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Alachkar A, Phan A, Dabbous T, Alhassen S, Alhassen W, Reynolds B, Rubinstein M, Ferré S, Civelli O. Humanized dopamine D 4.7 receptor male mice display risk-taking behavior and deficits of social recognition and working memory in light/dark-dependent manner. J Neurosci Res 2024; 102:e25299. [PMID: 38361407 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.25299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Revised: 01/03/2024] [Accepted: 01/14/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
The dopamine D4 receptor 7-repeat allele (D4.7 R) has been linked with psychiatric disorders such as attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder, autism, and schizophrenia. However, the highly diverse study populations and often contradictory findings make it difficult to draw reliable conclusions. The D4.7 R has the potential to explain individual differences in behavior. However, there is still a great deal of ambiguity surrounding whether it is causally connected to the etiology of psychiatric disorders. Therefore, humanized D4.7 R mice, with the long third intracellular domain of the human D4.7 R, may provide a valuable tool to examine the relationship between the D4.7 R variant and specific behavioral phenotypes. We report that D4.7 R male mice carrying the humanized D4.7 R variant exhibit distinct behavioral features that are dependent on the light-dark cycle. The behavioral phenotype was characterized by a working memory deficit, delayed decision execution in the light phase, decreased stress and anxiety, and increased risk behavior in the dark phase. Further, D4.7 R mice displayed impaired social recognition memory in both the light and dark phases. These findings provide insight into the potential causal relationship between the human D4.7 R variant and specific behaviors and encourage further consideration of dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) ligands as novel treatments for psychiatric disorders in which D4.7 R has been implicated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amal Alachkar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
- UC Irvine Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
- Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics, School of Information and Computer Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Alvin Phan
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Travis Dabbous
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Sammy Alhassen
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Wedad Alhassen
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Bryan Reynolds
- Department of Drama, School of the Arts, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
| | - Marcelo Rubinstein
- Departamento de Fisiología y Biología Molecular y Celular, Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sergi Ferré
- Integrative Neurobiology Section, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Intramural Research Program, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Olivier Civelli
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
- Department of Developmental and Cell Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA
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2
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Wilkes FA, Jakabek D, Walterfang M, Velakoulis D, Poudel GR, Stout JC, Chua P, Egan GF, Looi JCL, Georgiou-Karistianis N. Hippocampal morphology in Huntington's disease, implications for plasticity and pathogenesis: The IMAGE-HD study. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging 2023; 335:111694. [PMID: 37598529 DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2023.111694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Revised: 06/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023]
Abstract
While striatal changes in Huntington's Disease (HD) are well established, few studies have investigated changes in the hippocampus, a key neuronal hub. Using MRI scans obtained from the IMAGE-HD study, hippocampi were manually traced and then analysed with the Spherical Harmonic Point Distribution Method (SPHARM-PDM) in 36 individuals with presymptomatic-HD, 37 with early symptomatic-HD, and 36 healthy matched controls. There were no significant differences in overall hippocampal volume between groups. Interestingly we found decreased bilateral hippocampal volume in people with symptomatic-HD who took selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors compared to those who did not, despite no significant differences in anxiety, depressive symptoms, or motor incapacity between the two groups. In symptomatic-HD, there was also significant shape deflation in the right hippocampal head, showing the utility of using manual tracing and SPHARM-PDM to characterise subtle shape changes which may be missed by other methods. This study confirms previous findings of the lack of hippocampal volumetric differentiation in presymptomatic-HD and symptomatic-HD compared to controls. We also find novel shape and volume findings in those with symptomatic-HD, especially in relation to decreased hippocampal volume in those treated with SSRIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fiona A Wilkes
- Research Centre for the Neurosciences of Ageing, Academic Unit of Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine, Australian National University Medical School, Canberra Hospital, Canberra, Australia.
