| 1. |
- Andersson, Evelyn, et al.
(author)
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Genetics of response to cognitive behavior therapy in adults with major depression : a preliminary report
- 2019
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 24:4, s. 484-490
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Major depressive disorder is heritable and a leading cause of disability. Cognitive behavior therapy is an effective treatment for major depression. By quantifying genetic risk scores based on common genetic variants, the aim of this report was to explore the utility of psychiatric and cognitive trait genetic risk scores, for predicting the response of 894 adults with major depressive disorder to cognitive behavior therapy. The participants were recruited in a psychiatric setting, and the primary outcome score was measured using the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale-Self Rated. Single-nucleotide polymorphism genotyping arrays were used to calculate the genomic risk scores based on large genetic studies of six phenotypes: major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, intelligence, and educational attainment. Linear mixed-effect models were used to test the relationships between the six genetic risk scores and cognitive behavior therapy outcome. Our analyses yielded one significant interaction effect (B = 0.09, p < 0.001): the autism spectrum disorder genetic risk score correlated with Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale-Self Rated changes during treatment, and the higher the autism spectrum disorder genetic load, the less the depressive symptoms decreased over time. The genetic risk scores for the other psychiatric and cognitive traits were not related to depressive symptom severity or change over time. Our preliminary results indicated, as expected, that the genomics of the response of patients with major depression to cognitive behavior therapy were complex and that future efforts should aim to maximize sample size and limit subject heterogeneity in order to gain a better understanding of the use of genetic risk factors to predict treatment outcome.
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| 2. |
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| 3. |
- Aoun, E. G., et al.
(author)
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A relationship between the aldosterone-mineralocorticoid receptor pathway and alcohol drinking: preliminary translational findings across rats, monkeys and humans
- 2018
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 23:6, s. 1466-1473
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Aldosterone regulates electrolyte and fluid homeostasis through binding to the mineralocorticoid receptors (MRs). Previous work provides evidence for a role of aldosterone in alcohol use disorders (AUDs). We tested the hypothesis that high functional activity of the mineralocorticoid endocrine pathway contributes to vulnerability for AUDs. In Study 1, we investigated the relationship between plasma aldosterone levels, ethanol self-administration and the expression of CYP11B2 and MR (NR3C2) genes in the prefrontal cortex area (PFC) and central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA) in monkeys. Aldosterone significantly increased after 6- and 12-month ethanol self-administration. NR3C2 expression in the CeA was negatively correlated to average ethanol intake during the 12 months. In Study 2, we measured Nr3c2 mRNA levels in the PFC and CeA of dependent and nondependent rats and the correlates with ethanol drinking during acute withdrawal. Low Nr3c2 expression levels in the CeA were significantly associated with increased anxiety-like behavior and compulsive-like drinking in dependent rats. In Study 3, the relationship between plasma aldosterone levels, alcohol drinking and craving was investigated in alcohol-dependent patients. Non-abstinent patients had significantly higher aldosterone levels than abstinent patients. Aldosterone levels positively correlated with the number of drinks consumed, craving and anxiety scores. These findings support a relationship between ethanol drinking and the aldosterone/MR pathway in three different species.
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| 5. |
- Arentsen, T., et al.
(author)
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The bacterial peptidoglycan-sensing molecule Pglyrp2 modulates brain development and behavior
- 2017
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 22:2, s. 257-266
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Recent studies have revealed that the gut microbiota modulates brain development and behavior, but the underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood. Here, we show that bacterial peptidoglycan (PGN) derived from the commensal gut microbiota can be translocated into the brain and sensed by specific pattern-recognition receptors (PRRs) of the innate immune system. Using expression-profiling techniques, we demonstrate that two families of PRRs that specifically detect PGN (that is, PGN-recognition proteins and NOD-like receptors), and the PGN transporter PepT1 are highly expressed in the developing brain during specific windows of postnatal development in both males and females. Moreover, we show that the expression of several PGN-sensing molecules and PepT1 in the developing striatum is sensitive to manipulations of the gut microbiota (that is, germ-free conditions and antibiotic treatment). Finally, we used the PGN-recognition protein 2 (Pglyrp2) knockout mice to examine the potential influence of PGN-sensing molecules on brain development and behavior. We demonstrate that the absence of Pglyrp2 leads to alterations in the expression of the autism risk gene c-Met, and sex-dependent changes in social behavior, similar to mice with manipulated microbiota. These findings suggest that the central activation of PRRs by microbial products could be one of the signaling pathways mediating the communication between the gut microbiota and the developing brain.
