A5009215087- Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Schizophrenia research and treatment
- Genetic Associations and Epidemiology
- Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
- Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Mental Health Research Topics
- Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Neural dynamics and brain function
- Bioinformatics and Genomic Networks
- Receptor Mechanisms and Signaling
- Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
- Diverse academic and cultural studies
- Advanced MRI Techniques and Applications
- Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
- Tryptophan and brain disorders
- Bipolar Disorder and Treatment
- Wine Industry and Tourism
- Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Neuroscience and Music Perception
- Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments
- Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Machine Learning in Healthcare
University of Bari Aldo Moro
2016-2025
Azienda Universitaria Ospedaliera Consorziale - Policlinico Bari
2014-2024
Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza
2006-2023
Istituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico
2012-2023
Lieber Institute for Brain Development
2023
University of Foggia
2023
Authorised Association Consortium
2022
Neuroscience Institute
2017
Eli Lilly (Italy)
2013
National Institute of Mental Health
2004-2012
Neurobiological factors contributing to violence in humans remain poorly understood. One approach this question is examining allelic variation the X-linked monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene, previously associated with impulsive aggression animals and humans. Here, we have studied impact of a common functional polymorphism MAOA on brain structure function assessed MRI large sample healthy human volunteers. We show that low expression variant, increased risk violent behavior, predicted...
Subcortical dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) signaling is implicated in cognitive processes and brain disorders, but the effect of DRD2 variants remains ambiguous. We measured allelic mRNA expression postmortem human striatum prefrontal cortex then performed single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) scans locus. A previously uncharacterized promoter SNP (rs12364283) located a conserved suppressor region was associated with enhanced expression, whereas studied failed to affect expression. Moreover, two...
The goal of schizophrenia treatment has shifted from symptom reduction and relapse prevention to functional recovery; however, recovery rates remain low. Prospective identification variables associated with real-life functioning domains is essential for personalized integrated programs.To assess whether baseline illness-related variables, personal resources, context-related factors are work skills, interpersonal relationships, everyday life skills at 4-year follow-up.This multicenter...
Abstract Dynamical brain state transitions are critical for flexible working memory but the network mechanisms incompletely understood. Here, we show that performance entails brain-wide switching between activity states using a combination of functional magnetic resonance imaging in healthy controls and individuals with schizophrenia, pharmacological fMRI, genetic analyses control theory. The stability relates to dopamine D1 receptor gene expression while influenced by D2 modulation....
The cingulate cortex is richly innervated by dopaminergic projections and plays a critical role in attentional control (AC). Evidence indicates that dopamine enhances the neurophysiological signal-to-noise ratio tone frontal critically dependent on catechol- O -methyltransferase (COMT). A functional polymorphism ( val 158 met ) COMT gene accounts for some of individual variability executive function mediated dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. We explored effect this genetic engagement during...
Deficits in working memory and prefrontal cortical physiology are important outcome measures schizophrenia, both have been associated with dopamine dysregulation a functional polymorphism (Val(108/158)Met) the catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene that affects inactivation cortex. The purpose of present study was to evaluate patients schizophrenia effect COMT genotype on symptom variation, performance, response treatment an atypical antipsychotic drug.Thirty acute untreated were...
Response inhibition and interference monitoring suppression are two important aspects of cognitive control. Previous functional imaging studies have suggested a common network brain regions underlying these processes; the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), ventrolateral (VLPFC), dorsal cingulate (dACC), parietal (PC). The relative contribution to subprocesses, however, has not been determined. Based on previous findings supporting role for dACC in conflicting information within...
Functional polymorphisms in the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) and dopamine transporter (DAT) genes modulate inactivation, which is crucial for determining neuronal signal-to-noise ratios prefrontal cortex during working memory. We show that COMT Met158 allele DAT 3' variable number of tandem repeat 10-repeat are independently associated healthy humans with more focused activity (as measured blood oxygen level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging) memory cortical network,...
DNA methylation at CpG dinucleotides is associated with gene silencing, stress, and memory. The catechol- O -methyltransferase ( COMT ) Val 158 allele in rs4680 differential enzyme activity, stress responsivity, prefrontal activity during working memory (WM), it creates a dinucleotide. We report that of the measured from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) Val/Val humans negatively lifetime positively WM performance; interacts to modulate WM, such greater lower are related reduced...
Dopamine D2 receptor signalling is strongly implicated in the aetiology of schizophrenia. We have recently characterized function three DRD2 SNPs: rs12364283 promoter affecting total mRNA expression; rs2283265 and rs1076560, respectively introns 5 6, shifting splicing to two functionally distinct isoforms, short form (D2S) long (D2L). These isoforms differentially contribute dopamine prefrontal cortex striatum. performed a case–control study determine association these variants their main...
Personality traits related to emotion processing are, at least in part, heritable and genetically determined. Dopamine D 2 receptor signaling is involved modulation of emotional behavior activity associated brain regions such as the amygdala prefrontal cortex. An intronic single nucleotide polymorphism within gene ( DRD2 ) (rs1076560, guanine > thymine or G T) shifts splicing two protein isoforms (D short, mainly presynaptic, long) has been with memory performance activity. Here, our aim...
Dopamine modulation of neuronal activity during memory tasks identifies a nonlinear inverted-U shaped function. Both the dopamine transporter (DAT) and D 2 receptors (encoded by DRD ) critically regulate signaling in striatum prefrontal cortex memory. Moreover, vitro studies have demonstrated that DAT proteins reciprocally each other presynaptically. Therefore, we evaluated genetic interaction between polymorphism (rs1076560) causing reduced presynaptic receptor expression 3′-VNTR variant...
Variation of the gene coding for D2 receptors (DRD2) has been associated with risk schizophrenia and working memory deficits. A functional intronic SNP (rs1076560) predicts relative expression two isoforms, D2S (mainly pre-synaptic) D2L post-synaptic). However, effect genetic variation DRD2 on striatal dopamine signaling its correlation prefrontal activity during in humans is not known.
Both cannabis use and the dopamine receptor (DRD2) gene have been associated with schizophrenia, psychosis-like experiences, cognition. However, there are no published data investigating whether genetically determined variation in DRD2 dopaminergic signaling might play a role individual susceptibility to cannabis-associated psychosis. We genotyped (1) case-control study of 272 patients their first episode psychosis 234 controls, also from (2) sample 252 healthy subjects, for functional DRD2,...
Genetic risk for schizophrenia (SCZ) is determined by many genetic loci whose compound biological effects are difficult to determine. We hypothesized that co-expression pathways of SCZ genes associated with system-level brain function and clinical phenotypes SCZ. examined variants related the dopamine D2 receptor gene DRD2 pathway them working memory (WM) behavior, activity treatment response. Using two independent post-mortem prefrontal messenger RNA (mRNA) data sets (total N=249), we...