Klengel
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Goettingen, Goettingen 37075, Germany
| | | | - Amanda Dobbyn
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Kiran Girdhar
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Gabriel E Hoffman
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Claudia Klengel
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478, USA
| | - Mark W Logue
- National Center for PTSD at VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA; Biomedical Genetics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA; Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Adriana Lori
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Adam X Maihofer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Center for Excellence in Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA; Research Service, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA
| | - Filomene G Morrison
- National Center for PTSD at VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Hoang T Nguyen
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Yongjin Park
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | | | - Laura G Sloofman
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Sanne J H van Rooij
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Dewleen G Baker
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Center for Excellence in Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA; Psychiatry Service, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA
| | - Chia-Yen Chen
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Psychiatric & Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Analytic and Translational Genetics Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Nancy Cox
- Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Laramie E Duncan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Mark A Geyer
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Center for Excellence in Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA; Research Service, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA
| | - Stephen J Glatt
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, State University of New York - Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, 13210, USA
| | - Hae Kyung Im
- Department of Medicine, Section of Genetic Medicine, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA; Center for Translational Data Science, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60616, USA
| | - Victoria B Risbrough
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Center for Excellence in Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA; Research Service, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA
| | - Jordan W Smoller
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Psychiatric & Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Analytic and Translational Genetics Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA
| | - Dan J Stein
- SAMRC Unit on Risk & Resilience in Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7700, South Africa
| | - Rachel Yehuda
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Mental Health Care Center, James J. Peters Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Bronx, NY 10468, USA
| | - Israel Liberzon
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Texas A&M University College of Medicine, Bryan, TX 77807, USA
| | - Karestan C Koenen
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA; Psychiatric & Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02114, USA; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Tanja Jovanovic
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA
| | - Manolis Kellis
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA
| | - Mark W Miller
- National Center for PTSD at VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Silviu-Alin Bacanu
- Department of Psychiatry, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23298, USA
| | - Caroline M Nievergelt
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Center for Excellence in Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA; Research Service, Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA 92161, USA
| | - Joseph D Buxbaum
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Pamela Sklar
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Kerry J Ressler
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478, USA
| | - Eli A Stahl
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Genetics and Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Pamela Sklar Division of Psychiatric Genomics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multiscale Biology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Nikolaos P Daskalakis
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA; Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Belmont, MA 02478, USA; Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA 02142, USA.
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Sumner JA, Nishimi KM, Koenen KC, Roberts AL, Kubzansky LD. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Inflammation: Untangling Issues of Bidirectionality. Biol Psychiatry 2020; 87:885-897. [PMID: 31932029 PMCID: PMC7211139 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.11.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Revised: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has increasingly been linked to heightened systemic inflammation. It matters whether this association is causal (and either bidirectional or unidirectional) or correlational. Investigators have hypothesized that chronic systemic low-grade inflammation may contribute to greater risk of developing PTSD after experiencing trauma and/or serve as a mechanism linking PTSD to adverse physical health outcomes. However, if the PTSD-inflammation relation is correlational, it may not warrant further research aimed at understanding inflammation as a PTSD risk factor or as a pathway linking PTSD with poor health. In this review, we first assess the longitudinal evidence related to PTSD and inflammation to understand more clearly the directionality and causal nature of this relation. Overall, few longitudinal studies rigorously assess the direction of the PTSD-inflammation relation. Some of the evidence indicates that elevated inflammation assessed pretrauma or in the acute aftermath of trauma increases risk for developing PTSD. Fewer studies evaluate the influence of PTSD on subsequent inflammation levels, and findings are mixed. Sample characteristics and study designs, and also the type of inflammation-related measure, vary widely across studies. Based on current evidence, we then recommend several statistical and study design approaches that may help untangle issues of bidirectionality and aid in determining the direction of causality between PTSD and inflammation. Last, we conclude with future research directions and consider potential implications for interventions or treatment approaches based on this growing body of literature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A. Sumner
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA,Correspondence to: Jennifer A. Sumner, University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Psychology, 1285 Franz Hall, Box 951563, Los Angeles, CA 90095. Telephone: 1 (310) 794-9860;
| | - Kristen M. Nishimi
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Karestan C. Koenen
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Andrea L. Roberts
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura D. Kubzansky
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
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48
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Grasser LR, Burghardt P, Daugherty AM, Amirsadri A, Javanbakht A. Inflammation and Trauma-Related Psychopathology in Syrian and Iraqi Refugees. Behav Sci (Basel) 2020; 10:E75. [PMID: 32272662 PMCID: PMC7226275 DOI: 10.3390/bs10040075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2020] [Revised: 04/02/2020] [Accepted: 04/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Refugees experience high rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression due to exposure to civilian war trauma and forced migration. Inflammatory products may offer viable biological indicators of trauma-related psychopathology in this cohort, promoting rapid and objective assessment of psychopathology. Incoming Syrian and Iraqi refugees (n = 36) ages 18-65 completed self-report measures of PTSD, anxiety, and depression and provided saliva samples during an assessment at a primary care clinic within the first month of resettlement in the United States. Interleukin 1β (IL-1β) and C-reactive protein (CRP) differentially correlated with symptom severity by domain, and there was a non-significant trend for sex moderating the relation between inflammation and PTSD symptoms. Our findings show unique relations between trauma-related psychopathology and inflammation. There is a need for further research in diverse ethnic cohorts with differential trauma exposures for inflammation to be considered a biological indicator of psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lana Ruvolo Grasser
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA; (L.R.G.); (A.M.D.); (A.A.)
| | - Paul Burghardt
- Nutrition and Food Science, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA;
| | - Ana M Daugherty
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA; (L.R.G.); (A.M.D.); (A.A.)
