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Hales CA, Silveira MM, Calderhead L, Mortazavi L, Hathaway BA, Winstanley CA. Insight into differing decision-making strategies that underlie cognitively effort-based decision making using computational modeling in rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2024; 241:947-962. [PMID: 38172238 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-023-06521-5] [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: 09/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024]
Abstract
RATIONALE The rat cognitive effort task (rCET), a rodent model of cognitive rather than physical effort, requires animals to choose between an easy or hard visuospatial discrimination, with a correct hard choice more highly rewarded. Like in humans, there is stable individual variation in choice behavior. In previous reports, animals were divided into two groups-workers and slackers-based on their mean preference for the harder option. Although these groups differed in their response to pharmacological challenges, the rationale for using this criterion for grouping was not robust. METHODS We collated experimental data from multiple cohorts of male and female rats performing the rCET and used a model-based framework combining drift diffusion modeling with cluster analysis to identify the decision-making processes underlying variation in choice behavior. RESULTS We verified that workers and slackers are statistically different groups but also found distinct intra-group profiles. These subgroups exhibited dissociable performance during the attentional phase, linked to distinct decision-making profiles during choice. Reanalysis of previous pharmacology data using this model-based framework showed that serotonergic drug effects were explained by changes in decision boundaries and non-decision times, while scopolamine's effects were driven by changes in decision starting points and rates of evidence accumulation. CONCLUSIONS Modeling revealed the decision-making processes that are associated with cognitive effort costs, and how these differ across individuals. Reanalysis of drug data provided insight into the mechanisms through which different neurotransmitter systems impact cognitively effortful attention and decision-making processes, with relevance to multiple psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire A Hales
- Department of Psychology, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada.
| | - Mason M Silveira
- Department of Psychology, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
- Fashion Business School, London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, London, UK
| | - Lucas Calderhead
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Leili Mortazavi
- Department of Psychology, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Brett A Hathaway
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Catharine A Winstanley
- Department of Psychology, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z3, Canada.
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
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Jian-Min C, Zhi-Yuan W, Ke L, Cheng Z, Shi-Xuan W, Yi-Wei C, Guan-Yi L, Rui S, Xiao-Mei Z, Jin L, Ning W. Assessment of lisdexamfetamine on executive function in rats: A translational cognitive research. Exp Neurol 2024; 374:114718. [PMID: 38336285 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2024.114718] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2023] [Revised: 01/13/2024] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
Executive function, including working memory, attention and inhibitory control, is crucial for decision making, thinking and planning. Lisdexamfetamine, the prodrug of d-amphetamine, has been approved for treating attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and binge eating disorder, but whether it improves executive function under non-disease condition, as well as the underlying pharmacokinetic and neurochemical properties, remains unclear. Here, using trial unique non-matching to location task and five-choice serial reaction time task of rats, we found lisdexamfetamine (p.o) enhanced spatial working memory and sustained attention under various cognitive load conditions, while d-amphetamine (i.p) only improved these cognitive performances under certain high cognitive load condition. Additionally, lisdexamfetamine evoked less impulsivity than d-amphetamine, indicating lower adverse effect on inhibitory control. In vivo pharmacokinetics showed lisdexamfetamine produced a relative stable and lasting release of amphetamine base both in plasma and in brain tissue, whereas d-amphetamine injection elicited rapid increase and dramatical decrease in amphetamine base levels. Microdialysis revealed lisdexamfetamine caused lasting release of dopamine within the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), whereas d-amphetamine produced rapid increase followed by decline to dopamine level. Moreover, lisdexamfetamine elicited more obvious efflux of noradrenaline than that of d-amphetamine. The distinct neurochemical profiles may be partly attributed to the different action of two drugs to membranous catecholamine transporters level within mPFC, detecting by Western Blotting. Taken together, due to its certain pharmacokinetic and catecholamine releasing profiles, lisdexamfetamine produced better pharmacological action to improving executive function. Our finding provided valuable evidence on the ideal pharmacokinetic and neurochemical characteristics of amphetamine-type psychostimulants in cognition enhancement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chen Jian-Min
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China; Department of Pharmacy, Nanxishan Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, 46th Chongxin Road, Guilin 541000, China
| | - Wang Zhi-Yuan
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Liu Ke
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Zhang Cheng
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Wu Shi-Xuan
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Cao Yi-Wei
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Lu Guan-Yi
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Song Rui
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Zhuang Xiao-Mei
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China.
