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Gong W, Zhao H, Wei Z, Feng T, Feng P. The functional connectivity between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and the medial prefrontal cortex underlying the association between self-control and delay discounting. Brain Struct Funct 2025; 230:71. [PMID: 40397223 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-025-02936-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2025] [Accepted: 05/07/2025] [Indexed: 05/22/2025]
Abstract
Delay discounting is the tendency for people to devalue future rewards as the time required to obtain them increases over time. Self-control is the ability to regulate behavior, emotions and cognition to achieve goals or adhere to social norms despite temptations, impulses or distractions. Previous studies have found that self-control was negatively correlated with delay discounting. However, the neural mechanism underlying the relationship between self-control and delay discounting remains unclear. To address this question, we examined the neural basis of the relationship between self-control and delay discounting using voxel-based morphometry(VBM) and resting-state functional connectivity analysis(RSFC). The behavioral results demonstrated a negative correlation between delay discounting and self-control. Furthermore, the voxel-based morphometry results showed a positive correlation between self-control and gray matter volume in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex(dlPFC). Moreover, self-control was positively correlated with functional connectivity between the medial prefrontal cortex(mPFC) and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. More importantly, the association between self-control and delay discounting was shown to be partially mediated by the functional connectivity between the dlPFC and mPFC. These findings suggested that dlPFC-mPFC functional connectivity could be the neural basis underlying the association between self-control and delay discounting, which provided novel insights into how self-control affected delay discounting and offered new explanations from a neural perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenzhuo Gong
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Hengyue Zhao
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Zhuoran Wei
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China
| | - Tingyong Feng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China.
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China.
| | - Pan Feng
- Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China.
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Ministry of Education, No. 2, Tiansheng Road, Beibei District, Chongqing, 400715, China.
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2
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Kapetaniou GE, Soutschek A. Beyond impulse control - toward a comprehensive neural account of future-oriented decision making. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2025; 172:106115. [PMID: 40122359 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2025.106115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2024] [Revised: 03/10/2025] [Accepted: 03/16/2025] [Indexed: 03/25/2025]
Abstract
The dominant focus of current neural models of future-oriented decision making is on the interplay between the brain's reward system and a frontoparietal network thought to implement impulse control. Here, we propose a re-interpretation of the contribution of frontoparietal activation to future-oriented behavior and argue that future-oriented decisions are influenced by a variety of psychological mechanisms implemented by dissociable brain mechanisms. We review the literature on the neural mechanisms underlying the influence of prospection, retrospection, framing, metacognition, and automatization on future-oriented decisions. We propose that the prefrontal cortex contributes to future-oriented decisions not by exerting impulse control but by constructing and updating the value of abstract future rewards. These prefrontal value representations interact with regions involved in reward processing (neural reward system), prospection (hippocampus, temporal cortex), metacognition (frontopolar cortex), and habitual behavior (dorsal striatum). The proposed account of the brain mechanisms underlying future-oriented decisions has several implications for both basic and clinical research: First, by reconciling the idea of frontoparietal control processes with construal accounts of intertemporal choice, we offer an alternative interpretation of the canonical prefrontal activation during future-oriented decisions. Second, we highlight the need for obtaining a better understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying future-oriented decisions beyond impulse control and of their contribution to myopic decisions in clinical disorders. Such a widened focus may, third, stimulate the development of novel neural interventions for the treatment of pathological impulsive decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia E Kapetaniou
- Department of Management, Technology and Economics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Alexander Soutschek
- Department for Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
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3
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Su Z, Garvert MM, Zhang L, Vogel TA, Cutler J, Husain M, Manohar SG, Lockwood PL. Dorsomedial and ventromedial prefrontal cortex lesions differentially impact social influence and temporal discounting. PLoS Biol 2025; 23:e3003079. [PMID: 40294095 PMCID: PMC12036846 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3003079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2025] [Indexed: 04/30/2025] Open
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has long been associated with economic and social decision-making in neuroimaging studies. Several debates question whether different ventral mPFC (vmPFC) and dorsal mPFC (dmPFC) regions have specific functions or whether there is a gradient supporting social and nonsocial cognition. Here, we tested an unusually large sample of rare participants with focal damage to the mPFC (N = 33), individuals with lesions elsewhere (N = 17), and healthy controls (N = 71) (total N = 121). Participants completed a temporal discounting task to estimate their baseline discounting preferences before learning the preferences of two other people, one who was more temporally impulsive and one more patient. We used Bayesian computational models to estimate baseline discounting and susceptibility to social influence after learning others' economic preferences. mPFC damage increased susceptibility to impulsive social influence compared to healthy controls and increased overall susceptibility to social influence compared to those with lesions elsewhere. Importantly, voxel-based lesion-symptom mapping (VLSM) of computational parameters showed that this heightened susceptibility to social influence was attributed specifically to damage to the dmPFC (area 9; permutation-based threshold-free cluster enhancement (TFCE) p < 0.025). In contrast, lesions in the vmPFC (areas 13 and 25) and ventral striatum were associated with a preference for seeking more immediate rewards (permutation-based TFCE p < 0.05). We show that the dmPFC is causally implicated in susceptibility to social influence, with distinct ventral portions of mPFC involved in temporal discounting. These findings provide causal evidence for sub-regions of the mPFC underpinning fundamental social and cognitive processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhilin Su
- Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Mona M. Garvert
- Faculty of Human Sciences, Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Lei Zhang
- Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Centre for Developmental Sciences, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Todd A. Vogel
- Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Centre for Developmental Sciences, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Jo Cutler
- Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Centre for Developmental Sciences, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Masud Husain
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Sanjay G. Manohar
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Patricia L. Lockwood
- Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Centre for Developmental Sciences, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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4
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Upton S, Froeliger B. Regulation of craving and underlying resting-state neural circuitry predict hazard of smoking lapse. Transl Psychiatry 2025; 15:101. [PMID: 40148270 PMCID: PMC11950297 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-025-03319-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2024] [Revised: 02/22/2025] [Accepted: 03/14/2025] [Indexed: 03/29/2025] Open
Abstract
Among individuals with substance use disorders, clinical outcomes may be improved by identifying brain-behavior models that predict drug re/lapse vulnerabilities such as the ability to regulate drug cravings and inhibit drug use. In a sample of nicotine-dependent adult cigarette smokers (N = 213), this laboratory study examined associations between regulation of craving (ROC) efficacy and smoking lapse, utilized functional connectivity multivariate pattern analysis (FC-MVPA) and seed-based connectivity (SBC) analyses to identify resting-state neural circuitry underlying ROC efficacy, and then examined if the identified ROC-mediated circuitry predicted hazard of smoking lapse. Regarding behavior, worse ROC efficacy predicted a greater hazard of smoking lapse. Regarding brain and behavior, FC-MVPA identified 29 brain-wide functional clusters associated with ROC efficacy. Follow-up SBC analyses using 9 of the FC-MVPA-derived clusters identified a total of 64 resting-state edges (i.e., cluster-to-cluster connections) underlying ROC efficacy, 10 of which were also associated with the hazard of smoking lapse. ROC efficacy edges also associated with smoking lapse were largely composed of connections between frontal-striatal-limbic clusters and sensory-motor clusters and better behavioral outcomes were associated with stronger resting-state FC. Findings suggest that both ROC efficacy and underlying resting-state neural circuitry may inform prediction models of re/lapse vulnerabilities and serve as treatment targets for cessation interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Spencer Upton
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA.
| | - Brett Froeliger
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
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Gill H, Badulescu S, Di Vincenzo JD, Tabassum A, McKenzie A, Shah H, Amin M, Llach CD, Rosenblat JD, McIntyre RS, Mansur RB. Metabolic factors modulate effort-based decision-making in major depressive disorder. J Affect Disord 2025; 373:88-93. [PMID: 39732399 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.12.090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2024] [Revised: 12/20/2024] [Accepted: 12/23/2024] [Indexed: 12/30/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Abnormalities in effort-based decision-making have been consistently reported in major depressive disorder (MDD). Evidence indicates that metabolic factors, such as insulin resistance and dyslipidemia, which are highly prevalent in MDD, are independently associated with reward disturbances. Herein, we investigate the moderating effect of metabolic factors on effort-based decision-making in individuals with MDD. METHODS Forty-nine adults with MDD completed the Effort Expenditure for Rewards Task (EEfRT). Anthropometric and laboratorial parameters were assessed in all participants. We conducted a factor analysis to identify combinations of correlated metabolic variables, and reduce the number of comparisons. RESULTS Proxy markers of elevated insulin resistance (OR: 0.816, p < 0.001) and hyperglycemia (OR: 0.898, p = 0.021) were associated with a lower willingness to exert physical effort for rewards in the EEfRT. In contrast, elevated HDL (OR: 1.165, p = 0.004), and elevated non-HDL cholesterol and triglycerides (OR: 1.184, p < 0.001) were associated with increased frequency of hard task choices. These associations were independent of age, sex, depressive symptoms severity and medication use. Computational modeling revealed that the insulin resistance (β = 0.275, p = 0.035) and cholesterol factors (β = 0.565, p < 0.001) were independently associated with increased effort discounting. LIMITATIONS Post-hoc analysis using a relatively small sample of convenience. CONCLUSIONS Metabolic factors significantly and independently modulated effort-based decision-making in patients with MDD. These results have implications for our understanding of reward disturbances in MDD, and offer insights for further mechanistic investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hartej Gill
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sebastian Badulescu
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joshua D Di Vincenzo
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Aniqa Tabassum
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Andrea McKenzie
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Hiya Shah
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Mahrus Amin
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Cristian-Daniel Llach
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joshua D Rosenblat
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Roger S McIntyre
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Brain and Cognition Discovery Foundation, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Rodrigo B Mansur
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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6
