Negative association between anterior insula activation and resilience during sustained attention: an fMRI twin study

Background While previous studies have suggested that higher levels of cognitive performance may be related to greater wellbeing and resilience, little is known about the associations between neural circuits engaged by cognitive tasks and wellbeing and resilience, and whether genetics or environment contribute to these associations. Methods The current study consisted of 253 monozygotic and dizygotic adult twins, including a subsample of 187 early-life trauma-exposed twins, with functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging data from the TWIN-E study. Wellbeing was measured using the COMPAS-W Wellbeing Scale while resilience was defined as a higher level of positive adaptation (higher levels of wellbeing) in the presence of trauma exposure. We probed both sustained attention and working memory processes using a Continuous Performance Task in the scanner. Results We found significant negative associations between resilience and activation in the bilateral anterior insula engaged during sustained attention. Multivariate twin modelling showed that the association between resilience and the left and right insula activation was mostly driven by common genetic factors, accounting for 71% and 87% of the total phenotypic correlation between these variables, respectively. There were no significant associations between wellbeing/resilience and neural activity engaged during working memory updating. Conclusions The findings suggest that greater resilience to trauma is associated with less activation of the anterior insula during a condition requiring sustained attention but not working memory updating. This possibly suggests a pattern of ‘neural efficiency’ (i.e. more efficient and/or attenuated activity) in people who may be more resilient to trauma.

Early life trauma leads to violent behavior and its inheritance by impairing local thyroid hormone availability in brain

Violent behavior is an aberrant form of aggression that has detrimental impact on health and society. Early life trauma triggers adulthood violence and criminality, though molecular mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we provide brain region specific transcriptome profiles of peripubertal stress (PPS) exposed adult violent male and resilient female mice. We identify transthyretin (TTR) as a key regulator of PPS induced violent behavior and its intergenerational inheritance. TTR mediated long-term perturbation in hypothalamic thyroid hormone (TH) availability contributed to male violent behavior without affecting circulating hormone. Ttr gene ablation in hypothalamus impaired local TH signaling including levels of TH transporters (Mct8, Oatp1c1), deiodinase 2 (DIO2) and TH responsive genes (Nrgn, Trh and Hr). Violent behavior and impaired TTR-TH signaling was also inherited in F1 male progenies. Further, we deciphered Ttr promoter hyper methylation in hypothalamus of violent males across generations. Our findings reveal that trauma during puberty trigger lasting violent behavior by epigenetic programming of TTR and consequent impaired local thyroid availability in brain. TTR-TH signaling in hypothalamus can serve as potential target in reversal of violent behavior.

The mediating role of perfectionism in relation to narcissism and early trauma, family functioning and perceived parenting styles

Introduction: Elevated narcissism in young people often sets up a cascade of interpersonal and mental health challenges which needs to understand its concomitants. This study aimed to explain the structural model of narcissism based on early trauma, family function and perceived parenting styles with the mediating role of perfectionism. Methods: This was an analytical cross-sectional study. The statistical population of the present study consisted of 20-45 year-old males and females referring to psychological clinics of Tehran in 2018-19. A sample of 350 people was also selected using convenience sampling method. Narcissistic Personality Inventory (NPI), the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), the McMaster family assessment device, and Perceptions of Parents Scale (POPS) were used to collect the data. The data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, including mean, standard deviation, skewness, and kurtosis using SPSS-22 software and structural equation modeling was used by Amos-24 doftware. The level of significant was (p<0.05). Results: Comparative Fit index (CFI) was 0.923, Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI), and Incremental Fit Index (IFI) was appropriate; since it exceeded 0.90. Also, the Root Mean Square Error Approximation (RMSEA) was 0.075 was in the acceptable range. Based on the path findings, the fitted model showed a positive impact of early life trauma on perfectionism (p<0.01, β= 0.12), the functioning of the family (p<0.01, β= 0.21), and the style of parenting (β= 0.29, p<0.01). Narcissism had a positive impact on family functioning (p<0.01, β = 0.40) directly from early life trauma (p <0.01, β = 0.18). Conclusion: As the experience of trauma increases early in life, the likelihood of developing perfectionist tendencies increases. This indicates that the better the parenting style and the better the family functioning, the lower the level of perfectionism.

Remote and adjacent psychological predictors of early-adulthood resilience: Role of early-life trauma, extraversion, life-events, depression, and social-support

Resilience is important for people to maintain mental health after negative life-events. However, its longitudinal psychological and social predictors are poorly revealed. Based on the ecological system theory model, the current study aimed to determine the longitudinal temporal mechanism underlying the development of early-adulthood resilience using long-term (early-life trauma and personality), medium-term and short-term (life-events, social support, and depression) psychosocial predictors. A total of 505 university students were recruited at baseline (T1), 433 of whom took part in a three-year longitudinal investigation (T2). The results showed that at T1 and T2, the resilience scores of individuals were identically high (72.98 and 73.21, respectively). Pearson correlation analysis showed that early-adulthood resilience was negatively correlated with early-life trauma, psychoticism and neuroticism, depression, ad life-events, and positively correlated with extraversion, social-support, and resilience. Regression and structural equation models showed that extraversion had a direct positive effect on T1 resilience through the mediation of T1 life-events, depression, and social-support, while childhood emotional neglect (EN) had indirect negative effect and extraversion had direct positive effect on T2 resilience through the mediation of T1 resilience, and T2 depression and social-support. In conclusion, this study is among the first to reveal the longitudinal temporal process of the development of early-adulthood resilience using remote and adjacent psychosocial predictors. The findings confirm that childhood EN and extraversion have a remote impact on early-adulthood resilience through recent and current depression and social-support. Our results imply that early-life trauma does not hinder the development of early-adulthood resilience in a linear trend.