Structural brain changes with lifetime trauma and re-experiencing symptoms is 5-HTTLPR genotype-dependent
Open accessAbstract
Background: Findings on structural brain alterations following trauma are inconsistent due probably to heterogeneity in imaging studies and population, clinical presentations, genetic vulnerability, and selection of controls. This study examines whether trauma and re-experiencing symptoms are associated with specific alterations in grey matter volumes and if this varies according to 5-HTTLPR genotype.Methods: Structural MRI was used to acquire anatomical scans from 377 community-dwelling older adults. Quantitative regional estimates of 22 subregional volumes were derived using FreeSurfer software. Lifetime trauma was assessed using the validated Watson’s PTSD inventory, which evaluates the most severe trauma experienced according to DSM criteria. Analyses adjusted for age, sex, total brain volume, head injury, and comorbidities.Results: Of the 212 participants reporting lifetime trauma, 35.4% reported re-experiencing symptoms and for 1.9%, this was severe enough to meet criteria for full threshold PTSD. In participants with the SS 5-HTTLPR genotype only, re-experiencing symptoms were associated with smaller volumes in middle and superior temporal, frontal (lateral orbital, rostral and caudal middle) and parietal (precuneus, inferior and superior) regions. The trauma-exposed participants without re-experiencing symptoms were not significantly different from the non-trauma-exposed participants except for smaller precuneus and superior parietal region in traumatized participants and a larger amygdala in traumatized women specifically.Conclusions: In the non-clinical sample, lifetime trauma and re-experiencing symptoms were associated with smaller volume in prefrontal, temporal and parietal cortex subregions, and this varied according to serotonergic genetic vulnerability, 5-HTTLPR SS individuals being most susceptible.
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Structural changes have been observed in the mPFC in patients with PTSD.
“Structural changes have also been observed in the mPFC in patients with PTSD (118, 119).”
From Childhood Trauma, the HPA Axis and Psychiatric Illnesses: A Targeted Literature Synthesis (2022) · cites this paper as [119]
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Childhood Trauma, the HPA Axis and Psychiatric Illnesses: A Targeted Literature Synthesis
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“Structural changes have also been observed in the mPFC in patients with PTSD (118, 119).”
BackgroundInfluentialStructural brain alterations in older adults exposed to early-life adversity
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- Authors
- Ancelin, M.-L., Carriere, I., Artero, S., Maller, J. J., Meslin, C., Dupuy, A.-M., Ritchie, K., Ryan, J., & Chaudieu, I.
- Affiliations
- Inserm (FR)
- Neuropsychiatry: Epidemiological and Clinical Research, INSERM, University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France
- Australian National University (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Ancelin, Marie-Laure
- ORCID
- Venue
- European Journal of Psychotraumatology
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2020-03-04
- Volume
- 11
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1733247-1733247
- ISSN
- 2000-8066 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7067154
- OpenAlex
- W3009329459
- Cited by
- 6
- References
- 55
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 1
- FWCI
- 0.40
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- European Journal of Psychotraumatology (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Monash University Research Portal (Monash University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- HAL (submittedVersion)
- HAL (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- ANU Open Research (Australian National University) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- Funders
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche (07LVIE004)
- Association France Alzheimer (n.a.)
- Conseil Régional Languedoc-Roussillon (n.a.)
- National Health and Medical Research Council (APP1135727)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Traumatic Brain Injury Research
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
- Keywords
- lifetime trauma, re-experiencing symptoms, gray matter volume, brain structural changes, post-traumatic stress disorder, amygdala, precuneus, older adults, sex differences
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