Neurobiological and Genetic Correlates of Cooperative Behavior

描述（由申请人提供）：该项目的总体目标是探索正常受试者在合作社会行为中的个体差异的生物学基础，目标是发展假设来解释表现为精神疾病的更极端的差异。合作行为将在被称为囚徒困境（PD）游戏的互动社会任务中进行测量。有四个具体目标。目的1：研究PD游戏中合作行为的个体差异与脑功能个体差异之间的关系。这将通过fMRI成像受试者的大脑来完成，当他们与两个假设的人类伙伴玩一个反复的囚徒困境游戏时。这些数据将使我们能够评估促进和抑制合作的神经系统的现有模型。目的二是研究合作行为的个体差异与前额皮质解剖结构的个体差异之间的关系。该目标将包括获取每个受试者的结构MRI扫描以测量形态变化，以及弥散张量成像（DTI）脑扫描以测量白质完整性。目的3是研究鼻内催产素和加压素（与社会联系相关的神经肽）对合作行为和相关大脑活动的影响。在这个安慰剂对照的双盲实验中，受试者将被随机分配到三种情况中的一种：鼻内给予催产素，鼻内给予抗利尿激素，或鼻内给予安慰剂。脑功能活动和行为将在治疗组之间进行比较。目的4是研究合作行为的个体变异与个体遗传变异之间的关系。研究人员将收集每位受试者的唾液样本，以分析对合作社会行为有影响的基因。最终，这些数据将确定有助于信任及其回报的因素，这些因素是合作社会行为的基本组成部分。信任及其回报是健康人际关系的重要组成部分，一些缺乏信任的精神疾病证明了这一点，包括自闭症、抑郁症、精神病性人格障碍和几种第二轴人格障碍。通过确定影响正常人群合作行为的因素，该项目将产生与精神疾病相关的更严重变异的原因的假设。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The overall objective of this project is to explore the biological bases of individual variation in cooperative social behavior among normal subjects, with the goal of developing hypotheses to explain more extreme variation that manifests as mental illness. Cooperative behavior will be measured in an interactive social task known as the Prisoner's Dilemma (PD) Game. There are four specific aims. Aim 1 is to examine the relationship between individual variation in cooperative behavior and individual variation in brain function during the PD game. This will be accomplished by imaging subjects' brains with fMRI as they play an iterated Prisoner's Dilemma Game with each of two assumed human partners. These data will allow us to evaluate an existing model of the neural systems that facilitate and inhibit cooperation. Aim 2 is to examine the relationship between individual variation in cooperative behavior and individual variation in prefrontal cortex anatomy. This aim will involve acquiring a structural MRI scan from each subject to measure morphometric variation, as well as a diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) brain scan to measure white matter integrity. Aim 3 is to investigate the impact of intranasal oxytocin and vasopressin, neuropeptides associated with social bonding, on cooperative behavior and associated brain activity. In this placebo-controlled, double-blind experiment, subjects will be randomized to one of three conditions: intranasal oxytocin administration, intranasal vasopressin administration, or intranasal placebo administration. Functional brain activity and behavior will be compared across treatment groups. Aim 4 is to examine the relationship between individual variation in cooperative behavior and individual genetic variation. Saliva samples will be collected from each subject for analysis of genes hypothesized to have an influence on cooperative social behavior. Ultimately, these data will identify factors that contribute to trust and its reciprocation which are essential components of cooperative social behavior. Trust and its reciprocation are essential components of healthy interpersonal relationships, as evidenced by several psychiatric disorders in which they are lacking, including autism, depression, psychopathic personality disorder and several axis II personality disorders. By identifying factors that influence cooperative behavior in a normal population, this project will generate hypotheses as to the causes of more severe variation associated with mental illness.