The neurobiological bases of epileptogenesis in the developing brain

The basics of neurophysiological, neurochemical and molecular mechanisms of epileptogenesis in early ontogeny are discussed. The role of developmental neuropathology, synaptogenesis; the role of glutamatergic and GABA-ergic transmitter systems are summarized. The candidates of genes in the childhood epilepsies, developmental changes in the expression of genes of voltage-gated ionic channels and receptor genes are reviewed.     

Dysfunctions in multiple interrelated systems as the neurobiological bases of schizophrenic symptom clusters

The absence of an animal model that accurately approximates schizophrenia limits current research into the pathophysiology of this disorder. Obviously, the cognitive disturbances associated with schizophrenia are difficult to evaluate in laboratory animals. Nonetheless, animal studies have provided insight into the anatomy and physiology of the brain systems that have been implicated in schizophrenia. These studies also suggest how brain systems may be involved in information processing in normal and pathological conditions. Thus, a careful assessment of the properties and functions of the brain regions suggested to be involved in schizophrenic symptoms has been a primary objective in several laboratories. In this review, we discuss the interactions among the brain regions implicated in schizophrenia--the ventral striatum, prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and dopamine systems--and provide an integrative model linking altered function in these regions with specific clusters of symptoms of schizophrenia.     

Accruing knowledge on the biological bases of aggression: Comment on Giancola (2000).

The author contends that research on the biological correlates of aggression and violence follows a predictable course. The executive functioning model proposed by P. R. Giancola (see record 2000-02949-013) is a logical outcome of this progression and underscores the relative maturity of knowledge accrual for the alcohol-aggression link compared with other bio-behavioral models of human aggression. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depersonalization: neurobiological perspectives

Depersonalization remains a fascinating and obscure clinical phenomenon. In addition to earlier Jacksonian neurobiological adumbrations, and conventional psychodynamic accounts, views started to be expressed in the 1930s that depersonalization might be a vestigial form of behavior, and since the 1960s that it might be a phenomenon related to the temporal lobe. Recent advances in the neurobiology of the limbic system, and the application of Geschwind's concept of disconnection in the corticolimbic system, have opened the possibility of developing testable models. This paper includes a review of these ideas and of the clinical features of depersonalization, particularly of its emotional changes, suggesting that they are important for the neurobiological understanding of depersonalization. It also draws attention to clinical similarities between the experiential narratives produced by patients suffering from depersonalization and those with corticolimbic disconnections. On the basis of this, a new model is proposed according to which the state of increased alertness observed in depersonalization results from an activation of prefrontal attentional systems (right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex) and reciprocal inhibition of the anterior cingulate, leading to experiences of "mind emptiness" and "indifference to pain" often seen in depersonalization. On the other hand, a left-sided prefrontal mechanism would inhibit the amygdala resulting in dampened autonomic output, hypoemotionality, and lack of emotional coloring that would in turn, be reported as feelings of "unreality or detachment."     

The first panic attack: A neurobiological theory.

The authors extend a neurodevelopmental model of specific phobias (W. J. Jacobs and L. Nadel, 1985) to the etiology of an initial panic attack and its elaboration into panic disorder. An important difference between the initial panic attack and specific phobia is the developmental timing of critical emotional experience: Those occurring early in development lead to panic; those occurring later in development lead to specific phobia. By this account, sensory and emotional experiences that occur early in development are stored in a set of modules, each with a unique developmental trajectory. Reinstatement, which occurs during hormonal stress, produces an aggregate of sensory and emotional memories and the first experience of an unexplained panic attack. Panic disorder, which evolves from unexplained panic attacks, involves retrieval of a disaggregate set of sensory and emotional memory fragments supplemented by an inferential fitting of an explanatory context to this incomplete aggregate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Jurors' use of naked statistical evidence: Exploring bases and implications of the Wells effect.

G. L. Wells (1992) demonstrated that jurors react differently to probabilistic evidence indicating that there is an 80% chance the defendant committed an act than they do to 80% reliable evidence indicating the defendant committed an act. Even though jurors report that the probability of guilt is approximately 80% for both forms, they are much more likely to find against the defendant in the latter than in the former case, a phenomenon the authors term the Wells effect. Three experiments explore a variety of possible explanations for the Wells effect. Results provided the most consistent support for an ease-of-simulation mechanism, which holds that jurors are more reluctant to convict when they can easily simulate a scenario in which the defendant is not guilty. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal aggression and the Type A coronary-prone behavior pattern: A theoretical distinction and practical implications.

