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Sheffield JM, Brinen AP, Feola B, Heckers S, Corlett PR. Understanding Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis Through the Predictive Coding Framework. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 4:100333. [PMID: 38952435 PMCID: PMC11215207 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2024.100333] [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: 10/11/2023] [Revised: 05/02/2024] [Accepted: 05/04/2024] [Indexed: 07/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Psychological treatments for persecutory delusions, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis, are efficacious; however, mechanistic theories explaining why they work rarely bridge to the level of cognitive neuroscience. Predictive coding, a general brain processing theory rooted in cognitive and computational neuroscience, has increasing experimental support for explaining symptoms of psychosis, including the formation and maintenance of delusions. Here, we describe recent advances in cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis-based psychotherapy for persecutory delusions, which targets specific psychological processes at the computational level of information processing. We outline how Bayesian learning models employed in predictive coding are superior to simple associative learning models for understanding the impact of cognitive behavioral interventions at the algorithmic level. We review hierarchical predictive coding as an account of belief updating rooted in prediction error signaling. We examine how this process is abnormal in psychotic disorders, garnering noisy sensory data that is made sense of through the development of overly strong delusional priors. We argue that effective cognitive behavioral therapy for psychosis systematically targets the way sensory data are selected, experienced, and interpreted, thus allowing for the strengthening of alternative beliefs. Finally, future directions based on these arguments are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia M. Sheffield
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Aaron P. Brinen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Brandee Feola
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Stephan Heckers
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Philip R. Corlett
- Department of Psychiatry, Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut
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Ayoub SM, Holloway BM, Miranda AH, Roberts BZ, Young JW, Minassian A, Ellis RJ. The Impact of Cannabis Use on Cognition in People with HIV: Evidence of Function-Dependent Effects and Mechanisms from Clinical and Preclinical Studies. Curr HIV/AIDS Rep 2024; 21:87-115. [PMID: 38602558 PMCID: PMC11129923 DOI: 10.1007/s11904-024-00698-w] [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] [Accepted: 03/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Cannabis may have beneficial anti-inflammatory effects in people with HIV (PWH); however, given this population's high burden of persisting neurocognitive impairment (NCI), clinicians are concerned they may be particularly vulnerable to the deleterious effects of cannabis on cognition. Here, we present a systematic scoping review of clinical and preclinical studies evaluating the effects of cannabinoid exposure on cognition in HIV. RECENT FINDINGS Results revealed little evidence to support a harmful impact of cannabis use on cognition in HIV, with few eligible preclinical data existing. Furthermore, the beneficial/harmful effects of cannabis use observed on cognition were function-dependent and confounded by several factors (e.g., age, frequency of use). Results are discussed alongside potential mechanisms of cannabis effects on cognition in HIV (e.g., anti-inflammatory), and considerations are outlined for screening PWH that may benefit from cannabis interventions. We further highlight the value of accelerating research discoveries in this area by utilizing translatable cross-species tasks to facilitate comparisons across human and animal work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha M Ayoub
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0804, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0804, USA.
| | - Breanna M Holloway
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0804, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0804, USA
| | - Alannah H Miranda
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0804, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0804, USA
| | - Benjamin Z Roberts
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0804, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0804, USA
| | - Jared W Young
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0804, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0804, USA
- Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Arpi Minassian
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive MC 0804, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0804, USA
- VA Center of Excellence for Stress and Mental Health, Veterans Administration San Diego HealthCare System, 3350 La Jolla Village Drive, San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Ronald J Ellis
- Department of Neuroscience, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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Gillespie B, Houghton MJ, Ganio K, McDevitt CA, Bennett D, Dunn A, Raju S, Schroeder A, Hill RA, Cardoso BR. Maternal selenium dietary supplementation alters sociability and reinforcement learning deficits induced by in utero exposure to maternal immune activation in mice. Brain Behav Immun 2024; 116:349-361. [PMID: 38142918 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.12.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Maternal immune activation (MIA) during pregnancy increases the risk for the unborn foetus to develop neurodevelopmental conditions such as autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia later in life. MIA mouse models recapitulate behavioural and biological phenotypes relevant to both conditions, and are valuable models to test novel treatment approaches. Selenium (Se) has potent anti-inflammatory properties suggesting it may be an effective prophylactic treatment against MIA. The aim of this study was to determine if Se supplementation during pregnancy can prevent adverse effects of MIA on offspring brain and behaviour in a mouse model. Selenium was administered via drinking water (1.5 ppm) to pregnant dams from gestational day (GD) 9 to birth, and MIA was induced at GD17 using polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly-I:C, 20 mg/kg via intraperitoneal injection). Foetal placenta and brain cytokine levels were assessed using a Luminex assay and brain elemental nutrients assessed using inductively coupled plasma- mass spectrometry. Adult offspring were behaviourally assessed using a reinforcement learning paradigm, the three-chamber sociability test and the open field test. MIA elevated placental IL-1β and IL-17, and Se supplementation successfully prevented this elevation. MIA caused an increase in foetal brain calcium, which was prevented by Se supplement. MIA caused in offspring a female-specific reduction in sociability, which was recovered by Se, and a male-specific reduction in social memory, which was not recovered by Se. Exposure to poly-I:C or selenium, but not both, reduced performance in the reinforcement learning task. Computational modelling indicated that this was predominantly due to increased exploratory behaviour, rather than reduced rate of learning the location of the food reward. This study demonstrates that while Se may be beneficial in ameliorating sociability deficits caused by MIA, it may have negative effects in other behavioural domains. Caution in the use of Se supplementation during pregnancy is therefore warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brendan Gillespie
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Michael J Houghton
- Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, Monash University, Notting Hill, VIC 3168, Australia; Victorian Heart Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Katherine Ganio
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
| | - Christopher A McDevitt
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia
| | - Daniel Bennett
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Ariel Dunn
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Sharvada Raju
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Anna Schroeder
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia.
| | - Rachel A Hill
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia.
| | - Barbara R Cardoso
- Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food, Monash University, Notting Hill, VIC 3168, Australia.
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Yang X, Song Y, Zou Y, Li Y, Zeng J. Neural correlates of prediction error in patients with schizophrenia: evidence from an fMRI meta-analysis. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhad471. [PMID: 38061699 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad471] [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: 07/24/2023] [Revised: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Abnormal processes of learning from prediction errors, i.e. the discrepancies between expectations and outcomes, are thought to underlie motivational impairments in schizophrenia. Although dopaminergic abnormalities in the mesocorticolimbic reward circuit have been found in patients with schizophrenia, the pathway through which prediction error signals are processed in schizophrenia has yet to be elucidated. To determine the neural correlates of prediction error processing in schizophrenia, we conducted a meta-analysis of whole-brain neuroimaging studies that investigated prediction error signal processing in schizophrenia patients and healthy controls. A total of 14 studies (324 schizophrenia patients and 348 healthy controls) using the reinforcement learning paradigm were included. Our meta-analysis showed that, relative to healthy controls, schizophrenia patients showed increased activity in the precentral gyrus and middle frontal gyrus and reduced activity in the mesolimbic circuit, including the striatum, thalamus, amygdala, hippocampus, anterior cingulate cortex, insula, superior temporal gyrus, and cerebellum, when processing prediction errors. We also found hyperactivity in frontal areas and hypoactivity in mesolimbic areas when encoding prediction error signals in schizophrenia patients, potentially indicating abnormal dopamine signaling of reward prediction error and suggesting failure to represent the value of alternative responses during prediction error learning and decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xun Yang
- School of Public Policy and Administration, Chongqing University, No. 174, Shazhengjie, Shapingba, Chongqing, China
| | - Yuan Song
- School of Public Policy and Administration, Chongqing University, No. 174, Shazhengjie, Shapingba, Chongqing, China
| | - Yuhan Zou
- School of Economics and Business Administration, Chongqing University, No. 174, Shazhengjie, Shapingba, Chongqing, China
| | - Yilin Li
- Psychology and Neuroscience Department, University of St Andrews, Forbes 1 DRA, Buchanan Garden, St Andrews, Fife, United Kingdom
| | - Jianguang Zeng
- School of Economics and Business Administration, Chongqing University, No. 174, Shazhengjie, Shapingba, Chongqing, China
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Tranter MM, Faget L, Hnasko TS, Powell SB, Dillon DG, Barnes SA. Postnatal Phencyclidine-Induced Deficits in Decision Making Are Ameliorated by Optogenetic Inhibition of Ventromedial Orbitofrontal Cortical Glutamate Neurons. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 4:264-274. [PMID: 38298783 PMCID: PMC10829674 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2023.08.002] [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] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Revised: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 02/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Background The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is essential for decision making, and functional disruptions within the OFC are evident in schizophrenia. Postnatal phencyclidine (PCP) administration in rats is a neurodevelopmental manipulation that induces schizophrenia-relevant cognitive impairments. We aimed to determine whether manipulating OFC glutamate cell activity could ameliorate postnatal PCP-induced deficits in decision making. Methods Male and female Wistar rats (n = 110) were administered saline or PCP on postnatal days 7, 9, and 11. In adulthood, we expressed YFP (yellow fluorescent protein) (control), ChR2 (channelrhodopsin-2) (activation), or eNpHR 3.0 (enhanced halorhodopsin) (inhibition) in glutamate neurons within the ventromedial OFC (vmOFC). Rats were tested on the probabilistic reversal learning task once daily for 20 days while we manipulated the activity of vmOFC glutamate cells. Behavioral performance was analyzed using a Q-learning computational model of reinforcement learning. Results Compared with saline-treated rats expressing YFP, PCP-treated rats expressing YFP completed fewer reversals, made fewer win-stay responses, and had lower learning rates. We induced similar performance impairments in saline-treated rats by activating vmOFC glutamate cells (ChR2). Strikingly, PCP-induced performance deficits were ameliorated when the activity of vmOFC glutamate cells was inhibited (halorhodopsin). Conclusions Postnatal PCP-induced deficits in decision making are associated with hyperactivity of vmOFC glutamate cells. Thus, normalizing vmOFC activity may represent a potential therapeutic target for decision-making deficits in patients with schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael M. Tranter
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
- Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, California
| | - Lauren Faget
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Thomas S. Hnasko
- Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, California
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
| | - Susan B. Powell
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
- Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, California
| | - Daniel G. Dillon
- Center for Depression, Anxiety and Stress Research, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Samuel A. Barnes
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California
- Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, La Jolla, California
