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Herrmann L, Ade J, Kühnel A, Widmann A, Demenescu LR, Li M, Opel N, Speck O, Walter M, Colic L. Cross-sectional study of retrospective self-reported childhood emotional neglect and inhibitory neurometabolite levels in the pregenual anterior cingulate cortex in adult humans. Neurobiol Stress 2023; 25:100556. [PMID: 37521513 PMCID: PMC10371855 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Revised: 06/09/2023] [Accepted: 07/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
High childhood emotional maltreatment (CM-EMO) is reported in mood and anxiety disorders. The associations with an increased risk for psychopathology are not fully understood. One potential factor may be through alterations in gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA). The pregenual anterior cingulate cortex (pgACC) is an important brain region for emotion processing and its' GABA levels were previously implicated in mood and anxiety disorders pathophysiology. We examined the association between the self-reported CM-EMO in adulthood and GABA + levels in the pgACC and in a control region, anterior mid cingulate cortex. GABA+ and total creatine (tCr) were measured in the pgACC and aMCC voxels in seventy-four healthy volunteers (32 (43%) women, ages 19-54, age [standard deviation] = 27.1 [6.5]) using proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy at 7 T. Childhood Trauma Questionnaire was completed by adult participants to measure retrospective self-reported experience of emotional neglect (CM-EMO-NEG) and emotional abuse (CM-EMO-AB) during childhood. Linear mixed models tested the interaction between the region and the two subscales, and GABA+/tCr ratios, with an adjusted alpha = 0.025. Following, linear models, including with covariates were tested. There was an interaction effect between region and CM-EMO-NEG (B = -0.007, p = 0.009), driven by a negative relationship between CM-EMO-NEG and GABA+/tCr in the pgACC (B = -0.004, p = 0.013). Results for CM-EMO-NEG were robust to inclusion of different covariates (ps < 0.035). There was no interaction effect for the CM-EMO-AB (B = 0.007, p = 0.4). Limitations include cross-sectional measurement and retrospective nature of the CTQ. The findings indicate preliminary importance of inhibitory neurometabolite concentrations in the pgACC for retrospective reporting of CM-EMO-NEG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luisa Herrmann
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- University Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
- Clinical Affective Neuroimaging Laboratory (CANLAB), Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Johanna Ade
- Institute of Clinical Psychology, Center for Mental Health, Hospital Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Anne Kühnel
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry and International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry (IMPRS-TP), Munich, Germany
- Section of Medical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry & Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Annina Widmann
- Experimental and Molecular Psychiatry, LWL University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
| | | | - Meng Li
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- Clinical Affective Neuroimaging Laboratory (CANLAB), Magdeburg, Germany
- German Center for Mental Health, Halle-Jena-Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Nils Opel
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- German Center for Mental Health, Halle-Jena-Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Oliver Speck
- German Center for Mental Health, Halle-Jena-Magdeburg, Germany
- Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Department of Biomedical Magnetic Resonance, Otto von Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Magdeburg, Germany
- Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Martin Walter
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- University Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
- Clinical Affective Neuroimaging Laboratory (CANLAB), Magdeburg, Germany
- German Center for Mental Health, Halle-Jena-Magdeburg, Germany
- Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences, Magdeburg, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Lejla Colic
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- Clinical Affective Neuroimaging Laboratory (CANLAB), Magdeburg, Germany
- German Center for Mental Health, Halle-Jena-Magdeburg, Germany
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