Expression and impact of Lsamp neural adhesion molecule in the serotonergic neurotransmission system.

Limbic system associated membrane protein (Lsamp) is a neural adhesion protein which has been recently found to be differentially expressed between serotonergic neuron subtypes. We have previously shown elevated serotonin (5-HT) turnover rate in Lsamp-deficient mice. The purpose of the current study was to elucidate the role of Lsamp in serotonergic neurotransmission.

Variations in accelerometry measured physical activity and sedentary time across Europe - harmonized analyses of 47,497 children and adolescents.

Background: Levels of physical activity and variation in physical activity and sedentary time by place and person in European children and adolescents are largely unknown. The objective of the study was to assess the variations in objectively measured physical activity and sedentary time in children and adolescents across Europe.

Methods: Six databases were systematically searched to identify pan-European and national data sets on physical activity and sedentary time assessed by the same accelerometer in children (2 to 9.

Association between Transcription Factor AP-2B genotype, obesity, insulin resistance and dietary intake in a longitudinal birth cohort study.

Background: The development of obesity has a large genetic component, and the gene encoding the transcription factor 2 beta (TFAP2B) has been identified as one of the responsible factors. We investigated the effect of TFAP2B intron 2 variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) genotype on obesity, insulin resistance and dietary intake from 15 to 33 years of age.

Methods: The sample included both birth cohorts (originally n = 1176) of the longitudinal Estonian Children Personality Behaviour and Health Study.

BDNF polymorphism in non-veridical decision making and differential effects of rTMS.

Making decisions when an objectively correct option is not obvious, involves different neurobiological mechanisms than "veridical" decision making. The dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) exhibits a distinct pattern of prefrontal activation in non-veridical cognition, but little is known about the role of underlying neurobiological endophenotypes. A functional polymorphism in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene, causing a valine (Val) to methionine (Met) amino acid substitution at codon 66, has been shown to be associated with structural and functional changes in DLPFC and affect veridical decision making.

Animal models of depression: pros and cons.

Animal models of depression are certainly needed but the question in the title has been raised owing to the controversies in the interpretation of the readout in a number of tests, to the perceived lack of progress in the development of novel treatments and to the expressed doubts in whether animal models can offer anything to make a true breakthrough in understanding the neurobiology of depression and producing novel drugs against depression. Herewith, it is argued that if anything is wrong with animal models, including those for depression, it is not about the principle of modelling complex human disorder in animals but in the way the tests are selected, conducted and interpreted. Further progress in the study of depression and in developing new treatments, will be supported by animal models of depression if these were more critically targeted to drug screening vs.

Chronic stress sensitizes amphetamine-elicited 50-kHz calls in the rat: Dependence on positive affective phenotype and effects of long-term fluoxetine pretreatment.

High level of positive affectivity acts as a protective factor against adverse effects of stress and decreases vulnerability to mood disorders and drug abuse. Fifty-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (50-kHz USV) index the level of positive affect in the rat, whereas stable, trait-like inter-individual differences in terms of vocalization activity exist. Previously we have demonstrated that chronic stress can alter the effect of repeated amphetamine administration on 50-kHz vocalizations, and this effect is different in rats with high and low positive affectivity.

Animals, anxiety, and anxiety disorders: How to measure anxiety in rodents and why.

Measurement of anxiety is desirable for the benefit of drug development and understanding the brain function and mental well-being. Animal models offer the advantages of detailed neurobiological analysis, experimental manipulation of specific components in the brain circuits that underlie psychopathology, and the possibility of screening novel drugs with clinical potential. A large variety of animal models of anxiety and screening tests of anxiolytics is currently in use.

Oxytocin receptor gene variation rs53576 and alcohol abuse in a longitudinal population representative study.

Background: Oxytocin is an important regulator of social relationships and has been implicated in development of substance use and addiction. We examined the association of a variance in the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR rs53576 polymorphism) with alcohol use in a population-representative sample, and potential moderation by social functioning.

Methods: The analysis was carried out on the older birth cohort of the longitudinal Estonian Children Personality Behaviour and Health Study (ECPBHS), a cohort of initially 15 years old children (original n=593) recalled at ages 18 and 25.

A systematic review and secondary data analysis of the interactions between the serotonin transporter 5-HTTLPR polymorphism and environmental and psychological factors in eating disorders.

Objectives: To summarize and synthesize the growing gene x environment (GxE) research investigating the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) in the eating disorders (ED) field, and overcome the common limitation of low sample size, by undertaking a systematic review followed by a secondary data meta-analysis of studies identified by the review.

