The Behavioral and Pharmacological Actions of NMDA Receptor Antagonism are Conserved in Zebrafish Larvae

Dizocilpine maleate (MK-801) is one of several NMDA receptor antagonists that is widely used to pharmacologically model the symptoms of psychosis and schizophrenia in animals. MK-801 elicits behaviors in adult zebrafish (Danio rerio) that are phenotypically consistent with behaviors observed in humans and rodents exposed to tbhe drug. However, the molecular and cellular processes that mediate the psychotomimetic, cognitive and locomotive behaviors of MK-801 are unclear. We exposed zebrafish larvae to MK-801 to assess their merit as a model organism to elucidate the behavioral effects of NMDA receptor blockade. Zebrafish larvae were acutely immersed in MK-801 to assess the effect on spontaneous swimming. MK-801 caused a time- and dose-dependent increase in larval swim speed, and the peak response (a five-fold increase in swim speed) was evoked by a three h exposure to a 20 uM dose. Zebrafish larvae did not exhibit sensitivity to the locomotor effects of MK-801 until 5 dpf, suggesting a critical role for developmental in sensitivity to the drug. Exposure to the low potency NMDA antagonist, memantine, did not alter the swim speed of zebrafish larvae. Co-immersion in D(1) or D(2) dopamine receptor antagonists did not disrupt the time course or magnitude of the increase in swim speed, suggesting dopaminergic signaling is not required for the locomotor actions of MK-801. Our findings of the behavioral actions of MK-801 in zebrafish larvae are consistent with previous observations in mammals and imply that the physiological, cellular and molecular processes disrupted by MK-801 are conserved in zebrafish larvae. These data suggest that the zebrafish larvae is a valid and useful model to elucidate neurobehavioral aspects of NMDA receptor antagonism and may provide insight to the neurobiology of psychosis and schizophrenia.     

Introducing a brief measure of cultural and religious identification in American Jewish identity

The authors conducted 3 studies to develop and investigate the psychometric properties of the American Jewish Identity Scales (AJIS), a brief self-report measure that assesses cultural identification and religious identification. Study 1 assessed the content validity of the item pool using an expert panel. In Study 2, 1,884 Jewish adults completed the initial AJIS and various measures of ethnic identity, collective self-esteem, and religiosity. Using confirmatory factor analyses, the authors selected and cross-validated 33 items that loaded highly and differentially on the 2 theorized latent factors. Study 3 assessed the AJIS's short-term stability and its relation to social desirability. Tests of reliability and construct validity provided initial psychometric support for the measure and confirmed the theorized primary salience of cultural identification. Participants reported significantly more private than public collective self-esteem, and the most Jewish-identified participants reported greater private self-esteem, acculturative stress, and perceived discrimination than did their more assimilated counterparts.     

The myth of school shooters and psychotropic medications

There has been an assertion in certain parts of the media, especially social media, that the majority of individuals who have engaged in a school shooting were prescribed psychotropic medications prior to the event. To determine if there is any validity to this assertion, the authors of this article reviewed publicly available information regarding individuals involved in “educational shootings” per FBI publications for active shooters from 2000 to 2017. Sources of information included news reports with official citations, official reports regarding events, available court records, and FBI Freedom of Information Act requests. Secondary data‐points were also collected, such as location, number of weapons used, number of victims, legal outcome, and whether the shooter committed suicide. From the information obtained, it appears that most school shooters were not previously treated with psychotropic medications – and even when they were, no direct or causal association was found.     

Self-Efficacy and Burnout in Teaching: The Importance of Interpersonal-Relations Efficacy

This study investigated the association between perceived self-efficacy and burnout among teachers. Self-efficacy has been defined operationally based on a three-dimensional conceptualization: task, relations and organization. Efficacy variables were three classroom efficacy factors: instruction (task), discipline control (task), and consideration (relations), and two organizational efficacy factors: inclusion (task) and influence (relations). Burnout was measured as both a three-dimensional measure comprised of exhaustion, unaccomplishment and depersonalization, and as a single dimension (a composite score including all three dimensions). A sample of 322 Israeli teachers completed a self-report questionnaire. Multiple analysis of variance (MANOVA) and multiple regression analysis were used. It was found that perceived sense of self-efficacy was inversely correlated with perceived burnout: the lower the sense of self-efficacy, the higher the perceived burnout. The salience of organizational influence efficacy, and consideration efficacy (both are relations efficacies) were noted as important variables in predicting exhaustion, unaccomplishment and depersonalization. Task efficacies (e.g., instruction, discipline control, and inclusion) had no significant or meaningful weight in statistically predicting burnout beyond the relations efficacies. The importance of the organizational self-efficacy (teachers' beliefs in their ability to influence social and political forces within the organization, involvement in planning and executing important activities, as well as ability to draw upon the organization's resources to provide support and assistance) was discussed.     

Video Communication and Transgenerational Shame in the Mother/Daughter Bond

This paper describes how video technology may provide a less intrusive path for patient/therapist engagement, and create a potential for shared explorations in a transitional space. However, while video facilitated treatment may provide a less intrusive realm for fragile patients who struggle with anxiety and toxic shame, it also excludes aspects of the sensory and embodied realm. I discuss how video technology ultimately contributed to the deepening and expansion of the treatment and offered a path to engage dissociated shame states, thereby facilitating greater coherence and integration, but also presenting challenges in addressing the embodied dimension of the patient’s experience.