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DeGutis J, Sullivan DR, Agnoli S, Stumps A, Logue M, Brown E, Verfaellie M, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, Esterman M. Less is more: Smaller hippocampal subfield volumes predict greater improvements in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms over 2 years. Behav Neurosci 2024; 138:94-107. [PMID: 38661669 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a heterogeneous disorder, and symptom severity varies over time. Neurobiological factors that predict PTSD symptoms and their chronicity remain unclear. This study investigated whether the volume of the hippocampus and its subfields, particularly cornu ammonis (CA) 1, CA3, and dentate gyrus, are associated with current PTSD symptoms and whether they predict PTSD symptom changes over 2 years. We examined clinical and structural magnetic resonance imaging measures from 252 trauma-exposed post-9/11 veterans (159 with Time 1 PTSD diagnosis) during assessments approximately 2 years apart. Automated hippocampal subfield segmentation was performed with FreeSurfer Version 7.1, producing 19 bilateral subfields. PTSD symptoms were measured at each assessment using the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale-IV (CAPS). All models included total intracranial volume as a covariate. First, similar to previous reports, we showed that smaller overall hippocampal volume was associated with greater PTSD symptom severity at Time 1. Notably, when examining regions of interest (CA1, CA3, dentate gyrus), we found that smaller Time 1 hippocampal volumes in the bilateral CA1-body and CA2/3-body predicted decreased PTSD symptom severity at Time 2. These findings were not accounted for by combat exposure or treatment history. Additionally, both Time 1 CA1-body and CA2/3-body volume showed unique associations with changes in avoidance/numbing, but not with changes in reexperiencing or hyperarousal symptoms. This supports a more complex and nuanced relationship between hippocampal structure and PTSD symptoms, where during the posttrauma years bigger may not always mean better, and suggests that the CA1-body and CA2/3-body are important factors in the maintenance of PTSD symptoms. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Danielle R Sullivan
- National Center for Posttraumtic Stress Disorder, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Sam Agnoli
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Anna Stumps
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Mark Logue
- National Center for Posttraumtic Stress Disorder, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Emma Brown
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | | | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
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Wooten T, Esterman M, Brunyé TT, Taylor HA, Ward N. The relationship between sustained attention and parasympathetic functioning. Int J Psychophysiol 2024; 197:112298. [PMID: 38199297 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2024.112298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
Sustained attention (SA) is an important cognitive ability that plays a crucial role in successful cognitive control. Resting vagally-mediated heart rate variability (vmHRV) has emerged as an informative index of parasympathetic nervous system activity and a sensitive correlate of individual differences in cognitive control. However, it is unclear how resting vmHRV is associated with individual differences in sustained attention. The primary aim of the current study was to assess if resting vmHRV was associated with individual differences in performance on a neuropsychological assessment of sustained attention. We further aimed to characterize the relationship between resting vmHRV and dispositional factors related to sustained attention, specifically attentional errors in daily life, self-regulation, mindfulness and media-multitasking. Based on previous work, we hypothesized higher resting vmHRV would be associated with better sustained attention across task-based and self-report measures. We did not find resting vmHRV to be significantly associated with performance measures on a task-based assessment of sustained attention. Further, resting vmHRV was not significantly associated with attention errors, self-regulation, mindfulness, or media-multitasking. This work stands to expand the current understanding between parasympathetic functioning, cognition, and behavior, investigating the unexplored domain of sustained attention and related dispositional factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Wooten
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA.
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Tad T Brunyé
- Center for Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA; U.S. Army DEVCOM, Natick, MA, USA
| | - Holly A Taylor
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA; Center for Applied Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
| | - Nathan Ward
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
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Nanni-Zepeda M, DeGutis J, Wu C, Rothlein D, Fan Y, Grimm S, Walter M, Esterman M, Zuberer A. Neural signatures of shared subjective affective engagement and disengagement during movie viewing. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26622. [PMID: 38488450 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Revised: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024] Open
Abstract
When watching a negative emotional movie, we differ from person to person in the ease with which we engage and the difficulty with which we disengage throughout a temporally evolving narrative. We investigated neural responses of emotional processing, by considering inter-individual synchronization in subjective emotional engagement and disengagement. The neural underpinnings of these shared responses are ideally studied in naturalistic scenarios like movie viewing, wherein individuals emotionally engage and disengage at their own time and pace throughout the course of a narrative. Despite the rich data that naturalistic designs can bring to the study, there is a challenge in determining time-resolved behavioral markers of subjective engagement and disengagement and their underlying neural responses. We used a within-subject cross-over design instructing 22 subjects to watch clips of either neutral or sad content while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants watched the same movies a second time while continuously annotating the perceived emotional intensity, thus enabling the mapping of brain activity and emotional experience. Our analyses revealed that between-participant similarity in waxing (engagement) and waning (disengagement) of emotional intensity was directly related to the between-participant similarity in spatiotemporal patterns of brain activation during the movie(s). Similar patterns of engagement reflected common activation in the bilateral ventromedial prefrontal cortex, regions often involved in self-referenced evaluation and generation of negative emotions. Similar patterns of disengagement reflected common activation in central executive and default mode network regions often involved in top-down emotion regulation. Together this work helps to better understand cognitive and neural mechanisms underpinning engagement and disengagement from emotionally evocative narratives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanni Nanni-Zepeda
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Charley Wu
- Human and Machine Cognition Lab, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - David Rothlein
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Yan Fan
- Department Psychology and Neurosciences, Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the TU Dortmund (IfADo), Dortmund, Germany
| | - Simone Grimm
- Berlin Institute of Health, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Psychology, MSB Medical School Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Martin Walter
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Clinical Affective Neuroimaging Laboratory, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Department of Behavioral Neurology, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Agnieszka Zuberer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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Fry R, Li X, Evans TC, Esterman M, Tanaka J, DeGutis J. Investigating the Influence of Autism Spectrum Traits on Face Processing Mechanisms in Developmental Prosopagnosia. J Autism Dev Disord 2023; 53:4787-4808. [PMID: 36173532 PMCID: PMC10812037 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05705-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/24/2022] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
Abstract
Autism traits are common exclusionary criteria in developmental prosopagnosia (DP) studies. We investigated whether autism traits produce qualitatively different face processing in 43 DPs with high vs. low autism quotient (AQ) scores. Compared to controls (n = 27), face memory and perception were similarly deficient in the high- and low-AQ DPs, with the high-AQ DP group additionally showing deficient face emotion recognition. Task-based fMRI revealed reduced occipito-temporal face selectivity in both groups, with high-AQ DPs additionally demonstrating decreased posterior superior temporal sulcus selectivity. Resting-state fMRI showed similar reduced face-selective network connectivity in both DP groups compared with controls. Together, this demonstrates that high- and low-AQ DP groups have very similar face processing deficits, with additional facial emotion deficits in high-AQ DPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Regan Fry
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Ave., 182JP, Boston, MA, 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Xian Li
- Psychological and Brain Science Department, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Travis C Evans
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Ave., 182JP, Boston, MA, 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Ave., 182JP, Boston, MA, 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - James Tanaka
- Department of Psychology, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Ave., 182JP, Boston, MA, 02130, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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DeGutis J, Agnoli S, Gaudet CE, Stumps A, Kim S, Evans TC, Jagger-Rickels A, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, Fortier CB, Esterman M. Inhibitory control and alcohol use history predict changes in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Neuropsychology 2023; 37:907-922. [PMID: 37326535 DOI: 10.1037/neu0000909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with significant disability and can become chronic. Predictors of PTSD symptom changes over time, especially in those with a PTSD diagnosis, remain incompletely characterized. METHOD In the present study, we examined 187 post-9/11 veterans (Mage = 32.8 years, 87% male) diagnosed with PTSD who performed two extensive clinical and cognitive evaluations approximately 2 years apart. RESULTS We found that greater PTSD symptom reductions over time were related to lower lifetime drinking history and better baseline inhibitory control ability (Color-Word Inhibition and Inhibition/Switching), though not performance on other executive function tasks. Further, groups with reliably Improved, Worsened, or Chronic PTSD symptoms demonstrated significant differences in baseline inhibitory control and lifetime drinking history, with marked drinking differences starting in the early-to-mid 20s. We also found that PTSD symptom changes showed little-to-no associations with changes in inhibitory control or alcohol consumption. CONCLUSIONS Together, these findings suggest that, in those diagnosed with PTSD, inhibitory control and alcohol use history reflect relatively stable risk/resiliency factors predictive of PTSD chronicity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Sam Agnoli
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | | | - Anna Stumps
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Sahra Kim
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Travis C Evans
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | | | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for Traumatic Brain Injury and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
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DeGutis J, Agnoli S, Bernstein JPK, Jagger-Rickels A, Evans TC, Fortier CB, McGlinchey RE, Milberg WP, Esterman M. Poorer Inhibitory Control Uniquely Contributes to Greater Functional Disability in Post-9/11 Veterans. Arch Clin Neuropsychol 2023; 38:944-961. [PMID: 36781401 PMCID: PMC10456219 DOI: 10.1093/arclin/acad012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Post-9/11 Veterans endorse greater self-reported functional disability than 80% of the adult population. Previous studies of trauma-exposed populations have shown that increased post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depressive symptoms are consistently associated with greater disability. Additionally, poorer cognitive performance in the domain of executive functions, particularly inhibitory control, has been associated with disability, though it is unclear if this effect is independent of and/or interacts with PTSD and depression. METHOD Three overlapping samples of n = 582, 297, and 183 combat-deployed post-9/11 Veterans completed comprehensive assessments of executive functions, PTSD and depressive symptoms, and self-reported World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule-II (WHODAS II). RESULTS Poorer performance on measures of inhibitory control (Delis-Kaplan Executive Functioning System Color-Word Interference-CWI Test and gradual-onset Continuous Performance Test-gradCPT), but not other executive functions, were significantly associated with greater disability on the WHODAS II (ρ's = -.13 and -.13, p = .002 and .026, respectively). CWI inhibitory control measures accounted for unique variance in disability after controlling for PTSD and depressive symptoms (R2 change = 0.02, p < .001). Further, CWI significantly moderated the effect of depressive symptoms on disability, such that better inhibitory control weakened the relationship between depression and disability. CONCLUSIONS Inhibitory control deficits are uniquely associated with increased disability in combat-deployed post-9/11 Veterans, and better inhibitory control abilities may serve as a protective factor for depressive symptoms leading to increased disability. KEY POINTS
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning (BAL) Lab, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Sam Agnoli
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning (BAL) Lab, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - John P K Bernstein
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- Boston Attention and Learning (BAL) Lab, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Travis C Evans
- Boston Attention and Learning (BAL) Lab, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William P Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning (BAL) Lab, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
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Jagger-Rickels A, Stumps A, Rothlein D, Evans T, Lee D, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. Aberrant connectivity in the right amygdala and right middle temporal gyrus before and after a suicide attempt: Examining markers of suicide risk. J Affect Disord 2023; 335:24-35. [PMID: 37086805 PMCID: PMC10330566 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2023.04.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/24/2023]
Abstract
Functional neuroimaging has the potential to help identify those at risk for self-injurious thoughts and behaviors, as well as inform neurobiological mechanisms that contribute to suicide. Based on whole-brain patterns of functional connectivity, our previous work identified right amygdala and right middle temporal gyrus (MTG) connectivity patterns that differentiated Veterans with a history of a suicide attempt (SA) from a Veteran control group. In this study, we aimed to replicate and extend our previous findings by examining whether this aberrant connectivity was present prior to and after a SA. In a trauma-exposed Veteran sample (92 % male, mean age = 34), we characterized if the right amygdala and right MTG connectivity differed between a psychiatric control sample (n = 56) and an independent sample of Veterans with a history of SA (n = 17), using fMRI data before and after the SA. Right MTG and amygdala connectivity differed between Veterans with and without a history of SA (replication), while MTG connectivity also distinguished Veterans prior to engaging in a SA (extension). In a second study, neither MTG or amygdala connectivity differed between those with current suicidal ideation (n = 27) relative to matched psychiatric controls (n = 27). These results indicate a potential stable marker of suicide risk (right MTG connectivity) as well as a potential marker of acute risk of or recent SA (right amygdala connectivity) that are independent of current ideation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, United States of America; Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America.
| | - Anna Stumps
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, United States of America
| | - David Rothlein
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America
| | - Travis Evans
- Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, United States of America; Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America
| | - Daniel Lee
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, United States of America
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, United States of America; Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, United States of America
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, United States of America; Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, United States of America
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Aul C, Brau JM, Sugarman A, DeGutis JM, Germine LT, Esterman M, McGlinchey RE, Fortenbaugh FC. The functional relevance of visuospatial processing speed across the lifespan. Cogn Res Princ Implic 2023; 8:51. [PMID: 37542181 PMCID: PMC10403489 DOI: 10.1186/s41235-023-00504-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Visuospatial processing speed underlies several cognitive functions critical for successful completion of everyday tasks, including driving and walking. While it is widely accepted that visuospatial processing speed peaks in early adulthood, performance across the lifespan remains incompletely characterized. Additionally, there remains a lack of paradigms available to assess visuospatial processing speed in unsupervised web-based testing environments. To address these gaps, we developed a novel visuospatial processing speed (VIPS) task adapted from two tests sensitive to visuospatial processing speed declines in older adults, the Useful Field of View paradigm and the PERformance CEntered Portable Test. The VIPS task requires participants to make a central orientation discrimination and complete a simultaneous peripheral visual search task. Data were collected from 86 in-lab volunteers (18-30 years) to compare performance to traditional neuropsychological measures. Consistent with previous literature, performance on the novel VIPS task significantly correlated with measures of selective attention, executive functioning, visual speed, and working memory. An additional 4395 volunteers (12-62 years) were recruited on TestMyBrain.org to establish lifespan trajectories of visuospatial processing speed and associations with functional disability. VIPS task performance peaked in the early 20's, and steadily decreased such that thresholds doubled in 60-year-olds relative to 20-year-olds (817 ms vs. 412 ms). VIPS task performance significantly correlated with self-reported cognitive functioning deficits broadly across the lifespan but was specifically related to mobility issues in middle-age. These findings have important implications for early detection of cognitive decline and provide insights into potential early intervention targets for younger and middle-aged adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Courtney Aul
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Julia M Brau
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alexander Sugarman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joseph M DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura T Germine
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Institute for Technology in Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Francesca C Fortenbaugh
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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DeGutis J, Yosef B, Lee EA, Saad E, Arizpe J, Song JS, Wilmer J, Germine L, Esterman M. The rise and fall of face recognition awareness across the life span. J Exp Psychol Hum Percept Perform 2023; 49:22-33. [PMID: 36395052 PMCID: PMC10363396 DOI: 10.1037/xhp0001069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
A core component of metacognition is cognitive awareness, insight into how one's cognitive abilities compare with others. Previous studies of cognitive awareness have focused on basic aspects of perception, memory, and learning. Further, studies of the awareness of one's social-cognitive abilities have been limited to examining awareness of others' thinking (i.e., theory of mind). The current study characterizes awareness of one's own social-cognitive abilities, specifically face recognition awareness, and examines its change across the life span. We used a large, web-based sample (N = 4,143) with a broad age range (ages 10-70), administering well-validated measures of objective (Cambridge Face Memory Test 3) and self-reported (Cambridge Face Memory Questionnaire) face recognition. We found a robust overall association between objective and self-reported face recognition (r = .42 in females, r = .36 in males). While we found that face recognition ability peaked in the early- to mid-30s, face recognition awareness peaked in the early- to mid-20s, was relatively stable throughout the 20s-40s, and declined in the 50s-60s. Relative subjective versus objective face recognition bias measures demonstrated that 10- to 18- and 51- to 70-year-olds overestimated their self-reported face recognition abilities in comparison with 19- to 50-year-olds. Finally, compared with males, females had greater face recognition awareness and a bias to relatively underestimate their face recognition abilities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
| | - Bar Yosef
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | | | - Elyana Saad
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
| | - Joseph Arizpe
- Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Fort Sam Houston, TX, USA
| | | | | | - Laura Germine
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
- Institute for Technology in Psychiatry, McLean Hospital
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine
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Giron AP, Wu CM, Esterman M, Zuberer A. Sustained attention is enhanced by disrupted inter-regional frontal theta phase coupling. Brain Stimul 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brs.2023.01.689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/17/2023] Open
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11
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Evans TC, Alonso MR, Jagger-Rickels A, Rothlein D, Zuberer A, Bernstein J, Fortier CB, Fonda JR, Villalon A, Jorge R, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. PTSD symptomatology is selectively associated with impaired sustained attention ability and dorsal attention network synchronization. Neuroimage Clin 2022; 36:103146. [PMID: 36055063 PMCID: PMC9437905 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2022.103146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2022] [Revised: 07/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptomatology is associated with dysregulated sustained attention, which produces functional impairments. Performance on sustained attention paradigms such as continuous performance tasks are influenced by both the ability to sustain attention and response strategy. However, previous studies have not dissociated PTSD-related associations with sustained attention ability and strategy, which limits characterization of neural circuitry underlying PTSD-related attentional impairments. Therefore, we characterized and replicated PTSD-related associations with sustained attention ability and response strategy in trauma-exposed Veterans, which guided characterization of PTSD-related differences in neural circuit function. In Study 1, PTSD symptoms were selectively associated with reduced sustained attention ability, but not more impulsive response strategies. In Study 2, we utilized task and resting-state fMRI to characterize neural circuitry underlying PTSD-related differences in sustained attention ability. Both PTSD symptomatology and sustained attention ability exhibited converging associations with reduced dorsal attention network (DAN) synchronization to endogeneous attentional fluctuations. Post-hoc time course analyses demonstrated that PTSD symptoms were most accurately characterized by delayed, rather than globally reduced, DAN synchronization to endogenous attentional fluctuations. Together, these findings suggest that PTSD symptomatology may selectively impair sustained attention ability by disrupting proactive engagement of attentional control circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis C. Evans
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA,Corresponding author at: VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA.
| | | | - Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - David Rothlein
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Agnieszka Zuberer
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Jena, Germany,Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Germany
| | - John Bernstein
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Catherine B. Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA,Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Jennifer R. Fonda
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA,Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA,Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Audri Villalon
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX, USA,Beth K. and Stuart C. Yudofsky Division of Neuropsychiatry, Baylor College of Medicine, USA
| | - Ricardo Jorge
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX, USA,Beth K. and Stuart C. Yudofsky Division of Neuropsychiatry, Baylor College of Medicine, USA
| | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA,Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA,Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA,Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA,National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
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12
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Poole VN, Dawe RJ, Lamar M, Esterman M, Barnes L, Leurgans SE, Bennett DA, Hausdorff JM, Buchman AS. Dividing attention during the Timed Up and Go enhances associations of several subtask performances with MCI and cognition. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0269398. [PMID: 35921260 PMCID: PMC9348700 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0269398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
We tested the hypothesis that dividing attention would strengthen the ability to detect mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and specific cognitive abilities from Timed Up and Go (TUG) performance in the community setting. While wearing a belt-worn sensor, 757 dementia-free older adults completed TUG during two conditions, with and without a concurrent verbal serial subtraction task. We segmented TUG into its four subtasks (i.e., walking, turning, and two postural transitions), and extracted 18 measures that were summarized into nine validated sensor metrics. Participants also underwent a detailed cognitive assessment during the same visit. We then employed a series of regression models to determine the combinations of subtask sensor metrics most strongly associated with MCI and specific cognitive abilities for each condition. We also compared subtask performances with and without dividing attention to determine whether the costs of divided attention were associated with cognition. While slower TUG walking and turning were associated with higher odds of MCI under normal conditions, these and other subtask associations became more strongly linked to MCI when TUG was performed under divided attention. Walking and turns were also most strongly associated with executive function and attention, particularly under divided attention. These differential associations with cognition were mirrored by performance costs. However, since several TUG subtasks were more strongly associated with MCI and cognitive abilities when performed under divided attention, future work is needed to determine how instrumented dual-task TUG testing can more accurately estimate risk for late-life cognitive impairment in older adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria N. Poole
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Robert J. Dawe
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Melissa Lamar
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD & Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Lisa Barnes
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Sue E. Leurgans
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Preventive Medicine, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - David A. Bennett
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Jeffrey M. Hausdorff
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Center for the Study of Movement, Cognition, and Mobility, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Sagol School of Neuroscience and Department of Physical Therapy, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Aron S. Buchman
- Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Neurological Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
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13
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Jagger-Rickels A, Rothlein D, Stumps A, Evans TC, Bernstein J, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. An executive function subtype of PTSD with unique neural markers and clinical trajectories. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:262. [PMID: 35760805 PMCID: PMC9237057 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-02011-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2022] [Revised: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous work identified a cognitive subtype of PTSD with impaired executive function (i.e., impaired EF-PTSD subtype) and aberrant resting-state functional connectivity between frontal parietal control (FPCN) and limbic (LN) networks. To better characterize this cognitive subtype of PTSD, this study investigated (1) alterations in specific FPCN and LN subnetworks and (2) chronicity of PTSD symptoms. In a post-9/11 veteran sample (N = 368, 89% male), we identified EF subgroups using a standardized neuropsychological battery and a priori cutoffs for impaired, average, and above-average EF performance. Functional connectivity between two subnetworks of the FPCN and three subnetworks of the LN was assessed using resting-state fMRI (n = 314). PTSD chronicity over a 1-2-year period was assessed using a reliable change index (n = 175). The impaired EF-PTSD subtype had significantly reduced negative functional connectivity between the FPCN subnetwork involved in top-down control of emotion and two LN subnetworks involved in learning/memory and social/emotional processing. This impaired EF-PTSD subtype had relatively chronic PTSD, while those with above-average EF and PTSD displayed greater symptom reduction. Lastly, FPCN-LN subnetworks partially mediated the relationship between EF and PTSD chronicity (n = 121). This study reveals (1) that an impaired EF-PTSD subtype has a specific pattern of FPCN-LN subnetwork connectivity, (2) a novel above-average EF-PTSD subtype displays reduced PTSD chronicity, and (3) both cognitive and neural functioning predict PTSD chronicity. The results indicate a need to investigate how individuals with this impaired EF-PTSD subtype respond to treatment, and how they might benefit from personalized and novel approaches that target these neurocognitive systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- National Center for PTSD (NCPTSD), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA. .,Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA. .,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - David Rothlein
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992National Center for PTSD (NCPTSD), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA
| | - Anna Stumps
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.33489.350000 0001 0454 4791Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA
| | - Travis Clark Evans
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.189504.10000 0004 1936 7558Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA USA
| | - John Bernstein
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA
| | - William Milberg
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.38142.3c000000041936754XDepartment of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.38142.3c000000041936754XDepartment of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.38142.3c000000041936754XDepartment of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992National Center for PTSD (NCPTSD), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.189504.10000 0004 1936 7558Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA ,grid.410370.10000 0004 4657 1992Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA USA
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14
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Bernstein JPK, Stumps A, Fortenbaugh F, Fonda JR, McGlinchey RE, Milberg WP, Fortier CB, Esterman M, Amick M, DeGutis J. Associations between changes in somatic and psychiatric symptoms and disability alterations in recent-era U.S. veterans. J Trauma Stress 2022; 35:1011-1024. [PMID: 35187726 DOI: 10.1002/jts.22809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Revised: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Cross-sectional work suggests that deployment-related posttraumatic sequelae are associated with increased disability in U.S. veterans deployed following the September 11, 2001 (9/11), terrorist attacks. However, few studies have examined the psychiatric and somatic variables associated with changes in functional disability over time. A total of 237 post-9/11 veterans completed comprehensive assessments of psychiatric and cognitive functioning, as well as a disability questionnaire, at baseline and 2-year follow-up. At baseline, higher levels of PTSD, depressive, and pain-related symptoms were associated with baseline global functional disability, semipartial r2 = .036-.044. Changes in symptoms of PTSD, depression, pain, and sleep, but not anxiety or alcohol use, were independently associated with changes in functional disability, semipartial r2 = .017-.068. Baseline symptoms of these conditions were unrelated to changes in disability, and cognitive performance was unrelated to disability at any assessment point. Together, this suggests that changes in psychiatric and somatic symptoms are tightly linked with changes in functional disability and should be frequently monitored, and even subclinical symptoms may be a target of intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P K Bernstein
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Anna Stumps
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware
| | - Francesca Fortenbaugh
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jennifer R Fonda
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - William P Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Melissa Amick
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Health Care System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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15
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Patt VM, Palombo DJ, Esterman M, Verfaellie M. Hippocampal Contribution to Probabilistic Feedback Learning: Modeling Observation- and Reinforcement-based Processes. J Cogn Neurosci 2022; 34:1429-1446. [PMID: 35604353 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01873] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Simple probabilistic reinforcement learning is recognized as a striatum-based learning system, but in recent years, has also been associated with hippocampal involvement. This study examined whether such involvement may be attributed to observation-based learning (OL) processes, running in parallel to striatum-based reinforcement learning. A computational model of OL, mirroring classic models of reinforcement-based learning (RL), was constructed and applied to the neuroimaging data set of Palombo, Hayes, Reid, and Verfaellie (2019). Hippocampal contributions to value-based learning: Converging evidence from fMRI and amnesia. Cognitive, Affective & Behavioral Neuroscience, 19(3), 523-536. Results suggested that OL processes may indeed take place concomitantly to reinforcement learning and involve activation of the hippocampus and central orbitofrontal cortex. However, rather than independent mechanisms running in parallel, the brain correlates of the OL and RL prediction errors indicated collaboration between systems, with direct implication of the hippocampus in computations of the discrepancy between the expected and actual reinforcing values of actions. These findings are consistent with previous accounts of a role for the hippocampus in encoding the strength of observed stimulus-outcome associations, with updating of such associations through striatal reinforcement-based computations. In addition, enhanced negative RL prediction error signaling was found in the anterior insula with greater use of OL over RL processes. This result may suggest an additional mode of collaboration between the OL and RL systems, implicating the error monitoring network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginie M Patt
- VA Boston Healthcare System, MA.,Boston University School of Medicine, MA
| | | | - Michael Esterman
- VA Boston Healthcare System, MA.,Boston University School of Medicine, MA
| | - Mieke Verfaellie
- VA Boston Healthcare System, MA.,Boston University School of Medicine, MA
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16
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Abstract
Many clinical populations that have sustained attention deficits also have visual deficits. Therefore, it is necessary to understand how the quality of visual input and different forms of image degradation can contribute to worse performance on sustained attention tasks, particularly those with dynamic and complex visual stimuli. This study investigated the impact of image degradation on an adapted version of the gradual-onset continuous performance task (gradCPT), where participants must discriminate between gradually fading city and mountain scenes. Thirty-six normal-vision participants completed the task, which featured two blocks of six resolution and contrast levels. Subjects either completed a version with gradually fading or static image presentations. The results show decreases in image resolution impair performance under both types of temporal dynamics, whereas performance is only impaired under gradual temporal dynamics for decreases in image contrast. Image similarity analyses showed that performance has a higher association with an observer's ability to gather an image's global spatial layout (i.e. gist) than local variations in pixel luminance, particularly under gradual image presentation. This work suggests that gradually fading attention paradigms are sensitive to deficits in primary visual function, potentially leading to these issues being misinterpreted as attentional failures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia M Brau
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,
| | - Alexander Sugarman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,
| | - David Rothlein
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA, USA.,
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.,
| | - Francesca C Fortenbaugh
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA, USA.,
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17
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Aul C, Park H, DeGutis J, Lo OY, Poole V, Bean J, Leritz E, Esterman M. Evidence for a Specific Association Between Sustained Attention and Gait Speed in Middle-to-Older-Aged Adults. Innov Aging 2021. [PMCID: PMC8681067 DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igab046.2647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Although cognitive decline has previously been associated with mobility limitations and frailty, the relationship between sustained attention and gait speed is incompletely characterized. To better quantify the specificity of the sustained attention and gait speed association, we examined the extent to which this relationship is unique rather than accounted for by executive functioning and physical health characteristics. 58 middle-to-older-aged community-dwelling adults without overt illness or diseases (45-90 years old, 21 females) participated in the study. Each participant completed a 4-meter gait speed assessment and validated neuropsychological tests to examine various domains of executive functions including working memory (i.e., Digit Span), inhibitory control (i.e., Stroop Color Word Test), and task switching (i.e., Trail Making Test). Multiple physical and vascular risk factors were also evaluated. Sustained attention was assessed using the gradual onset continuous performance task (gradCPT), a well validated go/no-go sustained attention task. A series of linear regression models were created to examine how different aspects of cognition, including sustained attention and traditional measures of executive functioning, related to gait speed while controlling for a variety of physical and vascular risk factors. Among all predictors, gradCPT accuracy explained the most variance in gait speed (R2 = 0.21, p < 0.001) and was the only significant predictor (β = 0.36, p = 0.01) when accounting for executive functioning and other physical and vascular risk factors. The present results indicate that sustained attention may be uniquely sensitive and mechanistically linked to mobility limitations in middle-to-older adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Courtney Aul
- VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
| | - Hannah Park
- Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts, United States
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- VA Boston Healthcare System/Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
| | - On-Yee Lo
- Hebrew SeniorLife/Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
| | | | - Jonathan Bean
- VA Boston Healthcare System, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts, United States
| | - Elizabeth Leritz
- VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
| | - Michael Esterman
- VA Boston Healthcare System/BU School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, United States
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18
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Evans TC, DeGutis J, Rothlein D, Jagger-Rickels A, Yamashita A, Fortier CB, Fonda JR, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, Esterman M. Punishment and reward normalize error-related cognitive control in PTSD by modulating salience network activation and connectivity. Cortex 2021; 145:295-314. [PMID: 34775266 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2021] [Revised: 08/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) symptomatology disrupts inhibitory control during sustained attention. However, PTSD-related inhibitory control deficits are partially ameliorated when punishments and rewards are administered based on task performance, which suggests motivational processes contribute to these deficits. Additionally, PTSD may also impair error-related cognitive control following inhibitory control failures as measured by post-error slowing (PES). However, it remains unclear if motivational processes also contribute to impaired error-related cognitive control in PTSD. Using an incentivized sustained attention paradigm in two independent samples of post-9/11 veterans, we characterized PTSD-related differences in PES during both non-motivated conditions (no task-based incentives) and motivated conditions (task-based rewards and punishments). In Study 1 (n = 139), PTSD symptom severity was modestly associated with smaller PES in the non-motivated condition, whereas no PTSD-related association was observed in the motivated condition. In Study 2 (n = 35), we replicated and extended these results by using fMRI to characterize modulation of the triple network system comprised of the Salience Network (SN), Frontoparietal Control Network (FPCN), and Default Mode Network (DMN). In the non-motivated condition, PTSD symptom severity was associated with non-specific SN and FPCN hyperactivation during both failed and successful inhibitory control. In the motivated condition, PTSD symptom severity was associated with greater focal activation of both the SN and Superior Parietal Lobule cluster (an FPCN node) during punished inhibitory control failures and weaker SN-FPCN connectivity during rewarded inhibitory control successes. Together, these results suggest that dysregulated motivational processes in PTSD may contribute to impaired error-related cognitive control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis C Evans
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA.
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA
| | - David Rothlein
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA; National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Ayumu Yamashita
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA; Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Jennifer R Fonda
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA
| | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA; Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, USA; Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, USA; National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, USA
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19
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Elliott L, Esterman M, Greenberg AS. Successfully withholding attention shifts is strongly modulated by shift/hold cue ratio. J Vis 2021. [DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.9.2783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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20
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Brau JM, Sugarman A, Esterman M, DeGutis J, Fortenbaugh FC. The Impact of Image Contrast, Blur, and Presentation Pattern on Visual Sustained Attention. J Vis 2021. [DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.9.2161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Julia M. Brau
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders & Boston Attention & Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychology, Southern New Hampshire University
| | - Alexander Sugarman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders & Boston Attention & Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Michael Esterman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders & Boston Attention & Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders & Boston Attention & Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
| | - Francesca C. Fortenbaugh
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders & Boston Attention & Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
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21
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Fortenbaugh F, Sugarman A, Brau J, DeGutis J, Germine L, Esterman M. Web-Based Assessment of Visuospatial Processing Speed Across the Lifespan. J Vis 2021. [DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.9.2768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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22
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Fry R, Li X, Evans T, Esterman M, Tanaka J, DeGutis J. Do developmental prosopagnosics with high vs. low levels of autism traits differ in how they process faces? J Vis 2021. [DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.9.1901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Regan Fry
- Harvard Medical School
- Boston VA Healthcare Systems
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Rashid B, Poole VN, Fortenbaugh FC, Esterman M, Milberg WP, McGlinchey RE, Salat DH, Leritz EC. Association between metabolic syndrome and resting-state functional brain connectivity. Neurobiol Aging 2021; 104:1-9. [PMID: 33951557 PMCID: PMC8225583 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2021.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2020] [Revised: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The objective of this study is to examine whether metabolic syndrome (MetS), the clustering of 3 or more cardiovascular risk factors, disrupts the resting-state functional connectivity (FC) of the large-scale cortical brain networks. Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data were collected from seventy-eight middle-aged and older adults living with and without MetS (27 MetS; 51 non-MetS). FC maps were derived from the time series of intrinsic activity in the large-scale brain networks by correlating the spatially averaged time series with all brain voxels using a whole-brain seed-based FC approach. Participants with MetS showed hyperconnectivity across the core brain regions with evidence of loss of modularity when compared with non-MetS individuals. Furthermore, patterns of higher between-network MetS-related effects were observed across most of the seed regions in both right and left hemispheres. These findings indicate that MetS is associated with altered intrinsic communication across core neural networks and disrupted between-network connections across the brain due to the co-occurring vascular risk factors in MetS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barnaly Rashid
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; The Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Victoria N Poole
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Francesca C Fortenbaugh
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William P Milberg
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David H Salat
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; The Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Elizabeth C Leritz
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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24
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Park H, Aul C, DeGutis J, Lo OY, Poole VN, McGlinchey R, Bean JF, Leritz E, Esterman M. Evidence for a Specific Association Between Sustained Attention and Gait Speed in Middle-to-Older-Aged Adults. Front Aging Neurosci 2021; 13:703434. [PMID: 34290601 PMCID: PMC8289388 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2021.703434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Although cognitive decline has previously been associated with mobility limitations and frailty, the relationship between sustained attention and gait speed is incompletely characterized. To better quantify the specificity of the sustained attention and gait speed association, we examined the extent to which this relationship is unique rather than accounted for by executive functioning and physical health characteristics. 58 middle-to-older-aged community-dwelling adults without overt evidence of cognitive impairment (45-90 years old; 21 females) participated in the study. Each participant completed a 4-meter gait speed assessment and validated neuropsychological tests to examine various domains of executive functioning including working memory (i.e., Digit Span), inhibitory control (i.e., D-KEFS Color-Word Interference), and task switching (i.e., D-KEFS Number/Letter Switching). Multiple physical and vascular risk factors were also evaluated. Sustained attention was assessed using the gradual onset continuous performance task (gradCPT), a well-validated go/no-go sustained attention task. A series of linear regression models were used to examine how different aspects of cognition, including sustained attention and traditional measures of executive functioning, related to gait speed while controlling for a variety of physical and vascular risk factors. Among all predictors, gradCPT accuracy explained the most variance in gait speed (R 2 = 0.19, p < 0.001) and was the only significant predictor (β = 0.35, p = 0.01) when accounting for executive functioning and other physical and vascular risk factors. The present results indicate that sustained attention may be uniquely sensitive and mechanistically linked to mobility limitations in middle-to-older adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Park
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Psychology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, United States
| | - Courtney Aul
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - On-Yee Lo
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, MA, United States
- Division of Gerontology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Victoria N. Poole
- Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center and Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- New England Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (NEGRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jonathan F. Bean
- New England Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (NEGRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Elizabeth Leritz
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- New England Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (NEGRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
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25
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Wooten T, Brown E, Sullivan DR, Logue MW, Fortier CB, Fonda JR, DeGutis J, Salat DH, McGlinchey R, Milberg W, Esterman M. Apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 moderates the relationship between c-reactive protein, cognitive functioning, and white matter integrity. Brain Behav Immun 2021; 95:84-95. [PMID: 33631288 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/18/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Elevated serum C-reactive protein (CRP) and possessing an APOE ε4 allele are two of the most prominent risk factors for cognitive and neurological dysfunction in older adults, but little is known about the unique or cumulative effects of these risk factors in young-to-middle-aged adults. To further characterize these potential relationships, measures of cognition and microstructural white matter integrity were examined using data from a sample of 329 post-9/11 war veterans that was collected as part of a comprehensive evaluation that included assessment of neuropsychological functioning, MRI scanning, psychiatric diagnoses, health screening, markers of inflammation, and APOE genotypes. Hierarchical linear regression analyses revealed the CRP and APOE ε4 interaction was associated with global cognition (β = -0.633), executive functioning (β = -0.566), and global fractional anisotropy (β = -0.470), such that elevated CRP was associated with worse cognition and white matter integrity in APOE ε4 carriers. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) was used to determine if CRP × APOE ε4 presence was associated with regionally specific fractional anisotropy in white matter tracts. Tract-based spatial statistics revealed CRP × APOE ε4 presence was associated with fractional anisotropy in the corpus callosum, right superior longitudinal fasciculus, right posterior corona radiata, as well as the bilateral anterior and superior corona radiatas. This suggests that APOE ε4 carriers may be uniquely vulnerable to the potentially negative impact of elevated systematic inflammation to cognition and microstructural white matter integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Wooten
- Tufts University, Boston, MA, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Emma Brown
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Danielle R Sullivan
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mark W Logue
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Biomedical Genetics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jennifer R Fonda
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David H Salat
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
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26
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Jagger-Rickels A, Stumps A, Rothlein D, Park H, Fortenbaugh F, Zuberer A, Fonda JR, Fortier CB, DeGutis J, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, Esterman M. Impaired executive function exacerbates neural markers of posttraumatic stress disorder. Psychol Med 2021; 52:1-14. [PMID: 33879272 PMCID: PMC10202148 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291721000842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A major obstacle in understanding and treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is its clinical and neurobiological heterogeneity. To address this barrier, the field has become increasingly interested in identifying subtypes of PTSD based on dysfunction in neural networks alongside cognitive impairments that may underlie the development and maintenance of symptoms. The current study aimed to determine if subtypes of PTSD, based on normative-based cognitive dysfunction across multiple domains, have unique neural network signatures. METHODS In a sample of 271 veterans (90% male) that completed both neuropsychological testing and resting-state fMRI, two complementary, whole-brain functional connectivity analyses explored the link between brain functioning, PTSD symptoms, and cognition. RESULTS At the network level, PTSD symptom severity was associated with reduced negative coupling between the limbic network (LN) and frontal-parietal control network (FPCN), driven specifically by the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and amygdala Hubs of Dysfunction. Further, this relationship was uniquely moderated by executive function (EF). Specifically, those with PTSD and impaired EF had the strongest marker of LN-FPCN dysregulation, while those with above-average EF did not exhibit PTSD-related dysregulation of these networks. CONCLUSION These results suggest that poor executive functioning, alongside LN-FPCN dysregulation, may represent a neurocognitive subtype of PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Anna Stumps
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - David Rothlein
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Hannah Park
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Francesca Fortenbaugh
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Agnieszka Zuberer
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tuebingen, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Jennifer R. Fonda
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Catherine B. Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VABoston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VABoston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Lab (BALAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
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27
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Yamashita A, Rothlein D, Kucyi A, Valera EM, Esterman M. Brain state-based detection of attentional fluctuations and their modulation. Neuroimage 2021; 236:118072. [PMID: 33882346 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2020] [Revised: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 04/09/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
In the search for brain markers of optimal attentional focus, the mainstream approach has been to first define attentional states based on behavioral performance, and to subsequently investigate "neural correlates" associated with these performance variations. However, this approach constrains the range of contexts in which attentional states can be operationalized by relying on overt behavior, and assumes a one-to-one correspondence between behavior and brain state. Here, we reversed the logic of these previous studies and sought to identify behaviorally-relevant brain states based solely on brain activity, agnostic to behavioral performance. In four independent datasets, we found that the same two brain states were dominant during a sustained attention task. One state was behaviorally optimal, with higher accuracy and stability, but a greater tendency to mind wander (State1). The second state was behaviorally suboptimal, with lower accuracy and instability (State2). We further demonstrate how these brain states were impacted by motivation and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Individuals with ADHD spent more time in suboptimal State2 and less time in optimal State1 than healthy controls. Motivation overcame the suboptimal behavior associated with State2. Our study provides compelling evidence for the existence of two attentional states from the sole viewpoint of brain activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayumu Yamashita
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Massachusetts, 02118. United States; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts,02130. United States; Overseas Research Fellow, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Tokyo,102-0083. Japan.
| | - David Rothlein
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Massachusetts, 02118. United States; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts,02130. United States; National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts, 02130. United States
| | - Aaron Kucyi
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Massachusetts, 02115. United States
| | - Eve M Valera
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts, 02215. United States; Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts, 02125, United States
| | - Michael Esterman
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Massachusetts, 02118. United States; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts,02130. United States; National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts, 02130. United States
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28
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Kucyi A, Esterman M, Capella J, Green A, Uchida M, Biederman J, Gabrieli JDE, Valera EM, Whitfield-Gabrieli S. Prediction of stimulus-independent and task-unrelated thought from functional brain networks. Nat Commun 2021; 12:1793. [PMID: 33741956 PMCID: PMC7979817 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22027-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Neural substrates of “mind wandering” have been widely reported, yet experiments have varied in their contexts and their definitions of this psychological phenomenon, limiting generalizability. We aimed to develop and test the generalizability, specificity, and clinical relevance of a functional brain network-based marker for a well-defined feature of mind wandering—stimulus-independent, task-unrelated thought (SITUT). Combining functional MRI (fMRI) with online experience sampling in healthy adults, we defined a connectome-wide model of inter-regional coupling—dominated by default-frontoparietal control subnetwork interactions—that predicted trial-by-trial SITUT fluctuations within novel individuals. Model predictions generalized in an independent sample of adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). In three additional resting-state fMRI studies (total n = 1115), including healthy individuals and individuals with ADHD, we demonstrated further prediction of SITUT (at modest effect sizes) defined using multiple trait-level and in-scanner measures. Our findings suggest that SITUT is represented within a common pattern of brain network interactions across time scales and contexts. People spend much of their daily lives thinking about things that are unrelated to their immediate environment. Using fMRI, Kucyi et al. show that occurrence of these “stimulus-independent” thoughts can be predicted from a complex pattern of coordinated activity between distinct parts of the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron Kucyi
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD & Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Veterans Administration Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - James Capella
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Allison Green
- Clinical and Research Program in Pediatric Psychopharmacology and Adult ADHD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mai Uchida
- Clinical and Research Program in Pediatric Psychopharmacology and Adult ADHD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joseph Biederman
- Clinical and Research Program in Pediatric Psychopharmacology and Adult ADHD, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - John D E Gabrieli
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Athinoula A. Martinos Imaging Center at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Eve M Valera
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
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29
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Stumps A, Jagger-Rickels A, Rothlein D, Amick M, Park H, Evans T, Fortenbaugh FC, Fortier CB, Fonda JR, Lee D, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M. Connectome-based functional connectivity markers of suicide attempt. J Affect Disord 2021; 283:430-440. [PMID: 33549365 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.11.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2020] [Revised: 10/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Functional brain markers of suicidality can help identify at-risk individuals and uncover underlying neurocognitive mechanism(s). Although some converging evidence has implicated dysfunction in several brain networks, suicide-related neuroimaging markers are inconsistent across studies, due to heterogeneity of neuroimaging approaches, clinical populations, and experimental methods. METHODS The current study aimed to address these limitations by examining resting-fMRI connectivity in a sample of post-9/11 veterans with a past suicide attempt (SA; n = 16) compared to a psychiatric control group (PC; n = 124) with no SA history but comparable past and present symptomatology, as well as a trauma control group (TC; n = 66) of trauma-exposed healthy controls. We used both a novel graph-analytic and seed-based approach to characterize SA-related connectivity differences across brain networks. RESULTS First, the graph-analytic approach identified the right amygdala and a region in the cognitive control network (right middle temporal gyrus; MTG) as regional SA-related hubs of dysfunction (HoD), or regions that exhibited a high number of SA-related connections. Aberrant SA-related connectivity between these hubs spanned multiple networks, including the cognitive control, default mode and visual networks. Second, the seed-based connectivity analysis that identifies SA-related differences in the strength of neural connections across the whole brain further implicated the right amygdala. LIMITATIONS Small sample size and potential underreporting of SA. CONCLUSIONS These two analytic approaches preliminarily suggest that the right amygdala and right MTG may be specific neural markers of SA that can be differentiated from neural markers of psychopathology more broadly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Stumps
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA
| | - Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - David Rothlein
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Melissa Amick
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, 02118, USA
| | - Hannah Park
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA
| | - Travis Evans
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Francesca C Fortenbaugh
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Jennifer R Fonda
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, 02118, USA
| | - Daniel Lee
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, 02118, USA
| | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory (BALLAB), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, 02118, USA.
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Jamalabadi H, Zuberer A, Kumar VJ, Li M, Alizadeh S, Amani AM, Gaser C, Esterman M, Walter M. The missing role of gray matter in studying brain controllability. Netw Neurosci 2021; 5:198-210. [PMID: 33688612 PMCID: PMC7935040 DOI: 10.1162/netn_a_00174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2020] [Accepted: 10/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Brain controllability properties are normally derived from the white matter fiber tracts in which the neural substrate of the actual energy consumption, namely the gray matter, has been widely ignored. Here, we study the relationship between gray matter volume of regions across the whole cortex and their respective control properties derived from the structural architecture of the white matter fiber tracts. The data suggests that the ability of white fiber tracts to exhibit control at specific nodes not only depends on the connection strength of the structural connectome but additionally depends on gray matter volume at the host nodes. Our data indicate that connectivity strength and gray matter volume interact with respect to the brain’s control properties. Disentangling effects of the regional gray matter volume and connectivity strength, we found that frontal and sensory areas play crucial roles in controllability. Together these results suggest that structural and regional properties of the white matter and gray matter provide complementary information in studying the control properties of the intrinsic structural and functional architecture of the brain. Network control theory suggests that the functions of large-scale brain circuits can be partially described with respect to the ability of brain regions to steer brain activity to different states. This ability, often quantified in terms of controllability metrics, has normally been derived from the structural architecture of the white matter fiber tracts. However, gray matter as the substrate that engenders much of the neural processes is widely ignored in this context. In the present work, we study the relationship between regional gray matter volume and control properties across the whole cortex and provide evidence that control properties not only depend on the connection strength of the structural connectome but also depend on sufficient gray matter volume at the host nodes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hamidreza Jamalabadi
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Agnieszka Zuberer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | | | - Meng Li
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sarah Alizadeh
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germanys
| | - Ali Moradi Amani
- School of Engineering, RMIT University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Christian Gaser
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Martin Walter
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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31
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Esterman M, Stumps A, Jagger-Rickels A, Rothlein D, DeGutis J, Fortenbaugh F, Romer A, Milberg W, Marx BP, McGlinchey R. Evaluating the evidence for a neuroimaging subtype of posttraumatic stress disorder. Sci Transl Med 2020; 12:12/568/eaaz9343. [DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.aaz9343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Anna Stumps
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Audreyana Jagger-Rickels
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - David Rothlein
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Francesca Fortenbaugh
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Adrienne Romer
- Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Center for Depression, Anxiety and Stress Research, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA 02478, USA
| | - William Milberg
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC) and Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Brian P. Marx
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
- Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center (GRECC) and Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
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32
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Scioli ER, Smith BN, Whitworth JW, Spiro A, Esterman M, Dutra S, Bogdan KM, Eld A, Rasmusson AM. Moderated mediation for exercise maintenance in pain and posttraumatic stress disorder: A randomized trial. Health Psychol 2020; 39:826-840. [PMID: 32833484 PMCID: PMC8559731 DOI: 10.1037/hea0000876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
This study utilizes the Science of Behavior Change (SOBC) experimental medicine approach to evaluate the effects of a 3-month, individually prescribed progressive exercise training program on neurobiological, cognitive and motivational mechanisms by which our exercise-training paradigm may foster exercise maintenance. We will investigate hypothesized relationships between exercise-training associated augmentation of neuropeptide Y (NPY) system function and improvements in self-regulation and reward sensitivity-cognitive control and motivational processes posited to promote self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation, which have been shown to predict exercise maintenance. This study will recruit Veterans with chronic low back pain and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Procedures include a baseline, acute cardiopulmonary exercise challenge assessment that will inform the exercise prescription for a 12-week progressive exercise training program comprised of three 45-minute aerobic exercise sessions per week-all of which will be supervised by an exercise physiologist. Additionally, a week-7 and week-14 exercise challenge assessment will track changes in NPY system function and the variables of interest. We hypothesize that increases in the capacity to release NPY in response to acute exercise testing will be associated with improvements in self-regulation and reward sensitivity, which will in turn be associated with self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation to maintain regular exercise. Ninety participants will be randomized either to the "active exercise training condition" or to the "wait list symptom monitoring condition". The study aims to demonstrate the feasibility of procedures and elucidate mechanisms relevant to developing individually prescribed, motivationally based exercise regimens to reduce negative consequences of PTSD and low back pain over the long-term. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica R Scioli
- Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Brian N Smith
- Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | | | - Avron Spiro
- Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology and Research Information Center (MAVERIC) VA Boston Healthcare System
| | | | - Sunny Dutra
- Clinical Psychology Department, William James College
| | - Kristina M Bogdan
- Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Alex Eld
- Affiliate of Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Ann M Rasmusson
- Women's Health Sciences Division, National Center for PTSD, Research Service, VA Boston Healthcare System
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33
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Sullivan DR, Salat DH, Wolf EJ, Logue MW, Fortier CB, Fonda JR, DeGutis J, Esterman M, Milberg WP, McGlinchey RE, Miller MW. Interpersonal early life trauma is associated with increased cerebral perfusion and poorer memory performance in post-9/11 veterans. Neuroimage Clin 2020; 28:102365. [PMID: 32777702 PMCID: PMC7417939 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2020.102365] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
IP-ELT is associated with greater cerebral perfusion in the right inferior/middle temporal gyrus. Cerebral perfusion mediates the relationship between IP-ELT and memory, not attention or executive function. PTSD diagnosis and severity were not significantly associated with cerebral perfusion. Other factors relevant to perfusion did not influence the relationship between IP-ELT and cerebral perfusion.
Cerebral blood flow (CBF) is critically important in the overall maintenance of brain health, and disruptions in normal flow have been linked to the degradation of the brain’s structural integrity and function. Recent studies have highlighted the potential role of CBF as a link between psychiatric disorders and brain integrity. Although interpersonal early life trauma (IP-ELT) is a risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders and has been linked to disruptions in brain structure and function, the mechanisms through which IP-ELT alters brain integrity and development remain unclear. The goal of this study was to understand whether IP-ELT was associated with alterations in CBF assessed during adulthood. Further, because the cognitive implications of perfusion disruptions in IP-ELT are also unclear, this study sought to investigate the relationship between IP-ELT, perfusion, and cognition. Methods: 179 Operations Enduring Freedom/Iraqi Freedom/New Dawn (OEF/OIF/OND) Veterans and military personnel completed pseudo-continuous arterial spin labeling (pCASL) imaging, clinical interviews, the Traumatic Life Events Questionnaire (TLEQ), and a battery of neuropsychological tests that were used to derive attention, memory, and executive function cognitive composite scores. To determine whether individuals were exposed to an IP-ELT, events on the TLEQ that specifically queried interpersonal trauma before the age of 18 were tallied for each individual. Analyses compared individuals who reported an interpersonal IP-ELT (IP-ELT+, n = 48) with those who did not (IP-ELT-, n = 131). Results: Whole brain analyses revealed that IP-ELT+ individuals had significantly greater CBF in the right inferior/middle temporal gyrus compared to those in the IP-ELT- group, even after controlling for age, sex, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Further, perfusion in the right inferior/middle temporal gyrus significantly mediated the relationship between IP-ELT and memory, not attention or executive function, such that those with an IP-ELT had greater perfusion, which, in turn, was associated with poorer memory. Examination of other clinical variables such as current PTSD diagnosis and severity as well as the interaction between IP-ELT and PTSD yielded no significant effects. Conclusions: These results extend prior work demonstrating an association between ELT and cerebral perfusion by suggesting that increased CBF may be an important neural marker with cognitive implications in populations at risk for psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle R Sullivan
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - David H Salat
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Erika J Wolf
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mark W Logue
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Biomedical Genetics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA USA; Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jennifer R Fonda
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William P Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS) and Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mark W Miller
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
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Fortier CB, Whitworth JW, Fonda JR, Currao A, Beck BM, Levin L, Esterman M, Milberg WP, McGlinchey RE. Early Adolescent Binge Drinking Increases Risk of Psychopathology in Post-9/11 Veterans and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Exacerbates Symptom Severity. Alcohol Alcohol 2020; 56:116-124. [DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agaa075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2019] [Revised: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Aims
To demonstrate that early adolescent binge drinking (BD) increases the risk for and/or severity of psychopathology in post-9/11 Veterans and determine if mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) modifies risk.
Methods
Post-9/11 Veterans (n = 375) were classified into two groups: 57 Veterans with a history of early adolescent BD (E-BD; age of onset <15) and 318 who did not BD until age 15 or older (late-BD or L-BD; age of onset ≥15). History of military mTBI and mental health disorders were also assessed following military service.
Results
Logistic regression and analysis of variance (ANOVA) analyses revealed that the E-BD’s had significantly higher prevalence of alcohol use disorders (AUDs) and more severe symptoms of AUD, substance use disorder (SUD), depression and stress. Two-way ANOVAs showed that history of military mTBI was differentially associated with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) incidence and severity among Veterans who had engaged in early adolescent BD. Specifically, Veterans with a history of both early adolescent BD and military mTBI were at greater risk for a PTSD diagnosis and had more severe symptoms of PTSD than those with only a history of adolescent BD. The greater PTSD symptom severity in the comorbid group was driven by hyperarousal symptoms.
Conclusions
A history of BD during early adolescence is prevalent among Veterans and is related to higher risk for AUD and more severe AUD, SUD, mood and stress symptoms later in life. Veterans with early BD and military mTBI showed greater incidence and severity of PTSD, indicating that mTBI, a common comorbidity among post-9/11 Veterans, exacerbates risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine B Fortier
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - James W Whitworth
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Jennifer R Fonda
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alyssa Currao
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Brigitta M Beck
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Laura Levin
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - William P Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, 150 S. Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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35
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Zhou J, Poole V, Wooten T, Lo OY, Iloputaife I, Manor B, Esterman M, Lipsitz LA. Multiscale Dynamics of Spontaneous Brain Activity Is Associated With Walking Speed in Older Adults. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci 2020; 75:1566-1571. [PMID: 31585008 PMCID: PMC7357585 DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glz231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In older adults, compromised white matter tract integrity within the brain has been linked to impairments in mobility. We contend that poorer integrity disrupts mobility by altering the processing of sensorimotor and cognitive and attentional resources in neural networks. The richness of information processing in a given network can be quantified by calculating the complexity of resting-state functional MRI time series. We hypothesized that (i) older adults with lower brain complexity, specifically within sensorimotor, executive, and attention networks, would exhibit slower walking speed and greater dual-task costs (ie, dual-task cost) and (ii) such complexity would mediate the effect of white matter integrity on these metrics of mobility. METHODS Fifty-three older adults completed a walking assessment and a neuroimaging protocol. Brain complexity was quantified by calculating the multiscale entropy of the resting-state functional MRI signal within seven previously defined functional networks. The white matter integrity across structures of the corpus callosum was quantified using fractional anisotropy. RESULTS Participants with lower resting-state complexity within the sensorimotor, executive, and attention networks walked more slowly under single- and dual-task (ie, walking while performing a serial-subtraction task) conditions (β > 0.28, p ≤ .01) and had a greater dual-task cost (β < -0.28, p < .04). Complexity in these networks mediated the influence of the corpus callosum genu on both single- (indirect effects > 0.15, 95% confidence intervals = 0.02-0.32) and dual-task walking speeds (indirect effects > 0.13, 95% confidence intervals = 0.02-0.33). CONCLUSION These results suggest that the multiscale dynamics of resting-state brain activity correlate with mobility and mediate the effect of the microstructural integrity in the corpus callosum genu on walking speed in older adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junhong Zhou
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, Massachusetts
- Division of Gerontology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Victoria Poole
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, Massachusetts
- Division of Gerontology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC) and Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts
| | - Thomas Wooten
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC) and Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Massachusetts
| | - On-Yee Lo
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, Massachusetts
- Division of Gerontology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Ikechukwu Iloputaife
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, Massachusetts
| | - Brad Manor
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, Massachusetts
- Division of Gerontology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Michael Esterman
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC) and Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Massachusetts
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Massachusetts
| | - Lewis A Lipsitz
- Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, Massachusetts
- Division of Gerontology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
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Vogel SC, Esterman M, DeGutis J, Wilmer JB, Ressler KJ, Germine LT. Childhood Adversity and Dimensional Variations in Adult Sustained Attention. Front Psychol 2020; 11:691. [PMID: 32362858 PMCID: PMC7180319 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 03/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and Objective Sustained attention is a transdiagnostic phenotype linked with most forms of psychopathology. We sought to understand factors that influence the development of sustained attention, by looking at the relationship between childhood adversity and adult sustained attention. Participants, Setting, and Methods Participants were 5,973 TestMyBrain.org visitors from English-speaking countries who completed a continuous performance task (gradCPT) of sustained attention and a childhood adversity questionnaire. We analyzed gradCPT performance using a signal detection approach. Results Discrimination ability (the main metric of performance on the gradCPT) was associated with total childhood adversity load, even when controlling for covariates related to age, gender, parental education, race, country of origin, and relative socioeconomic status (β = −0.079, b = −0.032). Conclusion Our results demonstrate that attention differences related to childhood adversity exposure can (1) be measured using brief, performance-based measures of sustained attention, (2) persist into adulthood, and (3) be detected at the population level. These results, paired with the well-documented associations between sustained attention and psychopathology, indicate that sustained attention may be an important mechanism for understanding early influences on mental health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah C Vogel
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Michael Esterman
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States.,Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Jeremy B Wilmer
- Department of Psychology, Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA, United States
| | - Kerry J Ressler
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Institute for Technology in Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, United States.,Division of Depression and Anxiety Disorders, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, United States
| | - Laura T Germine
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.,Institute for Technology in Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, United States.,Division of Depression and Anxiety Disorders, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA, United States
