Article
Behavioral Sciences
Judith C. Kreutzmann, Marie-France Marin, Markus Fendt, Mohammed R. Milad, Kerry Ressler, Tanja Jovanovic
Summary: The study found that individuals with lower responses to aversive stimuli also displayed lower fear responses to conditioned safety stimuli, while traumatized individuals showed responses to fear and safety stimuli influenced by their unconditioned response to aversive stimuli.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Julia S. Yarrington, Meghan Vinograd, Alexander L. Williams, Kate B. Wolitzky-Taylor, Richard E. Zinbarg, Susan Mineka, Allison M. Waters, Michelle G. Craske
Summary: This study used SR and SCR to predict longitudinal changes in anxiety and depression symptoms. The results showed that SR and SCR were associated with an increase in these symptom factors over time.
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Anne Richards, Sabra S. Inslicht, Leslie M. Yack, Thomas J. Metzler, J. Russell Huie, Laura D. Straus, Cassandra Dukes, Samantha Q. Hubachek, Kim L. Felmingham, Daniel H. Mathalon, Steven H. Woodward, Thomas C. Neylan
Summary: This study examines the relationship between emotional learning and REM sleep in trauma-exposed participants using fear-potentiated startle (FPS) and nap sleep protocol. The results show that safety learning is positively correlated with REM sleep and REM sleep is related to rapid extinction learning. Moreover, the study reveals unexpected effects of PTSD symptoms and biological sex on the learning-sleep relationship.
Article
Neurosciences
Paul J. Marvar, Raul Andero, Rene Hurlemann, Tiffany R. Lago, Moriel Zelikowsky, Joanna Dabrowska
Summary: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with dysregulation of limbic neuropeptides, with studies showing that blocking certain pathways can weaken fear memory consolidation, enhance fear extinction, and improve threat discrimination. Novel approaches targeting these pathways offer promising potential for treating core elements of PTSD pathophysiology.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Psychology, Biological
Vanessa A. van Ast, Floris Klumpers, Raoul P. P. P. Grasman, Angelos-Miltiadis Krypotos, Karin Roelofs
Summary: Freezing in response to impending threat is a core defensive mechanism in humans. Research has shown that human freezing is highly sensitive to fear conditioning and intensifies with the proximity of threat. This animal-like freezing response aids in active preparation for unexpected attacks and captures real-life expressions of anxiety.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Patrick Vizeli, Isabelle Straumann, Urs Duthaler, Nimmy Varghese, Anne Eckert, Martin P. Paulus, Victoria Risbrough, Matthias E. Liechti
Summary: This study aims to explore the potential of MDMA as a treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its mechanism of action. The results show that MDMA treatment can enhance fear extinction learning and recall, but this effect may be limited to certain forms of learned fear responses. Additionally, MDMA does not influence fear reactions to conditioned cues.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Biological
Deachul Seo, Nicholas L. L. Balderston, Howard Berenbaum, Juyoen Hur
Summary: A large body of research suggests that exaggerated response to uncertainty of a future threat is central to anxiety and related disorders. However, little is known about which elements of uncertainty are more susceptible to cognitive modulation in shaping aversive responses. This study used a novel paradigm to investigate the effects of cognitive load on different facets of uncertainty in psychophysiological responses. The results provide insight into the model of fear and anxiety and the etiology of psychological disorders characterized by maladaptive uncertainty responses.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Yuanhui Li, Nan Li, Liqun Zhang, Yanru Liu, Tianjiao Zhang, Dai Li, Dexiang Bai, Xiang Liu, Lingjiang Li
Summary: This study develops a fear-potentiated startle paradigm and a machine learning approach to accurately predict PTSD symptoms in Chinese firefighters. The machine learning model can identify firefighters with a PCL-C score of 38 or above with sensitivity and specificity both above 0.85 when 5-fold cross validated on a 1107-person sample.