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Scholl J, Panchal P, Nelissen N, Atkinson LZ, Kolling N, Saunders KE, Geddes J, Rushworth MF, Nobre AC, Harrison PJ, Harmer CJ. Neural signatures of risk-taking adaptions across health, bipolar disorder, and lithium treatment. Mol Psychiatry 2025:10.1038/s41380-025-02900-w. [PMID: 39880901 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-025-02900-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Revised: 11/27/2024] [Accepted: 01/16/2025] [Indexed: 01/31/2025]
Abstract
Cognitive and neural mechanisms underlying bipolar disorder (BD) and its treatment are still poorly understood. Here we examined the role of adaptations in risk-taking using a reward-guided decision-making task. We recruited volunteers with high (n = 40) scores on the Mood Disorder Questionnaire, MDQ, suspected of high risk for bipolar disorder and those with low-risk scores (n = 37). We also recruited patients diagnosed with BD who were assigned (randomized, double-blind) to six weeks of lithium (n = 19) or placebo (n = 16) after a two-week baseline period (n = 22 for FMRI). Participants completed mood ratings daily over 50 (MDQ study) or 42 (BD study) days, as well as a risky decision-making task and functional magnetic resonance imaging. The task measured adaptation of risk taking to past outcomes (increased risk aversion after a previous win vs. loss, 'outcome history'). While the low MDQ group was risk averse after a win, this was less evident in the high MDQ group and least so in the patients with BD. During fMRI, 'outcome history' was linked to medial frontal pole activation at the time of the decision and this activation was reduced in the high risk MDQ vs. the low risk MDQ group. While lithium did not reverse the pattern of BD in the task, nor changed clinical symptoms of mania or depression, it changed reward processing in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Participants' modulation of risk-taking in response to reward outcomes was reduced as a function of risk for BD and diagnosed BD. These results provide a model for how reward may prime escalation of risk-related behaviours in bipolar disorder and how mood stabilising treatments may work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacqueline Scholl
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, Inserm, Lyon Neuroscience Research Centre U1028 UMR 5292, PsyR2 team, Centre Hospitalier Le Vinatier, Bron, France.
- Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity (OHBA), Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging (WIN), Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
| | | | | | - Lauren Z Atkinson
- Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity (OHBA), Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging (WIN), Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Nils Kolling
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Inserm, Stem Cell and Brain Research Institute U1208, Bron, France
| | - Kate Ea Saunders
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Warneford Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - John Geddes
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Warneford Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - Matthew Fs Rushworth
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging (WIN), University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Anna C Nobre
- Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity (OHBA), Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging (WIN), Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Psychology and Wu Tsai Institute, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Paul J Harrison
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Warneford Hospital, Oxford, UK
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7
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Mansur RB, Di Vincenzo JD, Badulescu S, Gill H, Tabassum A, López CL, Rosenblat JD, McIntyre RS. Are glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists anti-consummatory drugs? CNS Spectr 2024; 29:536-541. [PMID: 39801083 DOI: 10.1017/s109285292400244x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2025]
Abstract
Incretin-based treatments, such as glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists (eg liraglutide and semaglutide), have rapidly transformed obesity treatment. The well-documented weight loss effect from these agents is considered to be primarily a result of their actions on food intake, but frequent anecdotal reports from varied sources have suggested that they might also broadly affect consummatory behavior, including alcohol and drugs of abuse, suggesting a potential modulatory effect on reward behavior. Herein, we critically review the extant literature on the behavioral effects of GLP-1R agonists in humans, including their impact on feeding behavior, alcohol/drug intake, and overall reward response. We also consider the physiological and neurobiological underpinnings of GLP-1 actions, with a focus on its distinct central and peripheral roles, as well as its relationships with the broader energy homeostasis network. We conclude with a discussion on the implications of this line of research on how behavior is conceptualized, and the potential future directions for research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo B Mansur
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joshua D Di Vincenzo
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sebastian Badulescu
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Hartej Gill
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Aniqa Tabassum
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Cristian Llach López
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joshua D Rosenblat
- Mood Disorders Psychopharmacology Unit, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Roger S McIntyre
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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8
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Miller P, Kable JW, Lempert KM. Willingness to wait outperforms delay discounting in predicting drinking severity. J Exp Anal Behav 2024; 122:247-258. [PMID: 39251385 DOI: 10.1002/jeab.4210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 08/18/2024] [Indexed: 09/11/2024]
Abstract
Alcohol misuse ranks among the leading causes of preventable death worldwide. Therefore, discovering measures that can predict hazardous drinking is critical. The delay discounting paradigm-which assesses relative preference for immediate rewards over larger, later rewards-has frequently been used as a proxy for impulsive choice, but it does not capture how long someone is willing to wait for delayed rewards when the arrival time is uncertain. In contrast, a newer willingness-to-wait task measures how long someone is willing to wait for a delayed reward of uncertain timing before giving up. We hypothesized that performance in this willingness-to-wait task would be associated with drinking severity and that this task may even outperform delay discounting as a predictor of drinking severity. We pooled data from multiple studies of mostly college-aged adult participants. Drinking severity was assessed with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Willingness to wait under temporal uncertainty, but not delay discounting, was associated with severity of alcohol problems among participants who drank (n = 212). Individuals engaging in hazardous drinking were less willing to wait for rewards when delays were unknown than were individuals with low-risk drinking habits. Thus, willingness to wait under temporal uncertainty may be an important predictor of problematic drinking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pazia Miller
