TY - JOUR A1 - Plener, Paul L. A1 - Zohsel, Katrin A1 - Hohm, Erika A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Banaschewski, T. A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Laucht, Manfred T1 - Lower cortisol level in response to a psychosocial stressor in young females with self-harm JF - Psychoneuroendocrinology N2 - Background: Self-harm is highly prevalent in adolescence, often serving an emotion regulation function. Social stressors such as bullying are associated with self-harm. The neurobiological background of the relationship between social stressors and self-harm needs to be further understood to inform prevention and therapy. Methods: Participants were members of an epidemiological cohort study. 130 female participants underwent the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) at age 19. Of them, 21 reported a history of self-harm as assessed by the Youth Self Report. Psychiatric diagnoses were recorded. Results: Participants with a history of self-harm showed significantly lower blood cortisol levels throughout the TSST. Early psychosocial adversity did not significantly differ between groups with and without self-harm, with self-harming participants reporting more childhood adversities. Conclusion: These results add to the limited field of studies showing an altered HPA axis activity in females with self-harm. Future studies need to address the causal mechanisms behind this association. KW - Self-harm KW - Trier Social Stress Test KW - TSST KW - Cortisol KW - Nonsuicidal self-injury Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2016.11.009 SN - 0306-4530 VL - 76 SP - 84 EP - 87 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Laucht, Manfred A1 - Treutlein, Jens A1 - Blomeyer, Dorothea A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Becker, Katja A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Rietschel, Marcella A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias T1 - Interaction between the 5-HTTLPR serotonin transporter polymorphism and environmental adversity for mood and anxiety psychopathology : evidence from a high-risk community sample of young adults N2 - Previous research examining gene-environment interaction (G x E) with regard to vulnerability to depression and anxiety has yielded conflicting results. The present study was designed to further investigate G x F between 5-HTTLPR and exposure to environmental adversity, using different phenotypic and genotypic characterizations as well as different types of adversity within a prospective study design. Data were available from an ongoing epidemiological cohort Study following the outcome of early risk factors from birth to adulthood. At age 19 yr, 309 participants (142 males, 167 females) were characterized on measures of depression and anxiety through interview and questionnaire (DSM-IV diagnosis, Beck Depression Inventory, Harm Avoidance). Environmental adversity was assessed at birth (family adversity), and at age 19 yr (stressful life events). Bi- and tri-allelic 5-HTTLPR genotypes were obtained from genomic DNA. Results indicated that depression and anxiety in 19-yr-olds were strongly associated with both family adversity and stressful life events. Individuals with the LL genotype of 5-HTTLPR who were exposed to high family adversity displayed significantly higher rates of depressive or anxiety disorders and had more depressive symptoms than those without either condition. This G x E replicates recent findings from an epidemiological cohort study of adolescents but is in contrast to many previous reports suggesting an interaction with the S allele. No evidence for G x E was obtained with regard to current stressful life events and trait anxiety. One possible source for the conflicting findings might be attributed to heterogeneity in depression phenotypes and environmental adversity. Y1 - 2009 UR - http://journals.cambridge.org/jid_PNP U6 - https://doi.org/10.1017/S1461145708009875 SN - 1461-1457 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Laucht, Manfred A1 - Treutlein, Jens A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Blomeyer, Dorothea A1 - Becker, Katja A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Jennen-Steinmetz, Christine A1 - Rietschel, Marcella A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias T1 - Impact of psychosocial adversity on alcohol intake in young adults : moderation by the LL genotype of the serotonin transporter polymorphism N2 - Background: Evidence from animal studies supports a role for serotonin transporter gene promoter polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) gene-environment interaction (G X E) in the development of excessive alcohol intake. Few studies in humans have been conducted on this topic, yielding inconsistent results. The present study aims to further explore G x E between 5-HTTLPR and exposure to psychosocial adversity on alcohol consumption in a high-risk community sample of young adults. Methods: Data were collected as part of the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk, an ongoing epidemiological cohort study following the outcome of early risk factors from birth into young adulthood. At age 19 years, 309 participants (142 male participants, 167 female participants) were genotyped for the biallelic and triallelic 5-HTTLPR and were administered a 45-day alcohol timeline follow-back interview, providing measures of the total number of drinks and the number of