| | - Li Jin
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China
| | - Wu Ning
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Neuropsychopharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Toxicology and Medical Countermeasures, Beijing Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, 27th Taiping Road, Beijing 100850, China.
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Sidorenko N, Chung HK, Grueschow M, Quednow BB, Hayward-Könnecke H, Jetter A, Tobler PN. Acetylcholine and noradrenaline enhance foraging optimality in humans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2305596120. [PMID: 37639601 PMCID: PMC10483619 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2305596120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Foraging theory prescribes when optimal foragers should leave the current option for more rewarding alternatives. Actual foragers often exploit options longer than prescribed by the theory, but it is unclear how this foraging suboptimality arises. We investigated whether the upregulation of cholinergic, noradrenergic, and dopaminergic systems increases foraging optimality. In a double-blind, between-subject design, participants (N = 160) received placebo, the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor agonist nicotine, a noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor reboxetine, or a preferential dopamine reuptake inhibitor methylphenidate, and played the role of a farmer who collected milk from patches with different yield. Across all groups, participants on average overharvested. While methylphenidate had no effects on this bias, nicotine, and to some extent also reboxetine, significantly reduced deviation from foraging optimality, which resulted in better performance compared to placebo. Concurring with amplified goal-directedness and excluding heuristic explanations, nicotine independently also improved trial initiation and time perception. Our findings elucidate the neurochemical basis of behavioral flexibility and decision optimality and open unique perspectives on psychiatric disorders affecting these functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nick Sidorenko
- Department of Economics, Laboratory for Social and Neural Systems Research, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
- Department of Economics, Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
| | - Hui-Kuan Chung
- Department of Economics, Laboratory for Social and Neural Systems Research, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
- Department of Economics, Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
| | - Marcus Grueschow
- Department of Economics, Laboratory for Social and Neural Systems Research, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
- Department of Economics, Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
| | - Boris B. Quednow
- Experimental and Clinical Pharmacopsychology, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich8008, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich8057, Switzerland
| | - Helen Hayward-Könnecke
- Department of Neurology, Section of Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis Research, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich8091, Switzerland
| | - Alexander Jetter
- National Poisons Information Centre, Tox Info Suisse, Associated Institute of the University of Zurich, Zurich8032, Switzerland
| | - Philippe N. Tobler
- Department of Economics, Laboratory for Social and Neural Systems Research, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
- Department of Economics, Zurich Center for Neuroeconomics, University of Zurich, Zurich8006, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Zurich8057, Switzerland
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Nunez C, Hoots JK, Schepers ST, Bower M, de Wit H, Wardle MC. Pharmacological investigations of effort-based decision-making in humans: Naltrexone and nicotine. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0275027. [PMID: 36197897 PMCID: PMC9534411 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 09/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Many mental health disorders are characterized by an impaired ability, or willingness, to exert effort to obtain rewards. This impairment is modeled in effort-based decision tasks, and neuropharmacological studies implicate dopamine in this process. However, other transmitter systems such as opioidergic and cholinergic systems have received less attention. Here, in two separate studies we tested the acute effects of naltrexone and nicotine on effort-based decision-making in healthy adults. In Study 1, we compared