| | | | - Mark Walterfang
- Neuropsychiatry Unit, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, University of Melbourne and Northwestern Mental Health, Melbourne, Australia; Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Dennis Velakoulis
- Neuropsychiatry Unit, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, University of Melbourne and Northwestern Mental Health, Melbourne, Australia; Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Govinda R Poudel
- Mary Mackillop Institute for Health Research, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Julie C Stout
- School of Psychological Sciences and the Turner Institute of Brain and Mental Health, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Phyllis Chua
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Monash Medical Centre, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Gary F Egan
- School of Psychological Sciences and the Turner Institute of Brain and Mental Health, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Jeffrey C L Looi
- Research Centre for the Neurosciences of Ageing, Academic Unit of Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine, Australian National University Medical School, Canberra Hospital, Canberra, Australia; Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia
| | - Nellie Georgiou-Karistianis
- School of Psychological Sciences and the Turner Institute of Brain and Mental Health, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
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3
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Wibawa P, Walterfang M, Malpas CB, Glikmann‐Johnston Y, Poudel G, Razi A, Hannan AJ, Velakoulis D, Georgiou‐Karistianis N. Selective perforant-pathway atrophy in Huntington disease: MRI analysis of hippocampal subfields. Eur J Neurol 2023; 30:2650-2660. [PMID: 37306313 PMCID: PMC10946817 DOI: 10.1111/ene.15918] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Revised: 04/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION While individuals with Huntington disease (HD) show memory impairment that indicates hippocampal dysfunction, the available literature does not consistently identify structural evidence for involvement of the whole hippocampus but rather suggests that hippocampal atrophy may be confined to certain hippocampal subregions. METHODS We processed T1-weighted MRI from IMAGE-HD study using FreeSurfer 7.0 and compared the volumes of the hippocampal subfields among 36 early motor symptomatic (symp-HD), 40 pre-symptomatic (pre-HD), and 36 healthy control individuals across three timepoints over 36 months. RESULTS Mixed-model analyses revealed significantly lower subfield volumes in symp-HD, compared with pre-HD and control groups, in the subicular regions of the perforant-pathway: presubiculum, subiculum, dentate gyrus, tail, and right molecular layer. These adjoining subfields aggregated into a single principal component, which demonstrated an accelerated rate of atrophy in the symp-HD. Volumes between pre-HD and controls did not show any significant difference. In the combined HD groups, CAG repeat length and disease burden score were associated with presubiculum, molecular layer, tail, and perforant-pathway subfield volumes. Hippocampal left tail and perforant-pathway subfields were associated with motor onset in the pre-HD group. CONCLUSIONS Hippocampal subfields atrophy in early symptomatic HD affects key regions of the perforant-pathway, which may implicate the distinctive memory impairment at this stage of illness. Their volumetric associations with genetic and clinical markers suggest the selective susceptibility of these subfields to mutant Huntingtin and disease progression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierre Wibawa
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Mark Walterfang
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Charles B. Malpas
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Yifat Glikmann‐Johnston
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Govinda Poudel
- Mary Mackillop Institute for Health ResearchAustralian Catholic UniversityFitzroyVictoriaAustralia
| | - Adeel Razi
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
| | - Anthony J. Hannan
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Dennis Velakoulis
- NeuropsychiatryRoyal Melbourne HospitalParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry CenterUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Nellie Georgiou‐Karistianis
- School of Psychological Sciences and Turner Institute for Brain and Mental HealthMonash UniversityClaytonVictoriaAustralia
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4
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Seton C, Coutrot A, Hornberger M, Spiers HJ, Knight R, Whyatt C. Wayfinding and path integration deficits detected using a virtual reality mobile app in patients with traumatic brain injury. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282255. [PMID: 36893089 PMCID: PMC9997943 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2022] [Accepted: 02/11/2023] [Indexed: 03/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The ability to navigate is supported by a wide network of brain areas which are particularly vulnerable to disruption brain injury, including traumatic brain injury (TBI). Wayfinding and the ability to orient back to the direction you have recently come (path integration) may likely be impacted in daily life but have so far not been tested with patients with TBI. Here, we assessed spatial navigation in thirty-eight participants, fifteen of whom had a history of TBI, and twenty-three control participants. Self-estimated spatial navigation ability was assessed using the Santa Barbara Sense of Direction (SBSOD) scale. No significant difference between TBI patients and a control group was identified. Rather, results indicated that both participant groups demonstrated 'good' self-inferred spatial navigational ability on the SBSOD scale. Objective navigation ability was tested via the virtual mobile app test Sea Hero Quest (SHQ), which has been shown to predict real-world navigation difficulties and assesses (a) wayfinding across several environments and (b) path integration. Compared to a sub-sample of 13 control participants, a matched subsample of 10 TBI patients demonstrated generally poorer performance on all wayfinding environments tested. Further analysis revealed that TBI participants consistently spent a shorter duration viewing a map prior to navigating to goals. Patients showed mixed performance on the path integration task, with poor performance evident when proximal cues were absent. Our results provide preliminary evidence that TBI impacts both wayfinding and, to some extent, path integration. The findings suggest long-lasting clinical difficulties experienced in TBI patients affect both wayfinding and to some degree path integration ability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Seton
