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(https://www.psypost.org/newborn-brains-reveal-innate-ability-to-process-complex-sound-patterns/) Newborn brains reveal innate ability to process complex sound patterns
Dec 7th 2024, 08:00

A new study published in (https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002610) PLOS Biology provides evidence that newborns possess the ability to learn and process sound patterns that follow complex, language-like rules. Researchers found that even in their first days of life, infants can identify relationships between non-adjacent sounds—a crucial building block for language acquisition. This innate capacity, previously observed only in older infants and non-human primates, highlights the remarkable auditory and cognitive capabilities present from birth.
Human language is intricately structured, with dependencies between words or sounds that often span non-adjacent elements. For instance, in the sentence “The boy who is running wins the race,” the subject “boy” connects to the verb “wins” despite intervening words. This ability to understand such connections is critical for mastering language. While prior studies demonstrated that infants as young as five months can detect these non-adjacent dependencies, it was unclear whether this skill is present at birth or develops later.
The researchers aimed to address two key questions: Are humans born with the ability to detect these complex patterns? And which brain regions support this process in newborns? By investigating these questions, the study provides insights into the neurodevelopmental foundations of language and the early role of auditory experiences.
“I aim to uncover the biological foundations of the human capacity for language. Grammatical processing is a critical component of language that is unique to humans, and we sought to explore its developmental origins,” explained corresponding author (https://researchmap.jp/7000025617?lang=en) Yasuyo Minagawa, a professor of psychology at Keio University.
The researchers conducted their study in two experiments using a non-invasive imaging technique called functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to examine how infants’ brains process complex sound patterns. The first experiment involved 21 healthy newborns, aged between one and five days. The newborns were exposed to artificial sequences of three tones, designed to mimic the structural rules of human language. These sequences followed specific patterns, where two “outer” tones (such as A and B) were paired with a “middle” tone (X), forming a rule-based structure like “A-X-B.”
During a learning phase, the newborns listened to 60 of these patterned sequences. Afterward, during a test phase, they were presented with both familiar “correct” sequences that adhered to the learned rules and “incorrect” sequences that violated the rules. The researchers used fNIRS to measure changes in brain activity in response to these sequences, focusing on whether the infants could detect rule violations.
In the second experiment, the researchers studied 19 infants aged six to seven months. The experimental setup was similar, with the infants exposed to rule-based sequences during a learning phase, followed by a test phase where they heard both correct and incorrect sequences. However, to account for the older infants’ tendency to move more and become restless during longer experiments, the researchers only measured brain activity during the test phase.
The newborns in the first experiment demonstrated the ability to detect rule violations, as evidenced by increased brain activity in their frontal cortex—an area associated with rule learning and error detection. Notably, their brain responses were largely confined to this region, suggesting that newborns rely on the frontal cortex for processing such patterns, even though their classic language-processing regions in the temporal and parietal lobes were not yet active.
“Our findings demonstrate that the brain is capable of responding to complex patterns, like those found in language, from day one,” explained co-author Jutta Mueller from the University of Vienna’s Department of Linguistics. “The way brain regions connect during the learning process in newborns suggests that early learning experiences may be crucial for forming the networks that later support the processing of complex acoustic patterns.”
In contrast, the six- to seven-month-old infants showed a broader network of brain activity during the second experiment. When exposed to incorrect sequences, these older infants displayed activation not only in the frontal cortex but also in regions like the inferior frontal gyrus and superior temporal gyrus. These areas are part of the adult brain’s language network, which processes complex linguistic structures. This broader activation suggests that, by six months of age, infants begin to engage brain regions specialized for language, reflecting an evolution in how their brains process structured auditory input.
“Newborns possess the ability to learn relatively complex grammatical rules, and this ability appears to rely on an innate cerebral network,” Minagawa told PsyPost. “However, this neural network undergoes significant development during the first six months of life. This process is heavily influenced by the quantity and quality of communicative stimuli, such as parental speech.”
