Szajer Jacquelyn, Jacobson Aaron, Green Erin, Murphy Claire
San Diego State University/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program, San Diego, CA, USA.
San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA.
Brain Res. 2017 Nov 1;1674:101-110. doi: 10.1016/j.brainres.2017.08.024. Epub 2017 Aug 26.
Hispanics have an increased risk for metabolic disorders, which evidence suggests may be due to interactions between lifespan biological, genetic, and lifestyle factors. Studies show the diet of many U.S. Hispanic groups have high sugar consumption, which has been shown to influence future preference for and consumption of high-sugar foods, and is associated with increased risk for insulin-related disorders and obesity. Taste is a primary determinant of food preference and selection. Differences in neural response to taste have been associated with obesity. Understanding brain response to sweet taste stimuli in healthy Hispanic adults is an important first step in characterizing the potential neural mechanisms for this behavior. We used fMRI to examine brain activation during the hedonic evaluation of sucrose as a function of ethnicity in Hispanic and non-Hispanic young adults. Taste stimuli were administered orally while subjects were scanned at 3T. Data were analyzed with AFNI via 3dROIstats and 3dMEMA, a mixed effects multi-level analysis of whole brain activation. The Hispanic group had significantly lower ROI activation in the left amygdala and significantly lower whole brain activation in regions critical for reward processing, and hedonic evaluation (e.g. frontal, orbitofrontal, and anterior cingulate cortices) than the non-Hispanic group. Differences in processing of sweet tastes have important clinical and public health implications, especially considering increased risk of metabolic syndrome and cognitive decline in Hispanic populations. Future research to better understanding relationships between health risk and brain function in Hispanic populations is warranted to better conceptualize and develop interventions for these populations.
西班牙裔人群患代谢紊乱疾病的风险更高，有证据表明这可能是由于寿命、生物学、遗传和生活方式等因素之间的相互作用所致。研究表明，许多美国西班牙裔群体的饮食中糖的摄入量很高，这已被证明会影响未来对高糖食物的偏好和消费，并与胰岛素相关疾病和肥胖风险的增加有关。味觉是食物偏好和选择的主要决定因素。对味觉的神经反应差异与肥胖有关。了解健康的西班牙裔成年人对甜味刺激的大脑反应，是确定这种行为潜在神经机制的重要第一步。我们使用功能磁共振成像（fMRI）来检查西班牙裔和非西班牙裔年轻人在对蔗糖进行享乐评价时大脑的激活情况，该评价是种族的一个函数。在3T磁场下对受试者进行扫描时，通过口腔给予味觉刺激。数据通过AFNI软件，利用3dROIstats和3dMEMA进行分析，后者是一种对全脑激活的混合效应多级分析。与非西班牙裔群体相比，西班牙裔群体在左侧杏仁核的感兴趣区（ROI）激活明显较低，在对奖励处理和享乐评价至关重要的区域（如额叶、眶额皮质和前扣带回皮质）的全脑激活也明显较低。甜味处理方面的差异具有重要的临床和公共卫生意义，尤其是考虑到西班牙裔人群患代谢综合征和认知衰退的风险增加。有必要开展进一步研究，以更好地了解西班牙裔人群健康风险与脑功能之间的关系，从而更好地为这些人群构思和制定干预措施。
