Eveningness among late adolescent males predicts neural reactivity to reward and alcohol dependence 2 years later

Abstract

Eveningness, a preference for later sleep-wake timing, is linked to altered reward function, which may explain a consistent association with substance abuse. Notably, the extant literature rests largely on cross-sectional data, yet both eveningness and reward function show developmental changes. We examined whether circadian preference during late adolescence predicted the neural response to reward two years later. A sample of 93 males reported circadian preference and completed a monetary reward fMRI paradigm at ages 20 and 22. Primary analyses examined longitudinal paths from circadian preference to medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and ventral striatal (VS) reward responses. We also explored whether reward responses mediated longitudinal associations between circadian preference and alcohol dependence, frequency of alcohol use, and/or frequency of cannabis use. Age 20 eveningness was positively associated with age 22 mPFC and VS responses to win, but not associated with age 22 reactivity to reward anticipation. Age 20 eveningness was indirectly related to age 22 alcohol dependence via age 22 mPFC response to win. Our findings provide novel evidence that altered reward-related brain function could underlie associations between eveningness and alcohol use problems. Eveningness may be an under-recognized but modifiable risk factor for reward-related problems such as mood and substance use disorders.

The Association Between Post-stroke Depression, Aphasia, and Physical Independence in Stroke Patients at 3-Month Follow-Up

“…The association between demographic characteristics and physical dependence in stroke survivors have been inconsistent ( 41 , 42 ). In this study, only female was independently associated with physical dependence, which is supported by previous findings ( 43 , 44 ).…”

Preliminary Evidence That Real World Sleep Timing and Duration are Associated With Laboratory‐Assessed Alcohol Response

“…However, findings are mixed regarding whether this manifests as hypo‐ or hypersensitivity to reward, with findings of both increased sensation seeking and novelty seeking (Caci et al., ; Kang et al., ; Tonetti et al., ), and reduced reward responsiveness (Hasler et al., ). Neuroimaging evidence also suggests that evening chronotypes exhibit altered neural response to reward that is relevant to alcohol involvement (Hasler et al., , ). Given these findings, evening chronotypes may also experience increased sensitivity to the rewarding effects of alcohol, that is the stimulating effects (Hendler et al., ).…”

Circadian Rhythmic Characteristics in Men With Substance Use Disorder Under Treatment. Influence of Age of Onset of Substance Use and Duration of Abstinence

“…Thus, the evening chronotype is considered a risk factor for substance consumption both for youth and adults ( 36 , 39 , 40 ). This has been linked to obtaining a higher reinforcement with consumption ( 37 , 41 , 42 ), and with a greater social jet-lag or desynchronization between the biological and the social clocks ( 43 , 44 ). Moreover, evening-type subjects show more personality traits associated to substance use ( 45 , 46 ), worse academic and work adjustment ( 40 , 47 ), less ability to cope with stress ( 48 ), and worse quality of life ( 49 ).…”