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Biomedical subjects

A J Bond

Publications and source records attributed to A J Bond.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Noradrenaline might enhance assertive human social behaviours: an investigation in a flatmate relationship.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to explore the role of noradrenaline on the social behaviour of healthy volunteers when they were interacting with a familiar person, their flatmate. Interaction with the flatmate was explored in a cooperative game situation. METHODS: Ten pairs of same-sex healthy volunteer flatmates aged 18-25 years were recruited for the experiment. All volunteers gave written informed consent and the study was approved by the institutional ethical committee. A randomised, double blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial of reboxetine versus placebo was conducted. In each of the 10 pairs of volunteers, one (subject) volunteered to take the tablets and the other (flatmate) received no treatment. Reboxetine (4 mg/bd) and placebo were administered orally as identical capsules for 2 weeks. The subjects were randomly assigned to receive either reboxetine or placebo first and there was a two-week washout period following the first treatment. At baseline and the end of each treatment, they filled in the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Social Adapation Self-Evaluation Scale (SASS), and Aggression Questionnaire (AQ). Then, they were instructed to play the Tangrams game. This task elicits face-valid social behaviours such as cooperation, giving commands and unilateral grasps. RESULTS: Analysis of covariance showed that there was a statistical trend for reboxetine treatment to increase commands (p=0.055). CONCLUSION: This study presents preliminary evidence that two weeks' enhancement of noradrenaline transmission induced by reboxetine makes healthy volunteers more self-confident and assertive.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2002

Women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder do not recall aberrant parenting.

Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is related to the affective disorders and thus is expected to share similar psychological risk factors. Depressed subjects have been found to recall lack of warmth and parental overcontrol in childhood as assessed by the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI). The present study aimed to find out if such risk factors contributed to the development of PMDD in adulthood. Thirty-four women from South London who fulfilled rigorous criteria for PMDD and 22 controls were assessed for symptom severity, and each subject completed the PBI. All the women included in the study were free from other concurrent psychiatric disorders. Subjects with PMDD and controls had similar scores for warmth and parental overcontrol on the PBI and therefore had not been subject to more affectionless control. The PBI retained expected internal characteristics such as the inverse relationship of warmth and control scores. The findings indicate that recollection of parenting problems in childhood is not a major risk factor for subsequent development of PMDD in these women. A potential explanation for this is that PMDD is more biologically than psychosocially determined.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Development and validation of the Two-Dimensional Social Interaction Scale (2DSIS).

The Two-Dimensional Social Interaction Scale (2DSIS) is a newly developed 20-item observer rating scale to assess four distinct categories of social interaction: active participate; active non-participate; passive participate; and passive non-participate. The scale was submitted to a validation procedure based on video recording of 59 dyadic social interactions between a confederate enacting one of the four types of social behaviours and a participant. The 2DSIS observer ratings on the participants were associated with meaningful differences in participants' social behaviour and their scores on the Social Adaptation Self-evaluation Scale. The 2DSIS observer ratings on the confederates were associated with participants' Post Encounter Scale scores. Factor analysis suggested that the four category ratings did exist in the two dimensions as proposed. The 2DSIS could be used in conjunction with conventional assessment tools to evaluate the social functioning of individuals.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Tryptophan depletion increases aggression in women during the premenstrual phase.

RATIONALE: Reducing serotonin by the method of tryptophan depletion (TD) has led to increased aggression but experimental studies have not used female subjects. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effects of TD on aggression in women in the late luteal phase of their menstrual cycle. METHODS: Healthy women were recruited and randomly assigned to an amino acid drink either depleted or with a balanced amount of tryptophan. At 4.5 h later, they competed on the competitive reaction time task. RESULTS: Women who had received the TD drink showed more behavioural aggression in response to provocation. CONCLUSION: Decreased serotonergic neurotransmission increases aggression in women as well as men.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Neurotransmitters, temperament and social functioning.

