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Predisposing Risk Factors for PTSD: Brain Biomarkers

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Comprehensive Guide to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Abstract

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis entails exposure to an external stressful event. Regarding such event as a reference point for disease onset represents a unique opportunity to investigate which, if any, of the neural abnormalities that characterize PTSD constitute a predisposing (pre-exposure) risk factor. This chapter reviews findings from four novel research strategies in PTSD neuroimaging, including prospective, environmental, twin, and genetic studies together suggesting that abnormal structure, function, and connectivity within the amygdala and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex circuitry may represent predisposing neural abnormalities that existed prior to exposure to trauma and increased the likelihood to develop PTSD following it. Considering the emotional–cognitive functions of this neural circuit, we further postulate that exaggerated fear generation and dysfunctional regulation of fear may represent predisposing behavioral phenotypes leading to PTSD symptom cluster of hyperarousal.

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Abbreviations

COMT:

Catechol-O-methyltransferase

dACC:

Dorsal anterior cingulate cortex

dmPFC:

Dorsomedial prefrontal cortex

DTI:

Diffusion tensor imaging

fMRI:

Functional MRI

MRI:

Magnetic resonance imaging

OFC:

Orbitofrontal cortex

PET:

Positron emission tomography

rACC:

Rostral anterior cingulate cortex

SPECT:

Single-photon emission computed tomography

vlPFC:

Ventrolateral prefrontal cortex

vmPFC:

Ventromedial prefrontal cortex

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Acknowledgments

This work was partly supported by the I-CORE Program of the Planning and Budgeting Committee and The Israel Science Foundation (grant no. 51/11), the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme for research, technological development, and demonstration (grant agreement no. 602186), and the National Institute of Mental Health (award number 1R01MH103287-01) (T.H.), as well as the Adam Corneel Young Investigator Award (McLean Hospital) and a Brain & Behavior Research Foundation Young Investigator Award (R.A). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institute of Health and the National Institute of Mental Health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sackler Faculty of Medicine and Sagol School for Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel

    Talma Hendler

  2. Functional Brain Center, Wohl Institute for Advanced Imaging, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, 6 Weizmann Street, Tel-Aviv, 64239, Israel

    Talma Hendler

  3. Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    Roee Admon

  4. Center for Depression, Anxiety and Stress Research, McLean Hospital, 115 Mill Street, de Marneffe Building room 233A, Belmont, MA, 02478, USA

    Roee Admon

Authors
  1. Talma Hendler
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  2. Roee Admon
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Correspondence to Talma Hendler .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Buckinghamshire New University, Uxbridge, Middlesex, United Kingdom

    Colin R. Martin

  2. Kings College, London, United Kingdom

    Victor R. Preedy

  3. University of Westminster, London, United Kingdom

    Vinood B. Patel

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Hendler, T., Admon, R. (2015). Predisposing Risk Factors for PTSD: Brain Biomarkers. In: Martin, C., Preedy, V., Patel, V. (eds) Comprehensive Guide to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08613-2_64-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08613-2_64-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-08613-2

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