1
|
Potegal M, Nordman JC. Non-angry aggressive arousal and angriffsberietschaft: A narrative review of the phenomenology and physiology of proactive/offensive aggression motivation and escalation in people and other animals. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 147:105110. [PMID: 36822384 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Revised: 02/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/23/2023]
Abstract
Human aggression typologies largely correspond with those for other animals. While there may be no non-human equivalent of angry reactive aggression, we propose that human proactive aggression is similar to offense in other animals' dominance contests for territory or social status. Like predation/hunting, but unlike defense, offense and proactive aggression are positively reinforcing, involving dopamine release in accumbens. The drive these motivational states provide must suffice to overcome fear associated with initiating risky fights. We term the neural activity motivating proactive aggression "non-angry aggressive arousal", but use "angriffsberietschaft" for offense motivation in other animals to acknowledge possible differences. Temporal variation in angriffsberietschaft partitions fights into bouts; engendering reduced anti-predator vigilance, redirected aggression and motivational over-ride. Increased aggressive arousal drives threat-to-attack transitions, as in verbal-to-physical escalation and beyond that, into hyper-aggression. Proactive aggression and offense involve related neural activity states. Cingulate, insular and prefrontal cortices energize/modulate aggression through a subcortical core containing subnuclei for each aggression type. These proposals will deepen understanding of aggression across taxa, guiding prevention/intervention for human violence.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Jacob C Nordman
- Department of Physiology, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, Carbondale, IL, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Rahman F, Coull BA, Carroll KN, Wilson A, Just AC, Kloog I, Zhang X, Wright RJ, Chiu YHM. Prenatal PM 2.5 exposure and infant temperament at age 6 months: Sensitive windows and sex-specific associations. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2022; 206:112583. [PMID: 34922978 PMCID: PMC8810739 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2021] [Revised: 12/12/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2021] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Prenatal exposure to fine particulate matter with a diameter of ≤2.5 μm (PM2.5) has been linked to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in later childhood, while research on early infant behavior remains sparse. OBJECTIVES We examined associations between prenatal PM2.5 exposure and infant negative affectivity, a stable temperamental trait associated with longer-term behavioral and mental health outcomes. We also examined sex-specific effects. METHODS Analyses included 559 mother-infant pairs enrolled in the PRogramming of Intergenerational Stress Mechanisms (PRISM) cohort. Daily PM2.5 exposure based on geocoded residential address during pregnancy was estimated using a satellite-based spatiotemporal model. Domains of negative affectivity (Sadness, Distress to Limitations, Fear, Falling Reactivity) were assessed using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised (IBQ-R) when infants were 6 months old. Subscale scores were calculated as the mean of item-specific responses; the global Negative Affectivity (NA) score was derived by averaging the mean of the four subscale scores. Bayesian distributed lag interaction models (BDLIMs) were used to identify sensitive windows for prenatal PM2.5 exposure on global NA and its subscales, and to examine effect modification by sex. RESULTS Mothers were primarily racial/ethnic minorities (38% Black, 37% Hispanic), 40% had ≤12 years of education; most did not smoke during pregnancy (87%). In the overall sample, BDLIMs revealed that increased PM2.5 at mid-pregnancy was associated with higher global NA, Sadness, and Fear scores, after adjusting for covariates (maternal age, education, race/ethnicity, sex). Among boys, increased PM2.5 at early pregnancy was associated with decreased Fear scores, while exposure during late pregnancy was associated with increased Fear scores (cumulative effect estimate = 0.57, 95% CI: 0.03-1.41). Among girls, increased PM2.5 during mid-pregnancy was associated with higher Fear scores (cumulative effect estimate = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.05-1.91). CONCLUSIONS Prenatal PM2.5 exposure was associated with negative affectivity at age 6 months, and the sensitive windows may vary by subdomains and infant sex.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fataha Rahman
- Kravis Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; The City College of New York, New York, NY, USA
| | - Brent A Coull
- Department of Biostatistics, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Harvard University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Kecia N Carroll
- Kravis Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ander Wilson
- Department of Statistics, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA
| | - Allan C Just
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Itai Kloog
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Xueying Zhang
- Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Rosalind J Wright
- Kravis Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; The Institute for Exposomic Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Yueh-Hsiu Mathilda Chiu
- Kravis Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; The Institute for Exposomic Research, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Phillips ML, Schmithorst VJ, Banihashemi L, Taylor M, Samolyk A, Northrup JB, English GE, Versace A, Stiffler RS, Aslam HA, Bonar L, Panigrahy A, Hipwell AE. Patterns of Infant Amygdala Connectivity Mediate the Impact of High Caregiver Affect on Reducing Infant Smiling: Discovery and Replication. Biol Psychiatry 2021; 90:342-352. [PMID: 34130856 PMCID: PMC8364485 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2021.03.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 02/13/2021] [Accepted: 03/21/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Behavioral research indicates that caregiver mood disorders and emotional instability in the early months following childbirth are associated with lower positive emotionality and higher negative emotionality in infants, but the neural mechanisms remain understudied. METHODS Using resting-state functional connectivity as a measure of the functional architecture of the early infant brain, we aimed to determine the extent to which connectivity between the amygdala, a key region supporting emotional learning and perception, and large-scale neural networks mediated the association between caregiver affect and anxiety and early infant negative emotionality and positive emotionality. Two samples of infants (first sample: n = 58; second sample: n = 31) 3 months of age underwent magnetic resonance imaging during natural sleep. RESULTS During infancy, greater resting-state functional connectivity between the amygdala and the salience network and, to a lesser extent, lower amygdala and executive control network resting-state functional connectivity mediated the effect of greater caregiver postpartum depression and trait anxiety on reducing infant smiling (familywise error-corrected p < .05). Furthermore, results from the first sample were replicated in the second, independent sample, to a greater extent for caregiver depression than for caregiver anxiety. CONCLUSIONS We provide evidence of early objective neural markers that can help identify infants who are more likely to be at risk from, versus those who might be protected against, the deleterious effects of caregiver depression and anxiety and reduced positive emotionality.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mary L. Phillips
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Vincent J. Schmithorst
- UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Department of Pediatric Radiology, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Layla Banihashemi
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Pittsburgh, PA
| | | | | | - Jessie B. Northrup
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Pittsburgh, PA
| | | | - Amelia Versace
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Pittsburgh, PA
| | | | | | - Lisa Bonar
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Ashok Panigrahy
- UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, Department of Pediatric Radiology, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Alison E. Hipwell
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Pittsburgh, PA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Prenatal metal mixtures and sex-specific infant negative affectivity. Environ Epidemiol 2021; 5:e147. [PMID: 33870019 PMCID: PMC8043734 DOI: 10.1097/ee9.0000000000000147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2020] [Accepted: 03/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Prenatal exposure to metals has been associated with a range of adverse neurocognitive outcomes; however, associations with early behavioral development are less well understood. We examined joint exposure to multiple co-occurring metals in relation to infant negative affect, a stable temperamental trait linked to psychopathology among children and adults.
