Premium
Trait impulsiveness is related to smaller post‐commissural putamen volumes in males but not females
Author(s) -
Caravaggio Fernando,
Plitman Eric,
Chung Jun Ku,
Gerretsen Philip,
Kim Julia,
Iwata Yusuke,
Chakravarty Mallar,
Remington Gary,
GraffGuerrero Ariel
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
european journal of neuroscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.346
H-Index - 206
eISSN - 1460-9568
pISSN - 0953-816X
DOI - 10.1111/ejn.13661
Subject(s) - impulsivity , putamen , psychology , ventral striatum , temperament and character inventory , globus pallidus , trait , personality , barratt impulsiveness scale , striatum , harm avoidance , basal ganglia , temperament , clinical psychology , developmental psychology , dopamine , neuroscience , central nervous system , social psychology , computer science , programming language
Impulsivity is considered a vulnerability trait for addiction. Recently, we found trait non‐planning impulsiveness measured with the Karolinska Scales of Personality was negatively correlated with dopamine D 2/3 receptor availability in the ventral striatum of healthy humans. While also observed in rodents, human studies have failed to find this association with other measures of trait impulsivity. We explored whether another rodent finding, reduced ventral striatum volume with greater impulsivity, could also be observed in humans using this scale. Non‐planning impulsiveness was measured in 52 healthy subjects (21 female; mean age: 33.06 ± 9.69) using the Karolinska Scales of Personality. Striatal subregion volumes, including the globus pallidus, were acquired using the Multiple Automatically Generated Templates ( MAG eT‐Brain) algorithm. Although failing to support our a priori hypothesis, there was a significant sex interaction in the post‐commissural putamen with impulsiveness. Exploratory analyses revealed impulsiveness was negatively correlated with post‐commissural putamen volumes in males, but positively correlated in females. We replicated this finding in males in an increased sample (including all 52 previous subjects) who provided impulsiveness measured by the Temperament and Character Inventory ( n = 73; 32 female; mean age: 33.48 ± 9.75). These correlations by sex were statistically different from one another, the main finding with the Kasolinksa Scales of Personality surviving correction for multiple comparisons. While impulsivity may be related to reduced ventral striatal D 2/3 receptors across sexes, males but not females may show significant reductions in post‐commissural putamen volume. These findings have important implications for understanding biological markers underlying sex differences in drug addiction vulnerability.