Method: A systematic review of articles using PsycINFO, PubMed, and EMBASE was undertaken to identify studies investigating the interaction between 5-HTTLPR and an environmental or psychological factor, with an ED-related outcome variable. Seven studies were identified by the systematic review, with complete data sets of five community (n = 1750, 64.

The acute effects of passive heat exposure on arterial stiffness, oxidative stress, and inflammation.

Background And Objective: The aim of the study was to determine the acute effect of passive heat exposure (PHE) on arterial stiffness, oxidative stress (OxS) and inflammatory parameters.

Materials And Methods: Subjects were studied in thermoneutral conditions before and after PHE in a climatic chamber. Pulse wave analysis was used for assessment of central hemodynamic and arterial stiffness parameters.

A functional neuregulin-1 gene variant and stressful life events: Effect on drug use in a longitudinal population-representative cohort study.

Background: The neuregulin 1 gene is a susceptibility gene for substance dependence. A functional polymorphism (SNP8NRG243177/rs6994992; C/T) in the promoter region of the brain-specific type IV neuregulin-1 gene ( NRG1) has been associated with psychiatric disorders (e.g.

Elevated plasma concentrations of bacterial ClpB protein in patients with eating disorders.

Objective: Caseinolytic protease B (ClpB) produced by Enterobacteria, such as Escherichia coli, has been identified as a conformational mimetic of α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH), an anorexigenic and anxiogenic neuropeptide. In mice, ClpB induces α-MSH cross-reactive antibodies and activates anorexigenic brain neurons. In patients with eating disorders (ED), anti-ClpB and anti-α-MSH antibodies correlate with psychopathological traits.

The role of MAO in personality and drug use.

Monoamine oxidases, both MAO-A and MAO-B, have been implicated in personality traits and complex behaviour, including drug use. Findings supporting the involvement of MAO-A and MAO-B in shaping personality and in the development of strategies of making behavioural choices come from a variety of studies that have examined either prevalence of gene variants in clinical groups or population-derived samples, estimates of enzyme activity in blood or, by positron emission tomography, in the brain and, most recently, measurement of methylation of the gene. Most of the studies converge in associating MAO-A and MAO-B with impulsive, aggressive or antisocial personality traits or behaviours, including alcohol-related problems, and for MAO-A available evidence strongly supports interaction with adverse environmental exposures in childhood.

Chronic variable stress prevents amphetamine-elicited 50-kHz calls in rats with low positive affectivity.

The relationship between stress response and positive affective states is thought to be bidirectional: whilst stress can lead to a blunted hedonic response, positive affect reduces the negative effects of stress. We have previously shown that persistently high positive affectivity as measured by 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) is protective against chronic variable stress (CVS). The present study examined the effect of CVS on 50-kHz USVs elicited by amphetamine administration, simultaneously considering the stable inter-individual differences in positive affectivity.

A Functional Vesicular Monoamine Transporter 1 (VMAT1) Gene Variant Is Associated with Affect and the Prevalence of Anxiety, Affective, and Alcohol Use Disorders in a Longitudinal Population-Representative Birth Cohort Study.

Background: Inter-individual differences in the monoaminergic systems have been shown to moderate the risk for a lifetime history of anxiety, affective, and alcohol use disorders. A common single nucleotide polymorphism in the vesicular monoamine transporter 1 gene (VMAT1 rs1390938 G/A; Thr136Ile) has been reported as functional in vitro and associated with bipolar disorder and anxiety. We aimed at assessing the association between the VMAT1 genotype, affect, and affect-related psychiatric disorders in a longitudinal population-representative study.

BDNF Val66Met genotype and neuroticism predict life stress: A longitudinal study from childhood to adulthood.

The brain-derived neurotrophic factor gene (BDNF) Val66Met polymorphism and life stress have been associated with negative emotionality (e.g., neuroticism), but relevant evidence is far from unequivocal.

Middle-range exploratory activity in adult rats suggests higher resilience to chronic social defeat.

Objective: Stressful life events play an important role in the aetiology of human mood disorders and are frequently modelled by chronic social defeat (SD) in rodents. Exploratory phenotype in rats is a stable trait that is likely related to inter-individual differences in reactivity to stress. The aim of the study was to confirm that low levels of exploratory activity (LE) are, in rodents, a risk factor for passive stress coping, and to clarify the role of medium (ME) and high (HE) exploratory disposition in the sensitivity to SD.