In Study 1, 85 male undergraduates were classified as Type A (coronary prone) or Type B (noncoronary prone) on the basis of scores on the Jenkins Activity Survey. Ss participated in a version of A. H. Buss's (1961) teacher–learner procedure that allowed the isolation of hostile from instrumental acts. Results indicate that a prior task frustration produced greater aggression by Type A's than Type B's, but only under conditions where the aggressive act could not affect a confederate's immediate performance (i.e., hostile aggression). Study 2 examined the representation of Type A's and Type B's among 20 women in treatment for child abuse, 20 women who were victims of spouse abuse, and 20 control women. Findings show that Type A's were more likely than Type B's to exhibit the extreme hostility found in child abuse. Both studies suggest that a lack of control may underlie the greater aggression displayed by Type A's and Type B's. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Response to aggression: evaluation and therapeutic implications. Work Group on Metabolism and Nutrition of the SEMIUC

The metabolic response to stress/aggression is a complex process which is mainly mediated by the interaction between the neuro-endocrine system and the circulating cytokines. This interaction brings about physiological and metabolic alterations--severe metabolic-nutritional deficits--of the hypermetabolic type, muscular proteolysis, lipolysis, glycogenolysis, and gluconeogenesis among others, which should be studied and understood prior to initiating or not a nutritional support. The parenteral or enteral nutritional support is usually indicated to prevent a worsening of these situations of altered metabolism frequently associated with inanition, although one should not attempt to revert to normal preexisting deficit situations. On the other hand, and is this special context, we should not forget the advances in nutrients with pharmacological effects, and in pharmacological nutrition. At this II Consensus Conference of the SEMIUC (Sociedad Espa?ola de Medicine Intensiva y Unidades Coronarias = Spanish Society of Intensive Medicine and Coronary Units), we have proposed four objectives: i) To make recommendation, based both on the scientific evidence, as on the experience of the components. ii) Define the scientific terminology to be used in this specific context. iii) Give an answer to the different and assorted clinical problems which are secondary to a situation of stress which has a multiple etiology. iv) Provide new ideas for the development of clinical trails and studies of this specific context.     

Academic underachievement, attention deficits, and aggression: Comorbidity and implications for intervention.

Although comorbidity with specific learning disabilities is less frequent than commonly reported, externalizing behavior disorders, particularly attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), often overlap with various indices of academic underachievement during childhood. Furthermore, by adolescence, delinquency is clearly associated with school failure. Because the link between behavioral and learning problems often appears before formal schooling, and because the comorbid problems predict a negative course, early intervention is a necessity. Controlled treatment investigations with youngsters who show these combined problems are rare, and such studies present a host of methodologic and practical problems. Issues are discussed surrounding multimodality treatment programs and the potential for long-term interventions to break cycles of school failure and externalizing behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The aggression paradox: Understanding links among aggression, sensation seeking, and the consideration of future consequences.

Four studies involving 573 female and 272 male college students demonstrated that multiple forms and measures of aggression were associated with high levels of sensation seeking, impulsivity, and a focus on the immediate consequences of behavior. Multiple regression analyses and structural equation models supported a theoretical model based on the general aggression model (C. A. Anderson & B. J. Bushman, 2002), positing that hostile cognition and negative affect mediate the relationships between the aforementioned individual differences and aggression. Sensation seeking also predicted a desire to engage in physical and verbal aggression. The final study demonstrated that relative to those scoring low, individuals scoring high on the consideration of future consequences are only less aggressive when aggression is likely to carry future costs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The neuropharmacology of aggression: A critical review.

A review of the literature on aggression from a multidisciplinary standpoint reveals evidence for differentiating several kinds of aggression. This differentiation can be seen in the psychopharmacological literature, where some compounds have been effective in altering some forms of aggressive behaviors but ineffective in altering others. Differences in endogenous levels of neurotransmitters have also been reported, but there was little correlation between changes in neurotransmitter systems and effectiveness of compounds supposedly altering these systems. A tentative hypothesis is offered which attempts to explain the behavioral effects of these drugs in terms of their action on several neurotransmitter systems. (4 p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Television violence and aggression: The debate continues.

Defends the majority consensus in the literature that there is a causal relation between viewing TV violence and aggression. Replies are made to challenges of this consensus by J. L. Freedman (see record 1984-30860-001). It is concluded that the data support a bidirectional causal relation between viewing TV violence and aggression, that the potential threats to the internal and external validity of studies using different methods are not likely to produce a positive bias, and that the findings can be generalized to real-world violence. The available research is placed in a theoretical context encompassing multiple psychological processes and developmental change, and social policy implications are discussed. (48 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Altruism and aggression: The heritability of individual differences.

Administered 5 questionnaires measuring altruistic and aggressive tendencies to 573 adult twin pairs (mean age about 30 yrs) of both sexes from the University of London Institute of Psychiatry Volunteer Twin Register. Ss included 206 monozygotic (MZ) female, 90 MZ male, 133 dizygotic (DZ) female, 46 DZ male, and 98 DZ opposite-sex pairs. The questionnaires measured altruism, empathy, nurturance, aggressiveness, and assertiveness. The intraclass correlations for the 5 scales, respectively, were .53, .54, .49, .40, and .52 for the 296 MZ pairs, and .25, .20, .14, .04, and .20 for the 179 same-sex DZ pairs, resulting in broad heritability estimates of 56, 68, 70, 72, and 64%. Additional analyses, using maximum-likelihood model-fitting, revealed approximately 50% of the variance on each scale to be associated with genetic effects, virtually 0% with the twins' common environment, and the remaining 50% with each twins' specific environment and/or error associated with the test. Correcting for the unreliability in the tests raised the maximum-likelihood heritabilities to approximately 60%. Age and sex differences were also found: Altruism increased over the age span from 19 to 60 yrs, whereas aggressiveness decreased; at each age, women had higher scores than men on altruism and lower scores on aggressiveness. (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The displaced aggression questionnaire.