- Department of Psychology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA
- Institute of Gerontology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA
| | - Alireza Amirsadri
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA; (L.R.G.); (A.M.D.); (A.A.)
| | - Arash Javanbakht
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA; (L.R.G.); (A.M.D.); (A.A.)
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Mehta D, Miller O, Bruenig D, David G, Shakespeare-Finch J. A Systematic Review of DNA Methylation and Gene Expression Studies in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, Posttraumatic Growth, and Resilience. J Trauma Stress 2020; 33:171-180. [PMID: 31951051 DOI: 10.1002/jts.22472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2018] [Revised: 06/25/2019] [Accepted: 07/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Most people will experience a traumatic event within their lifetime. One commonly recognized response to trauma exposure is posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The biological underpinnings of PTSD, including epigenetic mechanisms of DNA methylation and gene expression, have been studied intensively. However, psychological posttrauma responses vary widely and can include positive outcomes, such as posttraumatic growth (PTG) and, more commonly, resilience. The aim of this systematic review was to summarize the current DNA methylation and gene expression data with respect to three potential posttrauma responses: PTSD, PTG, and resilience. A literature search identified 486 studies, 51 of which were deemed eligible for inclusion (total N = 10,633). All included studies examined PTSD and consistently implicated DNA methylation and gene expression changes in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and inflammatory genes. Ten studies acknowledged resilience as a posttrauma response, but only two studies examined epigenetics and gene expression using a scale to measure resilience. Low resilience was associated with gene expression patterns in immune and dopamine genes, and high resilience was associated with a blunted inflammatory response. No studies examined epigenetic or gene expression changes associated with PTG. These findings highlight a focus on pathogenic research, which has failed to adequately acknowledge and measure positive posttrauma outcomes of PTG and resilience. Future research should examine DNA methylation and gene expression changes associated with PTG and resilience in addition to PTSD in order to gain a more comprehensive picture of an individual's well-being following exposure to trauma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Divya Mehta
- School of Psychology and Counselling and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, Australia
| | - Olivia Miller
- School of Psychology and Counselling and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, Australia
| | - Dagmar Bruenig
- School of Psychology and Counselling and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, Australia
| | - Georgina David
- School of Psychology and Counselling and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, Australia
| | - Jane Shakespeare-Finch
- School of Psychology and Counselling and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation, Faculty of Health, Queensland University of Technology, Kelvin Grove, Australia
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Kim GS, Uddin M. Sex-specific and shared expression profiles of vulnerability and resilience to trauma in brain and blood. Biol Sex Differ 2020; 11:13. [PMID: 32228684 PMCID: PMC7106761 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-020-00288-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 03/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND While post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is defined by behavioral/cognitive symptoms most directly relevant to brain function, it can be considered a systemic disorder characterized by a distinct inability to reinstate homeostasis after trauma. METHODS In this study, we conducted a secondary analysis of gene expression profiles in key PTSD-relevant tissues, namely blood, amygdala, and hippocampus, from a rat model of PTSD, to identify sex-specific and shared processes associated with individual differences in response to recent trauma exposure. RESULTS Our findings suggest both shared and sex-specific mechanisms underlying individual differences associated with vulnerability and resilience to trauma in hippocampus, amygdala, and blood. By disentangling cell composition from transcriptional changes, we found higher proportions of hippocampal oligodendrocytes in the PTSD-like, extreme behavioral response (EBR) group for both sexes and also identified modules for transcriptional activity associated with group differences (i.e., response to trauma) in the hippocampus that appeared to be sex-specific. By contrast, we found prominent sex differences, but no group differences, in amygdalar cell composition, and both shared and sex-specific modules representing PTSD-relevant transcriptional activity in the amygdala. Across amygdala and hippocampus, both sex-specific and shared processes were relevant to an overarching framework for EBR implicating disrupted TNFα/NFκΒ signaling and excitatory/inhibitory imbalance in dysregulated synaptic/structural plasticity with important implications for fear learning and memory. Our main finding in peripheral blood was consistent with the human literature and identified wound healing processes and hemostasis to be upregulated in the resilient, minimal behavioral response (MBR) group across sexes, but disrupted in a sexually dimorphic manner in the EBR group. CONCLUSION In contrast to the varied characterization of the PTSD-like EBR group, characterization of MBR across blood, amygdala, and hippocampus suggests a common theme of upregulated wound healing and extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling shared between sexes. In all, we identified differential oligodendrocyte proportions in hippocampus between PTSD-like EBR and resilient MBR, and identified processes and pathways that characterize the EBR and MBR-associated transcriptional changes across hippocampus, amygdala, and blood. The sex-specific mechanisms involved in EBR may contribute to the pronounced disparity in risk for PTSD, with women much more likely to develop PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace S Kim
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA.,Medical Scholars Program, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA
| | - Monica Uddin
- Genomics Program, Center for Global Health and Infectious Disease Research, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, 3720 Spectrum Blvd., Ste. 304, Tampa, FL, 33612, USA.
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