Collapse
|
5
|
Kenwood MM, Kalin NH. Nonhuman Primate Models to Explore Mechanisms Underlying Early-Life Temperamental Anxiety. Biol Psychiatry 2021; 89:659-671. [PMID: 33229035 PMCID: PMC7952470 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.08.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Revised: 07/31/2020] [Accepted: 08/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Anxiety disorders are among the most prevalent psychiatric disorders, causing significant suffering and disability. Behavioral inhibition is a temperament that is linked to an increased risk for the later development of anxiety disorders and other stress-related psychopathology, and understanding the neural systems underlying this dispositional risk could provide insight into novel treatment targets for anxiety disorders. Nonhuman primates (NHPs) have anxiety-related temperaments that are similar to those of humans with behavioral inhibition, facilitating the design of translational models related to human psychopathology. Characterization of our NHP model of behavioral inhibition, which we term anxious temperament (AT), reveals that it is trait-like. Exploration of the neural substrates of AT in NHPs has revealed a distributed neural circuit that is linked to individual differences in AT, which includes the dorsal amygdala. AT-related metabolism in the dorsal amygdala, including the central nucleus, is stable across time and can be detected even in safe contexts, suggesting that AT has trait-like neural signatures within the brain. The use of lesioning and novel chemogenetic methods allows for mechanistic perturbation of the amygdala to determine its causal contribution to AT. Studies characterizing the molecular bases for individual differences in AT in the dorsal amygdala, which take advantage of novel methods for probing cellular and molecular systems, suggest involvement of neurotrophic systems, which point to the importance of neuroplasticity in AT. These novel methods, when used in combination with translational NHP models such as AT, promise to provide insights into the brain systems underlying the early risk for anxiety disorder development.
Collapse
|
6
|
Raper J, Chahroudi A. Clinical and Preclinical Evidence for Adverse Neurodevelopment after Postnatal Zika Virus Infection. Trop Med Infect Dis 2021; 6:tropicalmed6010010. [PMID: 33445671 PMCID: PMC7838975 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed6010010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Although the Zika virus (ZIKV) typically causes mild or no symptoms in adults, during the 2015−2016 outbreak, ZIKV infection in pregnancy resulted in a spectrum of diseases in infants, including birth defects and neurodevelopmental disorders identified in childhood. While intense clinical and basic science research has focused on the neurodevelopmental outcomes of prenatal ZIKV infection, less is known about the consequences of infection during early life. Considering the neurotropism of ZIKV and the rapidly-developing postnatal brain, it is important to understand how infection during infancy may disrupt neurodevelopment. This paper reviews the current knowledge regarding early postnatal ZIKV infection. Emerging clinical evidence supports the hypothesis that ZIKV infection during infancy can result in negative neurologic consequences. However, clinical data regarding postnatal ZIKV infection in children are limited; as such, animal models play an important role in understanding the potential complications of ZIKV infection related to the vulnerable developing brain. Preclinical data provide insight into the potential behavioral, cognitive, and motor domains that clinical studies should examine in pediatric populations exposed to ZIKV during infancy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA;
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Ann Chahroudi
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA;
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
- Center for Childhood Infections and Vaccines of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
- Correspondence:
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Neudecker V, Perez-Zoghbi JF, Coleman K, Neuringer M, Robertson N, Bemis A, Glickman B, Schenning KJ, Fair DA, Martin LD, Dissen GA, Brambrink AM. Infant isoflurane exposure affects social behaviours, but does not impair specific cognitive domains in juvenile non-human primates. Br J Anaesth 2020; 126:486-499. [PMID: 33198945 DOI: 10.1016/j.bja.2020.10.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2020] [Revised: 10/05/2020] [Accepted: 10/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Clinical studies show that children exposed to anaesthetics for short times at young age perform normally on intelligence tests, but display altered social behaviours. In non-human primates (NHPs), infant anaesthesia exposure for several hours causes neurobehavioural impairments, including delayed motor reflex development and increased anxiety-related behaviours assessed by provoked response testing. However, the effects of anaesthesia on spontaneous social behaviours in juvenile NHPs have not been investigated. We hypothesised that multiple, but not single, 5 h isoflurane exposures in infant NHPs are associated with impairments in specific cognitive domains and altered social behaviours at juvenile age. METHODS Eight Rhesus macaques per group were anaesthetised for 5 h using isoflurane one (1×) or three (3×) times between postnatal days 6 and 12 or were exposed to room air (control). Cognitive testing, behavioural assessments in the home environment, and provoked response testing were performed during the first 2 yr of life. RESULTS The cognitive functions tested did not differ amongst groups. However, compared to controls, NHPs in the 3× group showed less close social behaviour (P=0.016), and NHPs in the 1× group displayed increased anxiety-related behaviours (P=0.038) and were more inhibited towards novel objects (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS 5 h exposures of NHPs to isoflurane during infancy are associated with decreased close social behaviour after multiple exposures and more anxiety-related behaviours and increased behavioural inhibition after single exposure, but they do not affect the cognitive domains tested. Our findings are consistent with behavioural alterations in social settings reported in clinical studies, which may guide future research.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Viola Neudecker
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jose F Perez-Zoghbi
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kristine Coleman
- Division of Neuroscience, USA; Division of Comparative Medicine, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OR, USA
| | | | - Nicola Robertson
- Division of Comparative Medicine, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OR, USA
| | | | | | | | - Damien A Fair
- Department of Behavioural Neuroscience, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Lauren D Martin
- Division of Comparative Medicine, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OR, USA
| | | | - Ansgar M Brambrink
- Department of Anesthesiology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Medina A, Torres J, Kazama AM, Bachevalier J, Raper J. Emotional responses in monkeys differ depending on the stimulus type, sex, and neonatal amygdala lesion status. Behav Neurosci 2020; 134:153-165. [PMID: 32175761 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The amygdala plays an essential role in evaluating social information, threat detection, and learning fear associations. Yet, most of that knowledge comes from studies in adult humans and animals with a fully developed amygdala. Given the considerable protracted postnatal development of the amygdala, it is important to understand how early damage to this structure may impact the long-term development of behavior. The current study examined behavioral responses toward social, innate, or learned aversive stimuli among neonatal amygdala lesion (Neo-Aibo; males = 3, females = 3) or sham-operated control (Neo-C; males = 3, females = 4) rhesus macaques. Compared with controls, Neo-Aibo animals exhibited less emotional reactivity toward aversive objects, including faster retrieval of food reward, fewer fearful responses, and more manipulation of objects. This lower reactivity was only seen in response to social and innate aversive stimuli, whereas Neo-Aibo animals had similar responses to controls for learned aversive stimuli. The current study also detected sex differences in behavioral response to aversive stimuli, such that, as compared with males, females took longer to retrieve the food reward across all aversive stimuli types, but only expressed more hostility and more coo vocalizations during learned aversive trials. Early amygdala damage impacted the expression of some, but not all, sex differences. For example, neonatal amygdala damage eliminated the sex difference in object manipulation. These findings add important information that broaden our understanding of the role of the amygdala in the expression of sexually dimorphic behaviors, as well as its role in learning fear associations and threat detection. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Jessica Raper
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Raper J, Murphy L, Richardson R, Romm Z, Kovacs-Balint Z, Payne C, Galvan A. Chemogenetic Inhibition of the Amygdala Modulates Emotional Behavior Expression in Infant Rhesus Monkeys. eNeuro 2019; 6:ENEURO.0360-19.2019. [PMID: 31541000 PMCID: PMC6791827 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0360-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2019] [Accepted: 09/13/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Manipulation of neuronal activity during the early postnatal period in monkeys has been largely limited to permanent lesion studies, which can be impacted by developmental plasticity leading to reorganization and compensation from other brain structures that can interfere with the interpretations of results. Chemogenetic tools, such as DREADDs (designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs), can transiently and reversibly activate or inactivate brain structures, avoiding the pitfalls of permanent lesions to better address important developmental neuroscience questions. We demonstrate that inhibitory DREADDs in the amygdala can be used to manipulate socioemotional behavior in infant monkeys. Two infant rhesus monkeys (1 male, 1 female) received AAV5-hSyn-HA-hM4Di-IRES-mCitrine injections bilaterally in the amygdala at 9 months of age. DREADD activation after systemic administration of either clozapine-N-oxide or low-dose clozapine resulted in decreased freezing and anxiety on the human intruder paradigm and changed the looking patterns on a socioemotional attention eye-tracking task, compared with vehicle administration. The DREADD-induced behaviors were reminiscent of, but not identical to, those seen after permanent amygdala lesions in infant monkeys, such that neonatal lesions produce a more extensive array of behavioral changes in response to the human intruder task that were not seen with DREADD-evoked inhibition of this region. Our results may help support the notion that the more extensive behavior changes seen after early lesions are manifested from brain reorganization that occur after permanent damage. The current study provides a proof of principle that DREADDs can be used in young infant monkeys to transiently and reversibly manipulate behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
- Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Lauren Murphy
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Rebecca Richardson
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Zoe Romm
- Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Zsofia Kovacs-Balint
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | | | - Adriana Galvan
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
- Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Mavigner M, Raper J, Kovacs-Balint Z, Gumber S, O'Neal JT, Bhaumik SK, Zhang X, Habib J, Mattingly C, McDonald CE, Avanzato V, Burke MW, Magnani DM, Bailey VK, Watkins DI, Vanderford TH, Fair D, Earl E, Feczko E, Styner M, Jean SM, Cohen JK, Silvestri G, Johnson RP, O'Connor DH, Wrammert J, Suthar MS, Sanchez MM, Alvarado MC, Chahroudi A. Postnatal Zika virus infection is associated with persistent abnormalities in brain structure, function, and behavior in infant macaques. Sci Transl Med 2019; 10:10/435/eaao6975. [PMID: 29618564 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aao6975] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2017] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
The Zika virus (ZIKV) epidemic is associated with fetal brain lesions and other serious birth defects classified as congenital ZIKV syndrome. Postnatal ZIKV infection in infants and children has been reported; however, data on brain anatomy, function, and behavioral outcomes following infection are absent. We show that postnatal ZIKV infection of infant rhesus macaques (RMs) results in persistent structural and functional alterations of the central nervous system compared to age-matched controls. We demonstrate ZIKV lymphoid tropism and neurotropism in infant RMs and histopathologic abnormalities in the peripheral and central nervous systems including inflammatory infiltrates, astrogliosis, and Wallerian degeneration. Structural and resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI/rs-fMRI) show persistent enlargement of lateral ventricles, maturational changes in specific brain regions, and altered functional connectivity (FC) between brain areas involved in emotional behavior and arousal functions, including weakened amygdala-hippocampal connectivity in two of two ZIKV-infected infant RMs several months after clearance of ZIKV RNA from peripheral blood. ZIKV infection also results in distinct alterations in the species-typical emotional reactivity to acute stress, which were predicted by the weak amygdala-hippocampal FC. We demonstrate that postnatal ZIKV infection of infants in this model affects neurodevelopment, suggesting that long-term clinical monitoring of pediatric cases is warranted.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maud Mavigner
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Jessica Raper
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Zsofia Kovacs-Balint
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Sanjeev Gumber
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | | | - Siddhartha K Bhaumik
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Xiaodong Zhang
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Jakob Habib
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Cameron Mattingly
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | | | - Victoria Avanzato
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Mark W Burke
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Howard University, Washington, DC 20060, USA
| | - Diogo M Magnani
- Department of Pathology, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33146, USA
| | - Varian K Bailey
- Department of Pathology, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33146, USA
| | - David I Watkins
- Department of Pathology, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33146, USA
| | - Thomas H Vanderford
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Damien Fair
- Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Eric Earl
- Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Eric Feczko
- Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Martin Styner
- Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Sherrie M Jean
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Joyce K Cohen
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Guido Silvestri
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.,Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - R Paul Johnson
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - David H O'Connor
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Jens Wrammert
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Mehul S Suthar
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.,Emory Vaccine Center, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - Mar M Sanchez
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Maria C Alvarado
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.,Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Ann Chahroudi
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA. .,Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.,Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Weiss AR, White J, Richardson R, Bachevalier J. Impaired Cognitive Flexibility After Neonatal Perirhinal Lesions in Rhesus Macaques. Front Syst Neurosci 2019; 13:6. [PMID: 30760985 PMCID: PMC6363703 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2019.00006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2018] [Accepted: 01/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous research indicated that monkeys with neonatal perirhinal lesions (Neo-PRh) were impaired on working memory (WM) tasks that generated proactive interference, but performed normally on WM tasks devoid of interference (Weiss et al., 2016). This finding suggested that the early lesions disrupted cognitive processes important for resolving proactive interference, such as behavioral inhibition and cognitive flexibility. To distinguish between these possibilities, the same Neo-PRh monkeys and their controls were tested using the Intradimensional/Extradimensional attentional set-shifting task (Roberts et al., 1988; Dias et al., 1997). Neo-PRh monkeys completed the Simple and Compound Discrimination stages, the Intradimensional Shift stage, and all Reversal stages comparably to controls, but made significantly more errors on the Extradimensional Shift stage of the task. These data indicate that impaired cognitive flexibility was the likely source of increased perseverative errors made by Neo-PRh monkeys when performing WM tasks, rather than impaired behavioral inhibition, and imply that the perirhinal cortex and its interactions with the PFC may play a unique and critical role in the development of attentional set shifting abilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alison R Weiss
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.,Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OR, United States
| | - Jessica White
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | | | - Jocelyne Bachevalier
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.,Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Gabard-Durnam LJ, O'Muircheartaigh J, Dirks H, Dean DC, Tottenham N, Deoni S. Human amygdala functional network development: A cross-sectional study from 3 months to 5 years of age. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2018; 34:63-74. [PMID: 30075348 PMCID: PMC6252269 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2018.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2018] [Revised: 06/11/2018] [Accepted: 06/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Although the amygdala's role in shaping social behavior is especially important during early post-natal development, very little is known of amygdala functional development before childhood. To address this gap, this study uses resting-state fMRI to examine early amygdalar functional network development in a cross-sectional sample of 80 children from 3-months to 5-years of age. Whole brain functional connectivity with the amygdala, and its laterobasal and superficial sub-regions, were largely similar to those seen in older children and adults. Functional distinctions between sub-region networks were already established. These patterns suggest many amygdala functional circuits are intact from infancy, especially those that are part of motor, visual, auditory and subcortical networks. Developmental changes in connectivity were observed between the laterobasal nucleus and bilateral ventral temporal and motor cortex as well as between the superficial nuclei and medial thalamus, occipital cortex and a different region of motor cortex. These results show amygdala-subcortical and sensory-cortex connectivity begins refinement prior to childhood, though connectivity changes with associative and frontal cortical areas, seen after early childhood, were not evident in this age range. These findings represent early steps in understanding amygdala network dynamics across infancy through early childhood, an important period of emotional and cognitive development.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- L J Gabard-Durnam
- Division of Developmental Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard University, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - J O'Muircheartaigh
- Department of Forensic and Neurodevelopmental Sciences & Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, Department of Perinatal Imaging and Health, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK.
