Psychiatry ePosters

Counterfactual information, or the mental representation of alternative outcomes, plays a critical role in value-based decision-making by allowing individuals to evaluate both chosen and unchosen options. Aberrant counterfactual processing is linked to psychiatric disorders like major depressive disorder (MDD). While…

In schizophrenia, disrupted perceptual processes are attributed to both hallucinations and delusions in positive symptoms [1, 2]. However, it remains unclear how top-down and bottom-up processes are represented across a visual hierarchy related to distinct symptoms, such as hallucinations, delusions, and negative…

Schizophrenia is a complex disorder known for its positive symptoms: delusions and hallucinations. However, the impact of schizophrenia on function is mostly due to its executive dysfunction. Mechanistically, it is known that the prefrontal cortex (PFC) is dysfunctional in this disorder and that there is a general…

Generative models provide a powerful interpretive framework in neural reinforcement learning. However, given the complexity of behavior, models are often proposed in the absence of structurally different alternatives, poten-tially weakening their explanatory force. We employ a data-driven methodology (choice-wide…

Hallucinations are percepts experienced in the absence of external sensory input. Patients with hallucinations show both behavioral and neural alterations in statistical learning in simple sensory tasks. Predictive processing accounts of hallucinations suggest that these alterations bias patients’ perception toward…

Modeling brain dynamics requires addressing processes that span different temporal and spatial scales [1]. This is crucial, when studying phenomena at the circuit level that are consequences of pharmacological or pathological alterations occurring at the single-cell level, such as changes in ionic or synaptic…

Among the brain structures affected in Schizophrenia is the hippocampus. In addition to structural changes [1], dysfunctions of the synaptic plasticity have also been observed supporting cognitive impairment [2]. To study these phenomena in depth, we aim to develop and match two models of the pathology, computational…

Recent meta-analyses indicate that non-neurobiological treatments for mental disorders, such as psychotherapy, demonstrate variable success rates ranging from 30% to 60% [Munder et al., 2019] . However, there is no consensus on the theoretical upper limit of these treatments [Cuijpers et al., 2024]. This study aims to…

Anxiety and mood disorders significantly impact individual well-being and societal health, highlighting the need for a thorough understanding of their risk factors. While early life stress is widely recognized as a risk factor for multiple psychiatric conditions, the neurobiological mechanisms driving these effects…

SP4 gene is one of the two risk genes implicated in schizophrenia in recent large unpublished case-controlled genomic and exomic sequencing studies. Data on Spatio-temporal SP4 expression in the brain and it's biological functions are sparse in published literature. Bulk RNA sequencing and single-cell high-resolution…

The role of dysregulated gut microbiota (GM) is widely recognized as relevant to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease (PD), particularly in case of non-motor symptoms such as depression and anhedonia. Most transgenic mouse models of PD, however, don’t exhibit clinically relevant dysbiosis. Here, for the first time,…

Working memory is inherently limited in capacity and duration, which may hamper learning, including in online learning environments. Because working memory capacity varies among individuals, cognitive load in online learning may not have the same impact for neurotypical and neurodivergent students. This study…

Recent research highlights inflammation's pivotal role in the etiology of psychotic disorders, emphasizing the potential of inflammatory markers as diagnostic and prognostic tools. This study aimed to elucidate the differential profiles of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio(NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio(MLR),…

Considering the difficulty in finding a reversible cure for dementia, research and clinical focus have shifted towards modifiable risk factors for cognitive decline, with sleep disturbances gaining attention especially in older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Given the significant impact of sleep…

Our goal is to extend the open thermodynamic model of cortical neurodynamic Freeman hypothesis using the theoretical Carnot and then Rankine Cycles to define biomarkers for mean field energy versus entropy change and relevancy to temperature. We are using the Rankine cycle to incorporate criticality which is at null…

Parkinson's disease (PD), as the most prevalent neurodegenerative motor disorder, presents a complex spectrum of symptoms encompassing both motor impairments (bradykinesia, resting tremor, freezing of gait) and non-motor manifestations (depression, anosmia, anxiety). Robust animal models that faithfully replicate this…

Schizophrenia is a complex mental illness, with a higher risk of onset among young men. Schizophrenia is nowadays considered to result from a defective connectivity, having a neurodevelopmental origin, between several integrative regions. Morphological anomalies consistent with early brain development disturbances…

Aims: Psychiatric morbidity and functional limitations are widespread in patients with thermal skin injury. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) and antioxidant supplementation have been adjunctive therapy to promote wound healing. We evaluated the effects of HBO (100% O2 at 2.5 ATA for 60 minutes) and the antioxidant…

Perineuronal nets (PNNs) are dense extracellular matrix around a subset of neurons, mostly parvalbumin neurons (PVNs), regulating plasticity. The sulfation pattern of chondroitin sulfate chains within PNNs is key to their functions. Chondroitin 4 sulfate (C4S) levels rise with brain maturation and then slowly toward…

Chronic atopic dermatitis (AD) affects millions globally and has an alarming propensity to generate comorbid chronic depression. Currently, no effective therapies exist specifically for AD-generated comorbid depression (ADCD), likely due to unknown itch- and affect-processing brain mechanisms and inadequate…

Depression is associated with alterations in brain glucose metabolism and impairments in processes associated with the astrocyte-neuron lactate shuttle (ANLS). Within this framework, lactate emerges as a promising therapeutic avenue, demonstrating antidepressant efficacy in diverse mouse models of depression,…

Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) is considered rare in hallucinogen users although there are conflicting reports about its incidence and prevalence. HPPD may be more common in those with trait neuroticism. In this study, we invited hallucinogen and other drug users to complete an online questionnaire…

Emotions are fundamental to human development and survival across the lifespan. Adolescence is a volatile and critical developmental period characterized by frequent high-intensity positive and negative emotions. Emotion dysregulation is a transdiagnostic risk factor for various mental health disorders, specifically…

While many individuals experience traumatic events during their lifetimes, only some go on to develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This susceptibility and resilience can be modelled in rodents using the stress-enhanced fear learning (SEFL) procedure, in which rats are exposed to a session of massed,…