In both experiments, the researchers also observed evidence of functional connectivity, particularly in the newborns, between the frontal cortex and posterior brain regions. This connectivity likely serves as an early foundation for the more specialized language networks that develop later in infancy. Together, the findings indicate that the ability to process non-adjacent dependencies in sound patterns is present from birth, with newborns relying on the frontal cortex and broader networks becoming active as infants gain auditory experience over their first six months. This developmental shift highlights the rapid and dynamic changes in the infant brain as it becomes increasingly attuned to the structural complexities of language.
“We were surprised to find that while the brain regions responding to correct and incorrect grammatical rules differ entirely between newborns and six-month-old infants, our detailed analysis of the neural pathways in neonates revealed that these distinct regions are connected during grammar learning,” Minagawa said. “This finding sheds light on how the brain network is organized during the process of language development.”
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002610) Functional reorganization of brain regions supporting artificial grammar learning across the first half year of life,” was authored by Lin Cai, Takeshi Arimitsu, Naomi Shinohara, Takao Takahashi, Yoko Hakuno, Masahiro Hata, Ei-ichi Hoshino, Stuart K. Watson, Simon W. Townsend, Jutta L. Mueller, and Yasuyo Minagawa.

(https://www.psypost.org/scientists-uncover-an-unsettling-effect-of-chronic-social-stress-on-brain-cells/) Scientists uncover an unsettling effect of chronic social stress on brain cells
Dec 7th 2024, 06:00

A recent study in (https://www.nature.com/articles/s43587-024-00743-8) Nature Aging sheds light on how social stress accelerates the aging process at a cellular level. Researchers found that chronic social stress causes neurons in key brain regions to exhibit signs of senescence—a state where cells stop dividing and secrete inflammatory signals linked to aging-related diseases. This discovery adds to our understanding of how stress in the social environment might influence long-term health and the aging process.
The connection between life stress and health outcomes has long been established. Chronic stress can increase the risk of a range of aging-related diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, cardiovascular problems, and type 2 diabetes. Yet, the mechanisms by which stress accelerates biological aging remain poorly understood.
The researchers aimed to address this gap by focusing on whether chronic social stress could trigger cellular senescence. While cellular senescence can serve protective functions, such as aiding in wound healing, its accumulation is linked to inflammation, tissue degradation, and diseases of aging.
“This research was inspired by a significant amount of work proving that life stress, social determinants, and low socio-economic status in particular, adversely affect health and accelerate aging in humans. However, the causal mechanisms are largely unknown and almost impossible to identify in humans,” said senior author (https://bartolomuccilab.umn.edu/) Alessandro Bartolomucci, a professor and Ancel Keys Biomedical Scholar in Physiology and Metabolism at the University of Minnesota Medical School.
“One area of great interest to us was the possibility that life stress could accelerate aging by causing the accumulation of senescent cells. Senescent cells are known to adversely affect several aging-associated diseases, from atherosclerosis to Alzheimer’s and many others.”
The research team used preclinical models, specifically mice, to investigate the role of stress on senescent cells accumulation. Two distinct stress paradigms were used: social subordination stress, where subordinate mice were exposed to aggression from dominant mice, and psychological restraint stress, which limited the animals’ movement without a social component. Both stressors were administered over four weeks.
“My lab has worked for years on the development of mouse models of chronic stress, trying to determine how social versus psychological stressors can affect health and aging,” Bartolomucci explained. “Previous work found that social stressors—chronic social subordination in particular—(https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2211755120) adversely impact healthspan, cause several aging-associated diseases, and shorten lifespan. This chronic social subordination stress model (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0149763423003287?via%3Dihub) can recapitulate certain aspects of the adverse impact of low socio-economic status on health.”
