Aberrant Resting-State Functional Connectivity in the Default Mode Network in Pediatric Bipolar Disorder Patients with and without Psychotic Symptoms / 神经科学通报·英文版

Mood disorders/psychosis have been associated with dysfunctions in the default mode network (DMN). However, the relative contributions of DMN regions to state and trait disturbances in pediatric bipolar disorder (PBD) remain unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible mechanisms of PBD through brain imaging and explore the influence of psychotic symptoms on functional alterations in PBD patients. Twenty-nine psychotic and 26 non-psychotic PBD patients, as well as 19 age- and sex-matched healthy controls underwent a resting-state functional MRI scan and the data were analyzed by independent component analysis. The DMN component from the fMRI data was extracted for each participant. Spearman's rank correlation analysis was performed between aberrant connectivity and clinical measurements. The results demonstrated that psychotic PBD was characterized by aberrant DMN connectivity in the anterior cingulate cortex/medial prefrontal cortex, bilateral caudate nucleus, bilateral angular gyri, and left middle temporal gyrus, while non-psychotic PBD was not, suggesting further impairment with the development of psychosis. In summary, we demonstrated unique impairment in DMN functional connectivity in the psychotic PBD group. These specific neuroanatomical abnormalities may shed light on the underlying pathophysiology and presentation of PBD.

The Impacts of Childhood Trauma on Psychosocial Features in a Chinese Sample of Young Adults

OBJECTIVE: The aims of the present study were to explore the occurrence of childhood trauma and importantly to determine the impacts of childhood trauma on psychosocial features in a Chinese sample of young adults. METHODS: A survey was carried out in a group of 555 university students by using Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), Dysfunctional Attitudes Questionnaire (DAS), Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ), and Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS). The moderate-severe cut-off scores for CTQ were used to calculate the prevalence of childhood trauma, and then psychosocial features were compared between individuals with and without childhood trauma. RESULTS: A proportion of 18.6% of university students had self-reported childhood trauma exposures. Subjects with childhood trauma reported higher scores of SDS, SAS, DAS, and psychoticism and neuroticism dimensions of EPQ (t=4.311–5.551, p < 0.001); while lower scores of SSRS and extraversion dimension of EPQ (t=-4.061– -3.039, p < 0.01). Regression analyses further revealed that scores of SAS and DAS were positively (Adjusted B=0.211–0.230, p < 0.05), while scores of SSRS were negatively (Adjusted B=-0.273– -0.240, p < 0.05) associated with specific CTQ scores. CONCLUSION: Childhood trauma is still a common social and psychological problem. Individuals with childhood trauma show much more depression, anxiety, distorted cognition, personality deficits, and lower levels of social support, which may represent the social and psychological vulnerability for developing psychiatric disorders after childhood trauma experiences.