Identification of a Sensitive Period of Prenatal Cocaine Exposure that Alters the Development of the Anterior Cingulate Cortex

Five adult rhesus monkeys with a history of prenatal cocaine exposure (PNCE) and two saline-exposed control animals were used to optimize positron emission tomography (PET) imaging methods and to gather preliminary data on the effects of PNCE on dopamine systems in the adult non-human primate central nervous system. Dynamic PET scans were performed on each monkey to measure the binding kinetics of PET ligands specific for dopamine D2/D3 receptors ([18F]fallypride) and dopamine transporter ([18F]FECNT). PET scans were coregistered to structural T1-weighted MR images to aid in identification of regions with significant dopamine innervation for tracer kinetic analysis. Brain regions of interest (ROI) included caudate, putamen, substantia nigra and anterior cingulate cortex. Kinetic modeling using a cerebellum reference region was implemented in the PMOD software package to determine ligand binding potentials for D2/D3 receptors and dopamine transporters (DAT) in each of the ROIs to test whether fallypride and/or FECNT binding potentials, measures of D2/D3 and DAT levels respectively, were influenced by prenatal cocaine exposure. Preliminary results suggest a trend of reduced D2/D3 binding potential with increased PNCE, but future research is necessary.

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Intrauterine cocaine exposure of rabbits: persistent elevation of GABA-immunoreactive neurons in anterior cingulate cortex but not visual cortex

Brain Research ◽

10.1016/0006-8993(95)00528-x ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 689 (1) ◽

pp. 32-46 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Xiao-Hui Wang ◽

Pat Levitt ◽

Dennis R. Grayson ◽

E. Hazel Murphy

Keyword(s):

Visual Cortex ◽

Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽

Cingulate Cortex ◽

Anterior Cingulate ◽

Cocaine Exposure ◽

Persistent Elevation

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The neurobiology of self-processing in abused depressed adolescents

Development and Psychopathology ◽

10.1017/s0954579416001024 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 29 (3) ◽

pp. 1057-1073 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Karina Quevedo ◽

Rowena Ng ◽

Hannah Scott ◽

Garry Smyda ◽

Jennifer H. Pfeifer ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽

Cingulate Cortex ◽

Chronic Depression ◽

Anterior Cingulate ◽

Self Concept ◽

Sensitive Period ◽

Dorsal Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽

Self Development ◽

Persistent Depression ◽

Linear Decline

AbstractMaltreatment is associated with chronic depression, high negative self-attributions, and lifetime psychopathology. Adolescence is a sensitive period for the formation of self-concept. Identifying neurobiomarkers of self-processing in depressed adolescents with and without maltreatment may parse the effects of trauma and depression on self-development and chronic psychopathology. Depressed adolescents (n = 86) maltreated due to omission (DO, n = 13) or commission (DCM, n = 28) or without maltreatment (DC, n = 45), and HCs (HC, n = 37) appraised positive and negative self-descriptors in the scanner. DCM and DO showed hypoactivity in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) while processing positive versus negative self-descriptors compared to DC youth, who in turn showed reduced dACC recruitment versus HC. HC youth showed the highest activation in the dACC and striatum during positive self-descriptors; these regions showed a linear decline in activity across DC, DO, and DCM. Low dACC activity to positive versus negative self-descriptors was linked to inadequate coregulation of children's emotions by parents. Negative self-cognitions prevalent in DCM and DO adolescents may be perpetuated by activity in the dACC and striatum. Reduced activation of the dACC and striatum for positive self-descriptors, coupled with enhanced activity for negative self-descriptors, may heighten the risk for persistent depression.

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