binge drinking days. Psychosocial adversity was assessed at birth (family adversity) and at age 19 (negative life events). Results: In contrast to various previous reports, a significant G x E emerged, indicating that, when exposed to high psychosocial adversity, individuals with the LL genotype of 5-HTTLPR exhibited more hazardous drinking than those carrying the S allele or those without exposure to adversity. This effect, which was confined to male participants, held both for different classifications of 5-HTTLPR and different types of adversity. Conclusions: One explanation for the discrepant results might be heterogeneity in alcohol phenotypes. While the L allele relates more strongly to early-onset alcoholism, the S allele may be linked more closely to alcohol use associated with anxiety and depression. Y1 - 2009 UR - http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00063223 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2009.02.010 SN - 0006-3223 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Hohm, Erika A1 - Blomeyer, Dorothea A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Laucht, Manfred T1 - Concurrent alcohol and tobacco use during early adolescence characterizes a group at risk N2 - Aims: To investigate whether concurrent alcohol and tobacco use during early adolescence characterizes a subgroup that differs from users of one substance only regarding several risk factors for later substance use problems. Methods: Participants were from a prospective longitudinal cohort study of 384 children at risk for later psychopathology, with the majority being born with obstetric complications and psychosocial adversities. Assessments of adolescent drug consumption and related intrapersonal characteristics were obtained at age 15. Results: Compared to consumers of alcohol only, 15-year-olds drinking and smoking during the same time period (past 4 weeks) had significantly higher levels of consumption and more excessive use of alcohol, started drinking at an earlier age, had higher scores on the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence, and more cannabis use. This group could be distinguished from users of alcohol only by higher novelty seeking and more positive alcohol effect expectancies. Compared to consumers of tobacco only, concurrent users reported higher nicotine dependence and more cannabis use. No significant differences were observed regarding frequency and age at initiation of tobacco use, tobacco-related sensitivity, self- efficacy and instrumentality as well as novelty seeking. Conclusions: Concurrent alcohol and tobacco use during early adolescence is associated with characteristics that are well known as risk factors for later alcohol use problems and dependence and that should be targeted by prevention programs. Y1 - 2007 UR - http://alcalc.oxfordjournals.org/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/alcalc/agm024 SN - 0735-0414 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Blomeyer, Dorothea A1 - Becker, Katja A1 - Treutlein, Jens A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias A1 - Rietschel, Marcella A1 - Laucht, Manfred T1 - The interaction between the dopamine transporter gene and age at onset in relation to tobacco and alcohol use among 19-year-olds N2 - Recent evidence suggests that heterogeneity in the age at onset could explain the inconsistent findings of association studies relating the dopamine transporter (DAT1) gene with alcohol and nicotine consumption. The aim of this study was to examine interactions between two DAT1 polymorphisms and different initiation ages with regard to alcohol and tobacco consumption levels and dependence. Two hundred and ninety-one young adults (135 males, 156 females) participating in the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk were genotyped for the 40-bp variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) and rs27072 polymorphisms of DAT1. Age at initiation was assessed at age 15 and 19 years. Information about current alcohol and tobacco consumption was obtained at age 19 years using self-report measures and structured interviews. Results suggest that age at onset of intensive consumption moderated the association of the DAT1 gene with early adult substance use and dependence, revealing a DAT1 effect only among individuals homozygous for the 10r allele of the 40-bp VNTR who had started daily smoking or being intoxicated early in life. Equally, carriers of the T allele of the rs27072 polymorphism reporting an early age at first intoxication showed higher current alcohol consumption at age 19 years. In contrast, no interaction between rs27072 and the age at first cigarette with regard to later smoking was observed. These findings provide evidence that the DAT1 gene interacts with an early heavy or regular drug exposure of the maturing adolescent brain to predict substance (ab)use in young adulthood. Further studies are required to confirm these findings. Y1 - 2009 UR - http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/issn?DESCRIPTOR=PRINTISSN&VALUE=1355-6215 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1369-1600.2009.00171.x SN - 1355-6215 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Kopf, Daniel A1 - Westphal, Sabine A1 - Lederbogen, Florian A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Laucht, Manfred A1 - Deuschle, Michael T1 - Impact of early parental child-rearing behavior on young adults' cardiometabolic risk