Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Unanticipated Stressful And Rewarding Experiences Engage The Same Prefrontal Cortex And Ventral Tegmental Area Neuronal Populations, Alberto Del Arco, Junchol Park, Bita Moghaddam

Faculty and Student Publications

© 2020 Del Arco et al. Brain networks that mediate motivated behavior in the context of aversive and rewarding experiences involve the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and ventral tegmental area (VTA). Neurons in both regions are activated by stress and reward, and by learned cues that predict aversive or appetitive outcomes. Recent studies have proposed that separate neuronal populations and circuits in these regions encode learned aversive versus appetitive contexts. But how about the actual experience? Do the same or different PFC and VTA neurons encode unanticipated aversive and appetitive experiences? To address this, we recorded unit activity and local field …

Screening For Depression Among A Sample Of Us College Students Who Engage In Recreational Prescription Opioid Misuse, Robert E. Davis, Martha A. Bass, M. Allison Wade, Vinayak K. Nahar

Faculty and Student Publications

© 2020 The Author(s). Background: Among student populations, literature has identified associations between prescription opioid misuse and symptoms of depression such as hopelessness, sadness, and emotional pain. Thus far, existing literature has yet to investigate associations between prescription opioid misuse and depression using validated screening instruments for depression when exploring such associations. The purpose of this study was to utilize a validated screening tool to explore quantifiable presence of depression among college students who engage in recreational prescription opioid misuse (RPOM). Additionally, gender differences in depression and co-occurring substance use are examined. Methods: Students (n = 104) of a large …

Exploring The Association Between Recent Concussion, Subconcussive Impacts And Depressive Symptoms In Male Australian Football Players, Sarah Ann Harris, Paola T. Chivers, Fleur L. Mcintyre, Ben Piggott, Max Bulsara, Fiona H. Farringdon

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Objectives: To explore the association between depressive symptoms and recent head-related trauma (diagnosed concussion, subconcussive impacts) in semiprofessional male Australian Football (AF) players.

Methods: Sixty-nine semiprofessional male players from a West Australian Football League (WAFL) club participated in the study (M age =21.81, SD=2.91 years). Depressive symptoms were measured using the Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Injuries and potential confounding variables (eg, pre-existing mental health condition; alcohol or drug hangovers; experiencing a stressful event) were self-reported anonymously using the WAFL Injury Report Survey. Both tools were administered every 2-weeks over the first 22-weeks of the WAFL season. Controlling for …