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Zheng X, Wang J, Yang X, Xu L, Becker B, Sahakian BJ, Robbins TW, Kendrick KM. Oxytocin, but not vasopressin, decreases willingness to harm others by promoting moral emotions of guilt and shame. Mol Psychiatry 2024:10.1038/s41380-024-02590-w. [PMID: 38769372 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-024-02590-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Revised: 04/29/2024] [Accepted: 05/01/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Prosocial and moral behaviors have overlapping neural systems and can both be affected in a number of psychiatric disorders, although whether they involve similar neurochemical systems is unclear. In the current registered randomized placebo-controlled trial on 180 adult male and female subjects, we investigated the effects of intranasal administration of oxytocin and vasopressin, which play key roles in influencing social behavior, on moral emotion ratings for situations involving harming others and on judgments of moral dilemmas where others are harmed for a greater good. Oxytocin, but not vasopressin, enhanced feelings of guilt and shame for intentional but not accidental harm and reduced endorsement of intentionally harming others to achieve a greater good. Neither peptide influenced arousal ratings for the scenarios. Effects of oxytocin on guilt and shame were strongest in individuals scoring lower on the personal distress subscale of trait empathy. Overall, findings demonstrate for the first time that oxytocin, but not vasopressin, promotes enhanced feelings of guilt and shame and unwillingness to harm others irrespective of the consequences. This may reflect associations between oxytocin and empathy and vasopressin with aggression and suggests that oxytocin may have greater therapeutic potential for disorders with atypical social and moral behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxiao Zheng
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- The MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute (BCBDI), Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, China
| | - Jiayuan Wang
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- The MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Xi Yang
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- The MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Lei Xu
- Department of Psychology, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
| | - Benjamin Becker
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Barbara J Sahakian
- The MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Hills Rd., Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Trevor W Robbins
- The MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China.
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing St., Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - Keith M Kendrick
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China.
- The MOE Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China.
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2
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Ghane M, Trambaiolli L, Bertocci MA, Martinez-Rivera FJ, Chase HW, Brady T, Skeba A, Graur S, Bonar L, Iyengar S, Quirk GJ, Rasmussen SA, Haber SN, Phillips ML. Specific Patterns of Endogenous Functional Connectivity Are Associated With Harm Avoidance in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Biol Psychiatry 2024:S0006-3223(24)00078-7. [PMID: 38336216 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2023.12.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Revised: 11/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individuals with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) show persistent avoidance behaviors, often in the absence of actual threat. Quality-of-life costs and heterogeneity support the need for novel brain-behavior intervention targets. Informed by mechanistic and anatomical studies of persistent avoidance in rodents and nonhuman primates, our goal was to test whether connections within a hypothesized persistent avoidance-related network predicted OCD-related harm avoidance (HA), a trait measure of persistent avoidance. We hypothesized that 1) HA, not an OCD diagnosis, would be associated with altered endogenous connectivity in at least one connection in the network; 2) HA-specific findings would be robust to comorbid symptoms; and 3) reliable findings would replicate in a holdout testing subsample. METHODS Using resting-state functional connectivity magnetic resonance imaging, cross-validated elastic net for feature selection, and Poisson generalized linear models, we tested which connections significantly predicted HA in our training subsample (n = 73; 71.8% female; healthy control group n = 36, OCD group n = 37); robustness to comorbidities; and replicability in a testing subsample (n = 30; 56.7% female; healthy control group n = 15, OCD group n = 15). RESULTS Stronger inverse connectivity between the right dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and right basolateral amygdala and stronger positive connectivity between the right ventral anterior insula and left ventral striatum were associated with greater HA across groups. Network connections did not discriminate OCD diagnostic status or predict HA-correlated traits, suggesting sensitivity to trait HA. The dorsal anterior cingulate cortex-basolateral amygdala relationship was robust to controlling for comorbidities and medication in individuals with OCD and was also predictive of HA in our testing subsample. CONCLUSIONS Stronger inverse dorsal anterior cingulate cortex-basolateral amygdala connectivity was robustly and reliably associated with HA across groups and in OCD. Results support the relevance of a cross-species persistent avoidance-related network to OCD, with implications for precision-based approaches and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Merage Ghane
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
| | - Lucas Trambaiolli