naltrexone (50mg and 25mg) to placebo, and in Study 2, a pilot study, we compared nicotine (7mg) to placebo. In both studies, participants completed the Effort Expenditure for Rewards Task (EEfRT), which measured effort-based decision-making related to monetary rewards. Although subjects expended greater effort for larger reward magnitude and when there was a higher probability of receiving the reward, neither naltrexone nor nicotine affected willingness to exert effort for monetary rewards. Although the drugs produced significant and typical drug effects on measures of mood and behavior, they did not alter effort-based decision-making. This has implications both for the clinical use of these drugs, as well as for understanding the neuropharmacology of effort-related behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia Nunez
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Jennifer K. Hoots
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Scott T. Schepers
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Michael Bower
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Harriet de Wit
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Margaret C. Wardle
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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Tobacco Use Predicts Treatment Dropout and Outcome in an Acute, Transdiagnostic Psychiatric Treatment Setting. Behav Ther 2021; 52:897-906. [PMID: 34134829 DOI: 10.1016/j.beth.2020.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2020] [Revised: 11/04/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Tobacco use is consistently associated with greater levels of depression and anxiety, broadly, and preliminary evidence suggests that current tobacco use is a significant predictor of dropout from psychiatric treatment. The current study extends past work to examine the impact of tobacco use on treatment dropout and outcomes in an acute psychiatric treatment setting. Upon intake to a partial hospitalization program (PHP), patients completed a battery of measures assessing sociodemographic characteristics, current tobacco use, depression and generalized anxiety, and substance use. Patients at the PHP also completed measures assessing levels of depression and generalized anxiety again upon discharge from the program. In line with hypotheses, current tobacco use was a significant predictor of dropout from treatment at the PHP. Importantly, this relationship remained significant when statistically controlling for demographic variables and psychiatric and substance use severity (such as number of previous inpatient psychiatric hospitalizations and degree of alcohol or drug problems). Results from the current study indicate that tobacco use is a significant risk factor for treatment dropout. Further research is needed to replicate these findings and to determine the mechanism underlying this link between tobacco use and treatment dropout for people receiving intensive psychiatric care.
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Betts GD, Hynes TJ, Winstanley CA. Pharmacological evidence of a cholinergic contribution to elevated impulsivity and risky decision-making caused by adding win-paired cues to a rat gambling task. J Psychopharmacol 2021; 35:701-712. [PMID: 33573446 DOI: 10.1177/0269881120972421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pairing rewards with sensory stimulation, in the form of auditory and visual cues, increases risky decision-making in both rats and humans. Understanding the neurobiological basis of this effect could help explain why electronic gambling machines are so addictive, and inform treatment development for compulsive gambling and gaming. Numerous studies implicate the dopamine system in mediating the motivational influence of reward-paired cues; recent data suggest the cholinergic system also plays a critical role. Previous work also indicates that cholinergic drugs alter decision-making under uncertainty. AIMS We investigated whether the addition of reward-concurrent cues to the rat gambling task (crGT) altered the effects of peripherally administered cholinergic compounds. METHODS Muscarinic and nicotinic agonists and antagonists were administered to 16 male, Long-Evans rats trained on the crGT. Measures of optimal/risky decision-making and motor impulsivity were the main dependent variables of interest. RESULTS The muscarinic receptor antagonist scopolamine improved decision-making overall, decreasing selection of one of the risky options while increasing choice of the more advantageous options. The muscarinic agonist oxotremorine increased choice latency but did not significantly affect option preference. Neither the nicotinic antagonist mecamylamine nor the agonist nicotine affected choice patterns, but mecamylamine decreased premature responding, an index of motor impulsivity. CONCLUSIONS These results contrast sharply from those obtained previously using the uncued rGT, and suggest that the deleterious effects of win-paired cues on decision-making and impulse control may result from elevated cholinergic tone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graeme D Betts