In their new study, the researchers found that social subordination stress led to the accumulation of senescent cells in key brain regions. Specifically, neurons in the hippocampus and cortex exhibited markers of senescence, including the expression of p16, a protein associated with cell cycle arrest and inflammatory signaling.
“One of the major surprises was that neurons—and not other cells like microglia or astrocytes (cells that divide and proliferate)—are the major, if not the only, target of stress-induced senescence,” Bartolomucci told PsyPost.
The researchers noted a stark difference between the effects of social stress and those of psychological restraint stress. While both stress models activated the body’s stress responses, only social stress consistently led to the accumulation of senescent cells in neurons. Compared to social stress, restraint stress resulted in fewer signs of senescence and appeared less impactful in terms of long-term biological consequences.
“Exposing mice to a psychological, non-social stress model increased in the brain only a small putative subpopulation of senescent cells—still ill-identified—showing an increased marker known as p21 but independent from p16,” Bartolomucci explained.
Another significant observation was that the DNA damage response seemed to be a primary driver of stress-induced senescence. In mice exposed to chronic social stress, the researchers found elevated levels of DNA damage markers. This damage likely triggers the cellular machinery responsible for activation of a senescence fate.
A particularly striking finding was the regional specificity of stress-induced senescence within the brain. Senescent cells were concentrated in the hippocampus and cortex but not in other brain regions typically associated with stress regulation, such as the hypothalamus or the amygdala. This suggests that chronic social stress impacts regions targeted by stress mediators rather than those responsible for initiating the stress response.
Interestingly, the researchers also discovered that the effects of chronic social stress on senescence were not limited to the brain. Peripheral tissues, including blood cells and adipose tissue, also exhibited increased markers of senescence. This suggests that the impact of social stress could potentially affect systemic health and contribute to aging-related diseases throughout the body. Longer exposure to social stress amplified these effects, indicating that the cumulative impact of stress over time could be particularly harmful.
The researchers attempted to mitigate these effects by targeting senescent cells for removal using a mouse model designed to clear cells expressing p16. While this intervention reduced the accumulation of DNA damage and some markers of inflammation, it did not fully reverse the physiological or behavioral effects of stress.
“Another surprise was that in spite of the beneficial effect of clearing p16-expressing cells on the accumulation of DNA damage and markers of senesce, the adverse effect of stress on behavior and physiology up to middle age (the maximum tested here) was not improved,” Bartolomucci said. “This suggests that either other senescent cells contribute to negative effects, or that these cells may also have protective effects under stress. Work is ongoing to discriminate.”
The study adds to the growing body of evidence linking chronic stress to aging at the cellular level, providing new insights into the mechanisms involved. Future research will aim to explore other biological pathways involved in stress and aging, such as oxidative damage and telomere damage. Researchers also hope that this research will inform the study of whether similar mechanisms are at play in humans and to test interventions that could mitigate the harmful effects of stress on aging.
“This finding may have significant implications in understanding how stress ‘gets under the skin’ and inform the many clinical trials focusing on the role of senescent cells and other biological mechanisms in aging and healthspan,” Bartolomucci explained. “Overall, we expect that in the long term this research may yield fundamental new insights into how stress can adversely affect biological mechanisms of aging, and to what extent manipulating these mechanisms can confer resilience to stress-induced adverse health effects.”
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-024-00743-8) Chronic social stress induces p16-mediated senescent cell accumulation in mice,” was authored by Carey E. Lyons, Jean Pierre Pallais, Seth McGonigle, Rachel P. Mansk, Charles W. Collinge, Matthew J. Yousefzadeh, Darren J. Baker, Patricia R. Schrank, Jesse W. Williams, Laura J. Niedernhofer, Jan M. van Deursen, Maria Razzoli & Alessandro Bartolomucci

(https://www.psypost.org/short-daily-walks-may-reverse-cognitive-aging-by-four-years-study-finds/) Short daily walks may reverse cognitive aging by four years, study finds
Dec 6th 2024, 14:30

Everyday physical activity, like going for a short walk or playing with the kids, may provide short-term benefits for cognitive health, equivalent to reversing four years of cognitive aging. That was a key finding for my colleagues and me in (https://doi.org/10.1093/abm/kaae059) our new study, which was published in the journal Annals of Behavioral Medicine.