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| 6. |
- Barbier, Estelle, et al.
(author)
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Dependence-induced increase of alcohol self-administration and compulsive drinking mediated by the histone methyltransferase PRDM2
- 2017
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 22:12, s. 1746-1758
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Epigenetic processes have been implicated in the pathophysiology of alcohol dependence, but the specific molecular mechanisms mediating dependence-induced neuroadaptations remain largely unknown. Here, we found that a history of alcohol dependence persistently decreased the expression of Prdm2, a histone methyltransferase that monomethylates histone 3 at the lysine 9 residue (H3K9me1), in the rat dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC). Downregulation of Prdm2 was associated with decreased H3K9me1, supporting that changes in Prdm2 mRNA levels affected its activity. Chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by massively parallel DNA sequencing showed that genes involved in synaptic communication are epigenetically regulated by H3K9me1 in dependent rats. In non-dependent rats, viral-vector-mediated knockdown of Prdm2 in the dmPFC resulted in expression changes similar to those observed following a history of alcohol dependence. Prdm2 knockdown resulted in increased alcohol self-administration, increased aversion-resistant alcohol intake and enhanced stress-induced relapse to alcohol seeking, a phenocopy of postdependent rats. Collectively, these results identify a novel epigenetic mechanism that contributes to the development of alcohol-seeking behavior following a history of dependence.
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| 7. |
- Borg, J., et al.
(author)
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Contribution of non-genetic factors to dopamine and serotonin receptor availability in the adult human brain
- 2016
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - London, United Kingdom : Nature Publishing Group. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 51, s. 879-879
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The dopamine (DA) and serotonin (5-HT) neurotransmission systems are of fundamental importance for normal brain function and serve as targets for treatment of major neuropsychiatric disorders. Despite central interest for these neurotransmission systems in psychiatry research, little is known about the regulation of receptor and transporter density levels. This lack of knowledge obscures interpretation of differences in protein availability reported in psychiatric patients. In this study, we used positron emission tomography (PET) in a twin design to estimate the relative contribution of genetic and environmental factors, respectively, on dopaminergic and serotonergic markers in the living human brain. Eleven monozygotic and 10 dizygotic healthy male twin pairs were examined with PET and [(11)C]raclopride binding to the D2- and D3-dopamine receptor and [(11)C]WAY100635 binding to the serotonin 5-HT1A receptor. Heritability, shared environmental effects and individual-specific non-shared effects were estimated for regional D2/3 and 5-HT1A receptor availability in projection areas. We found a major contribution of genetic factors (0.67) on individual variability in striatal D2/3 receptor binding and a major contribution of environmental factors (pairwise shared and unique individual; 0.70-0.75) on neocortical 5-HT1A receptor binding. Our findings indicate that individual variation in neuroreceptor availability in the adult brain is the end point of a nature-nurture interplay, and call for increased efforts to identify not only the genetic but also the environmental factors that influence neurotransmission in health and disease.
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| 8. |
- Brander, Gustaf, et al.
