TY  - JOUR
A1  - Gleich, Tobias
A1  - Spitta, Gianna
A1  - Butler, Oisin
A1  - Zacharias, Kristin
A1  - Aydin, Semiha
A1  - Sebold, Miriam Hannah
A1  - Garbusow, Maria
A1  - Rapp, Michael Armin
A1  - Schubert, Florian
A1  - Buchert, Ralph
A1  - Heinz, Andreas
A1  - Gallinat, Jürgen
T1  - Dopamine D2/3 receptor availability in alcohol use disorder and individuals at high risk
BT  - towards a dimensional approach
JF  - Addiction Biology
N2  - Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is the most common substance use disorder worldwide. Although dopamine-related findings were often observed in AUD, associated neurobiological mechanisms are still poorly understood. Therefore, in the present study, we investigate D2/3 receptor availability in healthy participants, participants at high risk (HR) to develop addiction (not diagnosed with AUD), and AUD patients in a detoxified stage, applying F-18-fallypride positron emission tomography (F-18-PET). Specifically, D2/3 receptor availability was investigated in (1) 19 low-risk (LR) controls, (2) 19 HR participants, and (3) 20 AUD patients after alcohol detoxification. Quality and severity of addiction were assessed with clinical questionnaires and (neuro)psychological tests. PET data were corrected for age of participants and smoking status. In the dorsal striatum, we observed significant reductions of D2/3 receptor availability in AUD patients compared with LR participants. Further, receptor availability in HR participants was observed to be intermediate between LR and AUD groups (linearly decreasing). Still, in direct comparison, no group difference was observed between LR and HR groups or between HR and AUD groups. Further, the score of the Alcohol Dependence Scale (ADS) was inversely correlated with D2/3 receptor availability in the combined sample. Thus, in line with a dimensional approach, striatal D2/3 receptor availability showed a linear decrease from LR participants to HR participants to AUD patients, which was paralleled by clinical measures. Our study shows that a core neurobiological feature in AUD seems to be detectable in an early, subclinical state, allowing more individualized alcohol prevention programs in the future.
KW  - alcohol
KW  - D2/3 receptors
KW  - dependence
KW  - dopamine
KW  - high risk
KW  - PET
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/adb.12915
SN  - 1369-1600
VL  - 26
IS  - 2
SP  - 1
EP  - 10
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Hoboken
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Buchmann, Arlette F.
A1  - Blomeyer, Dorothea
A1  - Jennen-Steinmetz, Christine
A1  - Schmidt, Martin H.
A1  - Esser, Günter
A1  - Banaschewski, Tobias
A1  - Laucht, Manfred
T1  - Early smoking onset may promise initial pleasurable sensations and later addiction
JF  - Addiction biology
N2  - There is converging evidence suggesting a particular susceptibility to the addictive properties of nicotine among adolescents. The aim of the current study was to prospectively ascertain the relationship between age at first cigarette and initial smoking experiences, and to examine the combined effects of these characteristics of adolescent smoking behavior on adult smoking. It was hypothesized that the association between earlier age at first cigarette and later development of nicotine dependence may, at least in part, be attributable to differences in experiencing pleasurable early smoking sensations. Data were drawn from the participants of the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk, an ongoing epidemiological cohort study from birth to adulthood. Structured interviews at age 15, 19 and 22 years were conducted to assess the age at first cigarette, early smoking experiences and current smoking behavior in 213 young adults. In addition, the participants completed the Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence. Adolescents who smoked their first cigarette at an earlier age reported more pleasurable sensations from the cigarette, and they were more likely to be regular smokers at age 22. The age at first cigarette also predicted the number of cigarettes smoked and dependence at age 22. Thus, both the age of first cigarette and the pleasure experienced from the cigarette independently predicted aspects of smoking at age 22.
KW  - Adolescence
KW  - age at first cigarette
KW  - dependence
KW  - early smoking experiences
KW  - longitudinal study
KW  - pleasurable smoking sensations
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1369-1600.2011.00377.x
SN  - 1369-1600
VL  - 18
IS  - 6
SP  - 947
EP  - 954
PB  - Wiley-Blackwell
CY  - Hoboken
ER  -