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Fahey MP, Yee DM, Leng X, Tarlow M, Shenhav A. Motivational context determines the impact of aversive outcomes on mental effort allocation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.27.564461. [PMID: 37961466 PMCID: PMC10634922 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.27.564461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
It is well known that people will exert effort on a task if sufficiently motivated, but how they distribute these efforts across different strategies (e.g., efficiency vs. caution) remains uncertain. Past work has shown that people invest effort differently for potential positive outcomes (rewards) versus potential negative outcomes (penalties). However, this research failed to account for differences in the context in which negative outcomes motivate someone - either as punishment or reinforcement. It is therefore unclear whether effort profiles differ as a function of outcome valence, motivational context, or both. Using computational modeling and our novel Multi-Incentive Control Task, we show that the influence of aversive outcomes on one's effort profile is entirely determined by their motivational context. Participants (N:91) favored increased caution in response to larger penalties for incorrect responses, and favored increased efficiency in response to larger reinforcement for correct responses, whether positively or negatively incentivized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahalia Prater Fahey
- Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University
| | - Debbie M Yee
- Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University
| | - Xiamin Leng
- Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University
| | - Maisy Tarlow
- Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University
| | - Amitai Shenhav
- Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University
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7
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Wang X, Zhang Y, Huang J, Wang Y, Niu Y, Lui SSY, Hui L, Chan RCK. Revisiting reward impairments in schizophrenia spectrum disorders: a systematic review and meta-analysis for neuroimaging findings. Psychol Med 2023; 53:7189-7202. [PMID: 36994747 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291723000703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Abnormal reward functioning is central to anhedonia and amotivation symptoms of schizophrenia (SCZ). Reward processing encompasses a series of psychological components. This systematic review and meta-analysis examined the brain dysfunction related to reward processing of individuals with SCZ spectrum disorders and risks, covering multiple reward components. METHODS After a systematic literature search, 37 neuroimaging studies were identified and divided into four groups based on their target psychology components (i.e. reward anticipation, reward consumption, reward learning, effort computation). Whole-brain Seed-based d Mapping (SDM) meta-analyses were conducted for all included studies and each component. RESULTS The meta-analysis for all reward-related studies revealed reduced functional activation across the SCZ spectrum in the striatum, orbital frontal cortex, cingulate cortex, and cerebellar areas. Meanwhile, distinct abnormal patterns were found for reward anticipation (decreased activation of the cingulate cortex and striatum), reward consumption (decreased activation of cerebellum IV/V areas, insula and inferior frontal gyri), and reward learning processing (decreased activation of the striatum, thalamus, cerebellar Crus I, cingulate cortex, orbitofrontal cortex, and parietal and occipital areas). Lastly, our qualitative review suggested that decreased activation of the ventral striatum and anterior cingulate cortex was also involved in effort computation. CONCLUSIONS These results provide deep insights on the component-based neuro-psychopathological mechanisms for anhedonia and amotivation symptoms of the SCZ spectrum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuan Wang
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yinghao Zhang
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| | - Jia Huang
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yi Wang
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yanzhe Niu
- Department of Psychology, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, USA
| | - Simon S Y Lui
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Li Hui
- Research Center of Biological Psychiatry, Suzhou Guangji Hospital, Medical College of Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu, China
| | - Raymond C K Chan
- Neuropsychology and Applied Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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Young MK, Conn KA, Das J, Zou S, Alexander S, Burne TH, Kesby JP. Activity in the Dorsomedial Striatum Underlies Serial Reversal Learning Performance Under Probabilistic Uncertainty. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 3:1030-1041. [PMID: 37881585 PMCID: PMC10593872 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2022.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Corticostriatal circuits, particularly the dorsomedial striatum (DMS) and lateral orbitofrontal cortex, are critical for navigating reversal learning under probabilistic uncertainty. These same areas are implicated in the reversal learning impairments observed in individuals with psychosis as well as their psychotic symptoms, suggesting that they may share a common neurobiological substrate. To address this question, we used psychostimulant exposure and specific activation of the DMS during reversal learning in mice to assess corticostriatal activity. Methods We used amphetamine treatment to induce psychosis-relevant neurobiology in male mice during reversal learning and to examine pathway-specific corticostriatal activation. To determine the causal role of DMS activity, we used chemogenetics to drive midbrain inputs during a range of probabilistic contingencies. Results Mice treated with amphetamine showed altered punishment learning, which was associated with decreased shifting after losses and increased perseverative errors after reversals. Reversal learning performance and strategies were dependent on increased activity in lateral orbitofrontal cortex to DMS circuits as well as in the DMS itself. Specific activation of midbrain to DMS circuits also decreased shifting after losses and reversal learning performance. However, these alterations were dependent on the probabilistic contingency. Conclusions Our work suggests that the DMS plays a multifaceted role in reversal learning. Increasing DMS activity impairs multiple reversal learning processes dependent on the level of uncertainty, confirming its role in the maintenance and selection of incoming cortical inputs. Together, these outcomes suggest that elevated dopamine levels in the DMS could contribute to decision-making impairments in individuals with psychosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madison K. Young
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Kyna-Anne Conn
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Joyosmita Das
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Simin Zou
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Suzy Alexander
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Thomas H.J. Burne
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - James P. Kesby
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
- QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
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Mækelæ MJ, Klevjer K, Westbrook A, Eby NS, Eriksen R, Pfuhl G. Is it cognitive effort you measure? Comparing three task paradigms to the Need for Cognition scale. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0290177. [PMID: 37590223 PMCID: PMC10434945 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0290177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Measuring individual differences in cognitive effort can be elusive as effort is a function of motivation and ability. We report six studies (N = 663) investigating the relationship of Need for Cognition and working memory capacity with three cognitive effort measures: demand avoidance in the Demand Selection Task, effort discounting measured as the indifference point in the Cognitive Effort Discounting paradigm, and rational reasoning score with items from the heuristic and bias literature. We measured perceived mental effort with the NASA task load index. The three tasks were not correlated with each other (all r's < .1, all p's > .1). Need for Cognition was positively associated with effort discounting (r = .168, p < .001) and rational reasoning (r = .176, p < .001), but not demand avoidance (r = .085, p = .186). Working memory capacity was related to effort discounting (r = .185, p = .004). Higher perceived effort was related to poorer rational reasoning. Our data indicate that two of the tasks are related to Need for Cognition but are also influenced by a participant's working memory capacity. We discuss whether any of the tasks measure cognitive effort.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kristoffer Klevjer
- Department of Psychology, UiT–The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Andrew Westbrook
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States of America
| | - Noah S. Eby
- Department of Neurology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States of America
| | - Rikke Eriksen
- Department of Psychology, UiT–The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Gerit Pfuhl
- Department of Psychology, UiT–The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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Hasan SM, Huq MS, Chowdury AZ, Baajour S, Kopchick J, Robison AJ, Thakkar KN, Haddad L, Amirsadri A, Thomas P, Khatib D, Rajan U, Stanley JA, Diwadkar VA. Learning without contingencies: A loss of synergy between memory and reward circuits in schizophrenia. Schizophr Res 2023; 258:21-35. [PMID: 37467677 PMCID: PMC10521382 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2023.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 06/11/2023] [Indexed: 07/21/2023]
Abstract
Motivational deficits in schizophrenia may interact with foundational cognitive processes including learning and memory to induce impaired cognitive proficiency. If such a loss of synergy exists, it is likely to be underpinned by a loss of synchrony between the brains learning and reward sub-networks. Moreover, this loss should be observed even during tasks devoid of explicit reward contingencies given that such tasks are better models of real world performance than those with artificial contingencies. Here we applied undirected functional connectivity (uFC) analyses to fMRI data acquired while participants engaged in an associative learning task without contingencies or feedback. uFC was estimated and inter-group differences (between schizophrenia patients and controls, n = 54 total, n = 28 patients) were assessed within and between reward (VTA and NAcc) and learning/memory (Basal Ganglia, DPFC, Hippocampus, Parahippocampus, Occipital Lobe) sub-networks. The task paradigm itself alternated between Encoding, Consolidation, and Retrieval conditions, and uFC differences were quantified for each of the conditions. Significantly reduced uFC dominated the connectivity profiles of patients across all conditions. More pertinent to our motivations, these reductions were observed within and across classes of sub-networks (reward-related and learning/memory related). We suggest that disrupted functional connectivity between reward and learning sub-networks may drive many of the performance deficits that characterize schizophrenia. Thus, cognitive deficits in schizophrenia may in fact be underpinned by a loss of synergy between reward-sensitivity and cognitive processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sazid M Hasan
- Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine, USA
| | - Munajj S Huq
- Michigan State University, College of Osteopathic Medicine, USA
| | - Asadur Z Chowdury
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Shahira Baajour
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - John Kopchick
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - A J Robison
- Dept. of Physiology, Michigan State University, USA
| | | | - Luay Haddad
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Alireza Amirsadri
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Patricia Thomas
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Dalal Khatib
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Usha Rajan
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Jeffrey A Stanley
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA
| | - Vaibhav A Diwadkar
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, USA.
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Kreis I, Zhang L, Mittner M, Syla L, Lamm C, Pfuhl G. Aberrant uncertainty processing is linked to psychotic-like experiences, autistic traits, and is reflected in pupil dilation during probabilistic learning. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2023:10.3758/s13415-023-01088-2. [PMID: 36977966 PMCID: PMC10390366 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-023-01088-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023]
Abstract
Aberrant belief updating due to misestimation of uncertainty and an increased perception of the world as volatile (i.e., unstable) has been found in autism and psychotic disorders. Pupil dilation tracks events that warrant belief updating, likely reflecting the adjustment of neural gain. However, whether subclinical autistic or psychotic symptoms affect this adjustment and how they relate to learning in volatile environments remains to be unraveled. We investigated the relationship between behavioral and pupillometric markers of subjective volatility (i.e., experience of the world as unstable), autistic traits, and psychotic-like experiences in 52 neurotypical adults with a probabilistic reversal learning task. Computational modeling revealed that participants with higher psychotic-like experience scores overestimated volatility in low-volatile task periods. This was not the case for participants scoring high on autistic-like traits, who instead showed a diminished adaptation of choice-switching behavior in response to risk. Pupillometric data indicated that individuals with higher autistic- or psychotic-like trait and experience scores differentiated less between events that warrant belief updating and those that do not when volatility was high. These findings are in line with misestimation of uncertainty accounts of psychosis and autism spectrum disorders and indicate that aberrancies are already present at the subclinical level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Kreis
- Department of Psychology, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway.
- NORMENT, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Lei Zhang
- Department of Psychology, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- Institute for Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Matthias Mittner
- Department of Psychology, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Leonard Syla
- Department of Psychology, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Claus Lamm
- Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Gerit Pfuhl
- Department of Psychology, UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
- Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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12
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Young JW. Development of cross-species translational paradigms for psychiatric research in the Research Domain Criteria era. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 148:105119. [PMID: 36889561 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/08/2023]
Abstract
The past 30 years of IBNS has included research attempting to treat the cognitive and behavioral deficits observed in people with psychiatric conditions. Early work utilized drugs identified from tests thought to be cognition-relevant, however the high failure rate crossing the translational-species barrier led to focus on developing valid cross-species translational tests. The face, predictive, and neurobiological validities used to assess animal models of psychiatry can be used to validate these tests. Clinical sensitivity is another important aspect however, for if the clinical population targeted for treatment does not exhibit task deficits, then why develop treatments? This review covers some work validating cross-species translational tests and suggests future directions. Also covered is the contribution IBNS made to fostering such research and my role in IBNS, making it more available to all including fostering mentor/mentee programs plus spearheading diversity and inclusivity initiatives. All science needs support and IBNS has supported research recreating the behavioral abnormalities that define psychiatric conditions with the aim to improve the lives of people with such conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jared W Young
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA; Research Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA, USA.
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13
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Dysregulated affective arousal regulates reward-based decision making in patients with schizophrenia: an integrated study. SCHIZOPHRENIA 2022; 8:26. [PMID: 35314840 PMCID: PMC8938557 DOI: 10.1038/s41537-022-00234-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a chronic and severe mental disorder. Dysregulated decision-making and affective processing have been implicated in patients with schizophrenia (SZ) and have significant impacts on their cognitive and social functions. However, little is known about how affective arousal influences reward-based decision-making in SZ. Taking advantage of a two-choice probabilistic gambling task and utilizing three facial expressions as affective primes (i.e., neutral, angry, and happy conditions) in each trial, we investigated how affective arousal influences reward-related choice based on behavioral, model fitting, and feedback-related negativity (FRN) data in 38 SZ and 26 healthy controls (CTRL). We also correlated our measurements with patients’ symptom severity. Compared with the CTRL group, SZ expressed blunted responses to angry facial primes. They had lower total game scores and displayed more maladaptive choice strategies (i.e., less win-stay and more lose-shift) and errors in monitoring rewards. Model fitting results revealed that the SZ group had a higher learning rate and lower choice consistency, especially in the happy condition. Brain activity data further indicated that SZ had smaller amplitudes of FRN than their controls in the angry and happy conditions. Importantly, the SZ group exhibited attenuated affective influence on decision-making, and their impairments in decision-making were only correlated with their clinical symptoms in the angry condition. Our findings imply the affective processing is dysregulated in SZ and it is selectively involved in the regulation of choice strategies, choice behaviors, and FRN in SZ, which lead to impairments in reward-related decision-making, especially in the angry condition.
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Waltmann M, Schlagenhauf F, Deserno L. Sufficient reliability of the behavioral and computational readouts of a probabilistic reversal learning task. Behav Res Methods 2022; 54:2993-3014. [PMID: 35167111 PMCID: PMC9729159 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-021-01739-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Task-based measures that capture neurocognitive processes can help bridge the gap between brain and behavior. To transfer tasks to clinical application, reliability is a crucial benchmark because it imposes an upper bound to potential correlations with other variables (e.g., symptom or brain data). However, the reliability of many task readouts is low. In this study, we scrutinized the retest reliability of a probabilistic reversal learning task (PRLT) that is frequently used to characterize cognitive flexibility in psychiatric populations. We analyzed data from N = 40 healthy subjects, who completed the PRLT twice. We focused on how individual metrics are derived, i.e., whether data were partially pooled across participants and whether priors were used to inform estimates. We compared the reliability of the resulting indices across sessions, as well as the internal consistency of a selection of indices. We found good to excellent reliability for behavioral indices as derived from mixed-effects models that included data from both sessions. The internal consistency was good to excellent. For indices derived from computational modeling, we found excellent reliability when using hierarchical estimation with empirical priors and including data from both sessions. Our results indicate that the PRLT is well equipped to measure individual differences in cognitive flexibility in reinforcement learning. However, this depends heavily on hierarchical modeling of the longitudinal data (whether sessions are modeled separately or jointly), on estimation methods, and on the combination of parameters included in computational models. We discuss implications for the applicability of PRLT indices in psychiatric research and as diagnostic tools.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Waltmann
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Centre of Mental Health, University of Würzburg, Margarete-Höppel-Platz 1, 97080, Würzburg, Germany.
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.
| | - Florian Schlagenhauf
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Campus Charité Mitte, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lorenz Deserno
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Centre of Mental Health, University of Würzburg, Margarete-Höppel-Platz 1, 97080, Würzburg, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
- Neuroimaging Center, Technical University of Dresden, Dresden, Germany
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15
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Latuske P, von Heimendahl M, Deiana S, Wotjak CT, du Hoffmann J. Sustained MK-801 induced deficit in a novel probabilistic reversal learning task. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:898548. [PMID: 36313373 PMCID: PMC9614101 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.898548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Cognitive flexibility, the ability to adapt to unexpected changes, is critical for healthy environmental and social interactions, and thus to everyday functioning. In neuropsychiatric diseases, cognitive flexibility is often impaired and treatment options are lacking. Probabilistic reversal learning (PRL) is commonly used to measure cognitive flexibility in rodents and humans. In PRL tasks, subjects must sample choice options and, from probabilistic feedback, find the current best choice which then changes without warning. However, in rodents, pharmacological models of human cognitive impairment tend to disrupt only the first (or few) of several contingency reversals, making quantitative assessment of behavioral effects difficult. To address this limitation, we developed a novel rat PRL where reversals occur at relatively long intervals in time that demonstrates increased sensitivity to the non-competitive NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801. Here, we quantitively compare behavior in time-based PRL with a widely used task where reversals occur based on choice behavior. In time-based PRL, MK-801 induced sustained reversal learning deficits both in time and across reversal blocks but, at the same dose, only transient weak effects in performance-based PRL. Moreover, time-based PRL yielded better estimates of behavior and reinforcement learning model parameters, which opens meaningful pharmacological windows to efficiently test and develop novel drugs preclinically with the goal of improving cognitive impairment in human patients.
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16
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Kreis I, Zhang L, Moritz S, Pfuhl G. Spared performance but increased uncertainty in schizophrenia: Evidence from a probabilistic decision-making task. Schizophr Res 2022; 243:414-423. [PMID: 34272122 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2021.06.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2020] [Revised: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 06/23/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Aberrant attribution of salience to in fact little informative events might explain the emergence of positive symptoms in schizophrenia and has been linked to belief uncertainty. Uncertainty is thought to be encoded by neuromodulators, including norepinephrine. However, norepinephrinergic encoding of uncertainty, measured as task-related pupil dilation, has rarely been explored in schizophrenia. Here, we addressed this question by comparing individuals with a disorder from the schizophrenia spectrum to a non-psychiatric control group on behavioral and pupillometric measures in a probabilistic prediction task, where different levels of uncertainty were introduced. Behaviorally, patients performed similar to controls, but their belief uncertainty was higher, particularly when instability of the task environment was high, suggesting an increased sensitivity to this instability. Furthermore, while pupil dilation scaled positively with uncertainty, this was less the case for patients, suggesting aberrant neuromodulatory regulation of neural gain, which may hinder the reduction of uncertainty in the long run. Together, the findings point to abnormal uncertainty processing and norepinephrinergic signaling in schizophrenia, potentially informing future development of both psychopharmacological therapies and psychotherapeutic approaches that deal with the processing of uncertain information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Kreis
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, 9037 Tromsø, Norway.
| | - Lei Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, 9037 Tromsø, Norway; Social, Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience Unit, Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna, Liebiggasse 5, 1010 Vienna, Austria
| | - Steffen Moritz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Gerit Pfuhl
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, 9037 Tromsø, Norway
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17
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Gandhi A, Mote J, Fulford D. A transdiagnostic meta-analysis of physical and social Anhedonia in major depressive disorder and schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Psychiatry Res 2022; 309:114379. [PMID: 35123252 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2021.114379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 12/29/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Anhedonia is a transdiagnostic construct conceptualized as physical or social, however, the extent to which these subtypes differ across psychotic and mood pathology remains poorly understood. We aimed to quantify the severity of physical and social anhedonia across Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorder (SSDs). METHODS We conducted meta-analyses of the Chapman Physical and Social Anhedonia Scales (PAS;SAS). We reviewed data from participants with MDD, and SSDs separately. RESULTS Our first meta-analysis (n = 8 studies, 409 participants) with MDD revealed elevated SAS and PAS in MDD compared to controls. Within-group differences were not significant. Depressive symptom severity moderated the between-group effect of PAS. Our second meta-analysis (n = 44 studies, 3352 participants) revealed elevated SAS and PAS in SSDs compared to controls. We detected a moderate difference between the SAS and PAS within the SSD group. Age moderated within-group differences of SAS and PAS. DISCUSSION People with SSD or MDD experience elevated SAS and PAS compared to controls. People with SSDs endorse greater challenges experiencing social rewards relative to physical rewards. People with MDD experience social and physical rewards similarly. The moderating role of depressive symptoms in MDD suggests that physical anhedonia is more state-like than social anhedonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arti Gandhi
- Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Boston University, 635 Commonwealth Ave, Boston MA, 02215, USA.
