Alcoholism is frequently associated with aggressive behaviors and dietary changes or deficiencies. It has been shown that there is a strong association between alcohol consumption and the violent behaviors exhibited by perpetrators of domestic violence. However, the actual mechanism(s) by which alcohol induces aggressive behavior is poorly understood. Currently we are conducting a study to determine if treatment with a serotonin reuptake inhibitor can reduce aggression in individuals characterized by frequent episodes of domestic violence. To date, 19 subjects have been enrolled in the study. Functional MRI performed at baseline showed a significant difference between perpetrators and healthy controls when these study participants were required to interpret and label a target face of a fearful expression. Perpetrators exhibited a trend toward increased rCBF in the right amygdala and right orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), while healthy controls did not show similar activations. A study analyzing previously collected data was performed to examine the relationship between plasma glucose and CSF neurotransmitter metabolites. In healthy controls, peripheral blood glucose concentrations were significantly correlated with the CSF concentrations of the dopamine metabolite, HVA and the noradrenaline metabolite, MHPG. These correlations may represent a homeostatic relationship between brain neurotransmitter activity and blood glucose. Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)is an essential omega-3 fatty acid that is selectively concentrated in the brain. Because DHA is a potentially important factor in the etiology of violence and hostility, we analyzed previously collected plasma samples from 22 aggressive participants and found that red blood cell (RBC) folate was significantly correlated with plasma DHA.
| Salloum, Jasmin B; Ramchandani, Vijay A; Bodurka, Jerzy et al. (2007) Blunted rostral anterior cingulate response during a simplified decoding task of negative emotional facial expressions in alcoholic patients. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 31:1490-504 |
| Hibbeln, Joseph R; Bissette, Garth; Umhau, John C et al. (2004) Omega-3 status and cerebrospinal fluid corticotrophin releasing hormone in perpetrators of domestic violence. Biol Psychiatry 56:895-7 |