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Tristan J Hynes
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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Chang L, Liang H, Kandel SR, He JJ. Independent and Combined Effects of Nicotine or Chronic Tobacco Smoking and HIV on the Brain: A Review of Preclinical and Clinical Studies. J Neuroimmune Pharmacol 2020; 15:658-693. [PMID: 33108618 DOI: 10.1007/s11481-020-09963-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Accepted: 09/25/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Tobacco smoking is highly prevalent among HIV-infected individuals. Chronic smokers with HIV showed greater cognitive deficits and impulsivity, and had more psychopathological symptoms and greater neuroinflammation than HIV non-smokers or smokers without HIV infection. However, preclinical studies that evaluated the combined effects of HIV-infection and tobacco smoking are scare. The preclinical models typically used cell cultures or animal models that involved specific HIV viral proteins or the administration of nicotine to rodents. These preclinical models consistently demonstrated that nicotine had neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory effects, leading to cognitive enhancement. Although the major addictive ingredient in tobacco smoking is nicotine, chronic smoking does not lead to improved cognitive function in humans. Therefore, preclinical studies designed to unravel the interactive effects of chronic tobacco smoking and HIV infection are needed. In this review, we summarized the preclinical studies that demonstrated the neuroprotective effects of nicotine, the neurotoxic effects of the HIV viral proteins, and the scant literature on nicotine or tobacco smoke in HIV transgenic rat models. We also reviewed the clinical studies that evaluated the neurotoxic effects of tobacco smoking, HIV infection and their combined effects on the brain, including studies that evaluated the cognitive and behavioral assessments, as well as neuroimaging measures. Lastly, we compared the different approaches between preclinical and clinical studies, identified some gaps and proposed some future directions. Graphical abstract Independent and combined effects of HIV and tobacco/nicotine. Left top and bottom panels: Both clinical studies of HIV infected persons and preclinical studies using viral proteins in vitro or in vivo in animal models showed that HIV infection could lead to neurotoxicity and neuroinflammation. Right top and bottom panels: While clinical studies of tobacco smoking consistently showed deleterious effects of smoking, clinical and preclinical studies that used nicotine show mild cognitive enhancement, neuroprotective and possibly anti-inflammatory effects. In the developing brain, however, nicotine is neurotoxic. Middle overlapping panels: Clinical studies of persons with HIV who were smokers typically showed additive deleterious effects of HIV and tobacco smoking. However, in the preclinical studies, when nicotine was administered to the HIV-1 Tg rats, the neurotoxic effects of HIV were attenuated, but tobacco smoke worsened the inflammatory cascade.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linda Chang
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 670 W. Baltimore Street, HSF III, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA.
- Department of Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Medicine, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI, USA.
| | - Huajun Liang
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 670 W. Baltimore Street, HSF III, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA
| | - Suresh R Kandel
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chicago Medical School, Center for Cancer Cell Biology, Immunology and Infection, Rosalind Franklin University, 3333 Green Bay Road, Basic Science Building 2.300, North Chicago, IL, 60064, USA
| | - Johnny J He
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Chicago Medical School, Center for Cancer Cell Biology, Immunology and Infection, Rosalind Franklin University, 3333 Green Bay Road, Basic Science Building 2.300, North Chicago, IL, 60064, USA.