Previous measures of aggressive personality have focused on direct aggression (i.e., retaliation toward the provoking agent). An original self-report measure of trait displaced aggression is presented. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses provided support for a 3-factor conceptualization of the construct. These analyses identified an affective dimension (angry rumination), a cognitive dimension (revenge planning), and a behavioral dimension (general tendency to engage in displaced aggression). The trait measure demonstrated good internal consistency and test-retest reliability as well as convergent and discriminant construct validity. Unlike other related personality measures, trait displaced aggression significantly predicted indirect indicators of real-world displaced aggression (i.e., self-reported domestic abuse and road rage) as well as laboratory displaced aggression in 2 experiments. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The bases of teacher expectancies: A meta-analysis.

Reports a meta-analysis of research on the bases of teacher expectancies. 77 pertinent studies were reviewed using S. Stouffer's (1949) method of adding z scores. The following conclusions were drawn: Student attractiveness, conduct, cumulative folder information, race, and social class were related to teacher expectancies. Student gender and the number of parents at home were student characteristics not related to teacher expectancies; equivocal relations existed between teacher expectancies and student sex role behavior, name stereotypes, and teachers having previously taught a sibling. The findings are discussed in the context of the importance of doing such research with intact classrooms. Methodological difficulties and deficiencies in existing research are pointed out. Questions in need of research and directions for future research are noted. (118 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The latent structure of childhood aggression: A taxometric analysis of self-reported and teacher-rated aggression in Israeli schoolchildren.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the latent structure of childhood aggression, like the latent structure of adult antisocial behavior, is dimensional. One thousand and five Israeli schoolchildren completed a translation of the Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (AQ; Buss & Perry, 1992) and were rated by their homeroom teachers on the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory (ECBI; Robinson, Eyberg, & Ross, 1980). The AQ Physical Aggression and Verbal Aggression scales were combined to form the 1st indicator, the AQ Anger and Hostility scales were combined to form the 2nd indicator, the 10-item ECBI Oppositional Defiant Behavior Toward Adults scale composed the 3rd indicator, and the 8-item ECBI Conduct Problem Behavior scale composed the 4th indicator. Subjecting these indicators to taxometric analysis revealed consistent support for dimensional latent structure in the full sample as well as in 5 of the 6 subsamples. Childhood aggression, it would seem, differs quantitatively along a dimension (degree of aggression) rather than bifurcating into qualitatively distinct categories (aggressive vs. nonaggressive). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The therapy of peripheral obstructive arteriopathies: rational bases

The authors underline the relations among the anatomical lesion progression, the appearance of the clinical signs (claudicatio) of tissue ischaemia and the thromboembolic event in vascular districts like myocardium and brain, at high morbidity and mortality risk. They widely state the pathogenetic mechanism of the atherosclerotic arterial disease and the compensative mechanisms that may prevent the ischaemic effects of the vascular obstruction. It has been considered the importance of the hemorheologic changes and their influence on the development of the ischaemic syndrome. The therapeutic choice in relation to physiopathologic and hemorheologic events in the peripheral obstructive arterial disease is considered.     

Neuroimaging and neurobiological models of depression

We review the data from structural neuroimaging studies (computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging) related to depressive disorders. In addition, we review the relevant functional neuroimaging research, including studies of normal emotional processing, studies of the functional neuroanatomy of major depression, and neurochemical neuroimaging studies of depression. Finally, we discuss existing neurobiological models of depression and offer modifications based upon the body of neuroimaging research we have presented.     

Memory, amnesia, and the issue of recovered memory: neurobiological aspects

The main thesis of this article is that the debate about the credibility of "recovered memories"--reports by adults of recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse and trauma that were allegedly repressed for many years--can be usefully informed by considering the biological and behavioral facts and ideas about how memory works. Accordingly, the first section of this review describes current facts and ideas about the neurobiology and neuropsychology of memory and amnesia, including what parts of the brain are important for memory, distinctions between different memory systems in the brain, and the phenomena of infantile amnesia and source amnesia. The second section takes into account the information about the biological and behavioral bases of memory and addresses two questions about memory that have become a focus of debate in the recovered memory controversy, that is, whether memories for traumatic events change over time, and whether memories can be created for traumatic events that did not actually happen.     

The evidence for a neurobiological model of childhood antisocial behavior.

Children with persistent antisocial and aggressive behavior are diagnosed as having disruptive behavior disorder. The authors review evidence that antisocial children, and especially those who persist with this behavior as they grow older, have a range of neurobiological characteristics. It is argued that serotonergic functioning and stress-regulating mechanisms are important in explaining individual differences in antisocial behavior. Moreover, low fear of punishment and physiological underactivity may predispose antisocial individuals to seek out stimulation or take risks and may help to explain poor conditioning and socialization. The authors propose a theoretical model highlighting the interplay between neurobiological deficits and cognitive and emotional functioning as mediators of the link between early adversity and antisocial behavior problems in childhood. Implications for intervention programs are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)