- Department of Psychology, Sport and Geography, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
| | - Antoine Coutrot
- Laboratoire d’InfoRmatique en Image et Systèmes d’information, French Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, University of Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Michael Hornberger
- Applied Dementia Research, Norwich Medical School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom
| | - Hugo J. Spiers
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca Knight
- Department of Psychology, Sport and Geography, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
- * E-mail:
| | - Caroline Whyatt
- Department of Psychology, Sport and Geography, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
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5
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Alhassen W, Alhassen S, Chen J, Monfared RV, Alachkar A. Cilia in the Striatum Mediate Timing-Dependent Functions. Mol Neurobiol 2023; 60:545-565. [PMID: 36322337 PMCID: PMC9849326 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-022-03095-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2022] [Accepted: 10/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Almost all brain cells contain cilia, antennae-like microtubule-based organelles. Yet, the significance of cilia, once considered vestigial organelles, in the higher-order brain functions is unknown. Cilia act as a hub that senses and transduces environmental sensory stimuli to generate an appropriate cellular response. Similarly, the striatum, a brain structure enriched in cilia, functions as a hub that receives and integrates various types of environmental information to drive appropriate motor response. To understand cilia's role in the striatum functions, we used loxP/Cre technology to ablate cilia from the dorsal striatum of male mice and monitored the behavioral consequences. Our results revealed an essential role for striatal cilia in the acquisition and brief storage of information, including learning new motor skills, but not in long-term consolidation of information or maintaining habitual/learned motor skills. A fundamental aspect of all disrupted functions was the "time perception/judgment deficit." Furthermore, the observed behavioral deficits form a cluster pertaining to clinical manifestations overlapping across psychiatric disorders that involve the striatum functions and are known to exhibit timing deficits. Thus, striatal cilia may act as a calibrator of the timing functions of the basal ganglia-cortical circuit by maintaining proper timing perception. Our findings suggest that dysfunctional cilia may contribute to the pathophysiology of neuro-psychiatric disorders, as related to deficits in timing perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wedad Alhassen
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, 356A Med Surge II, Irvine, CA 92697-4625 USA
| | - Sammy Alhassen
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, 356A Med Surge II, Irvine, CA 92697-4625 USA
| | - Jiaqi Chen
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, 356A Med Surge II, Irvine, CA 92697-4625 USA
| | - Roudabeh Vakil Monfared
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, 356A Med Surge II, Irvine, CA 92697-4625 USA
| | - Amal Alachkar
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of California-Irvine, 356A Med Surge II, Irvine, CA 92697-4625 USA ,UC Irvine Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697 USA ,Institute for Genomics and Bioinformatics, School of Information and Computer Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697 USA
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6
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Banks PJ, Bennett PJ, Sekuler AB, Gruber AJ. Cannabis use is associated with sexually dimorphic changes in executive control of visuospatial decision-making. Front Integr Neurosci 2022; 16:884080. [PMID: 36081608 PMCID: PMC9445243 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2022.884080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2022] [Accepted: 07/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
When the outcome of a choice is less favorable than expected, humans and animals typically shift to an alternate choice option on subsequent trials. Several lines of evidence indicate that this “lose-shift” responding is an innate sensorimotor response strategy that is normally suppressed by executive function. Therefore, the lose-shift response provides a covert gauge of cognitive control over choice mechanisms. We report here that the spatial position, rather than visual features, of choice targets drives the lose-shift effect. Furthermore, the ability to inhibit lose-shift responding to gain reward is different among male and female habitual cannabis users. Increased self-reported cannabis use was concordant with suppressed response flexibility and an increased tendency to lose-shift in women, which reduced performance in a choice task in which random responding is the optimal strategy. On the other hand, increased cannabis use in men was concordant with reduced reliance on spatial cues during decision-making, and had no impact on the number of correct responses. These data (63,600 trials from 106 participants) provide strong evidence that spatial-motor processing is an important component of economic decision-making, and that its governance by executive systems is different in men and women who use cannabis frequently.
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Affiliation(s)
- Parker J. Banks
- Vision and Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Patrick J. Bennett
- Vision and Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Allison B. Sekuler
- Vision and Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
- Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, North York, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Aaron J. Gruber
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada
- *Correspondence: Aaron J. Gruber
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7
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Cavallo M, Sergi A, Pagani M. Cognitive and social cognition deficits in Huntington's disease differ between the prodromal and the manifest stages of the condition: A scoping review of recent evidence. BRITISH JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2021; 61:214-241. [PMID: 34651307 DOI: 10.1111/bjc.12337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2021] [Revised: 10/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Huntington's disease (HD) is a dramatic neurodegenerative disorder encompassing severe motor symptoms coupled to significant cognitive and social cognition deficits. However, it is not clear whether and how patients' neuropsychological profile changes between the prodromal and the manifest stages of the condition. The aim of the present in-depth review is to consider cognitive and social cognition impairment in HD patients by differentiating deficits arising before diagnosis from those evident from the manifest phase onwards. METHODS Electronic databases were searched between January 1st , 2010 and December 31st , 2020 by using multiple combinations of keywords related to the investigation of neuropsychological profile in HD for preliminary search, and by defining strict selection criteria for studies to be included. RESULTS Forty-two studies were included. Evidence suggests that the neuropsychological profile in HD reflects a complex pathological spectrum of deficits. It includes impairment in the realms of executive functions, memory, attention, information processing, and social cognition. Interestingly, patients' profiles differ significantly between the manifest and the prodromal stages of their condition, not only in quantitative terms but also from a qualitative point of view. CONCLUSIONS Researchers and clinicians should thus include in clinical routine timely and specific neuropsychological assessments in order to monitor patients' cognitive status as time goes by, with the ultimate goal to implement effective clinical management strategies. PRACTITIONER POINTS The neuropsychological profile in HD encompasses a complex pathological spectrum of deficits. Patients' profiles differ significantly between the manifest and the prodromal stages of their condition. Clinicians should include in everyday practice a timely and specific neuropsychological assessment. Detecting patients' cognitive status during the early stages of the condition already can contribute significantly to implement effective clinical management strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Cavallo
- Faculty of Psychology, eCampus University, Novedrate, Italy.,Clinical Psychology Service, Saint George Foundation, Cavallermaggiore, Italy
| | | | - Marco Pagani
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technology, CNR, Rome, Italy.,Department of Medical Radiation Physics and Nuclear Medicine, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
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8
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Glikmann-Johnston Y, Mercieca EC, Carmichael AM, Alexander B, Harding IH, Stout JC. Hippocampal and striatal volumes correlate with spatial memory impairment in Huntington's disease. J Neurosci Res 2021; 99:2948-2963. [PMID: 34516012 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.24966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Revised: 08/19/2021] [Accepted: 08/28/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Spatial memory impairments are observed in people with Huntington's disease (HD), however, the domain of spatial memory has received little focus when characterizing the cognitive phenotype of HD. Spatial memory is traditionally thought to be a hippocampal-dependent function, while the neuropathology of HD centers on the striatum. Alongside spatial memory deficits in HD, recent neurocognitive theories suggest that a larger brain network is involved, including the striatum. We examined the relationship between hippocampal and striatal volumes and spatial memory in 36 HD gene expansion carriers, including premanifest (n = 24) and early manifest HD (n = 12), and 32 matched healthy controls. We assessed spatial memory with Paired Associates Learning, Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test, and the Virtual House task, which assesses three components of spatial memory: navigation, object location, and plan drawing. Caudate nucleus, putamen, and hippocampal volumes were manually segmented on T1-weighted MR images. As expected, caudate nucleus and putamen volumes were significantly smaller in the HD group compared to controls, with manifest HD having more severe atrophy than the premanifest HD group. Hippocampal volumes did not differ significantly between HD and control groups. Nonetheless, on average, the HD group performed significantly worse than controls across all spatial memory tasks. The spatial memory components of object location and recall of figural and topographical drawings were associated with striatal and hippocampal volumes in the HD cohort. We provide a case to include spatial memory impairments in the cognitive phenotype of HD, and extend the neurocognitive picture of HD beyond its primary pathology within the striatum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifat Glikmann-Johnston
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Emily-Clare Mercieca
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Anna M Carmichael
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Bonnie Alexander
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia.,Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Parkville, VIC, Australia.,Department of Neurosurgery, Royal Children's Hospital, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - Ian H Harding
- Department of Neuroscience, Central Clinical School, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.,Monash Biomedical Imaging, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Julie C Stout
- Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
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9
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Hellmuth J, Casaletto K, Cuneo R, Possin KL, Dillon W, Geschwind MD. Bilateral basal ganglia infarcts presenting as rapid onset cognitive and behavioral disturbance. Neurocase 2020; 26:115-119. [PMID: 32046584 PMCID: PMC7377550 DOI: 10.1080/13554794.2020.1728341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2018] [Accepted: 02/05/2020] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
We describe a rare case of a patient with rapid onset, prominent cognitive and behavioral changes who presented to our rapidly progressive dementia program with symptoms ultimately attributed to bilateral basal ganglia infarcts involving the caudate heads. We review the longitudinal clinical presentation and neuropsychological testing for this patient, and discuss the implicated basal ganglia and frontal lobe neuroanatomy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Hellmuth
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, US
| | - Kaitlin Casaletto
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, US
| | - Richard Cuneo
- Department of Neurology, University of California San Francisco, CA, US
| | - Katherine L. Possin
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, US
| | - William Dillon
- Department of Radiology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, US
| | - Michael D. Geschwind
- Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, US
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10
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Pini L, Jacquemot C, Cagnin A, Meneghello F, Semenza C, Mantini D, Vallesi A. Aberrant brain network connectivity in presymptomatic and manifest Huntington's disease: A systematic review. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:256-269. [PMID: 31532053 PMCID: PMC7268025 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24790] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Revised: 07/29/2019] [Accepted: 08/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs‐fMRI) has the potential to shed light on the pathophysiological mechanisms of Huntington's disease (HD), paving the way to new therapeutic interventions. A systematic literature review was conducted in three online databases according to PRISMA guidelines, using keywords for HD, functional connectivity, and rs‐fMRI. We included studies investigating connectivity in presymptomatic (pre‐HD) and manifest HD gene carriers compared to healthy controls, implementing seed‐based connectivity, independent component analysis, regional property, and graph analysis approaches. Visual network showed reduced connectivity in manifest HD, while network/areas underpinning motor functions were consistently altered in both manifest HD and pre‐HD, showing disease stage‐dependent changes. Cognitive networks underlying executive and attentional functions showed divergent anterior–posterior alterations, possibly reflecting compensatory mechanisms. The involvement of these networks in pre‐HD is still unclear. In conclusion, aberrant connectivity of the sensory‐motor network is observed in the early stage of HD while, as pathology spreads, other networks might be affected, such as the visual and executive/attentional networks. Moreover, sensory‐motor and executive networks exhibit hyper‐ and hypo‐connectivity patterns following different spatiotemporal trajectories. These findings could potentially help to implement future huntingtin‐lowering interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Pini
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Charlotte Jacquemot
- Département d'Etudes Cognitives, Ecole Normale Supérieure-PSL University, Paris, France.,Laboratoire de NeuroPsychologie Interventionnelle, Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale, Institut National de la Santé et Recherche Médical (INSERM) U955, Equipe 01, Créteil, France.,Faculté de Médecine, Université Paris Est Créteil, Créteil, France
| | - Annachiara Cagnin
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Francesca Meneghello
- Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
| | - Carlo Semenza
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.,Cognitive Neuroscience Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
| | - Dante Mantini
- Research Center for Motor Control and Neuroplasticity, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Brain Imaging and Neural Dynamics Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
| | - Antonino Vallesi
