Publication

Early life stress and macaque annygdala hypertrophy: preliminary evidence for a role for the serotonin transporter gene

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Last modified
  • 02/20/2025
Type of Material
Authors
    Jeremy D. Coplan, Emory UniversityHassan M. Fathy, Emory UniversityAndrea P. Jackowski, Universidade Federal de São PauloCheuk Y. Tang, Mount Sinai School of MedicineTarique D. Perera, New York State Psychiatric InstituteSanjay J. Mathew, Michael E. Debakey VA Medical CenterJose Martinez, Mount Sinai School of MedicineChadi G. Abdallah, Yale University School of MedicineAndrew J. Dwork, New York State Psychiatric InstituteGustavo Pantol, Mount Sinai School of MedicineDavid Carpenter, Mount Sinai School of MedicineJack M. Gorman, Comprehensive NeuroScience CorporationCharles B. Nemeroff, University of Miami Health SytemsMichael Owens, Emory UniversityArie Kaffman, Yale University School of MedicineJoan Kaufman, National Center for PTSD
Language
  • English
Date
  • 2014-10-06
Publisher
  • Frontiers
Publication Version
Copyright Statement
  • © 2014 Coplan, Fathy, Jackowski, Tang, Perera, Mathew, Martinez, Abdallah, Dwork, Pantol, Carpenter, Gorman, Nemeroff, Owens, Kaffman and Kaufman.
License
Final Published Version (URL)
Title of Journal or Parent Work
ISSN
  • 1662-5153
Volume
  • 8
Issue
  • OCT
Start Page
  • 342
End Page
  • 342
Grant/Funding Information
  • Supported by grant from National Institute for Mental Health (R01MH65519-01; RO1MH098073 (Joan Kaufman) NIMH grant R21MH066748 (Jack M. Gorman), R01MH59990A (Jeremy D. Coplan), and NARSAD Mid-investigator Award (Jeremy D. Coplan).
Abstract
  • Background: Children exposed to early life stress (ELS) exhibit enlarged amygdala volume in comparison to controls. The primary goal of this study was to examine amygdala volumes in bonnet macaques subjected to maternal variable foraging demand (VFD) rearing, a well-established model of ELS. Preliminary analyses examined the interaction of ELS and the serotonin transporter gene on amygdala volume. Secondary analyses were conducted to examine the association between amygdala volume and other stress-related variables previously found to distinguish VFD and non-VFD reared animals. Methods: Twelve VFD-reared and nine normally reared monkeys completed MRI scans on a 3T system (mean age = 5.2 years). Results: Left amygdala volume was larger in VFD vs. control macaques. Larger amygdala volume was associated with: “high” cerebrospinal fluid concentrations of corticotropin releasing-factor (CRF) determined when the animals were in adolescence (mean age = 2.7 years); reduced fractional anisotropy (FA) of the anterior limb of the internal capsule (ALIC) during young adulthood (mean age = 5.2 years) and timid anxiety-like responses to an intruder during full adulthood (mean age = 8.4 years). Right amygdala volume varied inversely with left hippocampal neurogenesis assessed in late adulthood (mean age = 8.7 years). Exploratory analyses also showed a gene-by-environment effect, with VFD-reared macaques with a single short allele of the serotonin transporter gene exhibiting larger amygdala volume compared to VFD-reared subjects with only the long allele and normally reared controls. Conclusion: These data suggest that the left amygdala exhibits hypertrophy after ELS, particularly in association with the serotonin transporter gene, and that amygdala volume variation occurs in concert with other key stress-related behavioral and neurobiological parameters observed across the lifecycle. Future research is required to understand the mechanisms underlying these diverse and persistent changes associated with ELS and amygdala volume.
Author Notes
  • Correspondence: Jeremy D. Coplan, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, SUNY-Downstate Medical Center, 450 Clarkson Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11203, USA e-mail: jeremy.coplan@downstate.edu
Keywords
Research Categories
  • Biology, Neuroscience
  • Psychology, General
  • Psychology, Behavioral

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