profile : a prospective study N2 - Objective: To examine prospectively whether early parental child-rearing behavior is a predictor of cardiometabolic outcome in young adulthood when other potential risk factors are controlled. Metabolic factors associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease have been found to vary, depending on lifestyle as well as genetic predisposition. Moreover, there is evidence suggesting that environmental conditions, such as stress in pre- and postnatal life, may have a sustained impact on an individual's metabolic risk profile. Methods: Participants were drawn from a prospective, epidemiological, cohort study followed up from birth into young adulthood. Parent interviews and behavioral observations at the age of 3 months were conducted to assess child-rearing practices and mother-infant interaction in the home setting and in the laboratory. In 279 participants, anthropometric characteristics, low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoproteins, and triglycerides were recorded at age 19 years. In addition, structured interviews were administered to the young adults to assess indicators of current lifestyle and education. Results: Adverse early-life interaction experiences were significantly associated with lower levels of high- density lipoprotein cholesterol and apolipoprotein A1 in young adulthood. Current lifestyle variables and level of education did not account for this effect, although habitual smoking and alcohol consumption also contributed significantly to cardiometabolic outcomes. Conclusions: These findings suggest that early parental child-rearing behavior may predict health outcome in later life through its impact on metabolic parameters in adulthood. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1097/Psy.0b013e3181c88343 SN - 0033-3174 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Laucht, Manfred A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Wiedemann, Klaus A1 - Mann, Karl F. A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. T1 - Cigarette craving increases after a psychosocial stress test and is related to cortisol stress response but not to dependence scores in daily smokers N2 - Stress is known to induce cigarette craving in smokers, but the underlying mechanisms are widely unknown. We investigated how dependence severity, smoking habits and stress-induced cortisol secretion are associated with increased cigarette craving after a standardised laboratory stressor. Hundred and six healthy participants (50 men, age 18-19 years) underwent a standardised public speaking stress task. In all, 35 smoked daily (DS), 13 smoked occasionally (OS), and 58 never smoked (NS). Smoking was unrestricted until 2 h before stress onset. Plasma cortisol was measured before and up to 95 min after the stressor. All current smokers rated intensity of cigarette craving immediately before and immediately after the stressor using the Brief Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (BQSU). Cortisol levels significantly increased in response to stress in all groups. The magnitude of this stress response was significantly lower in DS compared with OS and NS but did not differ between OS and NS. Baseline BQSU scores were significantly higher in DS than OS. BQSU scores increased significantly during the stress period and were positively correlated to the cortisol response in the DS but were unrelated to their nicotine dependence scores. In OS, no change in cigarette craving could be observed. In daily smokers, cigarette craving is increased after compared with before stress exposure and is related to the magnitude of cortisol stress response rather than to severity of nicotine dependence. This result supports, but does not prove, the concept that hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal stimulation is one of the mechanisms how stress can elicit cigarette craving. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://jop.sagepub.com/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.1177/0269881108095716 SN - 0269-8811 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Blomeyer, Dorothea A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Jennen-Steinmetz, Christine A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias A1 - Mann, Karl F. A1 - Laucht, Manfred T1 - Drinking against unpleasant emotions : possible outcome of early onset of alcohol use? N2 - Background: Recent animal and human studies indicate that the exposure to alcohol during early adolescence increases the risk for heavy alcohol use in response to stress. The purpose of this study was to examine whether this effect may be the consequence of a higher susceptibility to develop "drinking to cope" motives among early initiators. Methods: Data from 320 participants were collected as part of the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk, an ongoing epidemiological cohort study. Structured interviews at age 15 and 19 were used to assess age at first alcohol experience and drunkenness. The young adults completed questionnaires to obtain information about the occurrence of stressful life events during the past 4 years and current drinking habits. In addition, alcohol use under conditions of negative states was assessed with the Inventory of Drinking Situations. Results: The probability of young adults' alcohol use in situations characterized by unpleasant emotions was significantly increased the earlier they had initiated the use of alcohol, even when controlling for current drinking habits and stressful life events. Similar results were obtained for the age at first drunkenness. Conclusions: The findings strengthen the hypothesis that alcohol experiences during early adolescence facilitate drinking to regulate negative affect as an adverse coping strategy which may represent the starting point of a vicious circle comprising drinking to relieve stress and increased stress as a consequence of drinking. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1530-0277 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1530-0277.2010.01180.x SN - 0145-6008 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Schmid, Brigitte A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Trautmann-Villalba, Patricia A1 - Blomeyer, Dorothea A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias A1 - Laucht, Manfred T1 - Maternal stimulation in infancy predicts hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis reactivity in young men JF - Journal of neural transmission N2 - Evidence from animal research has demonstrated the effect of early maternal care on the offspring's endocrine and behavioral stress response in adulthood. The present prospective study investigates, in humans, the long-term impact of maternal responsiveness and stimulation during early mother-child interaction on adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) and cortisol response to a psychosocial laboratory stressor in adulthood. The data are from an epidemiological cohort study of the long-term outcome of early risk factors assessed at birth. At age 3 months, mothers and infants were videotaped during a 10-min standardized nursing and playing situation and evaluated by trained raters for maternal stimulation and infant and maternal responsiveness. At age 19 years, 270 participants (146 females, 124 males) completed the Trier Social Stress Test. The results indicated that less maternal stimulation during early interaction at age 3 months predicted diminished plasma ACTH and cortisol increase in response to acute psychosocial stress in male, but not female offspring. In contrast, maternal responsiveness was found to be unrelated to hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) reactivity. In accordance with the findings from animal research, the present study provides prospective evidence in humans of a long-term association between early maternal interaction behavior and the offspring's hormonal stress response in young adulthood, suggesting that poor maternal stimulation in early infancy may result in reduced HPA axis reactivity to an acute psychosocial stressor in males. KW - ACTH KW - Cortisol KW - HPA axis KW - Mother-infant interaction Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00702-013-0970-8 SN - 0300-9564 VL - 120 IS - 8 SP - 1247 EP - 1257 PB - Springer CY - Wien ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Buchmann, Arlette F. A1 - Hellweg, Rainer A1 - Rietschel, Marcella A1 - Treutlein, Jens A1 - Witt, Stephanie H. A1 - Zimmermann, Ulrich S. A1 - Schmidt, Martin H. A1 - Esser, Günter A1 - Banaschewski, Tobias A1 - Laucht, Manfred A1 - Deuschle, Michael T1 - BDNF Val 66 Met and 5-HTTLPR genotype moderate the impact of early psychosocial adversity on plasma brain-derived neurotrophic factor and depressive symptoms - a prospective study JF - European neuropsychopharmacology : the journal of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology N2 - Recent studies have emphasized an important role for neurotrophins, such as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), in regulating the plasticity of neural circuits involved in the pathophysiology of stress-related diseases. The aim of the present study was to examine the interplay of the BDNF Val(66)Met and the serotonin transporter promoter (5-HTTLPR) polymorphisms in moderating the impact of early-life adversity on BDNF plasma concentration and depressive symptoms. Participants were taken from an epidemiological cohort study following the long-term outcome of early risk factors from birth into young adulthood. In 259 individuals (119 males, 140 females), genotyped for the BDNF Val(66)Met and the 5-HTTLPR polymorphisms, plasma BDNF was assessed at the age of 19 years. In addition, participants completed the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Early adversity was determined according to a family adversity index assessed at 3 months of age. Results indicated that individuals homozygous for both the BDNF Val and the 5-HTTLPR L allele showed significantly reduced BDNF levels following exposure to high adversity. In contrast, BDNF levels appeared to be unaffected by early psychosocial adversity in carriers of the BDNF Met or the 5-HTTLPR S allele. While the former group appeared to be most susceptible to depressive symptoms, the impact of early adversity was less pronounced in the latter group. This is the first preliminary evidence indicating that early-life adverse experiences may have lasting sequelae for plasma BDNF levels in humans, highlighting that the susceptibility to this effect is moderated by BDNF Val(66)Met and 5-HTTLPR genotype. KW - BDNF KW - 5-HTTLPR KW - Human KW - Early psychosocial adversity KW - Longitudinal study KW - Depression Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.euroneuro.2012.09.003 SN - 0924-977X VL - 23 IS - 8 SP - 902 EP - 909 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER -