Dinko Kranjac, PhD, Medical Editor

Maternal tobacco smoking during pregnancy has previously been linked with numerous long-term neurodevelopmental abnormalities and child behavioral problems.

Investigators used fMRI to examine whether disruption of long-term fear memory reconsolidation can attenuate the activity in the amygdala at re-exposure to fear cues.

Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main psychoactive chemical ingredient in cannabis.

Varenicline is approved by the FDA for use as a smoking cessation aid.

Investigators used decomposition methods to examine the relative importance of genetic and environmental components to the burden of ADHD.

These findings are important, as CDC rank alcohol-attributable mortality as the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States.

Investigators developed a test [The Test of Playfulness (ToP)] in order to examine children’s play skills in peer-to-peer play interactions.

The primary outcome in this study was the change in total quality-of-life scores from baseline to week 24 after patients were randomly assigned to a treatment group.

Individuals diagnosed with melancholic major depressive disorder presented with more severe symptoms of depression compared with persons with non-melancholic depression.

Researchers analyzed smoking behavior of 1 470 veterans who enrolled in the SmokefreeVET tobacco cessation program between 2013 and 2014.

Researchers assessed social cognition and social problem solving abilities by employing ecologically valid scenario-based tests.

More than 65% of inmates who showed aggressive behavior against others and/or themselves displayed severe aggression.

More than 80% of males and 87% of females who died from a subsequent suicide attempt did so within 12 months of their first attempt.

The report also sheds light on the most significant predictors of substance abuse.

Direct comparison of white matter tracts between individuals with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder has not been performed to date.

Bipolar disorder and schizophrenia are characterized by significant genetic overlap, as well as significant clinical presentation overlap.

Grandchildren with both a depressed parent and depressed grandparent were at highest risk for MDD.

The researchers quantified the transcript levels of GAD67, parvalbumin, somastatin, and Lhx6 in the prefrontal cortex.

Whereas the expression levels of CDK4 and MCM7 were significantly decreased only in the acute state, POLD4 was significantly decreased in the acute and remission states in the patients diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Childhood is a critical developmental period in the brain’s response to traumatic stress such as family adversity.

Genetic risk for psychosis influences reward processing in healthy adolescents.

Almost half (49.2%) of patients diagnosed with schizophrenia spectrum disorders report alienation/shame.

Early life trauma interacts with FKBP5 genotype to predict heavy alcohol consumption in college students.

The largest 7-day absolute risk of criminal violence was observed after exposure to violence in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, as well as in unaffected individuals.

In terms of depressive and negative symptoms, in the present meta-analysis, researchers estimate that 1 in 9 patients with schizophrenia will improve with add-on antidepressants.

Inhibition of D1 dopamine receptors in medium spiny neurons, or excitation of D1 dopamine receptors in medium spiny neurons, of the striatum, attenuated excessive alcohol consumption in mice.

In vitro assays hold promise as diagnostic tools in complex neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism.

To date, there are no validated biomarkers to independently assess Parkinson Disease diagnosis and prognosis, or to measure disease severity.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is typically characterized by recurrent episodes of mania and depression, but the connection between BD and anxiety needs to be considered.

Post mortem examination of human brain samples derived from individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia revealed widespread synaptic alterations in CA1 hippocampal subfield.