WashU weekly Neuroscience publications

Longitudinal associations of explosive and adventurous temperament profiles with character development: The modifying effects of social support and attachment
(2018) Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 79 (2), art. no. 17m11587, . 

Saarinen, A.I.L.^a , Rosenström, T.H.^a , Hakulinen, C.A.^a , Cloninger, C.R.^b , Hintsanen, M.H.M.^c , Pulkki-Råback, L.M.^d , Lehtimäki, T.^e , Raitakari, O.T.^f , Keltikangas-Järvinen, L.^a

^a Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, PO Box 9, Helsinki, Finland
^b Department of Psychiatry, Washington University, St Louis, MO, United States
^c Research Unit of Psychology, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
^d Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Helsinki Collegium for Advanced Studies, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
^e Department of Clinical Chemistry, Fimlab Laboratories, Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
^f Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Turku, Department of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear Medicine, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland

Abstract
Objective: The aim of this study was to examine (a) whether adventurous and explosive temperament profiles (presumed precursors of antisocial and borderline personality) are associated with character traits over a 15-year follow-up and (b) whether social support and attachment security modify the relationship between temperament profiles and character development. Methods: 2,028 subjects of the Young Finns study completed the Temperament and Character Inventory, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, and the Relationship Questionnaire at 3 assessment points between 1997 and 2012. Results: Both explosive and adventurous temperament profiles seemed to predispose individuals to have less mature personalities; that is, these profiles were consistently associated with lower cooperativeness (P <.001), and explosive temperament also with lower self-directedness (P <.001), over the entire follow-up period. These relationships did not vary significantly at the individual level and were sustained after controlling for age, gender, and socioeconomic status. However, the presence of high social support and secure attachment was found to decrease the likelihood that explosive temperament would lead to an immature adulthood character (P <.001). In contrast, persons with the adventurous temperament were likely to have a more mature character under low social support and an immature one under high experienced social support (P <.05). Conclusions: Individuals with the explosive temperament benefit from high social support and secure attachment. From the point of view of the therapy process, this knowledge might be of importance. In contrast, individuals with the adventurous temperament were able to direct their behavior better in social environments that were not likely to support their basic temperaments. © 2018 Copyright Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.

Document Type: Article
Source: Scopus

Metabotropic glutamate receptor 2/3 (mGluR2/3) activation suppresses TRPV1 sensitization in mouse, but not human, sensory neurons
(2018) eNeuro, 5 (2), art. no. e0412-17.2018, . 

Sheahan, T.D.^{a b} , Valtcheva, M.V.^{a b} , McIlvried, L.A.^a , Pullen, M.Y.^a , Baranger, D.A.A.^{b c} , Gereau, R.W., IV^a

^a Department of Anesthesiology, Washington University Pain Center, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, United States
^b Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, United States
^c BRAIN Laboratory, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, United States

Abstract
The use of human tissue to validate putative analgesic targets identified in rodents is a promising strategy for improving the historically poor translational record of preclinical pain research. We recently demonstrated that in mouse and human sensory neurons, agonists for metabotropic glutamate receptors 2 and 3 (mGluR2/3) reduce membrane hyperexcitability produced by the inflammatory mediator prostaglandin E2 (PGE2). Previous rodent studies indicate that mGluR2/3 can also reduce peripheral sensitization by suppressing inflammation-induced sensitization of TRPV1. Whether this observation similarly translates to human sensory neurons has not yet been tested. We found that activation of mGluR2/3 with the agonist APDC suppressed PGE2-induced sensitization of TRPV1 in mouse, but not human, sensory neurons. We also evaluated sensory neuron expression of the gene transcripts for mGluR2 (Grm2), mGluR3 (Grm3), and TRPV1 (Trpv1). The majority of Trpv1+ mouse and human sensory neurons expressed Grm2 and/or Grm3, and in both mice and humans, Grm2 was expressed in a greater percentage of sensory neurons than Grm3. Although we demonstrated a functional difference in the modulation of TRPV1 sensitization by mGluR2/3 activation between mouse and human, there were no species differences in the gene transcript colocalization of mGluR2 or mGluR3 with TRPV1 that might explain this functional difference. Taken together with our previous work, these results suggest that mGluR2/3 activation suppresses only some aspects of human sensory neuron sensitization caused by PGE2. These differences have implications for potential healthy human voluntary studies or clinical trials evaluating the analgesic efficacy of mGluR2/3 agonists or positive allosteric modulators. © 2018 Sheahan et al.

Author Keywords
Dorsal root ganglia;  Glutamate;  Human neurons;  Metabotropic;  Nociceptors;  Pain

Document Type: Article
Source: Scopus

Effects of exercise on gait and motor imagery in people with Parkinson disease and freezing of gait
(2018) Parkinsonism and Related Disorders, . Article in Press. 

Myers, P.S.^a , McNeely, M.E.^{a b} , Pickett, K.A.^d , Duncan, R.P.^{a b} , Earhart, G.M.^{a b c}

^a Program in Physical Therapy, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Campus Box 8502, 4444 Forest Park Blvd, Suite 11101, St. Louis, MO, United States
^b Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Campus Box 8111, 660 S. Euclid, St. Louis, MO, United States
^c Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, Campus Box 8108, 660 S. Euclid, St. Louis, MO, United States
^d Occupational Therapy Program, Department of Kinesiology, University of Wisconsin- Madison School of Education, Unit II Gym, 2000 Observatory Drive, Madison, WI, United States

Abstract
Introduction: Exercise improves gait in Parkinson disease (PD), but whether exercise differentially affects people with PD with (freezers) and without freezing of gait (non-freezers) remains unclear. This study examines exercise’s effects on gait performance, neural correlates related to these effects, and potential neural activation differences between freezers and non-freezers during motor imagery (MI) of gait. Methods: Thirty-seven participants from a larger exercise intervention completed behavioral assessments and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans before and after a 12-week exercise intervention. Gait performance was characterized using gait velocity and stride length, and a region of interest (ROI) fMRI analysis examined task-based blood oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) signal changes of the somatomotor network (SMN) during MI of forward (IMG-FWD) and backward (IMG-BWD) gait. Results: Velocity (F(1,34) = 55.04, p < 0.001) and stride length (F(1,34) = 77.58, p < 0.001) were significantly lower for backward versus forward walking in all participants. The ROI analysis showed freezers had lower BOLD signal compared to non-freezers in the cerebellum (F(1,32) = 7.01, p = 0.01), primary motor (left: F(1,32) = 7.09, p = 0.01; right: F(1,32) = 7.45, p = 0.01), and primary sensory (left: F(1,32) = 9.59, p = 0.004; right: F(1,32) = 8.18, p = 0.007) cortices during IMG-BWD only. The evidence suggests the exercise intervention did not affect gait or BOLD signal during MI. Conclusion: While all participants had significantly slower and shorter backward velocity and stride length, respectively, the exercise intervention had no effect. Similarly, BOLD signal during MI did not change with exercise; however, freezers had significantly lower BOLD signal during IMG-BWD compared to non-freezers. This suggests potential decreased recruitment of the SMN during MI of gait in freezers. © 2018 Elsevier Ltd

Author Keywords
Cerebellum;  Freezing of gait;  Neuroimaging;  Parkinson disease

Document Type: Article in Press
Source: Scopus