- Department of Neuroscience & Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.,Brain Imaging and Neural Dynamics Research Group, IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy
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11
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Vieites V, Pruden SM, Shusterman A, Reeb-Sutherland BC. Using hippocampal-dependent eyeblink conditioning to predict individual differences in spatial reorientation strategies in 3- to 6-year-olds. Dev Sci 2019; 23:e12867. [PMID: 31125469 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12867] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2018] [Revised: 05/17/2019] [Accepted: 05/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The hippocampus is a subcortical structure in the medial temporal lobe involved in cognitive functions such as spatial navigation and reorientation, episodic memory, and associative learning. While much is understood about the role of hippocampal function in learning and memory in adults, less is known about the relations between the hippocampus and the development of these cognitive skills in young children due to the limitations of using standard methods (e.g., MRI) to examine brain structure and function in developing populations. This study used hippocampal-dependent trace eyeblink conditioning (EBC) as a feasible approach to examine individual differences in hippocampal functioning as they relate to spatial reorientation and episodic memory performance in young children. Three- to six-year-old children (N = 50) completed tasks that measured EBC, spatial reorientation, and episodic memory, as well as non-hippocampal-dependent processing speed abilities. Results revealed that when age was held constant, individual differences in EBC performance were significantly related to individual differences in performance on the spatial reorientation test, but not on the episodic memory or processing speed tests. When the relations between hippocampal-dependent EBC and different reorientation strategies were explored, it was found that individual differences in hippocampal function predicted the use of geometric information for reorienting in space as opposed to a combined strategy that uses both geometric information and salient visual cues. The utilization of eyeblink conditioning to examine hippocampal function in young populations and its implications for understanding the dissociation between spatial reorientation and episodic memory development are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanessa Vieites
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida
| | - Shannon M Pruden
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida
| | - Anna Shusterman
- Department of Psychology, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut
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Glikmann-Johnston Y, Carmichael AM, Mercieca EC, Stout JC. 'Real-life' hippocampal-dependent spatial memory impairments in Huntington's disease. Cortex 2019; 119:46-60. [PMID: 31071556 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2018] [Revised: 02/28/2019] [Accepted: 04/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Hippocampal-dependent spatial memory impairments are seen in Huntington's disease animal models. Similar impairments were recently reported in Huntington's disease participants on analogous spatial memory tasks (e.g., virtual Morris Water Maze), however, these tasks do not translate well to the range of functions involved in day-to-day spatial cognition. In this study we examined 'real-life' hippocampal-dependent spatial memory in Huntington's disease participants. We studied premanifest Huntington's disease (N = 24), early manifest Huntington's disease (N = 14), and matched healthy controls (N = 33) with a virtual environment, which demanded spatial memory function on three levels: navigation, object location, and plan drawing. To examine the case for hippocampal-dependent spatial memory more closely, we compared the performance of our Huntington's disease participants to that of a group of temporal lobe epilepsy patients (N = 30) who were previously tested on the virtual environment. Spatial memory performance was also compared to two common neuropsychological tests of spatial cognition, the Paired Associates Learning from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Automated Test Battery, and the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test. People with early manifest Huntington's disease were impaired across all spatial memory tasks. Premanifest Huntington's disease participants were most notably impaired on the object location measure of the virtual environment, which is heavily dependent on hippocampal function, but showed no such impairments on the Paired Associates Learning or the Rey-Osterrieth Complex Figure Test. Object location memory and navigation performance did not differ between people with Huntington's disease and temporal lobe epilepsy. Aligned with studies in Huntington's disease animal models, 'real-life' spatial memory is impaired in people with Huntington's disease prior to clinical diagnosis. This alignment has important implications for testing treatments for Huntington's disease. From the standpoint of neurodegeneration, the dependence of our spatial memory measures on hippocampal function extends the focus of cognitive assessment research in Huntington's disease beyond its primary pathology within the striato-frontal circuit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifat Glikmann-Johnston
- Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia.