- Gordon F. Derner School of Psychology, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, USA
| | - Joseph W Kable
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Karolina M Lempert
- Gordon F. Derner School of Psychology, Adelphi University, Garden City, NY, USA
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9
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Ramduny J, Kelly C. Connectome-based fingerprinting: reproducibility, precision, and behavioral prediction. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024; 50:114-123. [PMID: 39147868 PMCID: PMC11525788 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-024-01962-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2024] [Revised: 08/02/2024] [Accepted: 08/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/17/2024]
Abstract
Functional magnetic resonance imaging-based functional connectivity enables the non-invasive mapping of individual differences in brain functional organization to individual differences in a vast array of behavioral phenotypes. This flexibility has renewed the search for neuroimaging-based biomarkers that exhibit reproducibility, prediction, and precision. Functional connectivity-based measures that share these three characteristics are key to achieving this goal. Here, we review the functional connectome fingerprinting approach and discuss its value, not only as a simple and intuitive conceptualization of the "functional connectome" that provides new insights into how the connectome is altered in association with psychiatric symptoms, but also as a straightforward and interpretable method for indexing the reproducibility of functional connectivity-based measures. We discuss how these advantages provide new avenues for strengthening reproducibility, precision, and behavioral prediction for functional connectomics and we consider new directions toward discovering better biomarkers for neuropsychiatric conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jivesh Ramduny
- Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
- Kavli Institute for Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Clare Kelly
- School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
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10
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Godefroy V, Durand A, Simon MC, Weber B, Kable J, Lerman C, Bergström F, Levy R, Batrancourt B, Schmidt L, Plassmann H, Koban L. A structural MRI marker predicts individual differences in impulsivity and classifies patients with behavioral-variant frontotemporal dementia from matched controls. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.09.12.612706. [PMID: 39345385 PMCID: PMC11429931 DOI: 10.1101/2024.09.12.612706] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/01/2024]
Abstract
Impulsivity and higher preference for sooner over later rewards (i.e., delay discounting) are transdiagnostic markers of many psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders. Yet, their neurobiological basis is still debated. Here, we aimed at 1) identifying a structural MRI signature of delay discounting in healthy adults, and 2) validating it in patients with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD)-a neurodegenerative disease characterized by high impulsivity. We used a machine-learning algorithm to predict individual differences in delay discounting rates based on whole-brain grey matter density maps in healthy male adults (Study 1, N=117). This resulted in a cross-validated prediction-outcome correlation of r=0.35 (p=0.0028). We tested the validity of this brain signature in an independent sample of 166 healthy adults (Study 2) and its clinical relevance in 24 bvFTD patients and 18 matched controls (Study 3). In Study 2, responses of the brain signature did not correlate significantly with discounting rates, but in both Studies 1 and 2, they correlated with psychometric measures of trait urgency-a measure of impulsivity. In Study 3, brain-based predictions correlated with discounting rates, separated bvFTD patients from controls with 81% accuracy, and were associated with the severity of disinhibition among patients. Our results suggest a new structural brain pattern-the Structural Impulsivity Signature (SIS)-which predicts individual differences in impulsivity from whole-brain structure, albeit with small-to-moderate effect sizes. It provides a new brain target that can be tested in future studies to assess its diagnostic value in bvFTD and other neurodegenerative and psychiatric conditions characterized by high impulsivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valérie Godefroy
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, INSERM, Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, F-69500, Bron, France
| | - Anais Durand
- Paris Brain Institute (ICM), INSERM U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France
| | | | - Bernd Weber
- Center for Economics and Neuroscience, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Joseph Kable
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | | | - Fredrik Bergström
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Portugal
- Department of Psychology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Richard Levy
- Paris Brain Institute (ICM), INSERM U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France
| | - Bénédicte Batrancourt
- Paris Brain Institute (ICM), INSERM U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France
| | - Liane Schmidt
- Paris Brain Institute (ICM), INSERM U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France
| | - Hilke Plassmann
- Paris Brain Institute (ICM), INSERM U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France UMR 7225, Sorbonne University, Paris, France
- Marketing Area, INSEAD, Fontainebleau, France
| | - Leonie Koban
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, INSERM, Centre de Recherche en Neurosciences de Lyon CRNL U1028 UMR5292, F-69500, Bron, France
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11