(author)
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Perinatal risk factors in Tourette's and chronic tic disorders : a total population sibling comparison study
- 2018
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 23:5, s. 1189-1197
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Adverse perinatal events may increase the risk of Tourette's and chronic tic disorders (TD/CTD), but previous studies have been unable to control for unmeasured environmental and genetic confounding. We aimed to prospectively investigate potential perinatal risk factors for TD/CTD, taking unmeasured factors shared between full siblings into account. A population-based birth cohort, consisting of all singletons born in Sweden in 1973-2003, was followed until December 2013. A total of 3 026 861 individuals were identified, 5597 of which had a registered TD/CTD diagnosis. We then studied differentially exposed full siblings from 947 942 families; of these, 3563 families included siblings that were discordant for TD/CTD. Perinatal data were collected from the Medical Birth Register and TD/CTD diagnoses were collected from the National Patient Register, using a previously validated algorithm. In the fully adjusted models, impaired fetal growth, preterm birth, breech presentation and cesarean section were associated with a higher risk of TD/CTD, largely independent from shared family confounders and measured covariates. Maternal smoking during pregnancy was associated with risk of TD/CTD in a dose-response manner but the association was no longer statistically significant in the sibling comparison models or after the exclusion of comorbid attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. A dose-response relationship between the number of adverse perinatal events and increased risk for TD/CTD was also observed, with hazard ratios ranging from 1.41 (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.33-1.50) for one event to 2.42 (95% CI: 1.65-3.53) for five or more events. These results pave the way for future gene by environment interaction and epigenetic studies in TD/CTD.
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| 9. |
- Chang, H., et al.
(author)
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The protocadherin 17 gene affects cognition, personality, amygdala structure and function, synapse development and risk of major mood disorders
- 2018
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 23:2, s. 400-412
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Major mood disorders, which primarily include bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder, are the leading cause of disability worldwide and pose a major challenge in identifying robust risk genes. Here, we present data from independent large-scale clinical data sets (including 29 557 cases and 32 056 controls) revealing brain expressed protocadherin 17 (PCDH17) as a susceptibility gene for major mood disorders. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) spanning the PCDH17 region are significantly associated with major mood disorders; subjects carrying the risk allele showed impaired cognitive abilities, increased vulnerable personality features, decreased amygdala volume and altered amygdala function as compared with non-carriers. The risk allele predicted higher transcriptional levels of PCDH17 mRNA in postmortem brain samples, which is consistent with increased gene expression in patients with bipolar disorder compared with healthy subjects. Further, overexpression of PCDH17 in primary cortical neurons revealed significantly decreased spine density and abnormal dendritic morphology compared with control groups, which again is consistent with the clinical observations of reduced numbers of dendritic spines in the brains of patients with major mood disorders. Given that synaptic spines are dynamic structures which regulate neuronal plasticity and have crucial roles in myriad brain functions, this study reveals a potential underlying biological mechanism of a novel risk gene for major mood disorders involved in synaptic function and related intermediate phenotypes.
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| 10. |
- Chiotis, K., et al.
(author)
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Longitudinal changes of tau PET imaging in relation to hypometabolism in prodromal and Alzheimer's disease dementia
- 2018
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In: Molecular Psychiatry. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1359-4184 .- 1476-5578. ; 23:7, s. 1666-1673
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The development of tau-specific positron emission tomography (PET) tracers allows imaging in vivo the regional load of tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other tauopathies. Eighteen patients with baseline investigations enroled in a 17-month follow-up study, including 16 with AD (10 had mild cognitive impairment and a positive amyloid PET scan, that is, prodromal AD, and six had AD dementia) and two with corticobasal syndrome. All patients underwent PET scans with [F-18]THK5317 (tau deposition) and [F-18]FDG (glucose metabolism) at baseline and follow-up, neuropsychological assessment at baseline and follow-up and a scan with [C-11]PIB (amyloid-beta deposition) at baseline only. At a group level, patients with AD (prodromal or dementia) showed unchanged [F-18]THK5317 retention over time, in contrast to significant decreases in [F-18]FDG uptake in temporoparietal areas. The pattern of changes in [F-18]THK5317 retention was heterogeneous across all patients, with qualitative differences both between the two AD groups (prodromal and dementia) and among individual patients. High [F-18]THK5317 retention was significantly associated over time with low episodic memory encoding scores, while low [F-18]FDG uptake was significantly associated over time with both low global cognition and episodic memory encoding scores. Both patients with corticobasal syndrome had a negative [C-11]PIB scan, high [F-18]THK5317 retention with a different regional distribution from that in AD, and a homogeneous pattern of increased [F-18]THK5317 retention in the basal ganglia over time. These findings highlight the heterogeneous propagation of tau pathology among patients with symptomatic AD, in contrast to the homogeneous changes seen in glucose metabolism, which better tracked clinical progression.
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