Prior to enrollment into a (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2022.107006) study of diet and dementia risk, we asked a diverse sample of 204 middle-aged adults to check in five times per day for a period of nine days, via a smartphone application.
Each check-in involved completing a brief survey that asked about their mood, dietary choices and whether they engaged in any physical activity in the roughly three and a half hours leading up to the survey. In addition, participants completed a few brief brain games – meaning performance-based cognitive assessments that lasted about one minute each – to assess mental speed and short-term memory.
My team found that performance on our measure of cognitive processing speed improved during check-ins when participants reported being physically active in the time leading up to the survey. While we didn’t see improvements in our measure of working memory, the time taken to complete the memory task mirrored what we saw for the measure of processing speed.
We observed these improvements in speed regardless of whether the activity was lighter intensity or moderate-to-vigorous intensity. This led us to conclude that movement, whether it took the form of intentional exercise or part of a daily routine, was the essential ingredient for achieving this benefit.
Why it matters
As a rule, we get slower, both physically and mentally, as we age. While research on exercise and living a healthy lifestyle has demonstrated the (https://doi.org/10.1249/MSS.0000000000001936) long-term cognitive and brain health benefits of remaining physically active, much of this work has focused on the moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity – or what most of us think of as exercise – recommended by the (https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.14854) Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans.
Still, these guidelines and other experts recommend that adults (https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.7575) move more and sit less.
My colleagues and I are interested in understanding how moving more can improve our cognitive health or reduce our risk of dementia as we age, at what timescale these benefits show up, and what types of movement qualify.
What still isn’t known
Our study relied on participants to report whether they had been physically active during the time between each check-in. Even though participants were provided training on how to think about the intensity levels, it’s possible that each participant had a slightly different perception of their activities.
For example, a participant may not have believed their recent walk actually qualified as a moderate-intensity activity. Physical activity monitors that can dissociate time and intensity might help future research unravel these associations more clearly.
What’s next
It isn’t yet clear whether these short-term benefits accumulate over time to result in long-term improvements in brain health and dementia risk reduction. Research efforts are underway by our team to better understand these associations over broader timescales.
My research involves data collection via smartphones and wearable devices to help us better understand how health-promoting behaviors and cognitive health interact as we age. This type of digital approach allows my team to pursue questions about how everyday behavior and experience influence cognition in daily life and represents a significant methodological advancement in the dementia risk and prevention research space.
Using these tools, we aim to better identify individuals at risk for negative cognitive outcomes and new targets for dementia prevention.
 
This article is republished from (https://theconversation.com) The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the (https://theconversation.com/light-exercise-can-yield-significant-cognitive-benefits-new-research-shows-243559) original article.

(https://www.psypost.org/neurolinguistic-priming-reveals-contrasting-gender-biases-in-republicans-and-democrats/) Neurolinguistic priming reveals contrasting gender biases in Republicans and Democrats
Dec 6th 2024, 14:00

A recent study provides evidence that political ideology shapes how people evaluate moral violations based on gender, with Republicans and Democrats exhibiting contrasting biases. Republicans judged authority violations by women and girls more harshly, while Democrats tended to judge such violations by men and boys as worse. These findings, published in (https://doi.org/10.1080/00224545.2024.2427012) The Journal of Social Psychology, shed light on how implicit biases can differ significantly across political lines.
The study aimed to explore how implicit gender biases influence moral judgments differently among Republicans and Democrats, given their distinct moral priorities and social values. By manipulating the timing of gender information in moral violation scenarios, the researchers sought to uncover how political ideology and framing effects shape evaluations of authority violations.