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Terenzi D, Silvetti M, Zoccolan G, Rumiati RI, Aiello M. The impact of subclinical psychotic symptoms on delay and effort discounting: Insights from behavioral, computational, and electrophysiological methods. Schizophr Res 2024; 271:271-280. [PMID: 39068879 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2024.07.044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Revised: 06/11/2024] [Accepted: 07/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/30/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The ability to value rewards is crucial for adaptive behavior and is influenced by the time and effort required to obtain them. Impairments in these computations have been observed in patients with schizophrenia and may be present in individuals with subclinical psychotic symptoms (PS). METHODS In this study, we employed delay and effort-discounting tasks with food rewards in thirty-nine participants divided into high and low levels of PS. We investigated the underlying mechanisms of effort-discounting through computational modelling of dopamine prefrontal and subcortical circuits and the electrophysiological biomarker of both delay and effort-discounting alterations through resting-state frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA). RESULTS Results revealed greater delay discounting in the High PS group compared to the Low PS group but no differences in the effort discounting task. However, in this task, the same levels of estimated dopamine release were associated with a lower willingness to exert effort for high-calorie food rewards in High PS participants compared to Low PS participants. Although there were no significant differences in FAA between the High PS and Low PS groups, FAA was significantly associated with the severity of participants' negative symptoms. CONCLUSIONS Our study suggests that the dysfunction in temporal and effort cost computations, seen in patients with schizophrenia, may be present in individuals with subclinical PS. These findings provide valuable insight into the early vulnerability markers (behavioral, computational, and electrophysiological) for psychosis, which may aid in the development of preventive interventions. These findings are preliminary and warrant further investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Damiano Terenzi
- Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, UMR 7289 CNRS, Aix-Marseille Université, Marseille, France.
| | - Massimo Silvetti
- Computational and Translational Neuroscience Lab (CTNLab), Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council (CNR), Rome, Italy
| | | | - Raffaella I Rumiati
- Area of Neuroscience, SISSA, Trieste, Italy; University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Marilena Aiello
- Department of Psychology "Renzo Canestrari", University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
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12
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Bergström F, Schu G, Lee S, Lerman C, Kable JW. Multivariate analysis of multimodal brain structure predicts individual differences in risk and intertemporal preference. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.07.04.602046. [PMID: 39026787 PMCID: PMC11257450 DOI: 10.1101/2024.07.04.602046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Large changes to brain structure (e.g., from damage or disease) can explain alterations in behavior. It is therefore plausible that smaller structural differences in healthy samples can be used to better understand and predict individual differences in behavior. Despite the brain's multivariate and distributed structure-to-function mapping, most studies have used univariate analyses of individual structural brain measures. Here we used a multivariate approach in a multimodal data set composed of volumetric, surface-based, diffusion-based, and functional resting-state MRI measures to predict reliable individual differences in risk and intertemporal preferences. We show that combining twelve brain structure measures led to better predictions across tasks than using any individual measure, and by examining model coefficients, we visualize the relative contribution of different brain measures from different brain regions. Using a multivariate approach to brain structure-to-function mapping that combines across many brain structure properties, along with reliably measured behavior phenotypes, may increase out-of-sample prediction accuracies and insight into neural underpinnings. Furthermore, this methodological approach may be useful to improve predictions and neural insight across basic, translational, and clinical research fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fredrik Bergström
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Portugal
- Department of Psychology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Guilherme Schu
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Sangil Lee
- Social Science Matrix, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Caryn Lerman
- Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Joseph W. Kable
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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13
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Harp NR, Wager TD, Kober H. Neuromarkers in addiction: definitions, development strategies, and recent advances. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2024; 131:509-523. [PMID: 38630190 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-024-02766-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Substance use disorders (SUDs) are the most costly and prevalent psychiatric conditions. Recent calls emphasize a need for biomarkers-measurable, stable indicators of normal and abnormal processes and response to treatment or environmental agents-and, in particular, brain-based neuromarkers that will advance understanding of the neurobiological basis of SUDs and clinical practice. To develop neuromarkers, researchers must be grounded in evidence that a putative marker (i) is sensitive and specific to the psychological phenomenon of interest, (ii) constitutes a predictive model, and (iii) generalizes to novel observations (e.g., through internal cross-validation and external application to novel data). These neuromarkers may be used to index risk of developing SUDs (susceptibility), classify individuals with SUDs (diagnostic), assess risk for progression to more severe pathology (prognostic) or index current severity of pathology (monitoring), detect response to treatment (response), and predict individualized treatment outcomes (predictive). Here, we outline guidelines for developing and assessing neuromarkers, we then review recent advances toward neuromarkers in addiction neuroscience centering our discussion around neuromarkers of craving-a core feature of SUDs. In doing so, we specifically focus on the Neurobiological Craving Signature (NCS), which show great promise for meeting the demand of neuromarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas R Harp
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Tor D Wager
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA
| | - Hedy Kober
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
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14
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Falkenstein M, Simon MC, Mantri A, Weber B, Koban L, Plassmann H. Impact of the gut microbiome composition on social decision-making. PNAS NEXUS 2024; 3:pgae166. [PMID: 38745566 PMCID: PMC11093127 DOI: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 04/02/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