| | - Jasmine Mote
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Tufts University, 574 Boston Avenue, School of Arts and Sciences, Tufts University, Medford, MA, 02155, USA
| | - Daniel Fulford
- Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Boston University, 635 Commonwealth Ave, Boston MA, 02215, USA; Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Boston University, 900 Commonwealth Ave, Boston MA, 02215, USA
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18
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Tsai CW, Tsai SJ, Pan YJ, Lin HM, Pan TY, Yang FY. Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation Reverses Behavior Changes and the Expression of Calcium-Binding Protein in a Rodent Model of Schizophrenia. Neurotherapeutics 2022; 19:649-659. [PMID: 35229268 PMCID: PMC9226253 DOI: 10.1007/s13311-022-01195-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Cognitive dysfunctions are a core feature of schizophrenia that may be linked to abnormalities in gamma-aminobutyric-acid (GABA)ergic neurons. Traditional antipsychotics show poor efficacy in treating cognitive symptoms. The purpose of this study was to investigate the restorative role of transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS) in counteracting dizocilpine (MK-801)-induced cognitive deficits and GABAergic interneuron dysfunction in a simulation of schizophrenia. Some rats subjected to MK-801 administration were treated with low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) daily for 5 days, while other rats subjected to MK-801 administration received no LIPUS treatment. After LIPUS treatment, the neuroprotective effects of LIPUS in the LIPUS-treated rats were assessed through behavioral analysis, western blotting, and histological observations. Compared with the MK-801-treated group, the MK-801 plus LIPUS-treated rats revealed a preference for novel objects. The MK-801 plus LIPUS-treated rats also exhibited a significant decrease in swim times compared to the MK-801-treated rats. LIPUS stimulation significantly increased hippocampal levels of CB and PV and restored the cell densities of PV + and CB + in the cingulate cortex in the MK-801 plus LIPUS-treated group. In addition, LIPUS stimulation rebalanced the BDNF levels in the hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex. Our findings indicate that LIPUS improves cognitive deficits and ameliorates neuropathology in MK-801-treated rats. These results suggest that LIPUS may constitute a potential novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Che-Wen Tsai
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Shih-Jen Tsai
- Department of Psychiatry, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan
- Division of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Ju Pan
- Department of Psychiatry, Far Eastern Memorial Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan
- Institute of Public Health, School of Medicine, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Hsin-Mei Lin
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Tsung-Yu Pan
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Feng-Yi Yang
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Radiological Sciences, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan.
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19
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Nakamura JP, Schroeder A, Gibbons A, Sundram S, Hill RA. Timing of maternal immune activation and sex influence schizophrenia-relevant cognitive constructs and neuregulin and GABAergic pathways. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 100:70-82. [PMID: 34808289 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.11.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Revised: 10/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Maternal immune activation (MIA) during pregnancy is an established environmental risk factor for schizophrenia. Timing of immune activation exposure as well as sex of the exposed offspring are critical factors in defining the effects of MIA. However, the specificity of MIA on the component structure of schizophrenia, especially cognition, has been difficult to assess due to a lack of translational validity of maze-like testing paradigms. We aimed to assess cognitive domains relevant to schizophrenia using highly translational touchscreen-based tasks in male and female mice exposed to the viral mimetic, poly(I:C) (5 mg/k, i.p.), during early (gestational day (GD) 9-11) and late (GD13-15) gestational time points. Gene expression of schizophrenia candidate pathways were assessed in fetal brain immediately following poly(I:C) exposure and in adulthood to identify its influence on neurodevelopmental processes. Sex and window specific alterations in cognitive performance were found with the early window of MIA exposure causing female-specific disruptions to working memory and reduced perseverative behaviour, while late MIA exposure caused male-specific changes to working memory and deficits in reversal learning. GABAergic specification marker, Nkx2.1 gene expression was reduced in fetal brains and reelin expression was reduced in adult hippocampus of both early and late poly(I:C) exposed mice. Neuregulin and EGF signalling were initially upregulated in the fetal brain, but were reduced in the adult hippocampus, with male mice exposed in the late window showing reduced Nrg3 expression. Serine racemase was reduced in both fetal and adult brain, but again, adult reductions were specific to male mice exposed at the late time point. Overall, we show that cognitive constructs relevant to schizophrenia are altered by in utero exposure to maternal immune activation, but are highly dependent on the timing of infection and the sex of the offspring. Glutamatergic and epidermal growth factor pathways were similarly altered by MIA in a timing and sex dependent manner, while MIA-induced GABAergic deficits were independent of timing or sex.
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Affiliation(s)
- J P Nakamura
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - A Schroeder
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - A Gibbons
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - S Sundram
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia; Mental Health Program, Monash Health, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - R A Hill
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia.
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20
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Abstract
Anhedonia has long been considered a cardinal symptom of schizophrenia. This symptom is strongly associated with poor functional outcome, and limited treatment options are available. While originally conceptualized as an inability to experience pleasure, recent work has consistently shown that individuals with schizophrenia have an intact capacity to experience pleasure in-the-moment. Adjacent work in basic affective neuroscience has broadened the conceptualization of anhedonia to include not only the capacity to experience pleasure but highlights important temporal affective dynamics and decision-making processes that go awry in schizophrenia. Here we detail these mechanisms for emotional and motivational impairment in people with schizophrenia including: (1) initial response to reward; (2) reward anticipation; (3) reward learning; (4) effort-cost decision-making; (5) working memory and cognitive control. We will review studies that utilized various types of rewards (e.g., monetary, social), in order to draw conclusions regarding whether findings vary by reward type. We will then discuss how modern assessment methods may best incorporate each of the mechanisms, to provide a more fine-grained understanding of anhedonia in individuals with schizophrenia. We will close by providing a discussion of relevant future directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin K Moran
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Adam J Culbreth
- Department of Psychiatry, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Deanna M Barch
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Radiology, Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, USA.
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21
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Kennedy BV, Hanson JL, Buser NJ, van den Bos W, Rudolph KD, Davidson RJ, Pollak SD. Accumbofrontal tract integrity is related to early life adversity and feedback learning. Neuropsychopharmacology 2021; 46:2288-2294. [PMID: 34561607 PMCID: PMC8581005 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-021-01129-9] [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] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Revised: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 07/22/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Abuse, neglect, exposure to violence, and other forms of early life adversity (ELA) are incredibly common and significantly impact physical and mental development. While important progress has been made in understanding the impacts of ELA on behavior and the brain, the preponderance of past work has primarily centered on threat processing and vigilance while ignoring other potentially critical neurobehavioral processes, such as reward-responsiveness and learning. To advance our understanding of potential mechanisms linking ELA and poor mental health, we center in on structural connectivity of the corticostriatal circuit, specifically accumbofrontal white matter tracts. Here, in a sample of 77 youth (Mean age = 181 months), we leveraged rigorous measures of ELA, strong diffusion neuroimaging methodology, and computational modeling of reward learning. Linking these different forms of data, we hypothesized that higher ELA would be related to lower quantitative anisotropy in accumbofrontal white matter. Furthermore, we predicted that lower accumbofrontal quantitative anisotropy would be related to differences in reward learning. Our primary predictions were confirmed, but similar patterns were not seen in control white matter tracts outside of the corticostriatal circuit. Examined collectively, our work is one of the first projects to connect ELA to neural and behavioral alterations in reward-learning, a critical potential mechanism linking adversity to later developmental challenges. This could potentially provide windows of opportunity to address the effects of ELA through interventions and preventative programming.
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22
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Thalamic circuits for independent control of prefrontal signal and noise. Nature 2021; 600:100-104. [PMID: 34614503 PMCID: PMC8636261 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-04056-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Interactions between the mediodorsal thalamus and the prefrontal cortex are critical for cognition. Studies in humans indicate that these interactions may resolve uncertainty in decision-making1, but the precise mechanisms are unknown. Here we identify two distinct mediodorsal projections to the prefrontal cortex that have complementary mechanistic roles in decision-making under uncertainty. Specifically, we found that a dopamine receptor (D2)-expressing projection amplifies prefrontal signals when task inputs are sparse and a kainate receptor (GRIK4) expressing-projection suppresses prefrontal noise when task inputs are dense but conflicting. Collectively, our data suggest that there are distinct brain mechanisms for handling uncertainty due to low signals versus uncertainty due to high noise, and provide a mechanistic entry point for correcting decision-making abnormalities in disorders that have a prominent prefrontal component2–6. Two different cell types in the mediodorsal thalamus have complementary roles in decision-making, with one type of mediodorsal projection amplifying prefrontal activity under low signal levels and one type suppressing it under high noise levels.
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Livingston NR, Hawkins PCT, Gilleen J, Ye R, Valdearenas L, Shergill SS, Mehta MA. Preliminary evidence for the phosphodiesterase type-4 inhibitor, roflumilast, in ameliorating cognitive flexibility deficits in patients with schizophrenia. J Psychopharmacol 2021; 35:1099-1110. [PMID: 33908296 PMCID: PMC8435828 DOI: 10.1177/02698811211000778] [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] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cognitive flexibility deficits are present in patients with schizophrenia and are strong predictors of functional outcome but, as yet, have no pharmacological treatments. AIMS The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the phosphodiesterase type-4 inhibitor, roflumilast, can improve cognitive flexibility performance and functional brain activity in patients with schizophrenia. METHODS This was a within-subject, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, three-period crossover study using a version of the Intradimensional/Extradimensional (ID/ED) task, optimised for functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), in 10 patients with schizophrenia who were scanned after receiving placebo, 100 µg or 250 µg roflumilast for 8 consecutive days. Data from an additional fMRI ID/ED study of 18 healthy participants on placebo was included to contextualise the schizophrenia-related performance and activations. The fMRI analyses included a priori driven region of interest (ROI) analysis of the dorsal frontoparietal attention network. RESULTS Patients on placebo demonstrated broad deficits in task performance compared to the healthy comparison group, accompanied by preserved network activity for solution search, but reduced activity in left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) and posterior parietal cortex for attentional set-shifting and reduced activity in left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) for reversal learning. These ROI deficits were ameliorated by 250 µg roflumilast, whereas during solution search 100 µg roflumilast reduced activity in the left orbitofrontal cortex, right DLPFC and bilateral PPC, which was associated with an improvement in formation of attentional sets. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest roflumilast has dose-dependent cognitive enhancing effects on the ID/ED task in patients with schizophrenia, and provides sufficient support for larger studies to test roflumilast's role in improving cognitive flexibility deficits in this clinical population.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - James Gilleen
- Department of Psychology, University of Roehampton, London, UK,Department of Psychosis Studies, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Rong Ye
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Lorena Valdearenas
- North Middlesex University Hospital, Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust, London, UK
| | - Sukhi S Shergill
- Department of Psychosis Studies, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Mitul A Mehta
- Department of Neuroimaging, King’s College London, London, UK,Mitul A Mehta, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, De Crespigny Park, London SE5 8AF, UK.
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Bartolomeo LA, Chapman HC, Raugh IM, Strauss GP. Delay discounting in youth at clinical high-risk for psychosis and adults with schizophrenia. Psychol Med 2021; 51:1898-1905. [PMID: 32248851 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291720000677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Schizophrenia (SZ) is typically preceded by a prodromal (i.e. pre-illness) period characterized by attenuated positive symptoms and declining functional outcome. Negative symptoms are prominent among individuals at clinical high-risk (CHR) for psychosis (i.e. those with prodromal syndromes) and highly predictive of conversion to illness. Mechanisms underlying negative symptoms in the CHR population are unclear. Two studies were conducted to evaluate whether abnormalities in a reward processing mechanism thought to be core to negative symptoms in SZ, value representation, also exist in CHR individuals and whether they are associated with negative symptoms transphasically. METHODS Study 1 included 33 individuals in the chronic phase of illness who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder (SZ) and 40 healthy controls (CN). Study 2 included 37 CHR participants and 45 CN. In both studies, participants completed the delay discounting (DD) task as a measure of value representation and the Brief Negative Symptom Scale was rated to measure negative symptoms. RESULTS Results indicated that patients with SZ had steeper discounting rates than CN, indicating impairments in value representation. However, CHR participants were unimpaired on the DD task. In both studies, steeper discounting was associated with greater severity of negative symptoms. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that deficits in value representation are associated with negative symptoms transphasically.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ian M Raugh
- Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, USA
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25
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Groman SM, Lee D, Taylor JR. Unlocking the reinforcement-learning circuits of the orbitofrontal cortex. Behav Neurosci 2021; 135:120-128. [PMID: 34060870 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Neuroimaging studies have consistently identified the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) as being affected in individuals with neuropsychiatric disorders. OFC dysfunction has been proposed to be a key mechanism by which decision-making impairments emerge in diverse clinical populations, and recent studies employing computational approaches have revealed that distinct reinforcement-learning mechanisms of decision-making differ among diagnoses. In this perspective, we propose that these computational differences may be linked to select OFC circuits and present our recent work that has used a neurocomputational approach to understand the biobehavioral mechanisms of addiction pathology in rodent models. We describe how combining translationally analogous behavioral paradigms with reinforcement-learning algorithms and sophisticated neuroscience techniques in animals can provide critical insights into OFC pathology in biobehavioral disorders. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
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Culbreth AJ, Waltz JA, Frank MJ, Gold JM. Retention of Value Representations Across Time in People With Schizophrenia and Healthy Control Subjects. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY. COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2021; 6:420-428. [PMID: 32712211 PMCID: PMC7708393 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2020.05.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2020] [Revised: 04/24/2020] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The current study aimed to further etiological understanding of the psychological mechanisms underlying negative symptoms in people with schizophrenia. Specifically, we tested whether negative symptom severity is associated with reduced retention of reward-related information over time and thus a degraded ability to utilize such information to guide future action selection. METHODS Forty-four patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and 28 healthy control volunteers performed a probabilistic reinforcement-learning task involving stimulus pairs in which choices resulted in reward or in loss avoidance. Following training, participants indicated their valuation of learned stimuli in a test/transfer phase. The test/transfer phase was administered immediately following training and 1 week later. Percent retention was defined as accuracy at week-long delay divided by accuracy at immediate delay. RESULTS Healthy control subjects and people with schizophrenia showed similarly robust retention of reinforcement learning over a 1-week delay interval. However, in the schizophrenia group, negative symptom severity was associated with reduced retention of information regarding the value of actions across a week-long interval. This pattern was particularly notable for stimuli associated with reward compared with loss avoidance. CONCLUSIONS Our results show that although individuals with schizophrenia may initially learn about rewarding aspects of their environment, such learning decays at a more rapid rate in patients with severe negative symptoms. Thus, previously learned reward-related information may be more difficult to access to guide future decision making and to motivate action selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam J Culbreth
- Department of Psychiatry, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
| | - James A Waltz
- Department of Psychiatry, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Michael J Frank
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistics, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
| | - James M Gold
- Department of Psychiatry, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland
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Cathomas F, Klaus F, Guetter K, Chung HK, Raja Beharelle A, Spiller TR, Schlegel R, Seifritz E, Hartmann-Riemer MN, Tobler PN, Kaiser S. Increased random exploration in schizophrenia is associated with inflammation. NPJ SCHIZOPHRENIA 2021; 7:6. [PMID: 33536449 PMCID: PMC7859392 DOI: 10.1038/s41537-020-00133-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
One aspect of goal-directed behavior, which is known to be impaired in patients with schizophrenia (SZ), is balancing between exploiting a familiar choice with known reward value and exploring a lesser known, but potentially more rewarding option. Despite its relevance to several symptom domains of SZ, this has received little attention in SZ research. In addition, while there is increasing evidence that SZ is associated with chronic low-grade inflammation, few studies have investigated how this relates to specific behaviors, such as balancing exploration and exploitation. We therefore assessed behaviors underlying the exploration-exploitation trade-off using a three-armed bandit task in 45 patients with SZ and 19 healthy controls (HC). This task allowed us to dissociate goal-unrelated (random) from goal-related (directed) exploration and correlate them with psychopathological symptoms. Moreover, we assessed a broad range of inflammatory proteins in the blood and related them to bandit task behavior. We found that, compared to HC, patients with SZ showed reduced task performance. This impairment was due to a shift from exploitation to random exploration, which was associated with symptoms of disorganization. Relative to HC, patients with SZ showed a pro-inflammatory blood profile. Furthermore, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) positively correlated with random exploration, but not with directed exploration or exploitation. In conclusion, we show that low-grade inflammation in patients with SZ is associated with random exploration, which can be considered a behavioral marker for disorganization. hsCRP may constitute a marker for severity of, and a potential treatment target for maladaptive exploratory behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flurin Cathomas
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.59734.3c0000 0001 0670 2351Fishberg Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA
| | - Federica Klaus
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.266100.30000 0001 2107 4242Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, San Diego, USA
| | - Karoline Guetter
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Hui-Kuan Chung
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Anjali Raja Beharelle
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Tobias R. Spiller
- University of Zurich, University Hospital Zurich, Department of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, Ramistrasse 100, 8091 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Rebecca Schlegel
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Erich Seifritz
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Matthias N. Hartmann-Riemer
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Philippe N. Tobler
- grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, 8006 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland ,grid.7400.30000 0004 1937 0650Zurich Center for Integrative Human Physiology, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Stefan Kaiser
- grid.150338.c0000 0001 0721 9812Division of Adult Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, Geneva University Hospitals, Chemin du Petit-Bel-Air, 1225 Chêne-Bourg, Switzerland
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28
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Weiss EO, Kruppa JA, Fink GR, Herpertz-Dahlmann B, Konrad K, Schulte-Rüther M. Developmental Differences in Probabilistic Reversal Learning: A Computational Modeling Approach. Front Neurosci 2021; 14:536596. [PMID: 33536865 PMCID: PMC7848134 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.536596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2020] [Accepted: 12/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Cognitive flexibility helps us to navigate through our ever-changing environment and has often been examined by reversal learning paradigms. Performance in reversal learning can be modeled using computational modeling which allows for the specification of biologically plausible models to infer psychological mechanisms. Although such models are increasingly used in cognitive neuroscience, developmental approaches are still scarce. Additionally, though most reversal learning paradigms have a comparable design regarding timing and feedback contingencies, the type of feedback differs substantially between studies. The present study used hierarchical Gaussian filter modeling to investigate cognitive flexibility in reversal learning in children and adolescents and the effect of various feedback types. The results demonstrate that children make more overall errors and regressive errors (when a previously learned response rule is chosen instead of the new correct response after the initial shift to the new correct target), but less perseverative errors (when a previously learned response set continues to be used despite a reversal) adolescents. Analyses of the extracted model parameters of the winning model revealed that children seem to use new and conflicting information less readily than adolescents to update their stimulus-reward associations. Furthermore, more subclinical rigidity in everyday life (parent-ratings) is related to less explorative choice behavior during the probabilistic reversal learning task. Taken together, this study provides first-time data on the development of the underlying processes of cognitive flexibility using computational modeling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eileen Oberwelland Weiss
- Translational Brain Research in Psychiatry and Neurology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany.,Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-11), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Child Neuropsychology Section, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany
| | - Jana A Kruppa
- Translational Brain Research in Psychiatry and Neurology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany.,Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-11), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Child Neuropsychology Section, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany
| | - Gereon R Fink
- Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Department of Neurology, University Hospital Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Beate Herpertz-Dahlmann
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany
| | - Kerstin Konrad
- Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-11), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Child Neuropsychology Section, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany
| | - Martin Schulte-Rüther
- Translational Brain Research in Psychiatry and Neurology, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany.,Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-3), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-11), Jülich Research Centre, Jülich, Germany.,Child Neuropsychology Section, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Aachen, Aachen, Germany.,Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
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29
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Kreis I, Biegler R, Tjelmeland H, Mittner M, Klæbo Reitan S, Pfuhl G. Overestimation of volatility in schizophrenia and autism? A comparative study using a probabilistic reasoning task. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0244975. [PMID: 33411712 PMCID: PMC7790240 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0244975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2020] [Accepted: 12/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES A plethora of studies has investigated and compared social cognition in autism and schizophrenia ever since both conditions were first described in conjunction more than a century ago. Recent computational theories have proposed similar mechanistic explanations for various symptoms beyond social cognition. They are grounded in the idea of a general misestimation of uncertainty but so far, almost no studies have directly compared both conditions regarding uncertainty processing. The current study aimed to do so with a particular focus on estimation of volatility, i.e. the probability for the environment to change. METHODS A probabilistic decision-making task and a visual working (meta-)memory task were administered to a sample of 86 participants (19 with a diagnosis of high-functioning autism, 21 with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, and 46 neurotypically developing individuals). RESULTS While persons with schizophrenia showed lower visual working memory accuracy than neurotypical individuals, no significant group differences were found for metamemory or any of the probabilistic decision-making task variables. Nevertheless, exploratory analyses suggest that there may be an overestimation of volatility in subgroups of participants with autism and schizophrenia. Correlations revealed relationships between different variables reflecting (mis)estimation of uncertainty, visual working memory accuracy and metamemory. LIMITATIONS Limitations include the comparably small sample sizes of the autism and the schizophrenia group as well as the lack of cognitive ability and clinical symptom measures. CONCLUSIONS The results of the current study provide partial support for the notion of a general uncertainty misestimation account of autism and schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Kreis
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT–The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Robert Biegler
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Håkon Tjelmeland
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, Faculty of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Matthias Mittner
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT–The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Solveig Klæbo Reitan
- Department of Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
- Department of Mental Health, St Olav’s University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Gerit Pfuhl
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences, UiT–The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
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30
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Lai L, Gershman SJ. Policy compression: An information bottleneck in action selection. PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.plm.2021.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Both acute and chronic pain can disrupt reward processing. Moreover, prolonged prescription opioid use and depressed mood are common in chronic pain samples. Despite the prevalence of these risk factors for anhedonia, little is known about anhedonia in chronic pain populations. METHODS We conducted a large-scale, systematic study of anhedonia in chronic pain, focusing on its relationship with opioid use/misuse, pain severity, and depression. Chronic pain patients across four distinct samples (N = 488) completed the Snaith-Hamilton Pleasure Scale (SHAPS), measures of opioid use, pain severity and depression, as well as the Current Opioid Misuse Measure (COMM). We used a meta-analytic approach to determine reference levels of anhedonia in healthy samples spanning a variety of countries and diverse age groups, extracting SHAPS scores from 58 published studies totaling 2664 psychiatrically healthy participants. RESULTS Compared to healthy samples, chronic pain patients showed higher levels of anhedonia, with ~25% of patients scoring above the standard anhedonia cut-off. This difference was not primarily driven by depression levels, which explained less than 25% of variance in anhedonia scores. Neither opioid use duration, dose, nor pain severity alone was significantly associated with anhedonia. Yet, there was a clear effect of opioid misuse, with opioid misusers (COMM ⩾13) reporting greater anhedonia than non-misusers. Opioid misuse remained a significant predictor of anhedonia even after controlling for pain severity, depression and opioid dose. CONCLUSIONS Study results suggest that both chronic pain and opioid misuse contribute to anhedonia, which may, in turn, drive further pain and misuse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric L Garland
- Center on Mindfulness and Integrative Health Intervention Development, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
- College of Social Work, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | | | - Marie Eikemo
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway
| | - Gernot Ernst
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway
- Kongsberg Hospital, Norway
| | - Siri Leknes
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway
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32
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Conn KA, Burne THJ, Kesby JP. Subcortical Dopamine and Cognition in Schizophrenia: Looking Beyond Psychosis in Preclinical Models. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:542. [PMID: 32655348 PMCID: PMC7325949 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.00542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Accepted: 05/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia is characterized by positive, negative and cognitive symptoms. All current antipsychotic treatments feature dopamine-receptor antagonism that is relatively effective at addressing the psychotic (positive) symptoms of schizophrenia. However, there is no clear evidence that these medications improve the negative or cognitive symptoms, which are the greatest predictors of functional outcomes. One of the most robust pathophysiological observations in patients with schizophrenia is increased subcortical dopamine neurotransmission, primarily in the associative striatum. This brain area has an important role in a range of cognitive processes. Dopamine is also known to play a major part in regulating a number of cognitive functions impaired in schizophrenia but much of this research has been focused on cortical dopamine. Emerging research highlights the strong influence subcortical dopamine has on a range of cognitive domains, including attention, reward learning, goal-directed action and decision-making. Nonetheless, the precise role of the associative striatum in the cognitive impairments observed in schizophrenia remains poorly understood, presenting an opportunity to revisit its contribution to schizophrenia. Without a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying cognitive dysfunction, treatment development remains at a standstill. For this reason, improved preclinical animal models are needed if we are to understand the complex relationship between subcortical dopamine and cognition. A range of new techniques are facillitating the discrete manipulation of dopaminergic neurotransmission and measurements of cognitive performance, which can be investigated using a variety of sensitive translatable tasks. This has the potential to aid the successful incorporation of recent clinical research to address the lack of treatment strategies for cognitive symptoms in schizophrenia. This review will give an overview on the current state of research focused on subcortical dopamine and cognition in the context of schizophrenia research. We also discuss future strategies and approaches aimed at improving the translational outcomes for the treatment of cognitive deficits in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyna-Anne Conn
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia
| | - Thomas H J Burne
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia.,Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, Wacol, QLD, Australia
| | - James P Kesby
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, Australia.,QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Herston, QLD, Australia
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33
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Abstract
We report on the ongoing R21 project “Social Reward Learning in Schizophrenia”. Impairments in social cognition are a hallmark of schizophrenia. However, little work has been done on social reward learning deficits in schizophrenia. The overall goal of the project is to assess social reward learning in schizophrenia. A probabilistic reward learning (PRL) task is being used in the MRI scanner to evaluate reward learning to negative and positive social feedback. Monetary reward learning is used as a comparison to assess specificity. Behavioral outcomes and brain areas, included those involved in reward, are assessed in patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and controls. It is also critical to determine whether decreased expected value (EV) of social stimuli and/or reward prediction error (RPE) learning underlie social reward learning deficits to inform potential treatment pathways. Our central hypothesis is that the pattern of social learning deficits is an extension of a more general reward learning impairment in schizophrenia and that social reward learning deficits critically contribute to deficits in social motivation and pleasure. We hypothesize that people with schizophrenia will show impaired behavioral social reward learning compared to controls, as well as decreased ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) EV signaling at time of choice and decreased striatal RPE signaling at time of outcome, with potentially greater impairment to positive than negative feedback. The grant is in its second year. It is hoped that this innovative approach may lead to novel and more targeted treatment approaches for social cognitive impairments, using cognitive remediation and/or brain stimulation.
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34
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Visser KF, Chapman HC, Ruiz I, Raugh IM, Strauss GP. A meta-analysis of self-reported anticipatory and consummatory pleasure in the schizophrenia-spectrum. J Psychiatr Res 2020; 121:68-81. [PMID: 31783235 PMCID: PMC6939125 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2019.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Revised: 11/03/2019] [Accepted: 11/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Recent conceptual frameworks propose anhedonia reflects abnormalities in the temporal dynamics of positive emotion in schizophrenia, characterized by intact consummatory and impaired anticipatory pleasure. A comprehensive meta-analysis can directly test this theory using self-report data. METHOD A meta-analysis was performed on studies reporting Temporal Experience of Pleasure Scale (TEPS) data from healthy controls and schizophrenia or schizotypy groups. The TEPS was examined as it contains subscales to measure both consummatory and anticipatory pleasure separately. Statistical heterogeneity and study bias were examined. Meta-regressions evaluated moderators. RESULTS 53 studies were retrieved (7,797 participants). Results revealed small effect sizes for comparisons of combined schizophrenia/schizotypy and control groups for both consummatory and anticipatory pleasure. Within-group comparisons of pleasure conditions were nonsignificant. The percentage of male schizophrenia/schizotypy participants significantly moderated anticipatory and consummatory pleasure for the combined sample and schizotypy alone; male participants were found to report reduced pleasure. There was only minor evidence of bias; sensitivity analysis confirmed result robustness. Exploratory outlier removal for schizophrenia within-group pleasure comparisons revealed a statistically significant difference between reported anticipatory and consummatory pleasure, with consummatory pleasure reduced relative to anticipatory (i.e., in the opposite direction of the majority of experimental research findings). CONCLUSIONS These findings provided only modest support for the temporal dynamics of positive emotion conceptualization because they revealed no evidence for: 1) specific anticipatory pleasure deficits in schizophrenia-spectrum participants compared to controls; 2) significant reductions in anticipatory pleasure relative to consummatory pleasure in schizophrenia-spectrum participants.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Hannah C Chapman
- University of Georgia, Department of Psychology, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Ivan Ruiz
- University of Georgia, Department of Psychology, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Ian M Raugh
- University of Georgia, Department of Psychology, Athens, GA, USA
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35
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Deserno L, Boehme R, Mathys C, Katthagen T, Kaminski J, Stephan KE, Heinz A, Schlagenhauf F. Volatility Estimates Increase Choice Switching and Relate to Prefrontal Activity in Schizophrenia. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY: COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2020; 5:173-183. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2019.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Revised: 09/11/2019] [Accepted: 10/06/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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36
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Zimmerman AJ, Hafez AK, Amoah SK, Rodriguez BA, Dell’Orco M, Lozano E, Hartley BJ, Alural B, Lalonde J, Chander P, Webster MJ, Perlis RH, Brennand KJ, Haggarty SJ, Weick J, Perrone-Bizzozero N, Brigman JL, Mellios N. A psychiatric disease-related circular RNA controls synaptic gene expression and cognition. Mol Psychiatry 2020; 25:2712-2727. [PMID: 31988434 PMCID: PMC7577899 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-020-0653-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2019] [Revised: 12/17/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Although circular RNAs (circRNAs) are enriched in the mammalian brain, very little is known about their potential involvement in brain function and psychiatric disease. Here, we show that circHomer1a, a neuronal-enriched circRNA abundantly expressed in the frontal cortex, derived from Homer protein homolog 1 (HOMER1), is significantly reduced in both the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neuronal cultures from patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) and bipolar disorder (BD). Moreover, alterations in circHomer1a were positively associated with the age of onset of SCZ in both the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). No correlations between the age of onset of SCZ and linear HOMER1 mRNA were observed, whose expression was mostly unaltered in BD and SCZ postmortem brain. Using in vivo circRNA-specific knockdown of circHomer1a in mouse PFC, we show that it modulates the expression of numerous alternative mRNA transcripts from genes involved in synaptic plasticity and psychiatric disease. Intriguingly, in vivo circHomer1a knockdown in mouse OFC resulted in specific deficits in OFC-mediated cognitive flexibility. Lastly, we demonstrate that the neuronal RNA-binding protein HuD binds to circHomer1a and can influence its synaptic expression in the frontal cortex. Collectively, our data uncover a novel psychiatric disease-associated circRNA that regulates synaptic gene expression and cognitive flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amber J. Zimmerman
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Alexander K. Hafez
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Stephen K. Amoah
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA ,Autophagy inflammation and metabolism (AIM) center, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Brian A. Rodriguez
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Michela Dell’Orco
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Evelyn Lozano
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Brigham J. Hartley
- grid.59734.3c0000 0001 0670 2351Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY USA
| | - Begüm Alural
- grid.32224.350000 0004 0386 9924Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, Center for Genomic Medicine, Chemical Neurobiology Laboratory, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA
| | - Jasmin Lalonde
- grid.32224.350000 0004 0386 9924Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, Center for Genomic Medicine, Chemical Neurobiology Laboratory, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA ,grid.34429.380000 0004 1936 8198Present Address: Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON Canada
| | - Praveen Chander
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Maree J. Webster
- grid.453353.70000 0004 0473 2858Laboratory of Brain Research, Stanley Medical Research Institute, Chevy Chase, MD USA
| | - Roy H. Perlis
- grid.38142.3c000000041936754XDepartment of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA ,grid.32224.350000 0004 0386 9924Center for Experimental Drugs and Diagnostics, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA USA
| | - Kristen J. Brennand
- grid.59734.3c0000 0001 0670 2351Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY USA
| | - Stephen J. Haggarty
- grid.32224.350000 0004 0386 9924Departments of Neurology and Psychiatry, Center for Genomic Medicine, Chemical Neurobiology Laboratory, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA
| | - Jason Weick
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Nora Perrone-Bizzozero
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Jonathan L. Brigman
- grid.266832.b0000 0001 2188 8502Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM USA
| | - Nikolaos Mellios
- Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM, USA. .,Autophagy inflammation and metabolism (AIM) center, Albuquerque, NM, USA.
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Clayson PE, Wynn JK, Infantolino ZP, Hajcak G, Green MF, Horan WP. Reward processing in certain versus uncertain contexts in schizophrenia: An event-related potential (ERP) study. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL PSYCHOLOGY 2019; 128:867-880. [PMID: 31657597 PMCID: PMC6822386 DOI: 10.1037/abn0000469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Disturbances in motivation are prominent in the clinical presentation of people with schizophrenia and might reflect a disturbance in reward processing. Recent advances in affective neuroscience have subdivided reward processing into distinct components, but there are two limitations of the prior work in schizophrenia. First, studies typically focus on only one component rather than on the unfolding of reward processing across multiple stages. Second, studies have not considered the impact of certainty effects, which represent an important contextual factor that impacts processing. We examined whether individuals with schizophrenia show the typical certainty effects across three phases of reward processing: cue evaluation, feedback anticipation, and feedback receipt. Electroencephalography from 74 healthy controls and 92 people with schizophrenia was recorded during a cued gambling task under conditions in which cues indicated forthcoming reward outcomes that were certain or uncertain. Controls demonstrated the expected certainty effects across each stage. Initial cue evaluation (cue P300) was intact in the schizophrenia group, but people with schizophrenia showed diminished certainty effects during feedback anticipation (stimulus-preceding negativity [SPN]) and receipt (feedback reward positivity [fRewP] and feedback P300). During feedback receipt, event-related potentials in people with schizophrenia were similar to controls for the uncertain context but larger than controls for the certain context. Essentially, people with schizophrenia appeared to process certain feedback as though it were uncertain. These findings show, for the first time, that the fundamental distinction between certain and uncertain contexts is altered in schizophrenia at a neural level. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter E. Clayson
- Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - Jonathan K. Wynn
- Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | | | - Greg Hajcak
- Department of Psychology and Biomedical Sciences, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
| | - Michael. F. Green
- Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | - William P. Horan
- Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
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Sykes L, Haddon J, Lancaster TM, Sykes A, Azzouni K, Ihssen N, Moon AL, Lin TCE, Linden DE, Owen MJ, O’Donovan MC, Humby T, Wilkinson LS, Thomas KL, Hall J. Genetic Variation in the Psychiatric Risk Gene CACNA1C Modulates Reversal Learning Across Species. Schizophr Bull 2019; 45:1024-1032. [PMID: 30304534 PMCID: PMC6737471 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sby146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Genetic variation in CACNA1C, which encodes the alpha-1 subunit of Cav1.2 L-type voltage-gated calcium channels (VGCCs), has been strongly linked to risk for psychiatric disorders including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. How genetic variation in CACNA1C contributes to risk for these disorders is however not fully known. Both schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are associated with impairments in reversal learning (RL), which may contribute to symptoms seen in these conditions. We used a translational RL paradigm to investigate whether genetic variation in CACNA1C affects RL in both humans and transgenic rats. Associated changes in gene expression were explored using in situ hybridization and quantitative PCR in rats and the BRAINEAC online human database. Risk-associated genetic variation in CACNA1C in healthy human participants was associated with impairments in RL. Consistent with this finding, rats bearing a heterozygous deletion of Cacna1c were impaired in an analogous touchscreen RL task. We investigated the possible molecular mechanism underlying this impairment and found that Cacna1c +/- rats show decreased expression of Bdnf in prefrontal cortex. Examination of BRAINEAC data showed that human risk-associated genetic variation in CACNA1C is also associated with altered expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the prefrontal cortex in humans. These results indicate that genetic variation in CACNA1C may contribute to risk for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder by impacting behavioral flexibility, potentially through altered regulation of BDNF expression in the prefrontal cortex. Tests of RL may be useful for translational studies and in the development of therapies targeting VGCCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy Sykes
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | | | - Thomas M Lancaster
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Arabella Sykes
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Karima Azzouni
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Niklas Ihssen
- Department of Psychology, Durham University, Durham, UK
| | - Anna L Moon
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Tzu-Ching E Lin
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - David E Linden
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Michael J Owen
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Michael C O’Donovan
- School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Trevor Humby
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Lawrence S Wilkinson
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Kerrie L Thomas
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Jeremy Hall
- Neuroscience and Mental Health Research Institute, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,School of Medicine, MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK,To whom correspondence should be addressed; Hadyn Ellis Building, Maindy Road, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ, UK; tel: 02920-688-342, fax: +44 2920 687 068, e-mail:
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Yaple ZA, Yu R. Fractionating adaptive learning: A meta-analysis of the reversal learning paradigm. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 102:85-94. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2018] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/10/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Sterzer P, Voss M, Schlagenhauf F, Heinz A. Decision-making in schizophrenia: A predictive-coding perspective. Neuroimage 2019; 190:133-143. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.05.074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2017] [Revised: 05/22/2018] [Accepted: 05/30/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
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Saperia S, Da Silva S, Siddiqui I, Agid O, Daskalakis ZJ, Ravindran A, Voineskos AN, Zakzanis KK, Remington G, Foussias G. Reward-driven decision-making impairments in schizophrenia. Schizophr Res 2019; 206:277-283. [PMID: 30442476 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2018.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Revised: 11/01/2018] [Accepted: 11/03/2018] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
The ability to use feedback to guide optimal decision-making is essential for goal-directed behaviour. While impairments in feedback-driven decision-making have been associated with schizophrenia and depression, this has been examined primarily in the context of binary probabilistic choice paradigms. In real-world decision-making, however, individuals must make choices when there are more than two competing options that vary in the frequency and magnitude of potential rewards and losses. Thus, the current study examined win-stay/lose-shift (WSLS) behaviour on the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) in order to evaluate the influence of immediate rewards and losses in guiding real-world decision-making in patients with schizophrenia and major depressive disorder. Fifty-one patients with schizophrenia, 43 patients with major depressive disorder, and 51 healthy controls completed the IGT, as well as a series of clinical and cognitive measures. WSLS was assessed by quantifying trial-by-trial behaviour following rewards and losses on the IGT. Multivariate analyses of variance revealed that patients with schizophrenia demonstrated intact lose-shift behaviour, but significantly reduced win-stay rates compared to healthy controls. In contrast, no WSLS impairments emerged in the depressed group. Win-stay impairments in the schizophrenia group were significantly related to deficits in motivation and cognition. Patients with schizophrenia exhibit impaired reward-driven decision-making in the context of multiple choices with concurrent rewards and losses, and this appears to be driven by a reduced propensity for advantageous win-stay behaviour. With the importance of reward learning and decision-making in generating goal-directed behaviour, these findings suggest a potential mechanism contributing to the motivation deficits seen in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Saperia
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada.
| | - Susana Da Silva
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Ishraq Siddiqui
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Ofer Agid
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Z Jeff Daskalakis
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Arun Ravindran
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Aristotle N Voineskos
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Gary Remington
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - George Foussias
- Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
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Rygula R, Noworyta-Sokolowska K, Drozd R, Kozub A. Using rodents to model abnormal sensitivity to feedback in depression. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2018; 95:336-346. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.10.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2018] [Revised: 10/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/16/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Striatal dysfunction in patients with schizophrenia and their unaffected first-degree relatives. Schizophr Res 2018; 195:215-221. [PMID: 28867519 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2017.08.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2017] [Revised: 08/20/2017] [Accepted: 08/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Despite empirical findings showing that patients with schizophrenia and their unaffected first-degree relatives have deficits in processing monetary incentives, it is unclear whether similar deficits could be demonstrated for affective incentives. Twenty-six patients with schizophrenia and 26 age and gender matched healthy controls; 23 unaffected first-degree relatives and 23 matched healthy controls were recruited to complete a Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task and an Affective Incentive Delay (AID) task in a 3-Tesla MRI scanner. Hypoactivation in the dorsal striatum when anticipating monetary incentives were found in patients with schizophrenia and their unaffected first-degree relatives compared with healthy controls. Furthermore, patients with schizophrenia showed hyperactivation in the ventral striatum when receiving both monetary and affective incentives. These findings suggest that disorganized striatal function, regardless of incentive types, may be present in patients with schizophrenia and before the onset of illness in their first-degree unaffected relatives.
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Albrecht MA, Waltz JA, Cavanagh JF, Frank MJ, Gold JM. Increased conflict-induced slowing, but no differences in conflict-induced positive or negative prediction error learning in patients with schizophrenia. Neuropsychologia 2018; 123:131-140. [PMID: 29709580 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.04.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2017] [Revised: 04/11/2018] [Accepted: 04/25/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
People with schizophrenia (PSZ) often fail to pursue rewarding activities despite largely intact in-the-moment hedonic experiences. Deficits in effort-based decision making in PSZ may be related to enhanced effects of cost or reduced reward, i.e., through the amplification of negative prediction errors or by dampened positive prediction errors (here, positive and negative prediction errors refer to outcomes that are better or worse than expected respectively). We administered a modified Simon task to people with schizophrenia (PSZ; N = 46) and healthy controls (N = 32). The modification included a reinforcement learning component, where positive and negative prediction errors are dampened or boosted through the use of cognitively-effortful response conflict. EEG was recorded concurrently to investigate potential differences in conflict enhanced mid-frontal theta power between PSZ and controls. We found an enhanced effect of response conflict on response time in people with schizophrenia, but no discernible difference in conflict processing as reflected by the lack of a difference in theta-power enhancement to conflict in mid-frontal regions. Using the reinforcement learning transfer phase of the modified Simon task, PSZ also showed clear deficits in selecting the most rewarding stimulus during the 'easy' (most discriminable in terms of value) stimulus contrasts. However, we failed to find a difference between patients and controls in their gain or avoidance learning bias, nor did these biases correlate with negative symptoms. Previous studies had failed to find significant conflict effects on the Simon task likely due to its modest effect size. Our results show that PSZ do indeed possess subtle impairments in response-conflict, suggesting an increase in cognitive effort required for appropriate responding. In addition, while the lack of an overt positive or negative prediction error bias (i.e., a bias towards punishment or reward learning) was unexpected, it is consistent with recent work showing intact estimation of value when the reinforcement learning system is isolated from other contributors to value learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew A Albrecht
- School of Public Health, Curtin Health Innovation Research Institute, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, United States.
| | - James A Waltz
- Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - James F Cavanagh
- Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, United States
| | - Michael J Frank
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Brown Institute for Brain Science, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States
| | - James M Gold
- Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD, United States.
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45
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Chase HW, Loriemi P, Wensing T, Eickhoff SB, Nickl-Jockschat T. Meta-analytic evidence for altered mesolimbic responses to reward in schizophrenia. Hum Brain Mapp 2018; 39:2917-2928. [PMID: 29573046 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2017] [Revised: 01/25/2018] [Accepted: 03/08/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Dysfunction of reward-related neural circuitry in schizophrenia (SCZ) has been widely reported, and may provide insight into the motivational and cognitive disturbances that characterize the disorder. Although previous meta-analyses of reward learning paradigms in SCZ have been performed, a meta-analysis of whole-brain coordinate maps in SCZ alone has not been conducted. In this study, we performed an activation likelihood estimate (ALE) meta-analysis, and performed a follow-up analysis of functional connectivity and functional decoding of identified regions. We report several salient findings that extend prior work in this area. First, an alteration in reward-related activation was observed in the right ventral striatum, but this was not solely driven by hypoactivation in the SCZ group compared to healthy controls. Second, the region was characterized by functional connectivity primarily with the lateral prefrontal cortex and pre-supplementary motor area (preSMA), as well as subcortical regions such as the thalamus which show structural deficits in SCZ. Finally, although the meta-analysis showed no regions outside the ventral striatum to be significantly altered, regions with higher functional connectivity with the ventral striatum showed a greater number of subthreshold foci. Together, these findings confirm the alteration of ventral striatal function in SCZ, but suggest that a network-based approach may assist future analysis of the functional underpinnings of the disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henry W Chase
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Polina Loriemi
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.,Juelich Aachen Research Alliance - Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen, Germany
| | - Tobias Wensing
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.,Juelich Aachen Research Alliance - Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen, Germany
| | - Simon B Eickhoff
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, Brain and Behaviour (INM-7), Research Center Jülich, Jülich, Germany.,Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Thomas Nickl-Jockschat
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.,Juelich Aachen Research Alliance - Translational Brain Medicine, Aachen, Germany.,Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
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46
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Cognitive Control, the Anterior Cingulate, and Nicotinic Receptors: A Case of Heterozygote Advantage. J Neurosci 2018; 38:257-259. [PMID: 29321144 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2775-17.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2017] [Revised: 11/06/2017] [Accepted: 11/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
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47
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Vignapiano A, Mucci A, Merlotti E, Giordano GM, Amodio A, Palumbo D, Galderisi S. Impact of Reward and Loss Anticipation on Cognitive Control: An Event-Related Potential Study in Subjects With Schizophrenia and Healthy Controls. Clin EEG Neurosci 2018; 49:46-54. [PMID: 29243531 DOI: 10.1177/1550059417745935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Deficits of cognitive functions and motivation are core aspects of schizophrenia. The interaction of these deficits might contribute to impair the ability to flexibly adjust behavior in accordance with one's intentions and goals. Many studies have focused on the anterior N2 as a correlate of cognitive control based on motivational value. AIMS Given the key role of motivation impairment in schizophrenia as a predictor of functional outcome, we aimed to study the impact of reward- and avoidance-based motivation on cognitive control using N2. METHOD Event-related potentials were recorded during the execution of the "Monetary Incentive Delay (MID)" task in 34 patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) stabilized on second-generation antipsychotics and 22 healthy controls (HC). Cognitive domains were assessed using the MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery. Negative symptom domains (Avolition/apathy and Expressive deficit), as well as positive and disorganization dimensions were also assessed in SCZ. RESULTS We did not observe any group difference in N2 amplitude or latency. In HC, N2 amplitude was significantly larger for anticipation of large loss with regard to all reward conditions and for all incentive versus neutral conditions. In SCZ, N2 amplitude did not discriminate between large loss and reward or between incentive and neutral conditions. N2 amplitude was not correlated with psychopathological dimensions or MCCB-assessed cognitive deficits in SCZ. CONCLUSION Our data in HC are in line with the hypothesis that N2 amplitude reflects the impact of motivational salience on cognitive control. Our results in SCZ indicate a deficit in the discrimination of motivational salience to the service of cognitive control, independently of psychopathology and other cognitive deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annarita Vignapiano
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Armida Mucci
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Eleonora Merlotti
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Giulia Maria Giordano
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Antonella Amodio
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Davide Palumbo
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
| | - Silvana Galderisi
- 1 Department of Psychiatry, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Naples, Italy
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Watt MJ, Weber MA, Davies SR, Forster GL. Impact of juvenile chronic stress on adult cortico-accumbal function: Implications for cognition and addiction. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2017; 79. [PMID: 28642080 PMCID: PMC5610933 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.06.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Repeated exposure to stress during childhood is associated with increased risk for neuropsychiatric illness, substance use disorders and other behavioral problems in adulthood. However, it is not clear how chronic childhood stress can lead to emergence of such a wide range of symptoms and disorders in later life. One possible explanation lies in stress-induced disruption to the development of specific brain regions associated with executive function and reward processing, deficits in which are common to the disorders promoted by childhood stress. Evidence of aberrations in prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens function following repeated exposure of juvenile (pre- and adolescent) organisms to a variety of different stressors would account not only for the similarity in symptoms across the wide range of childhood stress-associated mental illnesses, but also their persistence into adulthood in the absence of further stress. Therefore, the goal of this review is to evaluate the current knowledge regarding disruption to executive function and reward processing in adult animals or humans exposed to chronic stress over the juvenile period, and the underlying neurobiology, with particular emphasis on the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens. First, the role of these brain regions in mediating executive function and reward processing is highlighted. Second, the neurobehavioral development of these systems is discussed to illustrate how juvenile stress may exert long-lasting effects on prefrontal cortex-accumbal activity and related behavioral functions. Finally, a critical review of current animal and human findings is presented, which strongly supports the supposition that exposure to chronic stress (particularly social aggression and isolation in animal studies) in the juvenile period produces impairments in executive function in adulthood, especially in working memory and inhibitory control. Chronic juvenile stress also results in aberrations to reward processing and seeking, with increased sensitivity to drugs of abuse particularly noted in animal models, which is in line with greater incidence of substance use disorders seen in clinical studies. These consequences are potentially mediated by monoamine and glutamatergic dysfunction in the prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens, providing translatable therapeutic targets. However, the predominant use of male subjects and social-based stressors in preclinical studies points to a clear need for determining how both sex differences and stressor heterogeneity may differentially contribute to stress-induced changes to substrates mediating executive function and reward processing, before the impact of chronic juvenile stress in promoting adult psychopathology can be fully understood.
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49
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Alústiza I, Radua J, Pla M, Martin R, Ortuño F. Meta-analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging studies of timing and cognitive control in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder: Evidence of a primary time deficit. Schizophr Res 2017; 188:21-32. [PMID: 28169089 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2017.01.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2016] [Revised: 01/22/2017] [Accepted: 01/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SZ) and Bipolar Disorder (BD) are associated with deficits in both timing and cognitive control functions. However, the underlying neurological dysfunctions remain poorly understood. The main goal of this study was to identify brain structures activated both by increases in cognitive activity and during timing tasks in patients with SZ and BD relative to controls. We conducted two signed differential mapping (SDM) meta-analyses of functional magnetic resonance imaging studies assessing the brain response to increasing levels of cognitive difficulty: one concerned SZ, and the other BD patients. We conducted a similar SDM meta-analysis on neuroimaging of timing in SZ (no studies in BD could be included). Finally, we carried out a multimodal meta-analysis to identify common brain regions in the findings of the two previous meta-analyses. We found that SZ patients showed hypoactivation in timing-related cortical-subcortical areas. The dysfunction observed during timing partially coincided with deficits for cognitive control functions. We hypothesize that a dysfunctional temporal/cognitive control network underlies the persistent cognitive impairment observed in SZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Alústiza
- Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Navarra, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IDISNA), Navarra, Spain.
| | - Joaquim Radua
- Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden; FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalaries, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marta Pla
- Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Navarra, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IDISNA), Navarra, Spain
| | - Raquel Martin
- Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Navarra, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IDISNA), Navarra, Spain
| | - Felipe Ortuño
- Department of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, Pamplona, Navarra, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Navarra (IDISNA), Navarra, Spain
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Neural correlates of altered feedback learning in women recovered from anorexia nervosa. Sci Rep 2017; 7:5421. [PMID: 28710363 PMCID: PMC5511172 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-04761-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2017] [Accepted: 05/19/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is associated with exaggerated self-control and altered reward-based decision making, but the underlying neural mechanisms are poorly understood. Consistent with the notion of excessive cognitive control, we recently found increased dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) activation in acutely ill patients (acAN) on lose-shift trials in a probabilistic reversal learning (PRL) task. However, undernutrition may modulate brain function. In attempt to disentangle trait from state factors, the current fMRI study investigated cognitive control in recovered patients (recAN). Thirty-one recAN and 31 healthy controls (HC) completed a PRL task during fMRI. Based on previous findings, we focused on hemodynamic responses during lose-shift behaviour and conducted supplementary functional connectivity analysis. RecAN showed elevated lose-shift behaviour relative to HC. On the neural level, recAN showed normal dACC responses, but increased activation in fronto-parietal control regions. A trend for increased coupling between frontal and parietal regions of interest was also evident in recAN. The current findings in recAN differ from those in our previous study in acAN. While aberrant dACC response to negative feedback may be a correlate of the underweight state in acAN, impaired behavioural adaptation and elevated activation of cognitive control regions in recAN is suggestive of altered neural efficiency.
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