Smaller Anterior Cingulate Cortex Volume Research Articles

Chronic Cough-Related Differences in Brain Morphometry in Adults: A Population-Based Study

Individuals with cough hypersensitivity have increased central neural responses to tussive stimuli, which may result in maladaptive morphometric changes in the central cough processing systems. Are the volumes of the brain regions implicated in cough hypersensitivity different in adults with chronic cough compared with adults without chronic cough? Between 2009 and 2014, participants in the Rotterdam Study, a population-based cohort, underwent brain MRI and were interviewed for chronic cough, which was defined as daily coughing for at least 3months. Regional brain volumes were quantified with the use of parcellation software. Based on literature review, we identified and studied seven brain regions that previously had been associated with altered functional brain activity in chronic cough. The relationship between chronic cough and regional brain volumes was investigated with the use of multivariable regression models. Chronic cough was prevalent in 9.6%(No.= 349) of the 3,620 study participants (mean age, 68.5 ± 9.0 years; 54.6%female). Participants with chronic cough had significantly smaller anterior cingulate cortex volume than participants without chronic cough (mean difference, -126.16mm3; 95%CI, -245.67 to -6.66; P= .039). Except for anterior cingulate cortex, there were no significant difference in the volume of other brain regions based on chronic cough status. The volume difference in the anterior cingulate cortex was more pronounced in the left hemisphere (mean difference, -88.11mm3; 95%CI, -165.16 to -11.06; P= .025) and in male participants (mean difference, -242.58mm3; 95%CI, -428.60 to -56.55; P= .011). Individuals with chronic cough have a smaller volume of the anterior cingulate cortex, which is a brain region involved in cough suppression. The Netherlands National Trial Registry (NTR; www.trialregister.nl) and the World Health Organization's International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP; www.who.int/ictrp/network/primary/en/) under the joint catalogue number NTR6831.

Regional grey matter volume reduction in adolescents engaging in non-suicidal self-injury

There is a high prevalence of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) amongst adolescents worldwide and therefore an urgency to investigate the underlying mechanisms that may facilitate such behaviours. This study aimed to investigate neurobiological alterations, specifically in regional brain volumes of the frontolimbic system, in adolescents engaging in NSSI in comparison to healthy controls. Regional grey matter volumes were compared between 29 adolescent female patients who presented with incidents of NSSI on ≥5 days within the last 12 months (DSM-5 criteria for NSSI) and 21 healthy age, gender and education matched controls who had never received any psychiatric diagnosis/treatment, or engaged in NSSI. Significant group effects in regional brain volumes were observed in insula, and a suggested change in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), while controlling for total segmented volume. Additionally, ACC volume showed a significant association with past suicide attempts, where estimated marginal means showed even smaller ACC volume in adolescents engaging in NSSI with a history of suicide attempt in comparison to those with no history of suicide attempt, including healthy controls. This study provides the first evidence of volumetric changes in adolescents engaging in NSSI and a potential neurobiological link between NSSI and suicide attempt.

Anterior cingulate cortex grey matter volume abnormalities in adolescents with PTSD after childhood sexual abuse

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) substantially increase the risk of later psychiatric and somatic pathology. While neurobiological factors are likely to play a mediating role, specific insights are lacking. The scarce neuroimaging studies in traumatised pediatric populations have provided inconsistent results, potentially due to the inclusion of different types of trauma. To further improve our understanding of the neurobiology of pediatric psychotrauma, this study seeks to investigate abnormalities in grey matter volume (GMV) in a homogeneous group of adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and the relationship between GMV and symptom severity. We performed a voxel based morphometry (VBM) analysis in 21 adolescents with CSA-related PTSD and 25 matched non-traumatised, non-clinical adolescents. Hippocampus, amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), medial PFC (mPFC) and superior temporal gyrus (STG) were chosen as regions of interest (ROIs). Trauma symptomatology was measured with the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC) and dissociation symptoms with the Adolescent Dissociative Experiences Scale (A-DES). The ROI analysis showed that the CSA-related PTSD group had significant smaller volumes of the dorsal ACC as compared to healthy controls. However, no correlations were found between GMV and scores on the TSCC and A-DES. The smaller ACC volume is partly in line with previous studies in traumatised youth and is a consistent finding in traumatised adults. Taken together our results suggest that the dorsal ACC is implicated in the neurobiological sequelae of CSA, potentially associated with an altered evaluative processing of emotion, but not directly with PTSD severity.

