| 1. |
- Mueller, Christian P., et al.
(författare)
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The Cortical Neuroimmune Regulator TANK Affects Emotional Processing and Enhances Alcohol Drinking : A Translational Study
- 2019
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Ingår i: Cerebral Cortex. - : OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC. - 1047-3211 .- 1460-2199. ; 29:4, s. 1736-1751
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Alcohol abuse is a major public health problem worldwide. Understanding the molecular mechanisms that control regular drinking may help to reduce hazards of alcohol consumption. While immunological mechanisms have been related to alcohol drinking, most studies reported changes in immune function that are secondary to alcohol use. In this report, we analyse how the gene "TRAF family member-associated NF-kappa B activator" (TANK) affects alcohol drinking behavior. Based on our recent discovery in a large GWAS dataset that suggested an association of TANK, SNP rs197273, with alcohol drinking, we report that SNP rs197273 in TANK is associated both with gene expression (P = 1.16 x 10(-19)) and regional methylation (P = 5.90 x 10(-25)). A tank knock out mouse model suggests a role of TANK in alcohol drinking, anxiety-related behavior, as well as alcohol exposure induced activation of insular cortex NF-kappa B. Functional and structural neuroimaging studies among up to 1896 adolescents reveal that TANK is involved in the control of brain activity in areas of aversive interoceptive processing, including the insular cortex, but not in areas related to reinforcement, reward processing or impulsiveness. Our findings suggest that the cortical neuroimmune regulator TANK is associated with enhanced aversive emotional processing that better protects from the establishment of alcohol drinking behavior.
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| 2. |
- Hayward, A., et al.
(författare)
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Evolutionary associations between host traits and parasite load : insights from Lake Tanganyika cichlids
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Evolutionary Biology. - : WILEY. - 1010-061X .- 1420-9101. ; 30:6, s. 1056-1067
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Parasite diversity and abundance (parasite load) vary greatly among host species. However, the influence of host traits on variation in parasitism remains poorly understood. Comparative studies of parasite load have largely examined measures of parasite species richness and are predominantly based on records obtained from published data. Consequently, little is known about the relationships between host traits and other aspects of parasite load, such as parasite abundance, prevalence and aggregation. Meanwhile, understanding of parasite species richness may be clouded by limitations associated with data collation from multiple independent sources. We conducted a field study of Lake Tanganyika cichlid fishes and their helminth parasites. Using a Bayesian phylogenetic comparative framework, we tested evolutionary associations between five key host traits (body size, gut length, diet breadth, habitat complexity and number of sympatric hosts) predicted to influence parasitism, together with multiple measures of parasite load. We find that the number of host species that a particular host may encounter due to its habitat preferences emerges as a factor of general importance for parasite diversity, abundance and prevalence, but not parasite aggregation. In contrast, body size and gut size are positively related to aspects of parasite load within, but not between species. The influence of host phylogeny varies considerably among measures of parasite load, with the greatest influence exerted on parasite diversity. These results reveal that both host morphology and biotic interactions are key determinants of host-parasite associations and that consideration of multiple aspects of parasite load is required to fully understand patterns in parasitism.
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| 3. |
- Ruggeri, Barbara, et al.
(författare)
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Association of Protein Phosphatase PPM1G With Alcohol Use Disorder and Brain Activity During Behavioral Control in a Genome-Wide Methylation Analysis
- 2015
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Ingår i: American Journal of Psychiatry. - : American Psychiatric Association Publishing. - 0002-953X .- 1535-7228. ; 172:6, s. 543-552
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: The genetic component of alcohol use disorder is substantial, but monozygotic twin discordance indicates a role for nonheritable differences that could be mediated by epigenetics. Despite growing evidence associating epigenetics and psychiatric disorders, it is unclear how epigenetics, particularly DNA methylation, relate to brain function and behavior, including drinking behavior. Method: The authors carried out a genome-wide analysis of DNA methylation of 18 monozygotic twin pairs discordant for alcohol use disorder and validated differentially methylated regions. After validation, the authors characterized these differentially methylated regions using personality trait assessment and functional MRI in a sample of 499 adolescents. Results: Hypermethylation in the 3'-protein-phosphatase-1G (PPM1G) gene locus was associated with alcohol use disorder. The authors found association of PPM1G hypermethylation with early escalation of alcohol use and increased impulsiveness. They also observed association of PPM1G hypermethylation with increased blood-oxygen-level-dependent response in the right subthalamic nucleus during an impulsiveness task. Conclusions: Overall, the authors provide first evidence for an epigenetic marker associated with alcohol consumption and its underlying neurobehavioral phenotype.
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