Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Nayoung Kim, M. Justin Kim
Summary: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is characterized by uncontrollable, persistent worry and exaggerated response to uncertainty. Functional neuroimaging studies targeting specific brain regions in the corticolimbic circuit have shown abnormal activity in GAD. Although heterogeneity in tasks and sample sizes limits generalizability, altered BOLD responsivity in the corticolimbic circuitry is a promising convergence in GAD research.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Neurosciences
Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam, Nynke A. Groenewold, Moji Aghajani, Gabrielle F. Freitag, Anita Harrewijn, Kevin Hilbert, Neda Jahanshad, Sophia I. Thomopoulos, Paul M. Thompson, Dick J. Veltman, Anderson M. Winkler, Ulrike Lueken, Daniel S. Pine, Nic J. A. van der Wee, Dan J. Stein
Summary: Anxiety disorders are prevalent and disabling, but can be effectively studied using translational neuroscience methodologies. The ENIGMA-Anxiety Working Group aims to address the limitations of small sample sizes and heterogenous imaging methodology in anxiety disorders research, and generate more reliable and reproducible findings. The group has created a harmonized and coordinated effort to study different subtypes of anxiety disorders using neuroimaging data.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Adrienne C. Loewke, Adelaide R. Minerva, Alexandra B. Nelson, Anatol C. Kreitzer, Lisa A. Gunaydin
Summary: The dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) plays a key role in controlling defensive behavior through specific top-down projections. The dmPFC-amygdala projection is involved in reflexive fear behavior, while the dmPFC-striatum projection regulates anxious avoidance behavior. These findings provide important insights into the neural mechanisms underlying anxiety disorders.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Mi Hyun Lee, Kyung Hwa Lee, Seong Min Oh, Min Cheol Seo, Hayoung Lee, Jeong Eun Jeon, Yu Jin Lee
Summary: This study found that chronic insomnia disorder (CID) patients showed lower brain activity in response to sleep-related stimuli compared to good sleepers (GS). In CID patients, more severe depressive symptoms were significantly associated with longer sleep latency only when brain activity in the prefrontal cortex was low. This suggests that brain responses to sleep-related stimuli may moderate the relationship between depression and sleep disturbance in CID patients.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Emma Tupitsa, Ifeoma Egbuniwe, William K. Lloyd, Marta Puertollano, Birthe Macdonald, Karin Joanknecht, Michiko Sakaki, Carien M. van Reekum
Summary: The Neurovisceral Integration Model suggests that shared neural networks are involved in regulating emotions and heart rate, with heart rate variability (HRV) serving as an objective measurement of prefrontal inhibitory control. Previous studies have mainly focused on HRV and associated neural functional connectivity at rest, rather than during active emotion regulation. This study aimed to extend these findings by examining task-related HRV and amygdala functional connectivity during a cognitive reappraisal task. The results showed that younger adults had an inverse association between HRV and amygdala-medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) functional connectivity, while older adults displayed a slight positive correlation. These findings underscore the importance of assessing HRV and neural functional connectivity during active regulatory contexts to better understand the neural correlates of HRV and adaptive emotion regulation.
Article
Psychology, Developmental
Dylan G. Gee, Catherine Hanson, Leyla Roksan Caglar, Dominic S. Fareri, Laurel J. Gabard-Durnam, Colleen Mills-Finnerty, Bonnie Goff, Christina J. Caldera, Daniel S. Lumian, Jessica Flannery, Stephen Jose Hanson, Nim Tottenham
Summary: Interactions between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex play a fundamental role in human emotion. This study investigates how top-down control emerges during human development by manipulating prefrontal engagement. The findings show opposite effects of dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) activation on amygdala reactivity during childhood and adolescence. Bayesian network analyses further reveal an age-related switch in amygdala connectivity with the dACC and ventromedial PFC (vmPFC), suggesting a potential shift from bottom-up co-excitatory to top-down regulatory frontoamygdala connectivity.
DEVELOPMENTAL SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Po-Han Kung, Christopher G. Davey, Ben J. Harrison, Alec J. Jamieson, Kim L. Felmingham, Trevor Steward
Summary: The study found that adolescents with depression showed weaker inhibitory modulation during cognitive reappraisal, which was predictive of individual diagnostic status. Post-treatment depression remission was associated with weaker excitatory connectivity between the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and amygdala at baseline.
BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY
(2023)
Review
Neurosciences
Matthew Ainsworth, Zhemeng Wu, Helen Browncross, Anna S. Mitchell, Andrew H. Bell, Mark J. Buckley
Summary: This study investigates the functional connectivity of the primate frontopolar cortex (FPC) with other cortical regions. Results reveal a network of interconnected regions involving the FPC, posterior cingulate cortex, and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, which play a crucial role in the decision-making process.
PROGRESS IN NEUROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Psychiatry
Linlin Fan, Hans Klein, Emily Bass, Cassi Springfield, Amy Pinkham
Summary: The study revealed that paranoia is associated with increased connectivity between the right amygdala and the prefrontal cortex, frontal cortex, and insula. This hyperconnectivity is independent of diagnosis and may help improve the social functioning of individuals with clinical diagnoses.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Matthew Leming, John Suckling
Summary: The study classified whole-brain functional connectivity MRI data using convolutional neural networks and found that resting-state data is more accurately classified than task data, with the inner salience network playing the most important role in the overall classification of resting-state data.
Article
Neurosciences
Yue Yang, Binrang Yang, Linlin Zhang, Gang Peng, Diangang Fang
Summary: The study found that the dynamic functional connectivity of the amygdala subregions is more unstable in children with ADHD, and it is negatively associated with cognitive functions.
FRONTIERS IN NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Karim Ibrahim, Carla Kalvin, Simon Morand-Beaulieu, George He, Kevin A. Pelphrey, Gregory McCarthy, Denis G. Sukhodolsky
Summary: Children with aggressive behavior exhibit reduced amygdala connectivity during face emotion processing, which is moderated by social impairment. The association between reduced amygdala-ventrolateral PFC connectivity and severity of aggression is influenced by social deficits in these children. Amygdala reactivity to fearful faces is not associated with aggressive behavior severity in children with social impairments.
Article
Neurosciences
David Willinger, Iliana I. Karipidis, Plamina Dimanova, Susanne Walitza, Silvia Brem
Summary: Neuroimaging studies suggest that maturational fine-tuning of functional coupling within the cortico-striatal incentive circuitry from adolescence to adulthood facilitates the ability to enhance performance selectively for higher subjective values; furthermore, immature information processing in the incentive system during adolescence may lead to a reduced capacity to utilize subjective value for motivated behavior.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
George Imataka, Ryoichi Sakuta, Akira Maehashi, Shigemi Yoshihara
Summary: The World Health Organization recognizes internet gaming disorder (IGD) as a disorder that causes problems in daily life as a result of excessive interest in online games. The causes of IGD have become more apparent in recent years, with prolonged exposure to games affecting the reward system and functioning of the brain. IGD is particularly risky for children and adolescents, potentially causing brain dysfunction. It should be treated as a new lifestyle-related disease among younger individuals, with counseling and family therapy as critical components of management.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wonyoung Kim, M. Justin Kim
Summary: This study reveals a generalizable pattern of brain-anxiety association that is embedded within the shared geometries between fiber tract morphology and trait anxiety data.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2022)
Review
Neurosciences