Dimensional models can be usefully employed to describe both normal and disordered personality. Studies in molecular genetics, receptor binding, peripheral monoamines and pharmacological challenges have investigated the neurochemical basis of personality. Substantial evidence now exists to support a psychobiological model but the specificity of Cloninger's theory has not always been confirmed. Clinical studies have shown both temperament and character dimensions to improve with pharmacological treatment especially in treatment responders. Some personality changes are found to be independent of clinical effects and even to occur in normal subjects. Models of personality can help in predicting treatment outcome but individual dimensions may not be useful. It is hypothesised that social adaptation is related to the character dimensions and different sources of evidence link these to serotonergic actions. However, recent clinical studies have shown a specific effect of noradrenaline on self-perception and social motivation. Drugs with specific actions on different neurotransmitters may exert a distinctive pattern of effects on personality and social behaviour.

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Serotonergic involvement in the psychosocial dimension of personality.

Neurotransmitter systems have been associated with aspects of personality and changes in various dimensions have been shown after antidepressant treatment. A reduction in harm avoidance and an increase in self-directedness and cooperativeness, as measured by the Cloninger's Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI), have been reported in psychiatric patients receiving treatment with serotonergic antidepressants. However, some of these changes have been associated with clinical improvement. The present study therefore used a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled design to examine the role of the serotonergic system on these personality factors in the normal population. Twenty healthy male volunteers were randomly allocated to either placebo (n = 9) or citalopram treatment (n = 11) for 2 weeks. Baseline depression and anxiety scores were low and did not differ between groups. The TCI was administered pre- and post-treatment. There were no baseline differences on any TCI factor between groups. Citalopram induced a significant increase in self-directedness (p < 0.05) but not cooperativeness or harm avoidance ratings after treatment. Thus, citalopram has effects on personality aspects which appear to be separate from its antidepressant properties.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Mood disorder history and personality assessment in premenstrual dysphoric disorder.

BACKGROUND: Menstrually related dysphoria is known to be associated with other affective disorders, notably major depressive disorder and puerperal depression. The relationship between premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and maladaptive personality disorders and traits, however, is less established, at least in part because of the methodological and nosologic difficulties in the diagnosis of both PMDD and personality disorders. This study seeks to address this problem to elucidate the relationship between PMDD, other affective disturbances commonly experienced by women, and maladaptive personality. METHOD: Axis I and II disorders were examined using standardized instruments and stringent diagnostic criteria (DSM-IV and the International Personality Disorders Examination) in 34 women with DSM-IV PMDD and 22 healthy women without severe premenstrual mood changes. RESULTS: Seventy-seven percent of the PMDD group had suffered from a past Axis I disorder in comparison with 17% of the control group. Two thirds of the parous women with PMDD had suffered from major depressive disorder in the puerperium. Personality disorder diagnoses were not highly represented in either group of women. The women with PMDD had significantly more obsessional personality traits (p < .001 ) but not absolute personality disorder diagnoses. CONCLUSION: Obsessional symptoms are known to cluster with the affective disorders and may reflect underlying temperamental and biological vulnerability. This study provides further evidence of the link between serotonergic dysregulation, personality vulnerability, and mood changes related to the female reproductive cycle.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Ipsapirone challenge in aggressive men shows an inverse correlation between 5-HT1A receptor function and aggression.

Previous studies have suggested that 5-HT(1A) receptor function is linked to aggression. We studied 12 healthy men selected to have high trait levels of aggression. They filled in various self-rating measures of aggression, and underwent a double blind, crossover challenge with ipsapirone (20 mg orally) and a placebo. On both occasions, we measured the endocrine (ACTH, cortisol, growth hormone and prolactin), hypothermic and bodily symptom responses every 30 min for 180 min. We found that subjects with blunted neuroendocrine responses to the ipsapirone challenge had significantly higher self-ratings of aggression on a number of measures. The same relationship held using the bodily symptom response to ipsapirone: blunted responses were associated with higher ratings of aggression. We conclude that impaired 5-HT(1A) receptor function is associated with increased aggressiveness.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Relationship between attitudinal hostility and P300 latencies.

1. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether components of the P300 were related to aggression in a normal population. 2. Event-related potentials were recorded from midline sites during a standard pure tone auditory oddball task. 3. Findings indicated significantly prolonged P300 latencies to target stimuli in subjects with higher total aggression and attitudinal hostility scores on the BDHI. 4. The relationship between P300 latency and aggression extends findings in specifically aggressive populations. P300 amplitudes may only be reduced in samples displaying violent or assaultive behaviour.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1999

Tryptophan enhancement/depletion and reactions to failure on a cooperative computer game.

Twenty-eight high trait hostility male volunteers played a "cooperative" computer game 4.5 hours after an amino acid drink enhanced with, or depleted of, tryptophan. Each trial involved steering a tank through minefields following directions from an unknown "partner." Failure was experienced when the tank hit a mine or when time ran out. Subjects' moods, verbal aggression, attributions of blame, vocal acoustics, and blood pressure were assessed. Differences between tryptophan groups were not significant for primary measures of anger and verbal aggression. However, depleted subjects reported greater increases in feelings of restlessness and incompetence, were less successful in avoiding mines and showed greater increases in blood pressure during the game. Subjects in both groups sent more negative ratings when they lost the game by virtue of hitting a mine rather than losing by running out of time. However, ratings of the depleted group were less influenced by the reason for losing the game. Also, vocal acoustics showed a group X reason-for-losing interaction in the high-frequency band. Tryptophan-depleted subjects with high scores on Behavioral-Activation-System-Drive were most likely to send negative ratings and those scoring high on Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory Assault and Guilt to report increased anger after the game.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Trait hostility and prolactin response to tryptophan enhancement/depletion.

This study investigated the relationship between trait hostility and aspects of serotonergic function by assessing the prolactin (PRL) response to acute tryptophan depletion and enhancement in 28 healthy male volunteers. Serum PRL was assessed immediately before, and 4.5 h after, administration of an amino acid drink enhanced with, or depleted of, the 5-HT precursor tryptophan. Trait hostility and DeltaPRL (value at 4.5 h minus baseline) correlated negatively following enhancement and positively following depletion, indicating that the higher the hostility the smaller the change in PRL in either direction. This is consistent with previous research reporting an association between aggression and blunted neuroendocrine responses to serotonergic agents. The results indicate the possibility that, in people high on hostility, part of the serotonergic pathway that leads to modulation of PRL release is characterised by a stage with either low capacity relative to input availability or a strong negative feedback component.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Plasma tryptophan and trait aggression.

Many studies have reported correlations between measures of aggression and indices of serotonergic function, but most have studied patient or offender populations and relatively few have investigated plasma concentrations of the serotonin precursor tryptophan. This study investigates the relationship between plasma concentrations of tryptophan and trait hostility, depression and anxiety in male healthy volunteers. Sixty-seven healthy male volunteers gave blood samples and completed trait questionnaires. Plasma tryptophan was positively correlated with the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory Total score and Motor Aggression subscale, but not with the Attitudinal Hostility subscale or with trait anxiety or depression. In conclusion, there is evidence for an association between high concentrations of plasma tryptophan and aggressive behaviour in men, presumably mediated by some aspect of central serotonergic function, which seems unlikely to be explained by high trait anxiety or depression.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Neuroendocrine and hypothermic effects of 5-HT1A receptor stimulation with ipsapirone in healthy men: a placebo-controlled study.