| | - Anna M Carmichael
- Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Emily-Clare Mercieca
- Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Julie C Stout
- Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
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Spatial memory in Huntington’s disease: A comparative review of human and animal data. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 98:194-207. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2018] [Revised: 11/26/2018] [Accepted: 01/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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Pervasive autobiographical memory impairments in Huntington's disease. Neuropsychologia 2019; 127:123-130. [PMID: 30817911 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.02.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2018] [Revised: 02/22/2019] [Accepted: 02/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Autobiographical memory dysfunction is a pervasive feature of neurodegenerative disorders, but less is known about the integrity of autobiographical memory in Huntington's disease (HD). Deficits in anterograde verbal episodic memory on traditional neuropsychological tests have been detected in HD, however, whether personally-relevant autobiographical retrieval is also affected is unknown. We examined autobiographical memory performance in 26 participants genetically confirmed to have HD who were in the peri-manifest stage of the disease (including 12 in the late premanifest stage and 14 who were early diagnosed), and 24 matched controls using the Autobiographical Interview (AI), a semi-structured interview assessing retrieval of autobiographical details from discrete epochs across the lifetime. Relative to controls, people with HD exhibited global episodic autobiographical memory impairments, regardless of recency or remoteness of the memory being retrieved. While specific cues bolstered the retrieval of episodic (internal) details in HD participants, their performance remained significantly below that of controls. Moreover, following probing, people with HD retrieved more extraneous (external) details not directly related to the autobiographical event they originally retrieved, including semantic details, repetitions, and metacognitive statements. Our results reveal marked autobiographical memory dysfunction in HD, not directly attributable to strategic retrieval deficits, and suggest that autobiographical memory impairment may represent an overlooked feature of the cognitive phenotype of HD.
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Battisto J, Echt KV, Wolf SL, Weiss P, Hackney ME. The Body Position Spatial Task, a Test of Whole-Body Spatial Cognition: Comparison Between Adults With and Without Parkinson Disease. Neurorehabil Neural Repair 2018; 32:961-975. [PMID: 30317924 PMCID: PMC6226349 DOI: 10.1177/1545968318804419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The Body Position Spatial Task (BPST) is a novel measure of whole-body spatial cognition involving multidirectional steps and turns. Individuals with Parkinson disease (PD) are affected by motor and cognitive impairments, particularly in spatial function, which is important for mental imagery and navigation. Performance on the BPST may inform understanding of motor-cognitive and spatial cognitive function of individuals with PD. OBJECTIVES We conducted this study to determine feasibility and validity of the BPST with standard, validated, and reliable measures of spatial cognition and motor-cognitive integration and to compare BPST performance in adults with and without PD. METHODS A total of 91 individuals with mild-moderate PD and 112 neurotypical (NT) adults of similar age were recruited for the study to complete the BPST and other measures of mobility and cognition. Correlations were used to determine construct and concurrent validity of BPST with valid measures of spatial cognition and motor-cognitive integration. Performance was compared between PD and NT adults using independent t-tests. RESULTS BPST was feasible to administer. Analyses show evidence of construct validity for spatial cognition and for motor-cognitive integration. Concurrent validity was demonstrated with other tests of mobility and cognition. Relationships were stronger and more significant for individuals with PD than for NT individuals. BPST performance was not significantly different between groups. CONCLUSION Tests that integrate cognitive challenge in mobility contexts are necessary to assess the health of spatial cognitive and motor-cognitive integration. The BPST is a feasible and valid test of whole-body spatial cognition and motor-cognitive integration in individuals with PD.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Katharina V. Echt
- Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation, Decatur, Georgia
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), Birmingham/Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Centers
- Division of General Medicine and Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Steven L. Wolf
- Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation, Decatur, Georgia
- Emory University Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Division of Physical Therapy
| | - Paul Weiss
- Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation, Decatur, Georgia
- Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University
| | - Madeleine E. Hackney
- Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation, Decatur, Georgia
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), Birmingham/Atlanta Veterans Affairs Medical Centers
- Division of General Medicine and Geriatrics, Department of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia
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