Neurosteroid blood levels in delinquent adolescent boys with conduct disorder (original) (raw)
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A study of cortisol level as a biological marker in disruptive aggressive behaviour in adolescence
Benha Medical Journal, 2023
Background: Adolescence is usually associated with the teenage years, but its physical, psychological or cultural expressions may begin earlier and end later. Aggression is a behavior whose primary or sole purpose or function is to injure physically or psychologically. Aim and objectives: To demonstrate that high cortisol level in relation with the comorbidity of substance abuse and the duration of abuse in the conduct group. Patients and methods: This study was conducted on 50 aggressive patients with disruptive aggressive behaviors, attending the adolescent outpatient clinic at Alabbassia Mental hospital, who in turn divided into two groups one of conduct disorder and the other of Oppositional Defiant disorder and 25 resembling the control group during the period from March 2019 to February 2020. Results: Patients with conduct disorder showed statistically significant difference between the cortisol level and the comorbidity of substance abuse and the duration of abuse (by years) (P<0.05). While in the ODD group, there was statistically significant difference between the cortisol level and the gender and the age of the adolescent (P<0.05). Conclusion: Cortisol level is higher in the disruptive aggressive adolescents than that of the control group participating in the current study, moreover it was higher in those with conduct than ODD groups. It was demonstrated that high cortisol level in relation with the comorbidity of substance abuse and the duration of abuse in the conduct group.
Mechanisms differentiating normal from abnormal aggression: Glucocorticoids and serotonin
European Journal of Pharmacology, 2005
Psychopathology-associated human aggression types are induced by a variety of conditions, are behaviorally variable, and show a differential pharmacological responsiveness. Thus, there are several types of abnormal human aggression. This diversity was not reflected by conventional laboratory approaches that focused on the quantitative aspects of aggressive behavior. Recently, several laboratory models of abnormal aggression were proposed, which mainly model hyperarousal-driven aggressiveness (characteristic to intermittent explosive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, chronic burnout, etc.) and hypoarousal-driven aggressiveness (characteristic mainly to antisocial personality disorder and its childhood antecedent conduct disorder). Findings obtained with these models suggest that hyperarousal-driven aggressiveness has at its roots an excessive acute glucocorticoid stress response (and probably an exaggerated response of other stress-related systems), whereas chronic hypoarousal-associated aggressiveness is due to glucocorticoid deficits that affect brain function on the long term. In hypoarousal-driven aggressiveness, serotonergic neurotransmission appears to lose its impact on aggression (which it has in normal aggression), certain prefrontal neurons are weakly activated, whereas the central amygdala (no, or weakly involved in the control of normal aggression) acquires important roles. We suggest that the specific study of abnormal aspects of aggressive behavior would lead to important developments in understanding the specific mechanisms underlying different forms of aggression, and may ultimately lead to the development of better treatment approaches.
Neuro-bio-chemical balance within deviant delinquent behaviors in adolescents
Bulletin of Integrative Psychiatry, 2022
Juvenile delinquency is often viewed as a social phenomenon. Behavior disorders, especially in teenagers and outside true psychiatric pathologies, are analyzed as inner neuro-hormonal imbalances with familial and social influences based on intellectual and emotional stimulation levels. All outer stimuli trigger powerful and abrupt responses in these individuals due to their physiological transformations that affect the neurological biochemistry and the central nervous mechanisms. Some of the cerebral areas are hyperactive, affecting impulse control, volition, emotional balance and the tendency to aggressiveness. Beyond hormonal impregnation, it seems that some of the dopaminergic activity is increased, similar to addictive behaviors, triggering satisfaction and rewarding systems and conducting to gratification and short term satisfaction seeking, beyond the limitations imposed by cognitive functions. Further research on neuro-biochemical activity in teenagers might reveal patho-physiological justifications for deviant behavior, even in non-psychiatric patients, which could change the forensic psychiatric evaluation on adolescents by individualizing clinical and biological aspects of each case.
2021
It has been reported that altered dopaminergic neurotransmission may contribute to the development of aggressive behaviors and emotional intelligence (EI) impairment. However, less is known about the impact of polymorphisms in dopaminergic genes on the level of aggression and EI. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the association between the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) rs6277 gene polymorphism and the dopamine 2 receptor (DRD2) rs4680 gene polymorphism as well as the level of aggression and EI in adolescents with conduct disorder. Participants were 144 adolescents with conduct disorder recruited at the youth sociotherapy centre. The Buss-Perry Aggression Questionnaire (BPAQ) was administered to record the level of aggression while the Popular Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (PEIQ) and the Schutte Self-Report Inventory (SSRI) were used to assess EI. We found no significant associations between selected polymorphisms and the scores of BPAQ, PEIQ and SSRI. Our findings do ...
Biological Psychology, 2013
Although several studies have associated antisocial behavior with decreased cortisol awakening responses (CAR), studies in adolescent samples yielded inconsistent results. In adolescence however, the CAR develops and antisocial behavior is heterogeneous in type and persistence. Therefore this longitudinal study compared persistent aggressive and rule-breaking adolescents to low aggressive and rule-breaking adolescents on the development of the CAR from ages 15 to 17 (N = 390). Persistently high aggressive adolescents showed decreased cortisol levels at awakening consistently over the years ( 2 (1) = 6.655, p = .01) as compared to low aggressive adolescents. No differences between adolescents showing persistent high rule-breaking and low rule-breaking were found. This longitudinal study is the first to show that persistent aggression, but not rule-breaking behavior, is related to neurobiological alterations. Moreover, despite development of the CAR over adolescence, the decrease in cortisol is consistent over time in persistent high aggressive adolescents, which is an important prerequisite for the prediction of persistent aggression.
Neurosteroids in child and adolescent psychopathology
European Neuropsychopharmacology, 2007
Neurosteroids play a significant role in neurodevelopment and are involved in a wide variety of psychopathological processes. There is accumulating evidence on their role in adult psychopathology, including Alzheimer disease, schizophrenia, mood disorder, anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder. Little is known, however, about the possible role of neurosteroids in child and adolescent psychopathology although there is increasing evidence for their critical role from the early stages of brain development until adolescence. In this review we focus on the involvement of neurosteroids in neurodevelopment and mental disorders in children and adolescents. Adequate physiological levels protect the developing neural system from insult and contribute to the regulation of brain organization and function. Neurosteroids may be involved in the pathophysiology and pharmacotherapy of a variety of disorders in children and adolescents, including schizophrenia, depression, eating disorders, aggressive behavior and attention deficit. The complex interaction between neurosteroids, neurodevelopment, lifeevents, genetics and mental disorders in children and adolescents merits further investigation.