There is increasing evidence for the role of the gut microbiome in the regulation of socio-affective behavior in animals and clinical conditions. However, whether and how the composition of the gut microbiome may influence social decision-making in health remains unknown. Here, we tested the causal effects of a 7-week synbiotic (vs. placebo) dietary intervention on altruistic social punishment behavior in an ultimatum game. Results showed that the intervention increased participants' willingness to forgo a monetary payoff when treated unfairly. This change in social decision-making was related to changes in fasting-state serum levels of the dopamine-precursor tyrosine proposing a potential mechanistic link along the gut-microbiota-brain-behavior axis. These results improve our understanding of the bidirectional role body-brain interactions play in social decision-making and why humans at times act "irrationally" according to standard economic theory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Falkenstein
- Control-Interoception-Attention Team, Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute (ICM), Inserm, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié Salpêtrière, 47 boulevard de l’Hôpital, 75013 Paris, France
| | - Marie-Christine Simon
- Institute of Nutrition and Food Science (IEL), Nutrition and Microbiota, University of Bonn, Katzenburgweg 7, 53115 Bonn, Germany
| | - Aakash Mantri
- Institute of Nutrition and Food Science (IEL), Nutrition and Microbiota, University of Bonn, Katzenburgweg 7, 53115 Bonn, Germany
- Institute for Genomic Statistics and Bioinformatics, University of Bonn and University Hospital Bonn, Venusberg Campus 1, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Bernd Weber
- Institute of Experimental Epileptology and Cognition Research, University of Bonn and University Hospital Bonn, Venusberg-Campus 1, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Leonie Koban
- Control-Interoception-Attention Team, Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute (ICM), Inserm, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié Salpêtrière, 47 boulevard de l’Hôpital, 75013 Paris, France
- Marketing Area INSEAD, Boulevard de Constance, 77300 Fontainebleau, France
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CNRS, INSERM, Claude Bernard University Lyon 1, CH Le Vinatier - Bâtiment 462 - Neurocampus, 95 Bd Pinel, 69500 Bron, France
| | - Hilke Plassmann
- Control-Interoception-Attention Team, Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute (ICM), Inserm, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié Salpêtrière, 47 boulevard de l’Hôpital, 75013 Paris, France
- Marketing Area INSEAD, Boulevard de Constance, 77300 Fontainebleau, France
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15
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Martinez CA, Pantazopoulos H, Gisabella B, Stephens ET, Garteiser J, Del Arco A. Choice impulsivity after repeated social stress is associated with increased perineuronal nets in the medial prefrontal cortex. Sci Rep 2024; 14:7093. [PMID: 38528075 PMCID: PMC10963730 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-57599-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/20/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Repeated stress can predispose to substance abuse. However, behavioral and neurobiological adaptations that link stress to substance abuse remain unclear. This study investigates whether intermittent social defeat (ISD), a stress protocol that promotes drug-seeking behavior, alters intertemporal decision-making and cortical inhibitory function in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Male long evans rats were trained in a delay discounting task (DDT) where rats make a choice between a fast (1 s) small reward (1 sugar pellet) and a large reward (3 sugar pellets) that comes with a time delay (10 s or 20 s). A decreased preference for delayed rewards was used as an index of choice impulsivity. Rats were exposed to ISD and tested in the DDT 24 h after each stress episode, and one- and two-weeks after the last stress episode. Immunohistochemistry was performed in rat's brains to evaluate perineuronal nets (PNNs) and parvalbumin GABA interneurons (PV) labeling as markers of inhibitory function in mPFC. ISD significantly decreased the preference for delayed large rewards in low impulsive, but not high impulsive, animals. ISD also increased the density of PNNs in the mPFC. These results suggest that increased choice impulsivity and cortical inhibition predispose animals to seek out rewards after stress.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Harry Pantazopoulos
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Medical School, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA
| | - Barbara Gisabella
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Medical School, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA
| | - Emily T Stephens
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Medical School, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA
| | - Jacob Garteiser
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Medical School, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA
| | - Alberto Del Arco
- HESRM, School of Applied Sciences, University of Mississippi, Oxford, MS, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Medical School, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA.
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16
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Johansson E, Xiong HY, Polli A, Coppieters I, Nijs J. Towards a Real-Life Understanding of the Altered Functional Behaviour of the Default Mode and Salience Network in Chronic Pain: Are People with Chronic Pain Overthinking the Meaning of Their Pain? J Clin Med 2024; 13:1645. [PMID: 38541870 PMCID: PMC10971341 DOI: 10.3390/jcm13061645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2024] [Revised: 03/10/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 11/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Chronic pain is a source of substantial physical and psychological suffering, yet a clear understanding of the pathogenesis of chronic pain is lacking. Repeated studies have reported an altered behaviour of the salience network (SN) and default mode network (DMN) in people with chronic pain, and a majority of these studies report an altered behaviour of the dorsal ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) within the anterior DMN. In this topical review, we therefore focus specifically on the role of the dorsal vmPFC in chronic pain to provide an updated perspective on the cortical mechanisms of chronic pain. We suggest that increased activity in the dorsal vmPFC may reflect maladaptive overthinking about the meaning of pain for oneself and one's actions. We also suggest that such overthinking, if negative, may increase the personal "threat" of a given context, as possibly reflected by increased activity in, and functional connectivity to, the anterior insular cortex within the SN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elin Johansson
- Pain in Motion Research Group (PAIN), Department of Physiotherapy, Human Physiology and Anatomy, Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (E.J.); (H.-Y.X.); (A.P.); (I.C.)
