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Borderline Personality Disorder and... May 2021This article builds on a previous review (Ford and Courtois, Borderline Personal Disord Emot Dysregul 1:9, 2014) which concluded that complex posttraumatic stress... (Review)
Review
BACKGROUND
This article builds on a previous review (Ford and Courtois, Borderline Personal Disord Emot Dysregul 1:9, 2014) which concluded that complex posttraumatic stress disorder (cPTSD) could not be conceptualized as a sub-type of either PTSD or BPD. Recent research is reviewed that extends and clarifies the still nascent understanding of the relationship between cPTSD and BPD.
MAIN BODY
The circumscribed formulation of adult cPTSD that has been developed, validated, and included in the 11th Edition of the International Classification of Diseases has spurred research aimed at differentiating cPTSD and BPD both descriptively and empirically. A newly validated Developmental Trauma Disorder (DTD) syndrome for children and adolescents provides a basis for systematic research on the developmental course and origins of adult cPTSD and BPD. This review summarizes recent empirical findings regarding BPD, PTSD, and cPTSD in terms of: (1) prevalence and comorbidity; (2) clinical phenomenology; (3) traumatic antecedents; (4) psychobiology; (5) emotion dysregulation; (6) dissociation; and (7) empirically supported approaches to clinical assessment and psychotherapeutic treatment.
CONCLUSION
The evidence suggests that PTSD, cPTSD, and BPD are potentially comorbid but distinct syndromes. A hypothesis is advanced to stimulate scientific research and clinical innovation defining and differentiating the disorders, positing that they may represent a continuum paralleling the classic conceptualization of the stress response, with dissociation potentially involved in each disorder.
PubMed: 33958001
DOI: 10.1186/s40479-021-00155-9 -
International Journal of Environmental... Sep 2019: Research has consistently reported gender differences in mental health, but studies on differences in psychological well-being between women and men have not yielded...
: Research has consistently reported gender differences in mental health, but studies on differences in psychological well-being between women and men have not yielded conclusive results. The aim of this study was to examine the relevance of gender to the psychological well-being of adult individuals. A cross-sectional study with a sample of 1700 men and 1700 women from the general Spanish population was conducted. Their ages ranged from 21 to 64 years, and they were assessed with Ryff's Psychological Well-Being Scales and the Bem Sex Role Inventory. : Men scored higher than women in self-acceptance and autonomy, and women scored higher than men in personal growth and positive relations with others. The most relevant variable in the psychological well-being of both women and men was high masculinity. Other relevant variables in women's well-being were high femininity, not having a manual occupation, not being homemakers, and professional occupation. Men´s well-being also was higher in professional men and in men with a skilled non-manual occupation, men with high femininity and men who were not single, divorced or widowed. : Adherence to traditional gender roles is relevant to the psychological well-being of women and men, and women and men whose self-concept includes both masculine-instrumental and feminine-expressive characteristics have greater well-being.
Topics: Adult; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Gender Identity; Humans; Male; Masculinity; Mental Health; Middle Aged; Self Concept; Sex Factors; Young Adult
PubMed: 31547223
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16193531 -
Redox Biology May 2021In the open metabolic system, redox-related signaling requires continuous monitoring and fine-tuning of the steady-state redox set point. The ongoing oxidative... (Review)
Review
In the open metabolic system, redox-related signaling requires continuous monitoring and fine-tuning of the steady-state redox set point. The ongoing oxidative metabolism is a persistent challenge, denoted as oxidative eustress, which operates within a physiological range that has been called the 'Homeodynamic Space', the 'Goldilocks Zone' or the 'Golden Mean'. Spatiotemporal control of redox signaling is achieved by compartmentalized generation and removal of oxidants. The cellular landscape of HO, the major redox signaling molecule, is characterized by orders-of-magnitude concentration differences between organelles. This concentration pattern is mirrored by the pattern of oxidatively modified proteins, exemplified by S-glutathionylated proteins. The review presents the conceptual background for short-term (non-transcriptional) and longer-term (transcriptional/translational) homeostatic mechanisms of stress and stress responses. The redox set point is a variable moving target value, modulated by circadian rhythm and by external influence, summarily denoted as exposome, which includes nutrition and lifestyle factors. Emerging fields of cell-specific and tissue-specific redox regulation in physiological settings are briefly presented, including new insight into the role of oxidative eustress in embryonal development and lifespan, skeletal muscle and exercise, sleep-wake rhythm, and the function of the nervous system with aspects leading to psychobiology.