“When I was teaching biology in rural Kansas, I got really interested in how people maintain beliefs in the face of counterevidence. Since then, I have been looking specifically at how in-group membership influences cognition and beliefs,” said study author (https://www.brandonbretl.com/) Brandon L. Bretl, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Tyler.
The researchers employed an experimental survey design to investigate how political ideology influences gender biases in moral judgments. They recruited 826 participants from a United States census-matched sample, ensuring diverse representation in terms of age, gender, and political affiliation. The participants self-identified as either Democrats or Republicans, excluding independents.
The survey included a series of short moral violation scenarios, known as vignettes, designed to test reactions in two domains: authority violations, such as a student interrupting a teacher, and justice violations, such as cheating during a test.
Participants were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions that manipulated the gender of the vignette’s protagonist and the placement of gender-related information within the sentences. In some conditions, gender was introduced early in the vignette using a noun, while in others, it was introduced later through a pronoun. This manipulation aimed to test the influence of timing on gender stereotype activation.
“Our brains use different neural circuits for different tasks,” Bretl told PsyPost. “The processing done by those circuits happens very quickly—often in less than a tenth of a second. Even so, some processes don’t happen quickly enough in certain contexts. For example, in this study, I asked people to judge written scenarios of men and women committing moral violations. I then changed the gender of the person committing the violation between two experimental conditions.
“I also varied the placement of gender information in two additional conditions, presenting it either at the beginning of the sentence with a noun (‘You see a woman…’) or later in the sentence using a pronoun (‘You see a student…her…’). The idea was that moral judgments occur rapidly, so in cases where we expect a gender bias—for example, a woman disrespecting authority—we could mitigate that bias by presenting gender information later in the sentence.”
After reading each vignette, participants rated the severity of the moral violation on a five-point scale, ranging from “not bad” to “extremely bad.” To ensure results were not influenced by unrelated factors, the researchers controlled for variables such as participant sex, religiosity, and the strength of political affiliation.
The findings revealed distinct patterns of gender bias influenced by political ideology. Republicans rated authority violations by women and girls as more severe than those committed by men and boys when gender information appeared early in the sentence. This pattern suggests that traditional gender norms emphasizing female deference to authority may be particularly salient among Republican participants. Interestingly, this bias disappeared when gender information was introduced later in the sentence, implying that subtle shifts in how information is framed can reduce implicit biases.
In contrast, Democrats showed the opposite bias in their evaluations of authority violations. They rated male protagonists as more culpable than female protagonists, particularly when gender was introduced early in the vignette. This pattern may reflect a sensitivity to social equity issues and an overcorrection for perceived biases against women, resulting in harsher judgments of male authority violators. As with Republicans, the timing of gender information affected these judgments, with late gender cues reducing the observed bias.
“The bias against boys and men committing authority violations among Democrats surprised me,” Bretl said. “One explanation is an ‘overcorrection bias,’ where Democrats, being aware of biases against women, have worked to overcome those biases but end up overshooting the mark. More research is needed to confirm this.”
In scenarios involving justice violations, such as cheating or dishonesty, neither Republicans nor Democrats exhibited significant gender bias. This finding underscores the domain-specific nature of implicit biases, as justice violations—focused on fairness and harm—may not activate the same gendered stereotypes as authority violations. The results highlight how moral judgments are shaped not only by political ideology but also by the context in which violations occur and the way information is presented.
“The key takeaways from this study are: 1) gender biases function in highly nuanced ways, 2) Republicans are biased against girls and women committing authority violations, while Democrats are biased against boys and men committing authority violations, and 3) the gender of the protagonist does not influence ratings of justice violations,” Bretl explained. “This is relevant in contexts like status offenses—crimes punishable because of the offender’s age, such as truancy or underage drinking—because these authority-based offenses are the only area of the criminal justice system where girls outnumber boys.”