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Wright EC. Neurobiological Insights Into Stress-Induced Attention Deficit. Biol Psychiatry 2020; 88:e29-e31. [PMID: 32912427 PMCID: PMC7475766 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.07.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Emily C. Wright
- Address correspondence to Emily C. Wright, M.A., Department of Psychology, University of California-Davis, 135 Young Hall, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA 95616
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Silveira MM, Wittekindt SN, Mortazavi L, Hathaway BA, Winstanley CA. Investigating serotonergic contributions to cognitive effort allocation, attention, and impulsive action in female rats. J Psychopharmacol 2020; 34:452-466. [PMID: 31913079 DOI: 10.1177/0269881119896043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individuals must frequently evaluate whether it is worth allocating cognitive effort for desired outcomes. Motivational deficits are a common feature of psychiatric illness such as major depression. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are commonly used to treat this disorder, yet some data suggest these compounds are ineffective at treating amotivation, and may even exacerbate it. AIMS Here we used the rodent Cognitive Effort Task (rCET) to assess serotonergic (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) contributions to decision-making with cognitive effort costs. METHODS The rCET is a modified version of the 5-choice serial reaction time task, a well-validated test of visuospatial attention and impulse control. At the start of each rCET trial, rats chose one of two levers, which set the difficulty of an attentional challenge, namely the localization of a visual stimulus illuminated for 0.2 or 1 s on hard versus easy trials. Successful completion of hard trials was rewarded with double the sugar pellets. Twenty-four female Long-Evans rats were trained on the rCET and systemically administered the 5-HT1A agonist 8-OH-DPAT, the 5-HT2A antagonist M100907, the 5-HT2C agonist Ro-60-0175, as well as the 5-HT2C antagonist SB 242, 084. RESULTS 5-HT2A antagonism dose-dependently reduced premature responding, while 5-HT2C antagonism had the opposite effect. 8-OH-DPAT impaired accuracy of target detection at higher doses, while Ro-60-0175 dose-dependently improved accuracy on difficult trials. However, none of the drugs affected the rats' choice of the harder option. CONCLUSION When considered with existing work evaluating decision-making with physical effort costs, it appears that serotonergic signalling plays a minor role in guiding effort allocation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mason M Silveira
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Sebastian N Wittekindt
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Leili Mortazavi
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Brett A Hathaway
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Catharine A Winstanley
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
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Effort-based decision making varies by smoking status. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2020; 237:1081-1090. [PMID: 31900525 PMCID: PMC7125005 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05437-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2019] [Accepted: 12/13/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE A reduced willingness to perform effort based on the magnitude and probability of potential rewards has been associated with diminished dopamine function and may be relevant to chronic drug use. OBJECTIVES Here, we investigated the influence of smoking status on effort-based decisions. We hypothesized that smokers would make fewer high-effort selections than ex-smokers and never-smokers. METHODS Current smokers (n = 25), ex-smokers (≥ 1 year quit, n = 23), and never-smokers (n = 19) completed the Effort Expenditure for Rewards Task in which participants select between low-effort and high-effort options to receive monetary rewards at varying levels of reward magnitude, probability and expected value. RESULTS Overall, participants selected more high-effort options as potential reward magnitude and expected value increased. Smokers did not make fewer high-effort selections overall, but smokers were less sensitive to the changes in magnitude, probability, and expected value compared to never-smokers. Smokers were also less sensitive to the changes in probability and expected value, but not magnitude, compared to ex-smokers. Among smokers and ex-smokers, less nicotine dependence was associated with an increased likelihood of high-effort selections. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate the relevance of smoking status to effort-based decisions and suggest that smokers have diminished sensitivity to nondrug reward value. Among ex-smokers, greater pre-existing sensitivity to reward value may have been conducive to smoking cessation, or sensitivity was improved by smoking cessation. Future prospective studies can investigate whether effort-related decision making is predictive of smoking initiation or cessation success. IMPLICATIONS Willingness to perform effort to achieve a goal and sensitivity to changes in reward value are important aspects of motivation. These results showed that smokers have decreased sensitivity to changes in effort-related reward probability and expected value compared to ex-smokers and never-smokers. Potentially, improved sensitivity to rewards among ex-smokers may be a cause or consequence of smoking cessation. These findings may help explain why some smokers are able to achieve long-term abstinence.