- Laboratory for Brain-Gut Axis Studies (LaBGAS), Translational Research in Gastrointestinal Disorders (TARGID), Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (CHROMETA), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- Flanders Research Foundation-FWO, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Huan-Yu Xiong
- Pain in Motion Research Group (PAIN), Department of Physiotherapy, Human Physiology and Anatomy, Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (E.J.); (H.-Y.X.); (A.P.); (I.C.)
| | - Andrea Polli
- Pain in Motion Research Group (PAIN), Department of Physiotherapy, Human Physiology and Anatomy, Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (E.J.); (H.-Y.X.); (A.P.); (I.C.)
- Flanders Research Foundation-FWO, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Centre for Environment and Health, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Iris Coppieters
- Pain in Motion Research Group (PAIN), Department of Physiotherapy, Human Physiology and Anatomy, Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (E.J.); (H.-Y.X.); (A.P.); (I.C.)
- Laboratory for Brain-Gut Axis Studies (LaBGAS), Translational Research in Gastrointestinal Disorders (TARGID), Department of Chronic Diseases and Metabolism (CHROMETA), Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
- The Experimental Health Psychology Research Group, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Jo Nijs
- Pain in Motion Research Group (PAIN), Department of Physiotherapy, Human Physiology and Anatomy, Faculty of Physical Education and Physiotherapy, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; (E.J.); (H.-Y.X.); (A.P.); (I.C.)
- Chronic Pain Rehabilitation, Department of Physical Medicine and Physiotherapy, University Hospital Brussels, 1090 Brussel, Belgium
- Department of Health and Rehabilitation, Unit of Physiotherapy, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
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17
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Ji S, Yang F, Li X. Spontaneous neural activity in the three principal networks underlying delay discounting: a resting-state fMRI study. Front Psychiatry 2024; 15:1320830. [PMID: 38370559 PMCID: PMC10869524 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2024.1320830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Delay discounting, the decline in the subjective value of future rewards over time, has traditionally been understood through a tripartite neural network model, comprising the valuation, cognitive control, and prospection networks. To investigate the applicability of this model in a resting-state context, we employed a monetary choice questionnaire to quantify delay discounting and utilized resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) to explore the role of spontaneous brain activity, specifically regional homogeneity (ReHo), in influencing individual differences in delay discounting across a large cohort (N = 257). Preliminary analyses revealed a significant negative correlation between delay discounting tendencies and the ReHo in both the left insula and the right hippocampus, respectively. Subsequent resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) analyses, using these regions as seed ROIs, disclosed that all implicated brain regions conform to the three principal networks traditionally associated with delay discounting. Our findings offer novel insights into the role of spontaneous neural activity in shaping individual variations in delay discounting at both regional and network levels, providing the first empirical evidence supporting the applicability of the tripartite network model in a resting-state context.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Xueting Li
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China
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18
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Khalid I, Rodrigues B, Dreyfus H, Frileux S, Meissner K, Fossati P, Hare TA, Schmidt L. Mapping expectancy-based appetitive placebo effects onto the brain in women. Nat Commun 2024; 15:248. [PMID: 38172100 PMCID: PMC10764825 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44569-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Suggestions about hunger can generate placebo effects on hunger experiences. But, the underlying neurocognitive mechanisms are unknown. Here, we show in 255 women that hunger expectancies, induced by suggestion-based placebo interventions, determine hunger sensations and economic food choices. Functional magnetic resonance imaging in a subgroup (n = 57/255) provides evidence that the strength of expecting the placebo to decrease hunger moderates medial prefrontal cortex activation at the time of food choice and attenuates ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) responses to food value. Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activation linked to interference resolution formally mediates the suggestion-based placebo effects on hunger. A drift-diffusion model characterizes this effect by showing that the hunger suggestions bias participants' food choices and how much they weigh tastiness against the healthiness of food, which further moderates vmPFC-dlPFC psychophysiological interactions when participants expect decreased hunger. Thus, suggestion-induced beliefs about hunger shape hunger addressing economic choices through cognitive regulation of value computation within the prefrontal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iraj Khalid
- Sorbonne University, Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute - ICM, INSERM, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Belina Rodrigues
- Sorbonne University, Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute - ICM, INSERM, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Hippolyte Dreyfus
- Sorbonne University, Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute - ICM, INSERM, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Solène Frileux
- Sorbonne University, Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute - ICM, INSERM, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Karin Meissner
- Institute of Medical Psychology, Medical Faculty, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
- Division of Health Promotion, Faculty of Applied Natural Sciences and Health, Coburg University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Coburg, Germany
| | - Philippe Fossati
- Sorbonne University, Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute - ICM, INSERM, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
- Adult Psychiatry Department, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France
| | - Todd Anthony Hare
- Zürich Center for Neuroeconomics, Department of Economics, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Liane Schmidt
- Sorbonne University, Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute - ICM, INSERM, CNRS, APHP, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris, France.