Differences in extracellular glutamate levels in striatum of rats with high and low exploratory activity.

Background: Major inter-individual differences exist in vulnerability to anxiety and affective disorders, and the underlying neurobiology could help in understanding the predisposition to these disorders and treatment resistance. Recently the glutamatergic system has become a target in the development of novel antidepressants.

Methods: We compared extracellular glutamate levels in low (LE-) and high exploring (HE-) rats in hippocampus and striatum at baseline and after inhibition of re-uptake by perfusion with l-trans-pyrrolidine-2,4-dicarboxylate (PDC, 4mM).

Brain dopaminergic system related genetic variability interacts with target/mask timing in metacontrast masking.

Dopaminergic system of the brain is believed to be strongly involved in normal and pathological behavioral phenotypes of attention. In metacontrast masking studies attentional effects on metacontrast are predominantly expressed when time intervals between a target stimulus and a masking stimulus are longer rather than shorter. Taken together, this predicts that variability in common genes known to be involved in dopaminergic function could interact with target/mask intervals in determining the effects of metacontrast masking.

Effect of tryptophan hydroxylase-2 gene polymorphism G-703 T on personality in a population representative sample.

The tryptophan hydroxylase-2 gene (TPH2) is coding for the key enzyme of serotonin (5-HT) synthesis in the brain and has been associated with a number of psychiatric conditions. A functional variation in the TPH2 gene (G-703T, rs4570625) has been found to affect anxiety-related personality; however, information is very limited regarding the five factor model (FFM) personality traits. We have examined the association of the TPH2 G-703T polymorphism with FFM personality traits, and the possible modulation by the functional variation in the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) in a large longitudinal population representative sample.

Dietary sodium citrate supplementation does not improve upper-body anaerobic performance in trained wrestlers in simulated competition-day conditions.

Purpose: Similarly to a wrestling match, upper-body intermittent sprint performance (UBISP) test elicits severe acidosis. This study aimed to determine whether sodium citrate (CIT) ingestion would help to better maintain peak power (PP) and mean power (MP) output across four consecutive UBISP tests simulating wrestling matches of a competition-day.

Methods: In a double-blind, counterbalanced, crossover manner, 11 trained wrestlers ingested either placebo (PLC) or CIT (900 mg kg(-1)) within a 17-h supplementation period.

Bacterial ClpB heat-shock protein, an antigen-mimetic of the anorexigenic peptide α-MSH, at the origin of eating disorders.

The molecular mechanisms at the origin of eating disorders (EDs), including anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia and binge-eating disorder (BED), are currently unknown. Previous data indicated that immunoglobulins (Igs) or autoantibodies (auto-Abs) reactive with α-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (α-MSH) are involved in regulation of feeding and emotion; however, the origin of such auto-Abs is unknown. Here, using proteomics, we identified ClpB heat-shock disaggregation chaperone protein of commensal gut bacteria Escherichia coli as a conformational antigen mimetic of α-MSH.

Mitigating aggressiveness through education? The monoamine oxidase A genotype and mental health in general population.

Objective: Monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene promoter region includes a variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) associated with antisocial behaviour in adverse environment. We have examined the effect of the MAOA-uVNTR on mental health and academic success by using a population representative sample and a longitudinal design.

Methods: The data of the older cohort (n = 593, aged 15 years at the original sampling) of the longitudinal Estonian Children Personality, Behaviour and Health Study (ECPBHS) were used.

Effects of heat acclimation on changes in oxidative stress and inflammation caused by endurance capacity test in the heat.

Background: The aim was to determine the effect of heat acclimation (HA) on oxidative stress (OxS) and inflammation in resting conditions and on the response pattern of these parameters to exhausting endurance exercise.

Methods: Parameters of OxS and inflammation were measured in non-heat-acclimated status (NHAS) and after a 10-day HA program (i.e.

Revealing the cerebral regions and networks mediating vulnerability to depression: oxidative metabolism mapping of rat brain.

The large variety of available animal models has revealed much on the neurobiology of depression, but each model appears as specific to a significant extent, and distinction between stress response, pathogenesis of depression and underlying vulnerability is difficult to make. Evidence from epidemiological studies suggests that depression occurs in biologically predisposed subjects under impact of adverse life events. We applied the diathesis-stress concept to reveal brain regions and functional networks that mediate vulnerability to depression and response to chronic stress by collapsing data on cerebral long term neuronal activity as measured by cytochrome c oxidase histochemistry in distinct animal models.