| | - H Dirks
- Advanced Baby Imaging Lab, Brown University School of Engineering, Providence, USA
| | - D C Dean
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, 53702, USA; Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, 53702, USA
| | - N Tottenham
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10027, USA
| | - S Deoni
- Department of Pediatrics, Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, Providence, USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Sonne JWH, Gash DM. Psychopathy to Altruism: Neurobiology of the Selfish-Selfless Spectrum. Front Psychol 2018; 9:575. [PMID: 29725317 PMCID: PMC5917043 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2018] [Accepted: 04/05/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The age-old philosophical, biological, and social debate over the basic nature of humans as being “universally selfish” or “universally good” continues today highlighting sharply divergent views of natural social order. Here we analyze advances in biology, genetics and neuroscience increasing our understanding of the evolution, features and neurocircuitry of the human brain underlying behavior in the selfish–selfless spectrum. First, we examine evolutionary pressures for selection of altruistic traits in species with protracted periods of dependence on parents and communities for subsistence and acquisition of learned behaviors. Evidence supporting the concept that altruistic potential is a common feature in human populations is developed. To go into greater depth in assessing critical features of the social brain, the two extremes of selfish–selfless behavior, callous unemotional psychopaths and zealous altruists who take extreme measures to help others, are compared on behavioral traits, structural/functional neural features, and the relative contributions of genetic inheritance versus acquired cognitive learning to their mindsets. Evidence from population groups ranging from newborns, adopted children, incarcerated juveniles, twins and mindfulness meditators point to the important role of neuroplasticity and the dopaminergic reward systems in forming and reforming neural circuitry in response to personal experience and cultural influences in determining behavior in the selfish–selfless spectrum. The underlying neural circuitry differs between psychopaths and altruists with emotional processing being profoundly muted in psychopaths and significantly enhanced in altruists. But both groups are characterized by the reward system of the brain shaping behavior. Instead of rigid assignment of human nature as being “universally selfish” or “universally good,” both characterizations are partial truths based on the segments of the selfish–selfless spectrum being examined. In addition, individuals and populations can shift in the behavioral spectrum in response to cognitive therapy and social and cultural experience, and approaches such as mindfulness training for introspection and reward-activating compassion are entering the mainstream of clinical care for managing pain, depression, and stress.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- James W H Sonne
- Department of Health Professions, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, United States
| | - Don M Gash
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, United States
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Grayson DS, Bliss-Moreau E, Bennett J, Lavenex P, Amaral DG. Neural Reorganization Due to Neonatal Amygdala Lesions in the Rhesus Monkey: Changes in Morphology and Network Structure. Cereb Cortex 2018; 27:3240-3253. [PMID: 28383709 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhx080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2016] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
It is generally believed that neural damage that occurs early in development is associated with greater adaptive capacity relative to similar damage in an older individual. However, few studies have surveyed whole brain changes following early focal damage. In this report, we employed multimodal magnetic resonance imaging analyses of adult rhesus macaque monkeys who had previously undergone bilateral, neurotoxic lesions of the amygdala at about 2 weeks of age. A deformation-based morphometric approach demonstrated reduction of the volumes of the anterior temporal lobe, anterior commissure, basal ganglia, and pulvinar in animals with early amygdala lesions compared to controls. In contrast, animals with early amygdala lesions had an enlarged cingulate cortex, medial superior frontal gyrus, and medial parietal cortex. Diffusion-weighted imaging tractography and network analysis were also used to compare connectivity patterns and higher-level measures of communication across the brain. Using the communicability metric, which integrates direct and indirect paths between regions, lesioned animals showed extensive degradation of network integrity in the temporal and orbitofrontal cortices. This work demonstrates both degenerative as well as progressive large-scale neural changes following long-term recovery from neonatal focal brain damage.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D S Grayson
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.,The MIND Institute, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.,Center for Neuroscience, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA
| | - E Bliss-Moreau
- Department of Psychology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA.,California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - J Bennett
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.,The MIND Institute, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.,California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - P Lavenex
- Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Medicine, Fribourg Center for Cognition, University of Fribourg, 1700 Fribourg, Switzerland.,Laboratory for Experimental Research on Behavior, Institute of Psychology, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - D G Amaral
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.,The MIND Institute, University of California Davis, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.,Center for Neuroscience, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA.,California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Progress in developing transgenic monkey model for Huntington's disease. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2017; 125:401-417. [PMID: 29127484 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-017-1803-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2016] [Accepted: 10/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder that has no cure. Although treatments can often be given to relieve symptoms, the neuropathology associated with HD cannot be stopped or reversed. HD is characterized by degeneration of the striatum and associated pathways that leads to impairment in motor and cognitive functions as well as psychiatric disturbances. Although cell and rodent models for HD exist, longitudinal study in a transgenic HD nonhuman primate (i.e., rhesus macaque; HD monkeys) shows high similarity in its progression with human patients. Progressive brain atrophy and changes in white matter integrity examined by magnetic resonance imaging are coherent with the decline in cognitive behaviors related to corticostriatal functions and neuropathology. HD monkeys also express higher anxiety and irritability/aggression similar to human HD patients that other model systems have not yet replicated. While a comparative model approach is critical for advancing our understanding of HD pathogenesis, HD monkeys could provide a unique platform for preclinical studies and long-term assessment of translatable outcome measures. This review summarizes the progress in the development of the transgenic HD monkey model and the opportunities for advancing HD preclinical research.
Collapse
|
16
|
Weiss AR, Guo W, Richardson R, Bachevalier J. Intact perceptual ability, but impaired familiarity judgment, after neonatal perirhinal lesions in rhesus macaques. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2017; 28:54-64. [PMID: 29175539 PMCID: PMC5737963 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2017.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2017] [Revised: 10/15/2017] [Accepted: 10/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
The perirhinal cortex is known to support high-level perceptual abilities as well as familiarity judgments that may affect recognition memory. We tested whether poor perceptual abilities or a loss of familiarity judgment contributed to the recognition memory impairments reported earlier in monkeys with PRh lesions received in infancy (Neo-PRh) (Weiss and Bachevalier, 2016; Zeamer et al., 2015). Perceptual abilities were assessed using a version of the Visual Paired Comparison task with black&white (B&W) stimuli, and familiarity judgments were assessed using the Constant Negative task requiring repeated familiarization exposures. Adult monkeys with Neo-PRh lesions were able to recognize B&W stimuli after short delays, suggesting that their perceptual abilities were within the range of control animals. However, the same Neo-PRh monkeys were slower to acquire the Constant Negative task, requiring more exposures to objects before judging them as familiar compared to control animals. Taken together, the data help to account for the differential patterns of functional compensation on previously reported recognition tasks following neonatal versus adult-onset PRh lesions, and provide further support to the view that the PRh is involved in familiarity processes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Wendi Guo
- Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322 USA
| | | | - Jocelyne Bachevalier
- Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 30322 USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, 30329 USA
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Ahlgrim NS, Raper J, Johnson E, Bachevalier J. Neonatal perirhinal cortex lesions impair monkeys' ability to modulate their emotional responses. Behav Neurosci 2017; 131:359-71. [PMID: 28956946 PMCID: PMC5675115 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000208] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
The medial temporal lobe (MTL) is a collection of brain regions best known for their role in perception, memory, and emotional behavior. Within the MTL, the perirhinal cortex (PRh) plays a critical role in perceptual representation and recognition memory, although its contribution to emotional regulation is still debated. Here, rhesus monkeys with neonatal perirhinal lesions (Neo-PRh) and controls (Neo-C) were tested on the Human Intruder (HI) task at 2 months, 4.5 months, and 5 years of age to assess the role of the PRh in the development of emotional behaviors. The HI task presents a tiered social threat to which typically developing animals modulate their emotional responses according to the level of threat. Unlike animals with neonatal amygdala or hippocampal lesions, Neo-PRh animals were not broadly hyper- or hyporesponsive to the threat presented by the HI task as compared with controls. Instead, Neo-PRh animals displayed an impaired ability to modulate their freezing and anxiety-like behavioral responses according to the varying levels of threat. Impaired transmission of perceptual representation generated by the PRh to the amygdala and hippocampus may explain the animals' inability to appropriately assess and react to complex social stimuli. Neo-PRh animals also displayed fewer hostile behaviors in infancy and more coo vocalizations in adulthood. Neither stress-reactive nor basal cortisol levels were affected by the Neo-PRh lesions. Overall, these results suggest that the PRh is indirectly involved in the expression of emotional behavior and that effects of Neo-PRh lesions are dissociable from neonatal lesions to other temporal lobe structures. (PsycINFO Database Record
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Nathan S. Ahlgrim
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta GA
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta GA
| | - Jessica Raper
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta GA
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta GA
| | - Emily Johnson
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta GA
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta GA
| | - Jocelyne Bachevalier
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta GA
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta GA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Raper J, Morrison RD, Daniels JS, Howell L, Bachevalier J, Wichmann T, Galvan A. Metabolism and Distribution of Clozapine-N-oxide: Implications for Nonhuman Primate Chemogenetics. ACS Chem Neurosci 2017; 8:1570-1576. [PMID: 28324647 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.7b00079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The use of Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs (DREADDs) in neuroscience has rapidly expanded in rodent studies but has lagged behind in nonhuman primate (NHP) experiments, slowing the development of this method for therapeutic use in humans. One reason for the slow adoption of DREADD technology in primates is that the pharmacokinetic properties and bioavailability of clozapine-n-oxide (CNO), the most commonly used ligand for human muscarinic (hM) DREADDs, are not fully described in primates. We report an extensive pharmacokinetic study using subcutaneous (SC) administration of CNO in five adult rhesus monkeys. CNO reached maximal plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentrations within 2 h after injection, with an observed dose-dependent increase in levels following a 3 and 10 mg/kg SC dose. Since CSF concentrations were below values predicted from unbound plasma concentrations, we investigated whether CNO was restricted from the CNS through active transport at the blood-brain barrier. In vitro assessment demonstrated that CNO is a substrate for P-glycoprotein (Pgp; efflux ratio, 20), thus providing a likely mechanism limiting CNO levels in the CNS. Furthermore, CNO is metabolized to the psychoactive compounds clozapine and n-desmethylclozapine in monkeys. The concentrations of clozapine detected in the CSF are sufficient to activate several types of receptor (including the hM-DREADDs). Our results suggest that CNO metabolism and distribution may interfere with reproducibility and interpretation of DREADD-related experiments in NHPs and calls for a re-evaluation of the use of CNO in DREADD-related experiments in NHPs along with the need to test alternative compounds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
| | - Ryan D. Morrison
- Sano Informed Prescribing, Inc. Franklin, Tennessee 37067, United States
| | - J. Scott Daniels
- Sano Informed Prescribing, Inc. Franklin, Tennessee 37067, United States
| | - Leonard Howell
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
| | - Jocelyne Bachevalier
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
| | - Thomas Wichmann
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
- Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
- Udall Center of Excellence for Parkinson’s
Disease Research, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
| | - Adriana Galvan
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
- Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, United States
- Udall Center of Excellence for Parkinson’s
Disease Research, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329, United States
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Bidirectional Control of Social Behavior by Activity within Basolateral and Central Amygdala of Primates. J Neurosci 2017; 36:8746-56. [PMID: 27535919 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0333-16.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 74] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2016] [Accepted: 07/02/2016] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Both hypoactivity and hyperactivity in the amygdala are associated with perturbations in social behavior. While >60 years of experimental manipulations of the amygdala in animal models have shown that amygdala is critical for social behavior, many of these studies contradict one another. Moreover, several questions remain unaddressed. (1) What effect does activation of amygdala have on social behavior? (2) What is the effect of transient silencing, rather than permanent damage? (3) Is there a dissociation between the roles of the central (CeA) and basolateral amygdala (BLA) in regulating social behavior? (4) Can the prosocial effects of amygdala manipulations be explained by anxiolytic effects? We focally manipulated activity within the CeA or BLA in macaques by intracerebral microinjection of muscimol (to inactivate) or bicuculline (to activate) to these amygdaloid subregions. Social interactions were observed in pairs of highly familiar monkeys. We compared these effects to those achieved with systemic diazepam. Activation of the BLA but not CeA suppressed social behavior. Inhibition of either structure increased social behavior, although the effect was greater following inhibition of the BLA. Systemic diazepam was without effect. These studies, which are the first to bidirectionally manipulate the primate amygdala for effects on social behavior, revealed that (1) the amygdala, as a critical regulator of the social network, is bidirectionally sensitive to perturbations in activity, and (2) increased sociability after amygdala inactivation cannot be solely explained by decreased fear. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Many previous studies reported loss of social interactions following permanent damage to the amygdala in nonhuman primates. In contrast, we report that transient inhibition of the basolateral amygdala triggered a profound increase in social interactions in dyads of monkeys highly familiar with each other. We compared these effects to those of systemic diazepam, which failed to increase social behavior. While it has been suggested that suppression of "fear" could underlie the prosocial effects of amygdala manipulations, our data strongly suggest that impairment in fear processing per se cannot account for the prosocial effects of amygdala inhibition. Furthermore, our studies are the first to examine activation of the amygdala and to assess the separate roles of the amygdaloid nuclei in social behavior in primates.
Collapse
|
20
|
Forcelli PA, Wellman LL, Malkova L. Blockade of glutamatergic transmission in the primate basolateral amygdala suppresses active behavior without altering social interaction. Behav Neurosci 2017; 131:192-200. [PMID: 28221080 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The amygdala is an integrator of affective processing, and a key component of a network regulating social behavior. While decades of lesion studies in nonhuman primates have shown alterations in social interactions after amygdala damage, acute manipulations of the amygdala in primates have been underexplored. We recently reported (Wellman, Forcelli, Aguilar, & Malkova, 2016) that acute pharmacological inhibition of the basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA) or the central nucleus of the amygdala increased affiliative social interactions in experimental dyads of macaques; this was achieved through microinjection of a GABA-A receptor agonist. Prior studies in rodents have shown similar effects achieved by blocking NMDA receptors or AMPA receptors within the BLA. Here, we sought to determine the role of these receptor systems in the primate BLA in the context of social behavior. In familiar dyads, we microinjected the NMDA receptor antagonist 2-amino-7-phosphonoheptanoic acid (AP7) or the AMPA receptor antagonist 2,3-dioxo-6-nitro-1,2,3,4-tetrahydrobenzo[f]quinoxaline-7-sulfonamide (NBQX) and observed behaviors and social interactions in the immediate postinjection period. In striking contrast with our prior report using GABA agonists, and in contrast with prior reports in rodents using glutamate antagonists, we found that neither NMDA nor AMPA blockade increase social interaction. Both treatments, however, were associated with decreases in locomotion and manipulation and increases in passive behavior. These data suggest that local blockade of glutamatergic neurotransmission in BLA is not the functional equivalent of local activation of GABAergic signaling, and raise interesting questions regarding the functional microcircuitry of the nonhuman primate amygdala in the context of social behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Laurie L Wellman
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Georgetown University
| | - Ludise Malkova
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, Georgetown University
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Raper J, Wilson M, Sanchez M, Payne C, Bachevalier J. Increased anxiety-like behaviors, but blunted cortisol stress response after neonatal hippocampal lesions in monkeys. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2017; 76:57-66. [PMID: 27888771 PMCID: PMC5272817 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2016.11.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2016] [Revised: 11/16/2016] [Accepted: 11/16/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
The hippocampus is most notably known for its role in cognition and spatial memory; however it also plays an essential role in emotional behaviors and neuroendocrine responses. The current study investigated the long-term effects of neonatal hippocampal lesions (Neo-Hibo) on emotional and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis functioning. During infancy, unlike controls, Neo-Hibo monkeys exhibited enhanced expression of emotional behaviors (e.g. freezing, anxiety-like, and self-directed behaviors) when exposed to a human intruder (HI task). Upon reaching adulthood, they exhibited reduced freezing and hostility, but increased anxiety-like and self-directed behaviors during the HI task. Neo-Hibo monkeys behaved as if they systematically over-rated the risk inherent in the HI task, which supports Gray and McNaughton's septo-hippocampal theory of anxiety. Also, in adulthood, the increased levels of anxiety-like behaviors in Neo-Hibo monkeys were associated with a blunted cortisol response to the HI task. Examination of basal HPA axis function revealed that Neo-Hibo monkeys exhibited the typical diurnal cortisol decline throughout the day, but had lower cortisol concentrations in the morning as compared to controls. Taken together these data suggest that an intact hippocampus during development plays a larger role beyond that of inhibitory/negative feedback regulation of the HPA axis stress-activation, and may be critical for HPA axis basal functioning as well as for the stress response. The behavioral and neuroendocrine changes demonstrated in the current study are reminiscent of those seen in human or nonhuman primates with adult-onset hippocampal damage, demonstrating little functional compensation following early hippocampal damage.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta GA 30322, United States; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta GA 30329, United States.
| | - Mark Wilson
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta GA 30329,Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, 101 Woodruff Circle, WMB suite 4000, Atlanta GA 30322
| | - Mar Sanchez
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta GA 30329,Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, 101 Woodruff Circle, WMB suite 4000, Atlanta GA 30322
| | - Christa Payne
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta GA 30329,Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, 1920 Braircliff Rd NE, Atlanta GA, 30329
| | - Jocelyne Bachevalier
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta GA 30322,Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta GA 30329
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Bliss-Moreau E, Moadab G, Santistevan A, Amaral DG. The effects of neonatal amygdala or hippocampus lesions on adult social behavior. Behav Brain Res 2016; 322:123-137. [PMID: 28017854 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2016.11.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2016] [Revised: 11/26/2016] [Accepted: 11/30/2016] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The present report details the final phase of a longitudinal evaluation of the social behavior in a cohort of adult rhesus monkeys that received bilateral neurotoxic lesions of the amygdala or hippocampus, or sham operations at 2 weeks of age. Results were compared to previous studies in which adult animals received amygdala lesions and were tested in a similar fashion. Social testing with four novel interaction partners occurred when the animals were between 7 and 8 years of age. Experimental animals interacted with two male and two female partners in two conditions - one in which physical access was restricted (the constrained social access condition) and a second in which physical access was unrestricted (the unconstrained social access condition). Across conditions and interaction partners, there were no significant effects of lesion condition on the frequency or duration of social interactions. As a group, the hippocampus-lesioned animals generated the greatest number of communicative signals during the constrained social access condition. Amygdala-lesioned animals generated more frequent stress-related behaviors and were less exploratory. Amygdala and hippocampus-lesioned animals demonstrated greater numbers of stereotypies than control animals. Subtle, lesion-based differences in the sequencing of behaviors were observed. These findings suggest that alterations of adult social behavior are much less prominent when damage to the amygdala occurs early in life rather than in adulthood.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eliza Bliss-Moreau
- Department of Psychology and the California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, United States.
| | - Gilda Moadab
- Department of Psychology and the California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, United States
| | - Anthony Santistevan
- Department of Psychology and the California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, United States
| | - David G Amaral
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, The MIND Institute, The Center for Neuroscience and the California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, United States
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Raper J, Bosinger S, Johnson Z, Tharp G, Moran SP, Chan AWS. Increased irritability, anxiety, and immune reactivity in transgenic Huntington's disease monkeys. Brain Behav Immun 2016; 58:181-190. [PMID: 27395434 PMCID: PMC5067193 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2016.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2016] [Revised: 07/05/2016] [Accepted: 07/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the most notable clinical symptoms of Huntington's disease (HD) are motor disturbances and brain atrophy, other symptoms include cognitive dysfunction, emotional and hormonal dysregulation. Emotional dysregulation (irritability, anger/aggression, and anxiety) and increased inflammation are early emerging symptoms which can be detected decades before the onset of motor symptoms in HD patients. Despite the advances in understanding the genetic causes of HD there is still no cure or preventative treatment. Thus, to better understand the pathogenesis of HD and develop effective treatments, a holistic understanding of HD is needed, as well as animal models that replicate the full spectrum of HD symptoms. The current study examined the emotional, hormonal, and gene expression responses to an acute stressor of adult male transgenic HD rhesus monkeys (n=2) as compared to wild-type controls (n=2). Results revealed that HD monkeys expressed increased anxiety and irritability/aggression as compared to controls. Reactive cortisol response to the stressor was similar between groups. However, HD monkeys exhibited increased pro-inflammatory cytokines and higher induction of immune pathway genes as compared to controls. Overall, results reveal that HD monkeys exhibit these early emerging symptoms of HD and may be an effective animal model to facilitate the development of new therapeutics for HD patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA; Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
| | - Steven Bosinger
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
| | - Zachary Johnson
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
| | - Gregory Tharp
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
| | - Sean P Moran
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
| | - Anthony W S Chan
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA; Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, 615 Michael Street, Suite 301, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Moadab G, Bliss-Moreau E, Amaral DG. Adult social behavior with familiar partners following neonatal amygdala or hippocampus damage. Behav Neurosci 2016; 129:339-50. [PMID: 26030432 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
The social behavior in a cohort of adult animals who received ibotenic acid lesions of the amygdala (4 female, 3 male) or hippocampus (5 female, 3 male) as neonates, and sham-operated controls (4 female, 4 male) was evaluated in their home environments with the familiar opposite sex monkey (pair-mate) with whom they were housed. Amygdala-lesioned animals spent less time with their familiar partners and engaged in higher frequencies of stress-related behaviors than control animals. Hippocampus-lesioned animals spent significantly more time socially engaging their pair-mates than both control and amygdala-lesioned animals. These results suggest that early damage to the amygdala or hippocampus subtly alter patterns of adult social behavior in a familiar context and stand in sharp contrast to extant studies of early damage to the amygdala or hippocampus and to the more dramatically altered patterns of behavior observed after damage to the adult amygdala.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gilda Moadab
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California Davis
| | - Eliza Bliss-Moreau
- California National Primate Research Center, University of California Davis
| | - David G Amaral
- The MIND Institute, Center for Neuroscience, California National Primate Research Center
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Sanchez MM, McCormack KM, Howell BR. Social buffering of stress responses in nonhuman primates: Maternal regulation of the development of emotional regulatory brain circuits. Soc Neurosci 2015; 10:512-26. [PMID: 26324227 DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2015.1087426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Social buffering, the phenomenon by which the presence of a familiar individual reduces or even eliminates stress- and fear-induced responses, exists in different animal species and has been examined in the context of the mother-infant relationship, in addition to adults. Although it is a well-known effect, the biological mechanisms that underlie it as well as its developmental impact are not well understood. Here, we provide a review of evidence of social and maternal buffering of stress reactivity in nonhuman primates, and some data from our group suggesting that when the mother-infant relationship is disrupted, maternal buffering is impaired. This evidence underscores the critical role that maternal care plays for proper regulation and development of emotional and stress responses of primate infants. Disruptions of the parent-infant bond constitute early adverse experiences associated with increased risk for psychopathology. We will focus on infant maltreatment, a devastating experience not only for humans, but for nonhuman primates as well. Taking advantage of this naturalistic animal model of adverse maternal caregiving, we have shown that competent maternal care is critical for the development of healthy attachment, social behavior, and emotional and stress regulation, as well as of the neural circuits underlying these functions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mar M Sanchez
- a Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences , Emory University School of Medicine, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience , Atlanta , GA , USA.,b The Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition , Emory University , Atlanta , GA , USA
| | - Kai M McCormack
- c Department of Psychology , Spelman College , Atlanta , GA , USA
| | - Brittany R Howell
- d Institute of Child Development , University of Minnesota , Minneapolis , MN , USA
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Abstract
Anxiety can be broadly described as a psychological state in which normally innocuous environmental stimuli trigger negative emotional expectations. Human anxiety disorders are multidimensional and may be organic or acquired, situational or pervasive. The broad ranging nature of the anxiety phenotype speaks to the need for models that identify its various components and root causes to develop effective clinical treatments. The cross-species comparative approach to modeling anxiety disorders in animals aims to understand mechanisms that both contribute to and modulate anxiety. Nonhuman primate models provide an important bridge from nonprimate model systems because of the complexity of nonhuman primates' biobehavioral capacities and their commonalities with human emotion. The broad goal of this review is to provide an overview of various procedures available to study anxiety in the nonhuman primate, with a focus on the behavioral aspects of anxiety. Commonly used methods covered in this review include assessing animals in their home environment or in response to an ethologically relevant threat, associative conditioning and startle response tests, and cognitive bias tests. We also discuss how these procedures can help veterinarians and researchers care for captive nonhuman primates.
Collapse
|
27
|
Monfardini E, Redouté J, Hadj-Bouziane F, Hynaux C, Fradin J, Huguet P, Costes N, Meunier M. Others' Sheer Presence Boosts Brain Activity in the Attention (But Not the Motivation) Network. Cereb Cortex 2015; 26:2427-2439. [PMID: 25858969 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhv067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The sheer presence of another member of the same species affects performance, sometimes impeding it, sometimes enhancing it. For well-learned tasks, the effect is generally positive. This fundamental form of social influence, known as social facilitation, concerns human as well as nonhuman animals and affects many behaviors from food consumption to cognition. In psychology, this phenomenon has been known for over a century. Yet, its underlying mechanism (motivation or attention) remains debated, its relationship to stress unclear, and its neural substrates unknown. To address these issues, we investigated the behavioral, neuronal, and endocrinological markers of social facilitation in monkeys trained to touch images to obtain rewards. When another animal was present, performance was enhanced, but testing-induced stress (i.e., plasma cortisol elevation) was unchanged, as was metabolic activity in the brain motivation network. Rather, task-related activity in the (right) attention frontoparietal network encompassing the lateral prefrontal cortex, ventral premotor cortex, frontal eye field, and intraparietal sulcus was increased when another individual was present compared with when animals were tested alone. These results establish the very first link between the behavioral enhancement produced by the mere presence of a peer and an increase of metabolic activity in those brain structures underpinning attention.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elisabetta Monfardini
- INSERM, U1028, CNRS, UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, ImpAct Team, Lyon F-69000, France.,University of Lyon, Lyon F-69000, France.,Institut de Médecine Environnementale, Paris, France
| | | | - Fadila Hadj-Bouziane
- INSERM, U1028, CNRS, UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, ImpAct Team, Lyon F-69000, France.,University of Lyon, Lyon F-69000, France
| | - Clément Hynaux
- INSERM, U1028, CNRS, UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, ImpAct Team, Lyon F-69000, France.,University of Lyon, Lyon F-69000, France
| | | | - Pascal Huguet
- Aix-Marseille Université, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), UMR 7290-LPC and Fédération de Recherche 3C, Marseille, France
| | | | - Martine Meunier
- INSERM, U1028, CNRS, UMR5292, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, ImpAct Team, Lyon F-69000, France.,University of Lyon, Lyon F-69000, France
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Clauss JA, Avery SN, Blackford JU. The nature of individual differences in inhibited temperament and risk for psychiatric disease: A review and meta-analysis. Prog Neurobiol 2015; 127-128:23-45. [PMID: 25784645 PMCID: PMC4516130 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2015.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2014] [Revised: 03/03/2015] [Accepted: 03/08/2015] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
What makes us different from one another? Why does one person jump out of airplanes for fun while another prefers to stay home and read? Why are some babies born with a predisposition to become anxious? Questions about individual differences in temperament have engaged the minds of scientists, psychologists, and philosophers for centuries. Recent technological advances in neuroimaging and genetics provide an unprecedented opportunity to answer these questions. Here we review the literature on the neurobiology of one of the most basic individual differences-the tendency to approach or avoid novelty. This trait, called inhibited temperament, is innate, heritable, and observed across species. Importantly, inhibited temperament also confers risk for psychiatric disease. Here, we provide a comprehensive review of inhibited temperament, including neuroimaging and genetic studies in human and non-human primates. We conducted a meta-analysis of neuroimaging findings in inhibited humans that points to alterations in a fronto-limbic-basal ganglia circuit; these findings provide the basis of a model of inhibited temperament neurocircuitry. Lesion and neuroimaging studies in non-human primate models of inhibited temperament highlight roles for the amygdala, hippocampus, orbitofrontal cortex, and dorsal prefrontal cortex. Genetic studies highlight a role for genes that regulate neurotransmitter function, such as the serotonin transporter polymorphisms (5-HTTLPR), as well as genes that regulate stress response, such as corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). Together these studies provide a foundation of knowledge about the genetic and neural substrates of this most basic of temperament traits. Future studies using novel imaging methods and genetic approaches promise to expand upon these biological bases of inhibited temperament and inform our understanding of risk for psychiatric disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J A Clauss
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, United States; Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, United States
| | - S N Avery
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, United States; Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, United States
| | - J U Blackford
- Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Zou H, Luan Y, Liu M, Agre LA, Buyske S, Xie Q, Cheng Z, Zhao G, Jin M, Guo N, Jin GJ, Yu L. Differential behavior patterns in cynomolgus monkey Macaca fascicularis in home cage in response to human gaze. J Med Primatol 2014; 44:1-11. [PMID: 25440079 DOI: 10.1111/jmp.12154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/20/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Non-human primates, when encountering human beings, show wariness and alertness. These behaviors differ when there is direct human gaze vs. when human averts his gaze. METHODS We observed cynomolgus monkey in their home cage and studied their behaviors in response to human gaze. Four behaviors were analyzed: opening mouth, staring at observer, agitated activity, and approaching observer. RESULTS Three behaviors appeared to be sensitive to human gaze between when the human observer gazed at the monkey and when the human observer looked away. Individual animals also displayed subpatterns of responses to human gaze. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that, even in their home cage, monkeys display a heightened level of awareness when gazed upon by a human observer, suggesting that human gaze may elicit emotional reactions. Further, under the human gaze, distinct behavioral subpatterns were apparent within the monkey cohort in our study, indicative of subgroups within the cohort.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hong Zou
- Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China; State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences and Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
30
|
Howell BR, Grand AP, McCormack KM, Shi Y, LaPrarie JL, Maestripieri D, Styner MA, Sanchez MM. Early adverse experience increases emotional reactivity in juvenile rhesus macaques: relation to amygdala volume. Dev Psychobiol 2014; 56:1735-46. [PMID: 25196846 PMCID: PMC4433484 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2013] [Accepted: 06/12/2014] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
This study investigated the impact of infant maltreatment on juvenile rhesus monkeys' behavioral reactivity to novel stimuli and its associations with amygdala volume. Behavioral reactivity to novel stimuli of varying threat intensity was measured using Approach/Avoidance (AA) and Human Intruder (HI) tasks. In vivo magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to measure amygdala volume. Interestingly, group behavioral differences were context-dependent. When exposed to a human intruder, maltreated subjects displayed more anxious behaviors than controls; however, when presented with fear-evoking objects, maltreated animals exhibited increased aggression and a shorter latency to inspect the objects. Finally, under testing conditions with the lowest levels of threat (neutral novel objects) maltreated animals also showed shorter latencies to inspect objects, and reduced avoidance and increased exploration compared to controls. This suggests alterations in threat assessment and less behavioral inhibition in animals with early adverse experience compared to controls. Some of these behavioral responses were associated with amygdala volume, which was positively correlated with abuse rates received during infancy, particularly reflecting a relationship with exploration, consistent with previous studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Brittany R Howell
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA; Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
31
|