P.3.016 CYP2C19 enzymatic capacity predicts hippocampal volume in healthy subjects

Adverse childhood experiences (ACE) substantially increase the risk of later psychiatric and somatic pathology. While neurobiological factors are likely to play a mediating role, specific insights are lacking. The scarce neuroimaging studies in traumatised pediatric populations have provided inconsistent results, potentially due to the inclusion of different types of trauma. To further improve our understanding of the neurobiology of pediatric psychotrauma, this study seeks to investigate abnormalities in grey matter volume (GMV) in a homogeneous group of adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to childhood sexual abuse (CSA) and the relationship between GMV and symptom severity. We performed a voxel based morphometry (VBM) analysis in 21 adolescents with CSA-related PTSD and 25 matched non-traumatised, non-clinical adolescents. Hippocampus, amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), medial PFC (mPFC) and superior temporal gyrus (STG) were chosen as regions of interest (ROIs). Trauma symptomatology was measured with the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC) and dissociation symptoms with the Adolescent Dissociative Experiences Scale (A-DES). The ROI analysis showed that the CSA-related PTSD group had significant smaller volumes of the dorsal ACC as compared to healthy controls. However, no correlations were found between GMV and scores on the TSCC and A-DES. The smaller ACC volume is partly in line with previous studies in traumatised youth and is a consistent finding in traumatised adults. Taken together our results suggest that the dorsal ACC is implicated in the neurobiological sequelae of CSA, potentially associated with an altered evaluative processing of emotion, but not directly with PTSD severity.

C-58 * Using Multimodal Magnetic Resonance Imaging to Explore Biomarkers of Veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder after Blast Injury

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to compare neuroimaging measures of gray matter thickness and volume in the medial prefrontal and parietal areas of combat veterans with and without Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and blast exposure. Secondary objectives include investigating the relationship between neuropsychological and imaging data. METHOD: Twenty post-9/11 male combat veterans were recruited from the Philadelphia Veterans Affairs Medical Center. All participants had been deployed, 13 had a history of PTSD and blast exposure, and seven did not endorse PTSD or blast. Veterans completed measures of emotional and neuropsychological functioning and one MRI scan. RESULTS: Volumetric measures of the caudal and rostral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and precuneus areas were normalized using total gray matter volume. Group differences in gray matter volume across hemispheres were examined using repeated measures analyses of variance and no significant differences were found. Independent samples t-tests also did not find significant group differences in thickness for these areas. Controls outperformed those with TBI and PTSD on a measure of premorbid intelligence, t(18) = 2.65, p =.02, 95% CI [3.77, 32.47]), but no other significant differences in neuropsychological performance were observed. CONCLUSION(S): These initial findings are unexpected, as previous research has found significantly smaller anterior cingulate cortex volumes in those with PTSD. However, these areas are relatively unexplored in relation to PTSD and blast injury. This study may provide evidence that the medial prefrontal and parietal areas do not serve as biomarkers for the presence of PTSD and blast trauma, but more data are needed to draw firm conclusions. Language: en

Catechol- O-Methyltransferase Val158Met Polymorphism Moderates Anterior Cingulate Volume in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with structural and functional compromise of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), which may in turn be associated with impairment of its ability to regulate the amygdala. The Val158Met polymorphism in the catechol-O-methyltransferase gene, which substantially influences dopamine inactivation in the frontal lobe in general and in ACC in particular, may moderate ACC integrity in PTSD. We tested this hypothesis in a sample of Vietnam and Persian Gulf War veterans who experienced substantial military operational stress, including 51 who met criteria for PTSD and 48 matched controls who did not. Participants with PTSD were previously reported to have smaller ACC volumes than controls in this sample. A novel repeated-measures analysis of variance was conducted with PTSD diagnosis, Val158Met genotype, and their interaction predicting left and right ACC volume. Genotype was not directly related to ACC volume, but it did significantly interact with the PTSD diagnosis. The difference in ACC volume between the participants without PTSD and participants with PTSD was greater among individuals homozygous for the Val allele than among carriers of the Met allele. This finding was driven largely by the right ACC. Analyses of Caucasian-only, non-Caucasian-only, and male-only subsamples indicated similar patterns. Our findings suggest Val158Met genotype moderates the effect of PTSD-related processes on right ACC volume.