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Gießing C, Ahrens S, Thiel CM. Healthy Subjects With Extreme Patterns of Performance Differ in Functional Network Topology and Benefits From Nicotine. Front Syst Neurosci 2020; 13:83. [PMID: 31998085 PMCID: PMC6965056 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2019.00083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Do subjects with atypical patterns in attentional and executive behaviour show different brain network topology and react differently towards nicotine administration? The efficacy of pro-cognitive drugs like nicotine considerably varies between subjects and previous theoretical and empirical evidence suggest stronger behavioural nicotine effects in subjects with low performance. One problem is, however, how to best define low performance, especially if several cognitive functions are assessed for subject characterisation. We here present a method that used a multivariate, robust outlier detection algorithm to identify subjects with suspicious patterns of performance in attentional and executive functioning. In contrast to univariate approaches, this method is sensitive towards extreme positions within the multidimensional space that do not have to be extreme values in the individual behavioural distributions. The method was applied to a dataset of healthy, non-smoking subjects (n = 34) who were behaviorally characterised by an attention and executive function test on which N = 12 volunteers were classified as outliers. All subjects then underwent a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scan to characterise brain network topology and an experimental behavioural paradigm under placebo and nicotine (7 mg patch) that gauged aspects of attention and executive function. Our results indicate that subjects with an atypical multivariate pattern in attention and executive functioning showed significant differences in nodal brain network integration in visual association and pre-motor brain regions during resting state. These differences in brain network topology significantly predicted larger individual nicotine effects on attentional processing. In summary, the current approach successfully identified a subgroup of healthy volunteers with low behavioural performance who differ in brain network topology and attentional benefit from nicotine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carsten Gießing
- Biological Psychology, Department of Psychology, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl-von-Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
- Research Center Neurosensory Science, Carl-von-Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Stefan Ahrens
- Biological Psychology, Department of Psychology, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl-von-Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Christiane M. Thiel
- Biological Psychology, Department of Psychology, School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Carl-von-Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
- Research Center Neurosensory Science, Carl-von-Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
- Cluster of Excellence “Hearing4all”, Carl-von-Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
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Cools R. Chemistry of the Adaptive Mind: Lessons from Dopamine. Neuron 2019; 104:113-131. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2019.09.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Revised: 09/19/2019] [Accepted: 09/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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Cools R, Froböse M, Aarts E, Hofmans L. Dopamine and the motivation of cognitive control. HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL NEUROLOGY 2019; 163:123-143. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-804281-6.00007-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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Izquierdo A, Aguirre C, Hart EE, Stolyarova A. Rodent Models of Adaptive Value Learning and Decision-Making. Methods Mol Biol 2019; 2011:105-119. [PMID: 31273696 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9554-7_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2022]
Abstract
Real-world decisions are rarely as straightforward as choosing between clearly "good" vs. "bad" options. More often, options must be evaluated carefully because they differ in relative value. For example, we typically learn about (and make decisions between) options in comparison, where one outcome may be more costly or risky than the other. Several neuropsychiatric conditions are characterized by atypical evaluation of effort and risk costs, including major depression, schizophrenia, autism, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and substance use disorders. Aberrant value learning and decision-making have long been considered a cognitive-behavioral endophenotype of these disorders and can be modeled in rodents. This chapter presents two general methodological domains that the experimenter can manipulate in animal decision-making tasks: risk and effort. Here, we present detailed methods of rodent tasks frequently employed within these domains: probabilistic reversal learning (PRL) and effort choice. These tasks recruit regions within rodent frontal cortex, the amygdala, and the striatum, and performance is heavily modulated by dopamine, making these assays highly valid measures in the study of behavioral and substance addictions, in particular.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alicia Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA. .,The Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA. .,Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA. .,Integrative Center for Addictions, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Claudia Aguirre