The study introduces a novel method for examining implicit biases by manipulating the presentation of gender information in moral scenarios. However, the study has limitations. The vignettes primarily featured youth protagonists, which may not fully capture biases related to adult authority figures. Additionally, the findings are specific to the polarized political and cultural context of the United States in 2023.
“This study focused on U.S. participants during a time of heightened political polarization,” Bretl noted. “The findings might not generalize to other cultural or political contexts. Also, while we controlled for factors like age and religiosity, biases related to age or other demographic traits might still play a role.”
To build on these findings, future studies could examine how other social factors interact with gender and political ideology in shaping moral judgments. Researchers could also explore interventions to mitigate implicit biases, such as framing information in ways that neutralize stereotype activation.
“The long-term goals include developing a better understanding of how stereotypes and biases function in the brain and in context,” Bretl said. “Such knowledge can be used to improve outcomes in areas where biases can have undesirable effects, such as criminal sentencing and beliefs about science.”
“The study is unique in its blending of neurolinguistics and social psychology. The experimental design is relatively complex, but it needed to be to tease out the nuanced differences between Republicans’ and Democrats’ gender biases when making moral judgments.”
The paper, “(https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00224545.2024.2427012) Neurolinguistic Priming and Gender Stereotype Effects in the Ratings of Justice vs. Authority Moral Violations: Republicans and Democrats,” was authored by Brandon L. Bretl and Christopher L. Thomas.

(https://www.psypost.org/early-brain-changes-predict-chronic-pain-after-whiplash-injuries/) Early brain changes predict chronic pain after whiplash injuries
Dec 6th 2024, 12:00

A new study has found that within just a few days of a whiplash injury, it is possible to predict which patients are likely to develop chronic pain based on brain activity and anxiety levels. Researchers discovered that the level of communication between the hippocampus, which is involved in memory, and the cortex, responsible for storing long-term memories, is a key indicator. Additionally, individuals with higher anxiety shortly after the injury were more likely to report chronic pain a year later. The findings, published in (https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-024-00329-8) Nature Mental Health, suggest early interventions could prevent chronic pain before it becomes entrenched.
Chronic pain affects millions of people worldwide and remains one of the most challenging health conditions to treat. Whiplash injuries, often caused by car accidents, provide a unique opportunity to study pain progression because the onset of symptoms can be precisely traced to the time of the injury. The researchers aimed to better understand the brain’s role in the transition from acute to chronic pain. Specifically, they focused on the hippocampus, a brain region critical for memory formation, to examine how its interactions with other brain areas could influence pain outcomes.
Previous research has suggested that chronic pain is driven by maladaptive emotional learning, where the brain forms strong negative associations with certain experiences, such as movement or touch. This study sought to uncover the mechanisms behind this process, particularly during the critical early stages after an injury. Understanding these mechanisms could lead to treatments that interrupt the development of chronic pain, offering hope for millions of patients.
“Chronic pain remains a major source of disability worldwide, and treatment options remain inadequate. The main logic of this investigation is an effort to better understand mechanisms of chronic pain, which we hope will lead to new treatment options to both prevent the transition to chronic pain and more efficiently manage chronic pain,” said corresponding author (https://labs.feinberg.northwestern.edu/apkarian/) Apkar V. Apkarian, director of the Center for Translational Pain Research and a professor of neuroscience at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
“Our previous work shows that brain properties and mechanisms are important to understanding chronic pain, especially emotional learning circuits. However, the role of these systems immediately after an acute injury has remained unknown. The hippocampus is the brain region critical for memory formation and memory consolidation, yet its role in chronic pain has been minimally understood. Therefore, we studied its involvement in subjects who experienced a car accident with minimal injuries but severe enough to seek medical help.”
The study was a collaborative effort between Northwestern University, McGill University, and the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology. Researchers followed 110 participants who sought medical care after car accidents resulting in minor injuries, such as whiplash. These participants, who were otherwise healthy prior to the accident, underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging within three days of the injury. This timing allowed the researchers to examine brain activity during the acute phase of pain.