Andre Zugman, Anita Harrewijn, Elise M. Cardinale, Hannah Zwiebel, Gabrielle F. Freitag, Katy E. Werwath, Janna M. Bas-Hoogendam, Nynke A. Groenewold, Moji Aghajani, Kevin Hilbert, Narcis Cardoner, Daniel Porta-Casteras, Savannah Gosnell, Ramiro Salas, Karina S. Blair, James R. Blair, Mira Z. Hammoud, Mohammed Milad, Katie Burkhouse, K. Luan Phan, Heidi K. Schroeder, Jeffrey R. Strawn, Katja Beesdo-Baum, Sophia I. Thomopoulos, Hans J. Grabe, Sandra van der Auwera, Katharina Wittfeld, Jared A. Nielsen, Randy Buckner, Jordan W. Smoller, Benson Mwangi, Jair C. Soares, Mon-Ju Wu, Giovana B. Zunta-Soares, Andrea P. Jackowski, Pedro M. Pan, Giovanni A. Salum, Michal Assaf, Gretchen J. Diefenbach, Paolo Brambilla, Eleonora Maggioni, David Hofmann, Thomas Straube, Carmen Andreescu, Rachel Berta, Erica Tamburo, Rebecca Price, Gisele G. Manfro, Hugo D. Critchley, Elena Makovac, Matteo Mancini, Frances Meeten, Cristina Ottaviani, Federica Agosta, Elisa Canu, Camilla Cividini, Massimo Filippi, Milutin Kostic, Ana Munjiza, Courtney A. Filippi, Ellen Leibenluft, Bianca A. V. Alberton, Nicholas L. Balderston, Monique Ernst, Christian Grillon, Lilianne R. Mujica-Parodi, Helena van Nieuwenhuizen, Gregory A. Fonzo, Martin P. Paulus, Murray B. Stein, Raquel E. Gur, Ruben C. Gur, Antonia N. Kaczkurkin, Bart Larsen, Theodore D. Satterthwaite, Jennifer Harper, Michael Myers, Michael T. Perino, Qiongru Yu, Chad M. Sylvester, Dick J. Veltman, Ulrike Lueken, Nic J. A. van der Wee, Dan J. Stein, Neda Jahanshad, Paul M. Thompson, Daniel S. Pine, Anderson M. Winkler
Summary: The ENIGMA-Anxiety/GAD group is conducting a mega-analysis of brain structural scans for generalized anxiety disorder. This report summarizes the challenges faced and the approach taken to overcome them, aiming to guide other research groups working with large brain imaging data sets.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2022)
Review
Neurosciences
Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam, Nynke A. Groenewold, Moji Aghajani, Gabrielle F. Freitag, Anita Harrewijn, Kevin Hilbert, Neda Jahanshad, Sophia I. Thomopoulos, Paul M. Thompson, Dick J. Veltman, Anderson M. Winkler, Ulrike Lueken, Daniel S. Pine, Nic J. A. van der Wee, Dan J. Stein
Summary: Anxiety disorders are prevalent and disabling, but can be effectively studied using translational neuroscience methodologies. The ENIGMA-Anxiety Working Group aims to address the limitations of small sample sizes and heterogenous imaging methodology in anxiety disorders research, and generate more reliable and reproducible findings. The group has created a harmonized and coordinated effort to study different subtypes of anxiety disorders using neuroimaging data.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2022)
Article
Psychiatry
Tsafrir Greenberg, Michele A. Bertocci, Amelia Versace, Joao Paulo Lima Santos, Henry W. Chase, Ricki Siffler, Haris A. Aslam, Simona Graur, Genna Bebko, Jeanette C. Lockovich, Mary L. Phillips
Summary: The study found a relationship between white matter microstructure in the right uncinate fasciculus and depressive symptoms, general distress, and QoL. These findings emphasize the role of white matter microstructure in the right uncinate fasciculus in relation to emotional and general distress symptoms and QoL in young adults.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Psychiatry
Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar, Kim L. Felmingham, Aleksandra Klimova, May Erlinger, Leanne M. Williams, Richard A. Bryant
Summary: TF-CBT is the gold standard treatment for PTSD, but many patients do not respond to treatment. White matter brain structures may play a role in response to TF-CBT, particularly in relation to specific symptoms such as dysphoria.
TRANSLATIONAL PSYCHIATRY
(2021)
Article
Psychiatry
Kristi R. Griffiths, Taylor A. Braund, Michael R. Kohn, Simon Clarke, Leanne M. Williams, Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar
Summary: Structural topology graph measures can serve as valuable diagnostic and prognostic markers for ADHD, with patterns of reduced local efficiency distinguishing ADHD from typically developing children with high accuracy, and patterns of increased global and local efficiency predicting greater treatment response.
TRANSLATIONAL PSYCHIATRY
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Kristen L. Eckstrand, Erika E. Forbes, Michele A. Bertocci, Henry W. Chase, Tsafrir Greenberg, Jeanette Lockovich, Ricki Stiffler, Haris A. Aslam, Simona Graur, Genna Bebko, Mary L. Phillips
Summary: This study aimed to investigate how lifetime trauma exposure influences relationships between reward neural circuitry function and the course of future affective and anxiety symptoms. The results showed that trauma exposure affects prospective relationships between markers of reward circuitry function and affective symptom trajectories. Evaluating trauma exposure is crucial in identifying neural predictors of future affective symptom course in naturalistic and treatment studies.
BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY
(2021)
Article
Psychiatry
Richard A. Bryant, Thomas Williamson, May Erlinger, Kim L. Felmingham, Gin Malhi, Mark Hinton, Leanne Williams, Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar
Summary: Research suggests that neural activity associated with response inhibition can serve as a predictive biomarker for the effectiveness of TF-CBT in PTSD patients, with reduced activation in the left precuneus and right superior parietal cortex being correlated with improvement in dysphoric symptoms, and lower P3 peak latency correlating with reduction in dysphoric symptoms, while there were no significant predictors for improvements in fear symptoms.
TRANSLATIONAL PSYCHIATRY
(2021)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Arthur Montalto, Haeme R. P. Park, Leanne M. Williams, Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar, Miranda R. Chilver, Javad Jamshidi, Peter R. Schofield, Justine M. Gatt
Summary: The study found that greater resilience to trauma is associated with less activation of the anterior insula during a condition requiring sustained attention. This possibly suggests a pattern of 'neural efficiency' in people who may be more resilient to trauma.
PSYCHOLOGICAL MEDICINE
(2023)
Article
Biology
Botond Antal, Liam P. McMahon, Syed Fahad Sultan, Andrew Lithen, Deborah J. Wexler, Bradford Dickerson, Eva-Maria Ratai, Lilianne R. Mujica-Parodi
Summary: This study analyzed neuroimaging and cognitive data from a large cohort of individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and healthy controls. The findings show that T2DM is associated with significant cognitive deficits and structural and functional brain changes, with overlap with aging effects. The duration of the disease is linked to more severe neurodegeneration. Treatment with metformin does not improve neurocognitive outcomes.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Sabina Rai, Kristi R. Griffiths, Isabella A. Breukelaar, Ana R. Barreiros, Philip Boyce, Philip Hazell, Sheryl L. Foster, Gin S. Malhi, Anthony W. F. Harris, Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar
Summary: This study aimed to investigate common and shared neural mechanisms underlying mood disorders, as well as possible neural changes relating to illness chronicity. The study found that all three clinical groups had significantly lower connectivity compared to controls, and bipolar disorder group exhibited significant differences in certain connectivity features compared to the treatment-resistant depression group.
Article
Neurosciences
Aleksandra Klimova, Isabella A. Breukelaar, Richard A. Bryant, Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar
Summary: This study compared the neural connectivity between mTBI and PTSD and found no significant differences between the two conditions. However, mTBI patients showed reduced connectivity compared to healthy controls in multiple regions, while PTSD patients also exhibited abnormal connectivity within these networks.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Antoine Hone-Blanchet, Botond Antal, Liam McMahon, Andrew Lithen, Nathan A. Smith, Steven Stufflebeam, Yi-Fen Yen, Alexander Lin, Bruce G. Jenkins, Lilianne R. Mujica-Parodi, Eva-Maria Ratai
Summary: This study found that administration of the ketone d-beta-hydroxybutyrate significantly reduced levels of GABA and Glu in the anterior and posterior cortices of fasting healthy participants. The effect was specific to the ketone and not observed with glucose administration. Furthermore, the magnitude of the effect was greater in older age and correlated with blood levels of the ketone. This suggests an increased sensitivity to ketones in the aging brain.
NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Review
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Sheryl L. Foster, Isabella A. Breukelaar, Kanchana Ekanayake, Sarah Lewis, Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar
Summary: This study aims to provide an overview of 3T fMRI protocols used for imaging and functional connectivity (FC) of the amygdala, with a focus on spatial resolution. The secondary objective is to provide context for a discussion leading to recommendations for a standardized protocol for imaging amygdala activation and its subregions.
JOURNAL OF MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Rostam M. Razban, Jonathan Asher Pachter, Ken A. Dill, Lilianne R. Mujica-Parodi
Summary: Through targeted attacks on the brain network, we found that increasing white matter tract lengths and densities had consistent effects on global communication, regardless of aging and disease. By reversing the attack computation, we derived an analytical equation that explains the brain development mechanism.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Psychiatry
Mayuresh S. Korgaonkar, Kim L. Felmingham, Gin S. Malhi, Thomas H. Williamson, Leanne M. Williams, Richard A. Bryant
Summary: At least one-third of PTSD patients do not respond to trauma-focused psychotherapy. This study examined changes in neural activations during affective and non-affective processing that occur with symptom improvement after trauma-focused psychotherapy. The findings suggest that symptom improvement in PTSD is associated with increased activation of the left anterior insula and reduced activation in the left hippocampus and right posterior insula.
TRANSLATIONAL PSYCHIATRY
(2023)