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Kucyi A, Daitch A, Raccah O, Zhao B, Zhang C, Esterman M, Zeineh M, Halpern CH, Zhang K, Zhang J, Parvizi J. Electrophysiological dynamics of antagonistic brain networks reflect attentional fluctuations. Nat Commun 2020; 11:325. [PMID: 31949140 PMCID: PMC6965628 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-14166-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2019] [Accepted: 12/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuroimaging evidence suggests that the default mode network (DMN) exhibits antagonistic activity with dorsal attention (DAN) and salience (SN) networks. Here we use human intracranial electroencephalography to investigate the behavioral relevance of fine-grained dynamics within and between these networks. The three networks show dissociable profiles of task-evoked electrophysiological activity, best captured in the high-frequency broadband (HFB; 70-170 Hz) range. On the order of hundreds of milliseconds, HFB responses peak fastest in the DAN, at intermediate speed in the SN, and slowest in the DMN. Lapses of attention (behavioral errors) are marked by distinguishable patterns of both pre- and post-stimulus HFB activity within each network. Moreover, the magnitude of temporally lagged, negative HFB coupling between the DAN and DMN (but not SN and DMN) is associated with greater sustained attention performance and is reduced during wakeful rest. These findings underscore the behavioral relevance of temporally delayed coordination between antagonistic brain networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron Kucyi
- Department of Neurology & Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94304, USA
| | - Amy Daitch
- Department of Neurology & Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94304, USA
| | - Omri Raccah
- Department of Neurology & Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94304, USA
| | - Baotian Zhao
- Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Beijing, 100070, China.,Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Neurosurgical Institute, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100070, China
| | - Chao Zhang
- Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Beijing, 100070, China.,Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Neurosurgical Institute, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100070, China
| | - Michael Esterman
- Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory & Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center, Veterans Administration, Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, 02130, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, 02130, USA
| | - Michael Zeineh
- Department of Radiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94304, USA
| | - Casey H Halpern
- Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94304, USA
| | - Kai Zhang
- Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Beijing, 100070, China.,Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Neurosurgical Institute, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100070, China
| | - Jianguo Zhang
- Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Tiantan Hospital, Beijing, 100070, China. .,Department of Neurosurgery, Beijing Neurosurgical Institute, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100070, China.
| | - Josef Parvizi
- Department of Neurology & Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94304, USA.
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Rashid B, Dev SI, Esterman M, Schwarz NF, Ferland T, Fortenbaugh FC, Milberg WP, McGlinchey RE, Salat DH, Leritz EC. Aberrant patterns of default-mode network functional connectivity associated with metabolic syndrome: A resting-state study. Brain Behav 2019; 9:e01333. [PMID: 31568716 PMCID: PMC6908882 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.1333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2018] [Revised: 03/13/2019] [Accepted: 03/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a clustering of three or more cardiovascular risk factors (RF), including hypertension, obesity, high cholesterol, or hyperglycemia. MetS and its component RFs are more prevalent in older age, and can be accompanied by alterations in brain structure. Studies have shown altered functional connectivity (FC) in samples with individual RFs as well as in clinical populations that are at higher risk to develop MetS. These studies have indicated that the default mode network (DMN) may be particularly vulnerable, yet little is known about the overall impact of MetS on FC in this network. METHODS In this study, we evaluated the integrity of FC to the DMN in participants with MetS relative to non-MetS individuals. Using a seed-based connectivity analysis approach, resting-state functional MRI (fMRI) data were analyzed, and the FC measures among the DMN seed (isthmus of the cingulate) and rest of the brain voxels were estimated. RESULTS Participants with MetS demonstrated reduced positive connectivity between the DMN seed and left superior frontal regions, and reduced negative connectivity between the DMN seed and left superior parietal, left postcentral, right precentral, right superior temporal and right superior parietal regions, after accounting for age- and sex-effects. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that MetS is associated with alterations in FC between the DMN and other regions of the brain. Furthermore, these results indicate that the overall burden of vascular RFs associated with MetS may, in part, contribute to the pathophysiology underlying aberrant FC in the DMN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barnaly Rashid
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Sheena I Dev
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.,SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, San Diego, California
| | - Michael Esterman
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Nicolette F Schwarz
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.,McLean Imaging Center, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts
| | - Tori Ferland
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Francesca C Fortenbaugh
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - William P Milberg
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Regina E McGlinchey
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - David H Salat
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.,The Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Elizabeth C Leritz
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans Center (NeRVe), Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
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Poole VN, Lo OY, Wooten T, Iloputaife I, Lipsitz LA, Esterman M. Motor-Cognitive Neural Network Communication Underlies Walking Speed in Community-Dwelling Older Adults. Front Aging Neurosci 2019; 11:159. [PMID: 31379552 PMCID: PMC6647911 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2019.00159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2019] [Accepted: 06/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
While walking was once thought to be a highly automated process, it requires higher-level cognition with older age. Like other cognitive tasks, it also becomes further challenged with increased cognitive load (e.g., the addition of an unrelated dual task) and often results in poorer performance (e.g., slower speed). It is not well known, however, how intrinsic neural network communication relates to walking speed, nor to this "cost" to gait performance; i.e., "dual-task cost (DTC)." The current study investigates the relationship between network connectivity, using resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI), and individual differences in older adult walking speed. Fifty participants (35 females; 84 ± 4.5 years) from the MOBILIZE Boston Study cohort underwent an MRI protocol and completed a gait assessment during two conditions: walking quietly at a preferred pace and while concurrently performing a serial subtraction task. Within and between neural network connectivity measures were calculated from rs-fMRI and were correlated with walking speeds and the DTC (i.e., the percent change in speed between conditions). Among the rs-fMRI correlates, faster walking was associated with increased connectivity between motor and cognitive networks and decreased connectivity between limbic and cognitive networks. Smaller DTC was associated with increased connectivity within the motor network and increased connectivity between the ventral attention and executive networks. These findings support the importance of both motor network integrity as well as inter-network connectivity amongst higher-level cognitive networks in older adults' ability to maintain mobility, particularly under dual-task (DT) conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria N. Poole
- Center for Translational Research in Mobility & Falls, Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, MA, United States
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
| | - On-Yee Lo
- Center for Translational Research in Mobility & Falls, Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, MA, United States
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Thomas Wooten
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Ikechukwu Iloputaife
- Center for Translational Research in Mobility & Falls, Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, MA, United States
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Lewis A. Lipsitz
- Center for Translational Research in Mobility & Falls, Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, MA, United States
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, United States
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Michael Esterman
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center (GRECC), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
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Esterman M, Fortenbaugh FC, Pierce ME, Fonda JR, DeGutis J, Milberg W, McGlinchey R. Trauma-related psychiatric and behavioral conditions are uniquely associated with sustained attention dysfunction. Neuropsychology 2019; 33:711-724. [PMID: 31144830 DOI: 10.1037/neu0000525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE It is increasingly recognized that trauma victims, particularly Veterans, have co-occurring psychological and physical conditions that impact cognition, especially the domains of sustained attention and executive functioning. Although previous work has generally attempted to isolate the unique cognitive effects of common combat-related comorbidities, less work has been done to examine how these conditions co-occur, and whether unique cognitive signatures accompany certain clinical combinations. METHOD To address this gap, we examined how several deployment-related conditions were associated with performance on a well-validated measure of sustained attention (i.e., gradual onset continuous performance task [gradCPT]) and a battery of standard neuropsychological measures in 123 Veterans from the Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders. Initially, a Principal component analysis was conducted to investigate how comorbid conditions grouped together. RESULTS Several sustained attention measures from the gradCPT were differentially associated with four unique combinations of trauma-related pathology. Specifically, a somatic component representing the combination of current pain, sleep disturbance, and mild traumatic brain injury was associated with a higher rate of failures of attentional engagement. On the other hand, a comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and mood disorder component (moodPTSD), as well as a substance use disorder component, were associated with higher rates of inhibitory control failures. Increased attentional instability was associated with moodPTSD as well as an anxiety disorder component. In contrast, the cognitive effects of deployment-related trauma were not observed on standard neuropsychological measures. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that unique combinations of trauma-related pathology have dissociable effects on sustained attentional control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders
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Wooten T, Ferland T, Poole V, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Esterman M, Leritz E. Metabolic risk in older adults is associated with impaired sustained attention. Neuropsychology 2019; 33:947-955. [PMID: 31094549 DOI: 10.1037/neu0000554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Metabolic syndrome (MetS), the presence of three or more cardiovascular risk factors, has been associated with subtle and diffuse neural compromise but has not been consistently associated with cognitive dysfunction. Sustained attention is a fundamental cognitive operation that relies on multiple brain networks and is impaired in a broad array of neurologic conditions. We examined whether a well-validated measure of sustained attention would be sensitive to vascular risk, as compared with more standard neuropsychological measures of attention and executive functioning. METHOD We assessed vascular risk factors (VRFs; blood pressure, waist circumference, cholesterol, glucose, and triglycerides) in 93 middle-to-older aged adults (45-75 years). MetS was defined based on current guidelines from the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Training Program (NCEP ATP III). Participants were grouped according to number of VRFs: high risk (MetS; 3+ VRFs; N = 32), medium risk (1 or 2 VRFs; N = 35), and low risk (0 VRFs; N = 26). All participants underwent a neuropsychological battery of tests measuring executive functioning. Participants also performed the gradual-onset continuous performance task (gradCPT), a measure of sustained attention. RESULTS There was a significant main effect of VRF group on sustained attention performance; participants with lower vascular risk were better able to sustain attention. No significant effects were detected on standard neuropsychological tests of executive function. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that the gradCPT is sensitive to the potentially negative effects of MetS on subtle aspects of neurocognitive functioning. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Wooten