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19
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Baumgartner T, Guizar Rosales E, Knoch D. Neural mechanisms underlying interindividual differences in intergenerational sustainable behavior. Sci Rep 2023; 13:17357. [PMID: 37833384 PMCID: PMC10575884 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-44250-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/05/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Intergenerational sustainability is a pressing challenge, which is exacerbated by the fact that the current generation must make sacrifices today to ensure the well-being of future generations. There are large interindividual differences in intergenerational sustainable behavior. However, the neural mechanisms underlying these interindividual differences have remained unexplored. Here, we combined fMRI with a consequential intergenerational sustainability paradigm in a sample of 72 healthy students. Specifically, we analyzed task-dependent functional activity and connectivity during intergenerational sustainable decision-making, focusing on the state-like neurophysiological processes giving rise to behavioral heterogeneity in sustainability. We found that differences in neural communication within and between the mentalizing (TPJ/DMPFC) and cognitive control (ACC/DLPFC) network are related to interindividual differences in intergenerational sustainable behavior. Specifically, the stronger the functional connectivity within and between these networks during decision-making, the more individuals behaved intergenerationally sustainably. Corroborated by mediation analyses, these findings suggest that differences in the engagement of perspective-taking and self-control processes underly interindividual differences in intergenerational sustainable behavior. By answering recent calls for leveraging behavioral and neuroscience for sustainability research, we hope to contribute to interdisciplinary efforts to advance the understanding of interindividual differences in intergenerational sustainability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Baumgartner
- Department of Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, CH-3012, Bern, Switzerland.
- Translational Imaging Center (TIC), Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine, Bern, Switzerland.
| | - Emmanuel Guizar Rosales
- Department of Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, CH-3012, Bern, Switzerland
- Translational Imaging Center (TIC), Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Daria Knoch
- Department of Social Neuroscience and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, CH-3012, Bern, Switzerland
- Translational Imaging Center (TIC), Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine, Bern, Switzerland
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20
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Mehta K, Pines A, Adebimpe A, Larsen B, Bassett DS, Calkins ME, Baller EB, Gell M, Patrick LM, Shafiei G, Gur RE, Gur RC, Roalf DR, Romer D, Wolf DH, Kable JW, Satterthwaite TD. Individual differences in delay discounting are associated with dorsal prefrontal cortex connectivity in children, adolescents, and adults. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2023; 62:101265. [PMID: 37327696 PMCID: PMC10285090 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2023.101265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2023] [Revised: 05/24/2023] [Accepted: 06/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Delay discounting is a measure of impulsive choice relevant in adolescence as it predicts many real-life outcomes, including obesity and academic achievement. However, resting-state functional networks underlying individual differences in delay discounting during youth remain incompletely described. Here we investigate the association between multivariate patterns of functional connectivity and individual differences in impulsive choice in a large sample of children, adolescents, and adults. A total of 293 participants (9-23 years) completed a delay discounting task and underwent 3T resting-state fMRI. A connectome-wide analysis using multivariate distance-based matrix regression was used to examine whole-brain relationships between delay discounting and functional connectivity. These analyses revealed that individual differences in delay discounting were associated with patterns of connectivity emanating from the left dorsal prefrontal cortex, a default mode network hub. Greater delay discounting was associated with greater functional connectivity between the dorsal prefrontal cortex and other default mode network regions, but reduced connectivity with regions in the dorsal and ventral attention networks. These results suggest delay discounting in children, adolescents, and adults is associated with individual differences in relationships both within the default mode network and between the default mode and networks involved in attentional and cognitive control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kahini Mehta
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Adam Pines
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Azeez Adebimpe
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Bart Larsen
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Danielle S Bassett
- Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA; Department of Electrical & Systems Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Santa Fe Institute, Santa Fe, NM, 87051, USA
| | - Monica E Calkins
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Erica B Baller
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Martin Gell
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany; Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7: Brain & Behaviour), Research Centre Jülich, Jülich, Germany
| | - Lauren M Patrick
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Golia Shafiei
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Raquel E Gur
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Penn/CHOP Lifespan Brain Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Ruben C Gur
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Penn/CHOP Lifespan Brain Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - David R Roalf
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Daniel Romer
- Annenberg Public Policy Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Daniel H Wolf
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Joseph W Kable
- Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Theodore D Satterthwaite
- Lifespan Informatics and Neuroimaging Center (PennLINC), Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA; Penn/CHOP Lifespan Brain Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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