Raper J, Bachevalier J, Wallen K, Sanchez M. Neonatal amygdala lesions alter basal cortisol levels in infant rhesus monkeys. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:818-29. [PMID: 23159012 PMCID: PMC3582756 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2012] [Revised: 08/01/2012] [Accepted: 09/05/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The amygdala is mostly thought to exert an excitatory influence on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, although its role regulating HPA basal tone is less clear, particularly during primate development. The current study examined the effects of neonatal amygdala lesions on basal HPA function and the postnatal testosterone (T) surge of rhesus monkeys reared with their mothers in large outdoor social groups. An early morning basal blood sample was collected at 2.5 months of age, whereas at 5 months samples were collected not only at sunrise, but also at mid-day and sunset to examine the diurnal rhythm of cortisol. At 2.5 months of age sham-operated males exhibited higher cortisol than females, but this sex difference was abolished by neonatal amygdalectomy, with lesioned males also showing lower basal cortisol than controls. Although neonatal amygdalectomy did not alter the postnatal T surge, there was a positive relationship between T and basal cortisol levels. At 5 months of age, neither the sex difference in cortisol, nor its correlation with T levels were apparent any longer. Instead, the diurnal cortisol rhythm of both males and females with amygdalectomy showed a blunted decline from mid-day to sunset compared to controls. These results indicate that neonatal amygdala damage alters basal HPA function in infant rhesus monkeys, affecting males only at early ages (at 2.5 months), while leaving the postnatal T surge intact, and resulting in a flattened diurnal rhythm in both genders at the later ages. Thus, the primate amygdala has a critical influence on the HPA axis in the first few months of life.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta, GA 30322, United States.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
32
|
Raper J, Wallen K, Sanchez MM, Stephens SBZ, Henry A, Villareal T, Bachevalier J. Sex-dependent role of the amygdala in the development of emotional and neuroendocrine reactivity to threatening stimuli in infant and juvenile rhesus monkeys. Horm Behav 2013; 63:646-58. [PMID: 23380162 PMCID: PMC3646621 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2013.01.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2013] [Accepted: 01/18/2013] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Amygdala dysfunction and abnormal fear and stress reactivity are common features of several developmental neuropsychiatric disorders. Yet, little is known about the exact role the amygdala plays in the development of threat detection and emotional modulation. The current study examined the effects of neonatal amygdala lesions on defensive, emotional, and neuroendocrine reactivity of infant rhesus monkeys reared with their mothers in large species-typical social groups. Monkeys received either bilateral MRI-guided ibotenic acid amygdala (Neo-A; n = 16) or sham (Neo-C; n = 12) lesions at 24.8 ± 1.2 days of age, or served as behavioral control (Neo-BC; n = 3). Defensive and emotional responses were assessed using the Human Intruder paradigm as infants and as juveniles (2.5 and 12 months of age, respectively), whereas neuroendocrine reactivity was only examined during the juvenile period. As infants, Neo-A animals expressed similar levels of freezing and hostile behaviors as compared to controls, whereas during the juvenile period Neo-A animals expressed significantly less freezing compared to controls. Interestingly, the sex of the infant modulated the behavioral effects of neonatal amygdalectomy, leading to different patterns of behavior depending on the sex and lesion status of the infant. Unlike controls, Neo-A infants did not modulate their behavioral responses based on the salience of the threat. The impact of neonatal amygdalectomy increased with age, such that Neo-A juveniles exhibited fewer emotional behaviors and increased cortisol response to the stressor as compared to controls. These data indicate that the amygdala plays a critical role in the development of both emotional and neuroendocrine reactivity as well as the expression of sexually dimorphic emotional expression.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Raper
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta GA 30322
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
| | - Kim Wallen
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta GA 30322
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
| | - Mar M. Sanchez
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
- Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, 101 Woodruff Circle, WMB suite 4000, Atlanta GA 30322
| | - Shannon B. Z. Stephens
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta GA 30322
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
| | - Amy Henry
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
| | - Trina Villareal
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
| | - Jocelyne Bachevalier
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, 36 Eagle Row, Atlanta GA 30322
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, 954 Gatewood Rd NE, Atlanta, GA 30329
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Kazama AM, Heuer E, Davis M, Bachevalier J. Effects of neonatal amygdala lesions on fear learning, conditioned inhibition, and extinction in adult macaques. Behav Neurosci 2013; 126:392-403. [PMID: 22642884 DOI: 10.1037/a0028241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Fear conditioning studies have demonstrated the critical role played by the amygdala in emotion processing. Although all lesion studies until now investigated the effect of adult-onset damage on fear conditioning, the current study assessed fear-learning abilities, as measured by fear-potentiated startle, in adult monkeys that had received neonatal neurotoxic amygdala damage or sham-operations. After fear acquisition, their abilities to learn and use a safety cue to modulate their fear to the conditioned cue, and, finally, to extinguish their response to the fear conditioned cue were measured with the AX+/BX- Paradigm. Neonatal amygdala damage retarded, but did not completely abolish, the acquisition of a learned fear. After acquisition of the fear signal, four of the six animals with neonatal amygdala lesions discriminated between the fear and safety cues and were also able to use the safety signal to reduce the potentiated-startle response and to extinguish the fear response when the air-blast was absent. In conclusion, the present results support the critical contribution of the amygdala during the early phases of fear conditioning that leads to quick, robust responses to potentially threatening stimuli, a highly adaptive process across all species and likely to be present in early infancy. The neonatal amygdala lesions also indicated the presence of amygdala-independent alternate pathways that are capable to support fear learning in the absence of a functional amygdala. This parallel processing of fear responses within these alternate pathways was also sufficient to support the ability to flexibly modulate the magnitude of the fear responses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Andy M Kazama
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30029, USA.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
34
|
Kazama A, Bachevalier J. Effects of Selective Neonatal Amygdala Damage on Concurrent Discrimination Learning and Reinforcer Devaluation in Monkeys. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2013; Suppl 7:5. [PMID: 24567865 PMCID: PMC3932052 DOI: 10.4172/2161-0487.s7-005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The amygdala is known to be a key neural structure in many neuropsychiatric disorders. Primarily known for its involvement in fear regulation, the amygdala also plays a critical role in appetitive flexible decision-making. Yet, its contribution to the development of flexible goal-directed behavior has not been thoroughly examined. DESIGN The current study examined flexible decision-making abilities after neonatal amygdala lesions in nonhuman primates using a behavioral paradigm known to measure the flexible monitoring of goal-directed choices in rodents, monkeys, and humans. METHOD Rhesus monkeys of both sexes were divided into two groups, a sham-operated control group (N=4) and a group with neonatal neurotoxic amygdala lesions (N=5). Animals received the lesions at 1-2 weeks and were tested at both four and six years of age on a concurrent discrimination reinforcer devaluation task. RESULTS Although neonatal amygdala damage spared learning stimulus-reward associations, it severely impaired the ability to flexibly shift object choices away from those items associated with devalued food rewards. The results were similar to those obtained in monkeys that had acquired the same lesions in adulthood. CONCLUSIONS Thus, the amygdala is critical for appetitive decision-making, and provide further evidence of little functional sparing after early amygdala insult. The findings are discussed in relation to other behavioral measures on the same animals and to clinical neuropsychiatric disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Am Kazama
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - J Bachevalier
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| |
Collapse
|