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS
(2022)
Article
Psychology, Biological
Philip Newsome, Sonia G. Ruiz, Andrea L. Gold, Daniel S. Pine, Rany Abend
Summary: An alternative fear potentiated startle (FPS) scoring method was used to examine threat conditioning and extinction in individuals with anxiety disorders. The study found that individuals with anxiety disorders exhibited stronger retention of threat contingency during extinction. These findings support extinction theories of anxiety and suggest the importance of further research on aberrant extinction in pathological anxiety.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Clinical
Jessica Maples-Keller, Laura E. Watkins, K. Maria Nylocks, Carly Yasinski, Callan Coghlan, Kathryn Black, Tanja Jovanovic, Sheila A. M. Rauch, Barbara O. Rothbaum, Seth Davin Norrholm
Summary: This study examined fear acquisition, extinction learning, and retention in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) patients before and after treatment, and found excessive fear in PTSD patients during acquisition and extinction. It also found that high responders to prolonged exposure therapy (PE) maintained fear extinction learning, while low responders showed a return of fear after treatment.
BEHAVIOUR RESEARCH AND THERAPY
(2022)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Youjia Yu, Yan Li, Dan Han, Chuhao Gong, Liwei Wang, Beiping Li, Rui Yao, Yangzi Zhu
Summary: In this study, the effects of intraoperative and postoperative low-dose intravenous pumping dexmedetomidine on PTSD among patients with trauma undergoing emergency surgery were evaluated. A total of 310 trauma patients participated in the analysis. The results showed that the incidence of PTSD was significantly lower in the dexmedetomidine group compared to the control group, and the CAPS-5 score was also lower. Therefore, dexmedetomidine can effectively reduce the risk of PTSD in trauma patients.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
David H. Malin, Tsai Ping-Hsun, Joseph R. Campbell, Georgina L. Moreno, Holly L. Chapman, Aoi Suzaki, Mehrshad S. Keivan, Kaitlyn M. Gibbons, Erica R. Morales, Ethan S. Burstein, Christopher P. Ward
Summary: Pimavanserin is a selective 5-HT2A inverse agonist that may have potential in reducing PTSD symptoms. It was tested in a rat model and found to reversethe effects of stress and anxiety, suggesting its role in traumatic stress reduction.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Psychology, Biological
T. Jovanovic, C. N. Wiltshire, M. H. Reda, J. France, C. P. Wanna, S. T. Minton, W. Davie, L. R. Grasser, S. Winters, H. Schacter, H. A. Marusak, A. F. Stenson
Summary: Intolerance of uncertainty is a risk factor for fear-related disorders and anxiety in children and adolescents. This study found that awareness of trauma in children was not associated with PTSD symptoms, while unawareness was strongly associated. Uncertainty interacted with anxiety in that unaware and highly anxious children showed higher fear responses to safety cues and failed to discriminate between threat and safety.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Judith C. Kreutzmann, Markus Fendt
Summary: Research found that intranasal oxytocin could enhance conditioned safety memory in female rats but had no effect on male rats. Furthermore, analysis showed that OT treatment could compensate for reduced safety memory in rats in the metestrus phase of the estrous cycle.
NEUROBIOLOGY OF STRESS
(2021)
Review
Psychiatry
Robert J. Sottile, Thomas Vida
Summary: Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a devastating psychiatric disorder, and the current drug treatments are limited. However, MDMA may play a role in strengthening therapeutic alliance and trauma processing through the increase of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) availability and pro-social effects.
FRONTIERS IN PSYCHIATRY
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Galen Missig, Emery L. Mokler, James O. Robbins, Abigail J. Alexander, Christopher J. McDougle, William A. Carlezon
NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Neurosciences
Galen Missig, Carolyn W. Roman, Margaret A. Vizzard, Karen M. Braas, Sayamwong E. Hammack, Victor May
Article
Neurosciences
Luke W. Ayers, Galen Missig, Jay Schulkins, Jeffrey B. Rosen
NEUROPSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY
(2011)
Article
Endocrinology & Metabolism
K. R. Lezak, E. Roelke, O. M. Harris, I. Choi, S. Edwards, N. Gick, G. Cocchiaro, G. Missig, C. W. Roman, K. M. Braas, D. J. Toufexis, V. May, S. E. Hammack
PSYCHONEUROENDOCRINOLOGY
(2014)
Article
Neurosciences
Kimberly R. Lezak, Galen Missig, William A. Carlezon
DIALOGUES IN CLINICAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2017)
Article
Neurosciences
Galen Missig, Linda Mei, Margaret A. Vizzard, Karen M. Braas, James A. Waschek, Kerry J. Ressler, Sayamwong E. Hammack, Victor May
BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY
(2017)