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Evan E Hart
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Alexandra Stolyarova
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Li H, Chen J, Chen C, Xu Z, Xu J, Lin W, Wu J, Li G, Xu H, Kang Y, Wang F, Liu Y. CSF glutamate level decreases in heavy smokers and negatively correlates with BDI scores. Psychiatry Res 2018; 270:627-630. [PMID: 30384282 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2018.10.053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2018] [Revised: 10/11/2018] [Accepted: 10/22/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Glutamate is involved in mental disorders and nicotine addiction. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) glutamate levels and mental status in Chinese heavy smokers. Participants comprised 41 non-smokers and 77 heavy smokers (n = 118). Cerebrospinal fluid was extracted and glutamate levels were measured. We recorded age, years of education, BMI, the Barratt impulsiveness scale (BIS), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). BIS action scores, total scores and BDI scores were significantly different between the groups. Partial correlation analyses with age and education years as covariates found that CSF glutamate levels negatively correlated with BDI scores, but did not correlate with SAS scores in heavy smokers. No correlation was found between CSF glutamate levels and BDI or SAS scores in non-smokers. In conclusion, heavy smokers had more impulsivity had lower levels of CSF glutamate and higher BDI scores. CSF glutamate levels negatively correlated with BDI scores in heavy smokers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Li
- Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830028, China; Psychosomatic Medicine Research Division, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Huhhot 010110, China
| | - Junzheng Chen
- The Affiliated Wenling Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenling 317500, China
| | - Caiming Chen
- The Affiliated Wenling Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenling 317500, China
| | - Zeping Xu
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - Jinzhong Xu
- The Affiliated Wenling Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenling 317500, China; College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - Wenhui Lin
- The Affiliated Wenling Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenling 317500, China
| | - Junnan Wu
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, China
| | - Guohua Li
- Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830028, China
| | - Heng Xu
- Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830028, China; The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011, China
| | - Yimin Kang
- Psychosomatic Medicine Research Division, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Huhhot 010110, China
| | - Fan Wang
- Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Urumqi 830028, China; Beijing Hui-Long-Guan Hospital, Peking University, Beijing 100096, China.
| | - Yanlong Liu
- College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325035, China.
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Silveira MM, Tremblay M, Winstanley CA. Dissociable contributions of dorsal and ventral striatal regions on a rodent cost/benefit decision-making task requiring cognitive effort. Neuropharmacology 2018; 137:322-331. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2018.04.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2018] [Revised: 03/14/2018] [Accepted: 04/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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Deciphering Decision Making: Variation in Animal Models of Effort- and Uncertainty-Based Choice Reveals Distinct Neural Circuitries Underlying Core Cognitive Processes. J Neurosci 2017; 36:12069-12079. [PMID: 27903717 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1713-16.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2016] [Revised: 10/06/2016] [Accepted: 10/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Maladaptive decision-making is increasingly recognized to play a significant role in numerous psychiatric disorders, such that therapeutics capable of ameliorating core impairments in judgment may be beneficial in a range of patient populations. The field of "decision neuroscience" is therefore in its ascendancy, with researchers from diverse fields bringing their expertise to bear on this complex and fascinating problem. In addition to the advances in neuroimaging and computational neuroscience that contribute enormously to this area, an increase in the complexity and sophistication of behavioral paradigms designed for nonhuman laboratory animals has also had a significant impact on researchers' ability to test the causal nature of hypotheses pertaining to the neural circuitry underlying the choice process. Multiple such decision-making assays have been developed to investigate the neural and neurochemical bases of different types of cost/benefit decisions. However, what may seem like relatively trivial variation in behavioral methodologies can actually result in recruitment of distinct cognitive mechanisms, and alter the neurobiological processes that regulate choice. Here we focus on two areas of particular interest, namely, decisions that involve an assessment of uncertainty or effort, and compare some of the most prominent behavioral paradigms that have been used to investigate these processes in laboratory rodents. We illustrate how an appreciation of the diversity in the nature of these tasks can lead to important insights into the circumstances under which different neural regions make critical contributions to decision making.