- Geriatric Research, Education, & Clinical Center (GRECC)
| | - Tori Ferland
- Geriatric Research, Education, & Clinical Center (GRECC)
| | - Victoria Poole
- Geriatric Research, Education, & Clinical Center (GRECC)
| | | | | | - Joseph DeGutis
- Geriatric Research, Education, & Clinical Center (GRECC)
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Rothlein D, DeGutis J, Esterman M. Measuring the fidelity and connectivity of stimulus representations provides a richer neural characterization of attentional fluctuations. J Vis 2019. [DOI: 10.1167/19.10.321a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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Mitko A, Rothlein D, Poole V, Robinson M, McGlinchey R, DeGutis J, Salat D, Esterman M. Individual differences in sustained attention are associated with cortical thickness. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 40:3243-3253. [PMID: 30980462 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2018] [Revised: 03/23/2019] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Several studies have examined how individual differences in sustained attention relate to functional brain measures (e.g., functional connectivity), but far fewer studies relate sustained attention ability, or cognition in general, to individual differences in cortical structure. Functional magnetic resonance imaging meta-analyses and patient work have highlighted that frontoparietal regions, lateralized to the right hemisphere, are critical for sustained attention, though recent work implicates a broader expanse of brain regions. The current study sought to determine if and where variation in cortical thickness is significantly associated with sustained attention performance. Sustained attention was measured using the gradual onset continuous performance task and the Test of Variables of Attention in 125 adult Veteran participants after acquiring two high-resolution structural MRI scans. Whole-brain vertex-wise analyses of the cortex demonstrated that better sustained attention was associated with increased thickness in visual, somatomotor, frontal, and parietal cortices, especially in the right hemisphere. Network-based analyses revealed relationships between sustained attention and cortical thickness in the dorsal attention, ventral attention, somatomotor, and visual networks. These results indicate cortical thickness in multiple regions and networks is associated with sustained attention, and add to the growing knowledge of how structural MRI can help explain individual differences in cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex Mitko
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - David Rothlein
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Victoria Poole
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston, Massachusetts.,Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Department of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Meghan Robinson
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), Boston Division VA Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), Boston Division VA Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), Boston Division VA Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - David Salat
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Charlestown, Massachusetts.,Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Michael Esterman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders (TRACTS), VA RR&D TBI National Research Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center (GRECC), Boston Division VA Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts
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Riley E, Mitko A, Stumps A, Robinson M, Milberg W, McGlinchey R, Esterman M, DeGutis J. Clinically significant cognitive dysfunction in OEF/OIF/OND veterans: Prevalence and clinical associations. Neuropsychology 2019; 33:534-546. [PMID: 30945914 DOI: 10.1037/neu0000529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Cognitive performance in trauma-exposed populations, such as combat Veterans, has been shown to be worse than in nonexposed peers. However, cognitive performance has typically been within the normal range (within 1 SD of normative mean), and the prevalence of clinically significant cognitive dysfunction (i.e., performance more than 1 SD below the mean on multiple measures in a domain) in younger adults with trauma exposure remains unknown. The objective of our study was to measure this. METHOD We applied Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed.; DSM-5) cutoffs for clinically significant cognitive dysfunction (>1 SD below the mean in multiple measures within a domain) in the domains of memory, executive function, and attention to a sample of combat-exposed Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn (OEF/OIF/OND; N = 368, mean age = 31.7 years, 90% men) Veterans. We then compared psychiatric, physiological, and neural measures, as well as functional outcomes, between those with and without cognitive dysfunction. RESULTS Veterans with cognitive dysfunction (n = 129, 35.1%) had lower premorbid reading ability and more severe psychological distress, including increased anxiety, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sleep difficulties, pain, and alcohol consumption. Those with cognitive dysfunction also had worse functional outcomes, with mild but significant disability. In contrast, we found associations between outcome and age, traumatic brain injury, physiological and neural measures to be weak or not significant. CONCLUSIONS Together, this suggests that premorbid abilities and trauma-related psychological symptoms contribute significantly to cognitive dysfunction in OEF/OIF/OND Veterans, and that neurological insult and aging may play less of a role. Cognitive dysfunction may be at least partially ameliorated by treating trauma-related symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alex Mitko
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Anna Stumps
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Meghan Robinson
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - William Milberg
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System, and Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System, and Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
| | - Michael Esterman
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA RR&D TBI Center of Excellence, VA Boston Healthcare System
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Abstract
Background Posttraumatic stress disorder is associated with impairments in
sustained attention, a fundamental cognitive process
important for a variety of social and occupational tasks. To date, however,
the precise nature of these impairments and the posttraumatic stress
disorder symptoms associated with them have not been well understood. Methods Using a well-characterized sample of returning United States military
OEF/OIF/OND Veterans who varied in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms,
we employed a validated sustained attention paradigm designed to probe
fluctuations across two attentional states characterized by prior research,
including a peak state termed “in the zone” and a less efficient, more
error-prone state termed “out of the zone.” Rewarded and nonrewarded
conditions were employed to examine whether motivating strong task
performance could ameliorate sustained attention deficits. Analyses examined
associations between attentional state, availability of reward, and
posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms. Results Results indicated that, consistent with prior findings, higher levels of
posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms were broadly associated with impaired
task performance. This impairment was driven largely by performance deficits
during individuals' optimal (“in the zone”) attentional state, and follow-up
analyses indicated that the performance deficit was primarily associated
with anhedonia and emotional numbing symptoms. However, the deficit was
partially ameliorated when better performance was rewarded. Conclusion Our results provide a more complex understanding of the sustained attention
deficits associated with posttraumatic stress disorder and suggest that
external incentives may help to enhance sustained attention performance for
affected individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunny J Dutra
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Clinical Psychology, William James College, Newton, MA, USA
| | - Brian P Marx
- National Center for PTSD, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Regina McGlinchey
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.,Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Michael Esterman
- Department of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.,Translational Research Center for TBI and Stress Disorders, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Geriatric Research, Educational and Clinical Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Boston Attention and Learning Laboratory, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA.,Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
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Poole V, Lo O, Wooten T, Iloputaife I, Lipsitz L, Esterman M. DISRUPTED NEURAL NETWORK COMMUNICATION CONTRIBUTES TO DUAL-TASK COST IN FAST-WALKING OLDER ADULTS. Innov Aging 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igy023.1347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- V Poole
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, MA, USA
| | - O Lo
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew Senior Life, Boston, MA, USA
| | - T Wooten
- Boston VA Healthcare System, Boston, MA, USA
| | - I Iloputaife
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston MA 02131
| | | | - M Esterman
- VA Boston Healthcare System & Boston University School of Medicine
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47
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Wooten T, Poole V, Iloputaife I, Esterman M, Lipsitz L. COMPROMISED PREFRONTAL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION ARE ASSOCIATED WITH SLOWER WALKING IN OLDER ADULTS. Innov Aging 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igy023.1913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - V Poole
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, MA, USA
| | - I Iloputaife
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston MA 02131
| | - M Esterman
- VA Boston Healthcare System & Boston University School of Medicine
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Zhou J, Poole V, Wooten T, Lo O, Iloputaife I, Esterman M, Lipsitz L, Manor B. MULTI-SCALE DYNAMICS OF SPONTANOUS BRAIN ACTIVITY CORRELATE WITH WALKING SPEED IN COMMUNITY-DWELLING OLDER ADULTS. Innov Aging 2018. [DOI: 10.1093/geroni/igy023.1348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- J Zhou
- Harvard Medical School/Hebrew SeniorLife
| | - V Poole
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Roslindale, MA, USA
| | - T Wooten
- Neuroimaging Research for Veterans (NeRVe) Center, VA Boston Healthcare System
| | - O Lo
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew Senior Life, Boston, MA, USA
| | - I Iloputaife
- Institute for Aging Research, Hebrew SeniorLife, Boston MA 02131
| | - M Esterman
- VA Boston Healthcare System & Boston University School of Medicine
| | | | - B Manor
- Harvard Medical School\Hebrew SeniorLife Institute for Aging Research
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Rothlein D, DeGutis J, Esterman M. Reward induces the communication of task-specific visual information between the default mode and dorsal attention networks. J Vis 2018. [DOI: 10.1167/18.10.1250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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saad E, Arizpe J, Esterman M, DeGutis J. Repetitive TMS to right OFA enhances part-based but not holistic face encoding. J Vis 2018. [DOI: 10.1167/18.10.1086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- elyana saad
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, United StatesVA Boston Healthcare System, United States
| | - Joseph Arizpe
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, United StatesVA Boston Healthcare System, United States
| | - Michael Esterman
- VA Boston Healthcare System, United StatesDepartment of Psychiatry, Boston University School of Medicine, United States
| | - Joseph DeGutis
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, United StatesVA Boston Healthcare System, United States
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