Smaller Left Anterior Cingulate Cortex Volumes Are Associated with Impaired Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Regulation in Healthy Elderly Men

Studies in animals suggest that the limbic prefrontal cortex, including the anterior cingulate cortex, is involved in regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, but human data are lacking. This study tested the hypothesis that smaller anterior cingulate cortex volumes are associated with HPA axis dysregulation in healthy older men. Comparison was made of volumes of bilateral anterior cingulate cortex, hippocampus, and superior frontal gyrus (control region) volumes in two groups of 10 healthy men, aged 65-70 yr, who showed nonsuppression or suppression of cortisol levels in response to low dose (250 microg) dexamethasone. Analysis of brain volumes was performed blind to the cortisol levels. This study was performed at a tertiary care clinical research center. Nonsuppressors had significantly smaller left anterior cingulate cortex volumes than suppressors (5757 vs. 7817 mm(3); P = 0.01). Right anterior cingulate cortex, bilateral hippocampus, and bilateral superior frontal gyrus volumes were not significantly different between nonsuppressors and suppressors. Smaller left anterior cingulate cortex volumes may be associated with HPA axis dysregulation in humans. These results substantiate evidence from animal studies indicating an important role for the anterior cingulate cortex in suprahypothalamic feedback regulation of the HPA axis. The results also have implications for disorders in which HPA axis dysregulation and abnormalities of the anterior cingulate cortex are frequently observed, such as depression and Alzheimer's disease.

Smaller volume of anterior cingulate cortex in abuse-related posttraumatic stress disorder

Objective The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) plays an important role in emotion, and studies in animals have shown changes in ACC structure with early life stress. The purpose of this study was to measure volume of the ACC in PTSD. Method Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to measure ACC volume in 8 subjects with abuse-related PTSD and 13 healthy subjects without PTSD. ACC volume included Brodmann's area [BA] 24 and 32. Results Right ACC volume in PTSD patients was significantly smaller than in non-PTSD subjects. Conclusion These results are consistent with smaller ACC volume in PTSD.

Decreased Anterior Cingulate Volume in Combat-Related PTSD

Neuroanatomical data point to functional relationships between the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and subcortical centers regulating fear, in particular, the amygdala. Functional brain imaging has disclosed divergent patterns of ACC activation in persons with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In addition, two preliminary structural imaging studies have found evidence of smaller ACC volume in PTSD. We explored associations between PTSD and ACC volume in a relatively large sample of adult combat veterans in which PTSD, lifetime alcohol abuse/dependence, and Vietnam versus Gulf War service were crossed. Subjects were US military combat veterans of the Vietnam and Gulf Wars recruited from two metropolitan areas served by allied Department of Veterans Affairs PTSD treatment/research centers. Anterior cingulate cortex volume was analyzed as a function of grouping factors with and without adjustment for body size. Posttraumatic stress disorder was associated with smaller anterior cingulate cortex volume. This effect persisted in subjects without histories of alcoholism, did not interact with cohort effects, and was not modified by adjustment for body size. Anterior cingulate cortex volume is substantially smaller in association with combat-related PTSD, a finding broadly consistent with cingulate hypofunctionality in that disorder.

Association between lower P300 amplitude and smaller anterior cingulate cortex volume in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder: a study of victims of Tokyo subway sarin attack

Previous investigations of auditory P300 event-related potentials have provided electrophysiological evidence for attentional problems in patients with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The present study sought to evaluate the relationship between P300 deficits and underlying brain morphological abnormalities in never-treated, comorbidity-free patients with PTSD following the Tokyo subway sarin attack. Out of 47 victims recruited, 8 victims with PTSD and 13 victims without PTSD were identified. Correlational analyses were performed between auditory P300 amplitude at Pz electrode site elicited in an oddball task and anterior cingulate gray matter volume that was shown to be reduced in our previous study using voxel-based morphometry on magnetic resonance imaging. Victims with PTSD showed significantly lower amplitudes of P300 compared with victims without PTSD, and the lower P300 amplitudes at Pz were significantly associated with higher avoidance/numbing scores in the PTSD group. Furthermore, in the PTSD group only, the P300 amplitudes showed a trend toward significant positive correlation with voxel densities of the anterior cingulate cortex gray matter. These results provide the first evidence that electrophysiological deficits of controlled attention observed in patients with PTSD may be linked to underlying brain morphological abnormalities.