早期应激对情绪调节的影响及其神经机制

在个体生命早期遭遇的长期或重大的应激经历会显著增加个体罹患抑郁、焦虑等心理疾患的风险, 而情绪调节能力的损伤是引发这些心理疾患的重要因素之一。以人类为对象的行为实验和调查研究表明, 早期应激不仅会影响日常生活中情绪调节策略的使用, 还会对情绪调节能力造成影响, 其影响方向可能与早期应激的严重程度有关。目前, 大部分研究表明严重的早期应激会损伤情绪调节能力, 但中度的早期应激也可能提高情绪调节能力。更为整合性的研究表明情绪调节能力中介了早期应激和各类疾患之间的关系。进一步, 我们从神经层面上阐述了早期应激对情绪调节相关脑区和神经环路的影响。未来研究应当注意控制无关变量, 进一步探究不同早期应激对于情绪调节的影响。     

社会应激对成年后进行群体隔离的大白鼠的行为的影响

本文观察了在成年后进行群体隔离的大白鼠与群居鼠在摄食、饮水、睡眠等方面的行为差异。着重观察了社会应激对成年后进行群体隔离的动物的行为的影响,以研究群体隔离时动物的年龄与过去生活经验是不是动物在社会应激时发生的行为改变的关键因素。 结果表明:群居与隔离两种环境对动物摄食、饮水和体重无明显影响,但隔离动物睡眠时间较群居动物短。即使在成年后进行群体隔离、社会应激对隔离动物的摄食、饮水、睡眠和攻击性行为的影响也比群居组明显。但进行群体隔离时动物的年龄和隔离前有较长时间的群居生活经验可大大减轻社会应激时行为反应的强度,也可使适应过程发生得快些。这说明早期环境和过去生活经验的重要性。社会应激影响饮水和摄食的方式随年龄而改变,年龄较大的群居鼠对社会应激的适应可能比年龄较轻的群居鼠差。     

社会应激对群体隔离动物行为的影响

本文观察了群居和隔离两种生活条件下的大白鼠摄食、饮水、睡眠等行为差异。并在环境变更后着重研究了社会应激对群体隔离动物的行为影响。 结果表明:群居与隔离两种环境对动物摄食、饮水和体重无明显影响,但隔离动物睡眠时间短,变化程度大。社会应激对隔离动物的摄食、饮水和睡眠的影响比群居组严重,恢复也慢。并产生了强烈的攻击性行为。但随着应激后群居时间的延长,攻击性逐渐减弱和消失,睡眠时间增加。然而,隔离对动物造成的影响不是短暂的,而是长期的。这种影响将在特殊的应激条件下再次表现出来。     

GABA能系统在应激诱发的抑郁症中的作用

γ-氨基丁酸(γ-aminobutyric acid,GABA)是中枢神经系统中最重要的抑制性神经递质,在维持大脑的兴奋-抑制平衡中起到重要作用。越来越多的临床和基础研究显示抑郁症与各种GABA能神经元活动不足相关,抗抑郁药物可以缓解或恢复上述变化。GABA能系统延迟发育至成年早期基本成熟。应激,尤其是早期应激是抑郁症发病的重要风险因素,可以通过扰动GABA能系统的发育轨迹从而造成对该系统结构和功能的持续后果,并与后期抑郁症易感密切相关。未来的研究需要进一步鉴别二者之间的关系,进而提出以GABA能系统为靶标的抑郁症治疗新策略。     

生活应激诱发大学生抑郁症状及轻生意念预警模型

用“大学生人格问卷”(UPI)和“学生生活应激量表”(SLSI)检测大学生3558例,并用回归分析和路经分析探讨其应激过程(应激源—应激反应)诱发抑郁症状及轻生意念的预警模型。结果显示,大学生生活中所承受的挫折、压力、变化和自我强加是预警抑郁症状产生的主要应激源;情绪反应、生理反应、行为反应和认知反应是预警抑郁症状产生的主要应激反应;大学生抑郁症状诱发轻生意念的预测正确率为97.0%,发生比(OR)或危险率1.86倍于非抑郁症状者,其中女生抑郁症状诱发轻生意念的危险率近2倍于无此症状者;应激源直接引起应激反应,应激反应直接诱发抑郁症状,抑郁症状直接引发轻生意念,应激源和应激反应不直接影响轻生意念,而通过诱发抑郁症状间接影响轻生意念。此预警模型为大学生危机心理鉴别干预提供了临床心理学依据和参数。     

早期经历影响个体成年后行为的表观遗传学机制

既往研究已证实早期经历与个体成年后的行为密切相关,然而早期经历对个体成年后的行为产生长期影响的分子生物机制并不清楚。近年来越来越多的研究表明表观遗传因素在早期经历调控成年个体行为中发挥了重要功能。表观遗传是研究没有DNA序列变化,但是可遗传和可逆转的基因组功能的调控。本文试图从早期经历参与调控个体成年后行为表现以及基因表达的相关表观遗传学修饰进行综述。     

表观遗传修饰在应激诱发抑郁症中的作用

应激可以对个体的生理和行为产生负面影响, 甚至导致抑郁症, 但病因机制尚不清楚。近年来许多研究发现应激导致的表观遗传修饰变化影响抑郁症的发生。表观遗传是指DNA序列不发生变化, 但基因表达却发生了可遗传的改变。应激引起的HPA轴、单胺类递质、BDNF三个方面的表观遗传修饰的变化, 在抑郁症发生中发挥重要作用。最后提出了目前表观遗传机制研究的局限性和未来研究热点。     

男性气质的陨落:男性抑郁症

抑郁是男性心理健康的一个静默的面向,男性抑郁的表现经常被忽视,但却又具有极大的破坏性,即具有较高的自杀率。国外研究已经提供了一些对于可能起到导致男性罹患抑郁症的影响因素以及相关的洞察,比如污名、男性性别角色规范,较低的求助行为和应对方式等,其中男性气质是男性抑郁症的一个重要决定因素,国内针对男性抑郁症的研究有限,更多以抑郁症性别差异研究呈现,对于男性气质研究更多见于社会文化领域。笔者回顾了相关文献对现有研究做了尝试性的总结,并在最后提出展望和一些与男性抑郁症相关的研究建议。     

CRF受体对五羟色胺系统的调节作用及早期环境因素的影响

早期环境因素持续影响脑与行为的发展,增加个体成年后应激相关精神疾病患病的易感性.应激反应的中枢启动因子促肾上腺皮质激素释放因子(corticotropin-releasing factor,CRF)通过两种受体CRF1和CRF2调节中缝背核(dorsal raphe nucleus,DRN)-五-羟色胺(serotonin,5-HT)系统,后者已被证实在应激相关情绪疾患发病和治疗过程中发挥重要作用.已知CRF受体以相互影响相互拮抗的方式动态调节DRN-5-HT系统,提示这两种受体相对作用的调节对于协调复杂环境中DRN-5-HT系统的应激反应过程起着关键性作用.早期环境因素和遗传因素交互作用导致CRF受体的分布和反应性持续改变并造成DRN-5-HT系统反应异常,可能是导致应激反应和精神疾病易感性个体差异的重要神经基础.     

抑郁症:一种进化心理学的视角

探讨了抑郁症的进化机制。由进化机制支配的依恋和社会地位行为可能是某些严重抑郁症的基础,尤其是与长期压力相关的抑郁症。虽然抑郁症有不同的性质,但某些核心症状是为了调节行为、情绪以及传达对威胁的敏感性而进化形成的,如行为退缩、低自尊、快感丧失等。     

Emerging roles of epigenetic mechanisms in the enduring effects of early-life stress and experience on learning and memory

Epigenetic mechanisms are involved in programming gene expression throughout development. In addition, they are key contributors to the processes by which early-life experience fine-tunes the expression levels of key neuronal genes, governing learning and memory throughout life. Here we describe the long-lasting, bi-directional effects of early-life experience on learning and memory. We discuss how enriched postnatal experience enduringly augments spatial learning, and how chronic early-life stress results in persistent and progressive deficits in the structure and function of hippocampal neurons. The existing and emerging roles of epigenetic mechanisms in these fundamental neuroplasticity phenomena are illustrated.     

Early-life stress affects extinction during critical periods of development: An analysis of the effects of maternal separation on extinction in adolescent rats

Adolescence is a period of heightened susceptibility to anxiety disorders, yet we have little experimental evidence on what factors may lead to psychopathology in adolescence. Preclinical models of extinction are commonly used to study the treatment of anxiety symptoms. Interestingly, recent research has shown that there are fundamental changes in the process of extinction across development, which may have implications for our understanding of psychopathology across the lifespan. Specifically, this research shows that the process of extinction parallels the nonlinear function of prefrontal cortex development, such that extinction behaviour is similar in juvenile and adult rats, but involves different processes in infancy and adolescence (periods of rapid growth and pruning, respectively). Our previous studies have shown that early-life stress accelerates the transition between infant and juvenile extinction systems. In the current series of experiments, we examined whether the same early-life stress, maternal separation (MS), would lead to an earlier transition between the juvenile and adolescent extinction systems, and between the adolescent and adult extinction systems. We show that MS adolescent rats exhibit more adult-like extinction behaviour, and that adolescent-like extinction emerges earlier in development (i.e. in pre-adolescent rats). These results may have important implications for the understanding and treatment of anxiety symptoms in adolescent populations.     

中枢N-甲基-D-天冬氨酸受体在应激所致行为改变中的作用

应激所致行为效应的脑机制研究是目前生理心理学研究的热点领域。近年来,对于参与应激所致行为效应的神经递质研究从5-HT、多巴胺和去甲肾上腺素的范畴,逐渐发展到关注脑内含量最为丰富的谷氨酸能神经元所产生的兴奋性递质,包括谷氨酸、天冬氨酸及其相应受体NMDAR可能在应激性行为效应的中枢机制中的作用。近十年来的研究表明,中枢NMDAR是学习记忆的关键物质,在兴奋性突触传递、突触可塑性和脑发育过程中扮演重要的角色。不同类型的应激能导致动物的与行为密切相关脑区如杏仁核,海马的兴奋性氨基酸及NMDAR数量增多,活性增高。突触间隙增多的兴奋性氨基酸与NMDAR结合后,通过激活NMDAR促进糖皮质激素的相关性释放,共同产生的兴奋毒性作用引起上述脑区的神经元细胞缺失和变性;或干扰其他中枢神经递质在动物行为的脑内奖赏机制中的正常功能;或通过持续激活NMDAR,导致细胞内Ca2＋超载,损害其信号传导途径下游的蛋白激酶级联反应,使其底物蛋白的磷酸化或去磷酸化作用发生改变,影响突触可塑性和神经细胞间的信号传递,导致动物出现相应的行为障碍。应激前给动物的上述脑区注射NMDAR阻滞剂,可以减轻动物的应激性焦虑和抑郁行为。而NMDAR依赖性LTP下游途径的新信号分子,神经颗粒素,参与了脑内多种蛋白信号传导,可能是应激性行为效应的另一重要中枢机制。     

母亲抑郁情绪对幼儿内化问题的影响：有调节的中介模型

采用问卷法对298名6个月婴儿的母亲进行为期8个月的追踪,通过交叉滞后回归以及多层回归分析探究母亲抑郁情绪与母亲教养压力的准因果关系,母亲抑郁情绪与幼儿内化问题间的有调节的中介效应。结果表明：（1）母亲抑郁情绪与母亲教养压力存在准因果关系,母亲抑郁情绪可显著正向预测母亲的教养压力。（2）母亲感受到的教养压力对母亲抑郁情绪与幼儿内化问题的关系具有部分中介效应。母亲抑郁情绪不仅对幼儿内化问题产生直接影响,也可通过母亲的教养压力对幼儿内化问题产生间接影响。不过这一中介模型受母亲受教育程度的调节。只有在母亲受教育程度低时,教养压力对母亲抑郁情绪与幼儿内化问题的中介作用才成立,母亲较高的受教育程度可以明显减弱由于母亲抑郁情绪对幼儿内化问题的影响。这在一定程度上揭示了母亲抑郁情绪对幼儿内化问题的影响机制,对缓解母亲抑郁水平高的幼儿的内化问题提供理论和参考价值。     

Dysfunctional Attitudes Lead to Depressive Symptoms by Generating Subjective Stress

Previous studies have indicated that objective stress—negative events that have actually occurred outside of individuals—is involved in processes of dysfunctional attitudes leading to depression. Subjective stress—individuals' perception of negative events that have not actually occurred outside of them—is also predicted to be involved in these processes. However, few studies have empirically investigated this prediction. The primary purpose of this study was to fill this gap by testing the hypothesis that dysfunctional attitudes lead to depression by generating subjective stress. A longitudinal design was employed and initial depression was controlled. The results supported the hypothesis. It was also found that initial depression fostered subsequent depression by generating subjective stress. This study contributes to the literature on depression mechanisms by elucidating that subjective stress plays an important role in the development and exacerbation of depression. This study also has important clinical implications as it suggests that preventing subjective stress in individuals with dysfunctional attitudes or depression helps to protect the development or exacerbation of their depression.     

父亲、母亲抚养压力在母亲抑郁和学龄前儿童内外部问题行为间的链式中介作用

研究旨在探讨父亲和母亲的抚养压力在母亲抑郁与学龄前儿童内、外部问题行为间的作用。以北京市某区75所幼儿园的2222名3~5岁在园幼儿及其父母为被试,采用《流调中心抑郁量表》、《抚养压力量表》、《学龄前儿童问题行为问卷》分别对母亲抑郁、父母抚养压力及儿童问题行为进行测查,结果发现：（1）母亲抑郁可以正向预测儿童的内、外部问题行为;（2）母亲抑郁对儿童内部问题行为的作用被"母亲抚养压力"、"母亲抚养压力-父亲抚养压力"两条路径部分中介;（3）母亲抑郁对儿童外部问题行为的作用被"母亲抚养压力"、"母亲抚养压力-父亲抚养压力"两条路径完全中介。综上,研究揭示了母亲抚养压力、父亲抚养压力在母亲抑郁和学龄前儿童内、外部问题行为间的链式中介作用。     

Relationships between Depression and Executive Functioning in Adolescents: The Moderating Role of Unpredictable Home Environment

Journal of Child and Family Studies - Although researchers have explored the link between depression and executive functioning (EF), the influence of early-life environmental and relational...     

Early Exposure to Parental Depression and Parenting: Associations with Young Offspring’s Stress Physiology and Oppositional Behavior

Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis reactivity to stress is posited to play a role in the intergenerational transmission of risk for psychopathology and other negative outcomes in the offspring of depressed parents. We tested the hypothesis that the joint, interactive effects of exposure to parental depression during early childhood and parental hostility impact the development of young children’s stress physiology and early emerging behavior problems. A sample of 165 preschool-age children (81 boys, 84 girls), of whom 103 had a parent with a history of depression, was exposed to a stress-inducing laboratory task, and five salivary cortisol samples were obtained. Parents completed clinical interviews and an observational parent–child interaction task. We found that the offspring exposed to maternal depression during early childhood and whose parents displayed hostile parenting behaviors during an observational task evidenced high and increasing cortisol levels in response to a laboratory stressor. In addition, the total amount of exposure to maternal depression over the child’s life exerted a dose–response effect on the positive relation between parental hostility and child observed oppositional behavior. This study underscores the importance of the early rearing environment on young children’s stress physiology and early emerging behavior problems.     

Altered stress responses in children exposed to early adversity: a systematic review of salivary cortisol studies

Pathological stress responses are implicated in numerous disorders. Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis function is influenced by gene-environment interaction, with early-life environmental adversity having long-lasting effects. We examine the evidence that, in humans, these effects are apparent from infancy. We systematically reviewed published findings on cortisol response to a stressor, in 0-5-year-olds already exposed to adversity. Adversity was defined as a negative environmental influence present post-conception. We searched Ovid MEDLINE (1950-May 2010), EMBASE (1980-May 2010) and PsychINFO (1806-May 2010). We included peer-reviewed, English language studies that analysed salivary cortisol before and after a standardised stressor. We identified 30 studies, of which 27 reported a significant effect of adversity on the cortisol response to stress. Six of these demonstrated an effect of prenatal substance exposure. Thirteen studies found that psychosocial adversity increased cortisol reactivity. Three studies reported that cortisol reactivity could be normalised by intervention programmes. The studies were heterogeneous, both in nature of adversity studied and in stressor used, precluding meta-analysis and assessment of publication bias. Our review presents evidence that adversity disrupts the stress response from an early age. Longitudinal studies are required to determine whether effects persist, alter with time, or are reversible with intervention.     

Does Parent-Child Interaction Therapy Reduce Maternal Stress,Anxiety, and Depression Among Mothers of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder?

Maternal stress, anxiety, and depression are associated with ineffective parenting strategies for families of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). We present the use of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) with three mother-child dyads to reduce maternal stress, anxiety, and depression and child disruptive behavior in children with ASD. Results included increases in positive parenting skills, and decreases in maternal anxiety, depression, and stress, as well as child behavior problems. PCIT is a promising alternative to more intensive and costly interventions, both at reducing disruptive behaviors and improving maternal health. Implications of PCIT for dyads affected by ASD are discussed.