Topics: Homeostasis; Hydrogen Peroxide; Oxidants; Oxidation-Reduction; Oxidative Stress
PubMed: 33657525
DOI: 10.1016/j.redox.2021.101867 -
Biological Psychiatry May 2022The locus coeruleus (LC)-noradrenergic system is the main source of noradrenaline in the central nervous system and is involved intensively in modulating pain and... (Review)
Review
The locus coeruleus (LC)-noradrenergic system is the main source of noradrenaline in the central nervous system and is involved intensively in modulating pain and stress-related disorders (e.g., major depressive disorder and anxiety) and in their comorbidity. However, the mechanisms involving the LC that underlie these effects have not been fully elucidated, in part owing to the technical difficulties inherent in exploring such a tiny nucleus. However, novel research tools are now available that have helped redefine the LC system, moving away from the traditional view of LC as a homogeneous structure that exerts a uniform influence on neural activity. Indeed, innovative techniques such as DREADDs (designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs) and optogenetics have demonstrated the functional heterogeneity of LC, and novel magnetic resonance imaging applications combined with pupillometry have opened the way to evaluate LC activity in vivo. This review aims to bring together the data available on the efferent activity of the LC-noradrenergic system in relation to pain and its comorbidity with anxiodepressive disorders. Acute pain triggers a robust LC stress response, producing spinal cord-mediated endogenous analgesia while promoting aversion, vigilance, and threat detection through its ascending efferents. However, this protective biological system fails in chronic pain, and LC activity produces pain facilitation, anxiety, increased aversive memory, and behavioral despair, acting at the medulla, prefrontal cortex, and amygdala levels. Thus, the activation/deactivation of specific LC projections contributes to different behavioral outcomes in the shift from acute to chronic pain.
Topics: Anxiety; Chronic Pain; Depressive Disorder, Major; Humans; Locus Coeruleus; Norepinephrine
PubMed: 35164940
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2021.11.023 -
Depression and Anxiety Oct 2016
PubMed: 27699942
DOI: 10.1002/da.22550 -
Frontiers in Psychology 2022
PubMed: 35865675
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.970345 -
Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences Aug 2019Mitochondrial psychobiology is the study of the interactions between psychological states and the biological processes that take place within mitochondria. It also...
Mitochondrial psychobiology is the study of the interactions between psychological states and the biological processes that take place within mitochondria. It also examines how mitochondrial behavior influence neural, endocrine, and immune systems known to transduce psychological experiences into health outcomes. Unlike traditional biological outcomes and mediators, mitochondria are dynamic and multifunctional living organisms. By leveraging a variety of laboratory tools including omics, scientists can now map mitochondrial behavior at multiple levels of complexity - from isolated molecular markers to dynamic functional and signaling outcomes. Here we discuss current efforts to develop relevant measures of mitochondrial behavior in accessible human tissues, increase their biological specificity by applying precise measurements in defined cell populations, create composite indices reflecting mitochondrial health, and integrate these approaches with psycho-neuro-endocrino-immune outcomes. This systematic inter-disciplinary effort will help move the field of mitochondrial psychobiology towards a predictive science explaining how, and to what extent, mitochondria contribute to the biological embedding of stress and other psychological states.
PubMed: 32637466
DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2019.04.015 -
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2015Individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) are characterized by fear or anxiety about social situations, but also by important alterations in self-referential... (Review)
Review
Individuals with social anxiety disorder (SAD) are characterized by fear or anxiety about social situations, but also by important alterations in self-referential processing. Given advances in our understanding of the neurocircuitry and neurochemistry of SAD, the question arises of the relationship between this research and an emergent literature on the psychobiology of self and self-consciousness. A number of investigations of SAD have highlighted altered activity in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC; involved in self-representation), insula (involved in interoceptive processing), and other structures that play a role in bodily self-consciousness, as well as the potential value of interventions such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) and self-focused reappraisal in normalizing such changes. Future studies to more closely investigate associations between psychobiological alterations and changes in self-related processing in SAD, may be useful in shedding additional light on both SAD and self-consciousness.
PubMed: 26441590
DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00489 -
Arquivos de Neuro-psiquiatria Oct 2020
Topics: Humans; Polysomnography; REM Sleep Behavior Disorder; Sleep, REM
PubMed: 33146234
DOI: 10.1590/0004-282X20200189 -
Frontiers in Psychiatry 2016We present a review of the studies that have been published about addiction to cell phones. We analyze the concept of cell-phone addiction as well as its prevalence,... (Review)
Review
We present a review of the studies that have been published about addiction to cell phones. We analyze the concept of cell-phone addiction as well as its prevalence, study methodologies, psychological features, and associated psychiatric comorbidities. Research in this field has generally evolved from a global view of the cell phone as a device to its analysis applications and contents. The diversity of criteria and methodological approaches that have been used is notable, as is a certain lack of conceptual delimitation that has resulted in a broad spread of prevalent data. There is a consensus about the existence of cell-phone addiction, but the delimitation and criteria used by various researchers vary. Cell-phone addiction shows a distinct user profile that differentiates it from Internet addiction. Without evidence pointing to the influence of cultural level and socioeconomic status, the pattern of abuse is greatest among young people, primarily females. Intercultural and geographical differences have not been sufficiently studied. The problematic use of cell phones has been associated with personality variables, such as extraversion, neuroticism, self-esteem, impulsivity, self-identity, and self-image. Similarly, sleep disturbance, anxiety, stress, and, to a lesser extent, depression, which are also associated with Internet abuse, have been associated with problematic cell-phone use. In addition, the present review reveals the coexistence relationship between problematic cell-phone use and substance use such as tobacco and alcohol.
PubMed: 27822187
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2016.00175