“We specifically focused on subjects who had a car accident, as they were experiencing an acute traumatic event and acute pain, most likely after leading a healthy life,” Apkarian noted. “Thus, in these subjects, there is no bias due to preexisting pain conditions that may complicate explaining the results.”
Participants also completed psychological and physical tests to assess their anxiety levels, pain intensity, and other factors. Over the next year, the researchers tracked their progress, recording whether their pain resolved or became chronic. By combining brain imaging data with psychological assessments, the team identified patterns that distinguished those who recovered from those who developed long-term pain.
One of the study’s most innovative aspects was its use of brain connectivity analysis. The researchers focused on how the hippocampus interacted with the cortex and other brain regions associated with emotion and memory, such as the amygdala. These connections were evaluated for their potential role in predicting chronic pain.
The results revealed a connection between brain activity and chronic pain outcomes. Participants who developed chronic pain showed increased communication between the hippocampus and the cortex shortly after their injury. This heightened connectivity appeared to reflect the formation of strong, emotionally significant memories linking specific movements or sensations to pain. Researchers hypothesize that these memories create persistent expectations of pain, which reinforce the chronic condition.
“These results indicate that psychological and brain responses to a car accident within the first few days determine long-term chances of developing chronic pain,” Apkarian told PsyPost. “The practical implication of the study is that early proper treatments can interrupt the transition to chronic pain. Thus, we need to identify what early procedures or drug treatments can stop this process.”
Anxiety also appeared to play a significant role. Individuals with higher levels of anxiety in the first few days after the accident were more likely to report chronic pain one year later. The combination of heightened brain connectivity and anxiety provided a powerful predictor of chronic pain development.
The findings challenge traditional views of pain as merely a physical response to injury. Instead, they highlight the brain’s role in shaping the pain experience, suggesting that psychological and neurological factors are just as important as physical damage.
“These results imply that emotional learning and emotional memory acquisition and storage are critical to the development of chronic pain,” Apkarian said. “These findings suggest that appropriate treatments can be devised and tested. Also, we can design future studies to begin to understand how these early events affect other brain processes that create chronic pain.”
While the study provides valuable insights, it has some limitations. First, the researchers focused on whiplash injuries, which may limit the generalizability of their findings to other types of chronic pain. Additionally, the study did not account for medication use after the accident, which could have influenced pain outcomes. Finally, while the hippocampus was a primary focus, other brain regions likely contribute to chronic pain and warrant further investigation.
Future research will explore the underlying mechanisms behind these brain changes. For example, researchers plan to study how factors like inflammation, stress hormones, and psychological trauma interact with the hippocampus to influence pain outcomes. They also aim to test whether these findings apply to other chronic pain conditions, such as fibromyalgia or back pain.
“Our long-term goals are to continue to understand brain mechanisms that determine the development of chronic pain,” Apkarian said. “Based on such results, we also hope to identify drug targets for either blocking the development of chronic pain or treating chronic pain.”
The study, “(https://doi.org/10.1038/s44220-024-00329-8) Hippocampal functional connectivity after whiplash injury is linked to the development of chronic pain,” was authored by Paulo Branco, Noam Bosak, Andrew D. Vigotsky, Yelena Granovsky, David Yarnitsky, and A. Vania Apkarian.

(https://www.psypost.org/ultraprocessed-foods-linked-to-higher-risk-of-depressive-symptoms-study-finds/) Ultraprocessed foods linked to higher risk of depressive symptoms, study finds
Dec 6th 2024, 10:00

An analysis of data from the NutriNet Brasil study found that individuals who consume more ultraprocessed foods in their diet face an increased risk of depressive symptoms. Overall, those with the highest consumption of ultraprocessed foods had a 42% greater risk of developing depressive symptoms compared to those with the lowest consumption. The research was published in the journal (https://www.clinicalnutritionjournal.com/article/S0261-5614(24)00102-X/abstract) Clinical Nutrition.
Ultraprocessed foods are industrially formulated products made primarily from refined ingredients and additives, with minimal to no whole food content. They typically contain artificial flavors, preservatives, sweeteners, and colorings to enhance taste and shelf life. Examples include soft drinks, packaged snacks, instant noodles, and reconstituted meats. These foods are generally high in calories, sugar, fat, and salt, while being low in nutrients and fiber.
Studies have linked regular consumption of ultraprocessed foods to various health risks, including an increased likelihood of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Some researchers suggest that consuming certain ultraprocessed foods can lead to food addiction, a condition akin to well-known substance addictions.
Study author André O. Werneck and his colleagues aimed to explore the connection between the proportion of ultraprocessed foods in one’s diet and the development of depressive symptoms. Depression, or major depressive disorder, is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide, with nearly 6% of Brazil’s population diagnosed with the disorder.
A national health survey conducted in 2019 revealed that 11% of Brazilian adults experienced moderate to severe depressive symptoms. The global prevalence of depression has risen in recent years, and some researchers attribute this increase, in part, to the growing consumption of ultraprocessed foods during the same period.
The authors analyzed data from the NutriNet Brasil longitudinal study, which included 15,960 adult participants with an average age of 46 years. Of the participants, 78% were women. None of them had a prior diagnosis of depression or clinical levels of depressive symptoms at the start of the study.
Participants assessed their dietary intake using the Nova24h tool, a web-based dietary recall system aligned with the Nova food classification system. This system provided data on the proportion of various food types in each participant’s diet, expressed as a percentage of total energy intake. It included information on ultraprocessed foods, fruits, vegetables, added sugars, total fats, and other dietary components.
Dietary data were collected during the sixth and twelfth months of the study. Participants also completed assessments of depressive symptoms using the PHQ-2 tool in the 14th, 20th, 26th, 32nd, and 38th months. Participants who scored below three points on the PHQ-2 assessment at the 14th month were included in the analysis, which explored the relationship between the proportion of ultraprocessed foods in their diet and the subsequent development of depressive symptoms.
Results indicated that 2,373 participants developed depressive symptoms during the study period. On average, ultraprocessed foods accounted for approximately 22% of participants’ total energy intake, though this varied widely among individuals. Among the 25% of participants with the lowest consumption of ultraprocessed foods, such foods constituted only 7% of their total energy intake. In contrast, for the 25% with the highest consumption, ultraprocessed foods made up 39% of their total energy intake.
Further analysis revealed that participants with the highest consumption of ultraprocessed foods had a 42% greater risk of developing depressive symptoms compared to those with the lowest consumption.
Additionally, the authors conducted a meta-analysis of six published studies examining the same relationship. This analysis found that individuals with high ultraprocessed food consumption had a 32% greater risk of developing depression compared to those with the lowest consumption levels.
While the study highlights a potential link between depression and ultraprocessed food consumption, its design does not allow for causal inferences. It is possible that components of ultraprocessed foods increase susceptibility to depression. However, other factors may also contribute, such as underlying characteristics that predispose individuals both to consuming ultraprocessed foods and to developing depressive symptoms.
The paper, “(https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clnu.2024.03.028) Adherence to the ultra-processed dietary pattern and risk of depressive outcomes: Findings from the NutriNet Brasil cohort study and an updated systematic review and meta-analysis,” was authored by Andre O. Werneck, Euridice M. Steele, Felipe M. Delpino, Melissa M. Lane, Wolfgang Marx, Felice N. Jacka, Brendon Stubbs, Mathilde Touvier, Bernard Srour, Maria LC. Louzada, Renata B. Levy, and Carlos A. Monteiro.

Forwarded by:
Michael Reeder LCPC
Baltimore, MD

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