The neuroendocrine effects of 5-hydroxytryptamine-1A (5-HT1A) receptor stimulation remain uncertain in humans, in respect to both anterior and posterior pituitary hormone release. This is important because these endocrine responses are often used as indications of 5-HT1A receptor sensitivity. The link between receptor stimulation and subsequent hormone release is more direct with posterior pituitary hormones because there is no intermediate hypothalamic peptide in the pathway. Theoretically, therefore, posterior pituitary hormones should be more valid indicators of central 5-HT1A receptor sensitivity. We used the 5-HT1A receptor partial agonist ipsapirone (20 mg) as an oral serotonergic challenge drug in a random-order, double-blind placebo-controlled study of 12 healthy men. Blood sampling occurred at 30 min intervals up to 180 min after the administration of drug or placebo. Ipsapirone caused clear and significant elevations in adrenocorticotrophin (ACTH), cortisol (CORT), prolactin (PRL), and growth hormone (GH) release. Peak hormone and ipsapirone blood levels both occurred at 60 min after ipsapirone administration. Release of the posterior pituitary hormone oxytocin was also stimulated, but less robustly and with more baseline variation. Temperature fell significantly more after ipsapirone than placebo. These results contrast with previous studies, which found no effect of ipsapirone on PRL and GH release in humans, but are in accordance with data using other 5-HT1A agonist drugs. The presence of an oxytocin response to ipsapirone suggests that oxytocin is a potential marker for serotonergic function in neuroendocrine challenge studies, but this awaits further study.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed1998

Interaction of pharmacological and psychological treatments of anxiety.

BACKGROUND: Pharmacological and psychological treatments for anxiety are often combined in clinical practice but there is little research from which to predict the effects. METHOD: The theoretical outcomes of combining treatments and methods of investigating these as well as methodological difficulties are described. Studies which have been completed in anxiety disorders are reviewed. A double-blind trial, using a factorial design, evaluated buspirone v. placebo and anxiety management training v. non-directive therapy in 60 patients with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD). RESULTS: Relatively few germane studies have been carried out in the anxiety disorders except for panic disorder with agoraphobia. There is some evidence that short-term, combined treatment does confer additional benefits which are evident both in speed of onset and lasting remission. All four treatment combinations proved effective in the short-term treatment of GAD. CONCLUSIONS: More studies examining combined treatment are needed. Although differences may not be apparent at the end of the treatment period, psychological treatment appears to confer advantages at follow-up.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Does central serotonergic function correlate inversely with aggression? A study using D-fenfluramine in healthy subjects.

Much research has investigated possible links between serotonergic function and aggression in violent or personality disordered populations, but few studies have looked at healthy subjects. In this study we administered 30 mg of the specific 5-HT releasing agent D-fenfluramine to 35 healthy subjects, along with questionnaire measures of hostility and aggression. Prolactin and cortisol responses were used as indices of central 5-HT function. In males, there were significant inverse correlations between 5-HT mediated cortisol responses and both the Buss-Durkee Hostility Inventory total score and the aggression factor. There were no such relations in female subjects or using prolactin responses. There was also an inverse relation between basal cortisol levels and both prolactin and cortisol responses, but no relation between basal cortisol levels and aggressive measures. These results provide some support for the existence of an inverse relationship between central serotonin function and aggression/hostility in healthy males, similar to that seen in previous studies using violent or highly aggressive populations.

Adult↗
PubMed1995

Behavioural aggression in panic disorder after 8 weeks' treatment with alprazolam.

23 patients with a diagnosis of panic disorder with agoraphobia were randomly assigned to 8 weeks' treatment with alprazolam or placebo. They filled in self-ratings before and after treatment and competed on a competitive reaction time task, designed to measure behavioural aggression, after 8 weeks' treatment. Patients taking both alprazolam and placebo rated decreased anxiety after 8 weeks' treatment but those on alprazolam also tended to report less hostility. On the behavioural task, patients on alprazolam behaved more aggressively in response to provocation. This is the first study to confirm clinical reports of benzodiazepine-induced dyscontrol on an objective laboratory measure. It is important that it is followed up in a larger group of patients.

Adult↗