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Khani A, Rainer G. Neural and neurochemical basis of reinforcement-guided decision making. J Neurophysiol 2016; 116:724-41. [PMID: 27226454 DOI: 10.1152/jn.01113.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2015] [Accepted: 05/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Decision making is an adaptive behavior that takes into account several internal and external input variables and leads to the choice of a course of action over other available and often competing alternatives. While it has been studied in diverse fields ranging from mathematics, economics, ecology, and ethology to psychology and neuroscience, recent cross talk among perspectives from different fields has yielded novel descriptions of decision processes. Reinforcement-guided decision making models are based on economic and reinforcement learning theories, and their focus is on the maximization of acquired benefit over a defined period of time. Studies based on reinforcement-guided decision making have implicated a large network of neural circuits across the brain. This network includes a wide range of cortical (e.g., orbitofrontal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex) and subcortical (e.g., nucleus accumbens and subthalamic nucleus) brain areas and uses several neurotransmitter systems (e.g., dopaminergic and serotonergic systems) to communicate and process decision-related information. This review discusses distinct as well as overlapping contributions of these networks and neurotransmitter systems to the processing of decision making. We end the review by touching on neural circuitry and neuromodulatory regulation of exploratory decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abbas Khani
- Visual Cognition Laboratory, Department of Medicine, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Gregor Rainer
- Visual Cognition Laboratory, Department of Medicine, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
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Tan D, Vyas A. Infection of male rats with Toxoplasma gondii induces effort-aversion in a T-maze decision-making task. Brain Behav Immun 2016; 53:273-277. [PMID: 26783701 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2016.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2015] [Revised: 12/27/2015] [Accepted: 01/14/2016] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Rats chronically infected with protozoan Toxoplasma gondii exhibit greater delay aversion in an inter-temporal task. Moreover T. gondii infection also results in dendritic atrophy of basolateral amygdala neurons. Basolateral amygdala is reported to bias decision making towards greater effortful alternatives. In this context, we report that T. gondii increases effort aversion in infected male rats. This host-parasite association has been widely studied in the context of loss of innate fear in the infected males. It is suggested that reduced fear towards predators reflects a parasitic behavioral manipulation to enhance trophic transmission of T. gondii. Observations reported here extend this paradigm away from a monolithic change in fear and towards a multi-dimensional change in decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donna Tan
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 60 Nanyang Drive, Singapore 637551, Singapore
| | - Ajai Vyas
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 60 Nanyang Drive, Singapore 637551, Singapore.
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Buoli M, Serati M, Cahn W. Alternative pharmacological strategies for adult ADHD treatment: a systematic review. Expert Rev Neurother 2016; 16:131-44. [DOI: 10.1586/14737175.2016.1135735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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Hosking JG, Cocker PJ, Winstanley CA. Prefrontal Cortical Inactivations Decrease Willingness to Expend Cognitive Effort on a Rodent Cost/Benefit Decision-Making Task. Cereb Cortex 2015; 26:1529-38. [PMID: 25596594 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhu321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Personal success often necessitates expending greater effort for greater reward but, equally important, also requires judicious use of our limited cognitive resources (e.g., attention). Previous animal models have shown that the prelimbic (PL) and infralimbic (IL) regions of the prefrontal cortex (PFC) are not involved in (physical) effort-based choice, whereas human studies have demonstrated PFC contributions to (mental) effort. Here, we utilize the rat Cognitive Effort Task (rCET) to probe PFC's role in effort-based decision making. In the rCET, animals can choose either an easy trial, where the attentional demand is low but the reward (sugar) is small or a difficult trial on which both the attentional demand and reward are greater. Temporary inactivation of PL and IL decreased all animals' willingness to expend mental effort and increased animals' distractibility; PL inactivations more substantially affected performance (i.e., attention), whereas IL inactivations increased motor impulsivity. These data imply that the PFC contributes to attentional resources, and when these resources are diminished, animals shift their choice (via other brain regions) accordingly. Thus, one novel therapeutic approach to deficits in effort expenditure may be to focus on the resources that such decision making requires, rather than the decision-making process per se.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jay G Hosking
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Paul J Cocker
- Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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