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Michele A Bertocci
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | | | - Henry W Chase
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Tyler Brady
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Alex Skeba
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Simona Graur
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Lisa Bonar
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Satish Iyengar
- Department of Statistics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Gregory J Quirk
- School of Medicine, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Steven A Rasmussen
- Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
| | - Suzanne N Haber
- Department of Psychiatry, McLean Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York
| | - Mary L Phillips
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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3
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Ouellet-Courtois C, Radomsky AS. Can immorality be contracted? Appraisals of moral disgust and contamination fear. Behav Res Ther 2023; 166:104336. [PMID: 37270955 DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2023.104336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
While extant research underlines the role of disgust in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) with contamination fear, less research attention has been devoted to moral disgust. This study endeavored to examine the types of appraisals that are elicited by moral disgust in comparison to core disgust, and to examine their associations with both contact and mental contamination symptoms. In a within-participants design, 148 undergraduate students were exposed to core disgust, moral disgust, and anxiety control elicitors via vignettes, and provided appraisal ratings of sympathetic magic, thought-action fusion and mental contamination, as well as compulsive urges. Measures of both contact and mental contamination symptoms were administered. Mixed modeling analyses indicated that core disgust and moral disgust elicitors both provoked greater appraisals of sympathetic magic and compulsive urges than anxiety control elicitors. Further, moral disgust elicitors elicited greater thought-action fusion and mental contamination appraisals than all other elicitors. Overall, these effects were greater in those with higher contamination fear. This study demonstrates how a range of contagion beliefs are evoked by the presence of 'moral contaminants', and that such beliefs are positively associated with contamination concerns. These results shed light on moral disgust as an important target in the treatment of contamination fear.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Ouellet-Courtois
- Concordia University, Department of Psychology, 7141 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montreal, Quebec, H4B 1R6, Canada
| | - Adam S Radomsky
- Concordia University, Department of Psychology, 7141 Rue Sherbrooke Ouest, Montreal, Quebec, H4B 1R6, Canada.
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4
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Lee SW, Song H, Jang TY, Cha H, Kim E, Chang Y, Lee SJ. Aberrant functional connectivity of neural circuits associated with thought-action fusion in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Psychol Med 2022; 52:2106-2115. [PMID: 33138873 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291720003980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cognitive theories of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) stress the importance of dysfunctional beliefs in the development and maintenance of the disorder. However, a neurobiological understanding of these cognitive models, including thought-action fusion (TAF), is surprisingly lacking. Thus, this functional magnetic resonance imaging study aimed to investigate whether altered functional connectivity (FC) is associated with the TAF paradigm in OCD patients. METHODS Forty-one OCD patients and 47 healthy controls (HCs) participated in a functional magnetic resonance imaging study using a TAF task, in which they were asked to read the name of a close or a neutral person in association with positive and negative statements. RESULTS The conventional TAF condition (negative statements/close person) induced significant FC between the regions of interest (ROIs) identified using multivoxel pattern analysis and the visual association areas, default mode network subregions, affective processing, and several subcortical regions in both groups. Notably, sparser FC was observed in OCD patients. Further analysis confined to the cortico-striato-thalamo-cortical (CSTC) and affective networks demonstrated that OCD patients exhibited reduced ROI FC with affective regions and greater ROI FC with CSTC components in the TAF condition compared to HCs. Within the OCD patients, middle cingulate cortex-insula FC was correlated with TAF and responsibility scores. CONCLUSIONS Our TAF paradigm revealed altered context-dependent engagement of the CSTC and affective networks in OCD patients. These findings suggest that the neurobiology of cognitive models corresponds to current neuroanatomical models of OCD. Further, they elucidate the underlying neurobiological mechanisms of OCD at the circuit-based level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sang Won Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Chilgok Hospital, Daegu, Korea
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Huijin Song
- Biomedical Research Institute, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Tae Yang Jang
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea
| | - Hyunsil Cha
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Eunji Kim
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Yongmin Chang
- Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
- Department of Radiology, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea
| | - Seung Jae Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea
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5
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Kim S, Lee SW, Cha H, Kim E, Chang Y, Lee SJ. Reconciliation of Two Cognitive Models in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: An fMRI Study. Psychiatry Investig 2021; 18:545-552. [PMID: 34218642 PMCID: PMC8256141 DOI: 10.30773/pi.2020.0347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2020] [Accepted: 04/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Although cognitive models of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) fall into two categories: cognitive deficit models and dysfunctional belief models, these approaches have their own ways and have hardly been reconciled. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the potential relationships between cognitive deficit (using the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task, WCST) and dysfunctional belief (measured by scales of dysfunctional beliefs) mediated by neural activity in OCD patients. METHODS Thirty OCD patients and 30 healthy participants performed the WCST condition and a baseline MATCH condition during the 3T-functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) acquisition. RESULTS Engagement of additional frontoparietal networks with poorer performance of WCST was found during the fMRI scan in OCD patients. Selected regions of interest from activated regions have positive relationships with dysfunctional beliefs and with the unacceptable thoughts symptom dimension in the OCD group. CONCLUSION Findings suggest that alteration in frontoparietal networks related to cognitive deficits can be associated with dysfunctional beliefs while performing conventional neurocognitive tasks and this association with dysfunctional beliefs may be pronounced in the unacceptable thoughts domain-dominant OCD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seungho Kim
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Sang Won Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Chilgok Hospital, Daegu, Republic of Korea.,Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyunsil Cha
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Eunji Kim
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Yongmin Chang
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.,Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.,Department of Radiology, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Republic of Korea
| | - Seung Jae Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Republic of Korea.,Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Republic of Korea
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6
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Feelings of shame and guilt are associated with distinct neural activation in youth. Biol Psychol 2021; 159:108025. [PMID: 33484753 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2021.108025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2020] [Revised: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Shame and guilt are moral emotions that play an important role in social functioning. There is limited knowledge about the neural underpinnings of these emotions, particularly in young people. In the current study, 36 healthy females (mean age 18.8 ± 1.9 years) underwent functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, during which they reflected on their decisions about social moral dilemmas, and subsequently received negative or positive peer feedback. Ratings of shame and guilt were used as parametric modulators of brain activity. Shame was associated with decreased activity in the superior temporal sulcus and precentral gyrus during reflection. Guilt was associated with decreased activity in the precuneus during positive feedback, and in the hippocampus and supramarginal gyrus during negative feedback. Results suggest that shame and guilt are associated with activity in brain regions involved in social cognition and emotion regulation; however, they have distinct underlying neural circuitry that may be differentiated based on social evaluation.
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Abstract
In the last 20 years, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has been extensively used to investigate system-level abnormalities in the brain of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In this chapter, we start by reviewing the studies assessing regional brain differences between patients with OCD and healthy controls in task-based fMRI. Specifically, we review studies on executive functioning and emotional processing, protocols in which these patients have been described to show alterations at the behavioral level, as well as research using symptom provocation protocols. Next, we review studies on brain connectivity alterations, focusing on resting-state studies evaluating disruptions in fronto-subcortical functional connectivity and in cortical networks. Likewise, we also review research on effective connectivity, which, different from functional connectivity, allows for ascertaining the directionality of inter-regional connectivity alterations. We conclude by reviewing the most significant findings on a topic of translational impact, such as the use of different fMRI measurements to predict response across a variety of treatment approaches. Overall, results suggest that there exists a pattern of regions, involving, but not limited to, different nodes of the cortico-striatal-thalamo-cortical circuits, showing robust evidence of functional alteration across studies, although the nature of the alterations critically depends on the specific tasks and their particular demands. Moreover, such findings have been, to date, poorly translated into clinical practice. It is suggested that this may be partially accounted for by the difficulty to integrate into a common framework results obtained under a wide variety of analysis approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carles Soriano-Mas
- Department of Psychiatry, Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain. .,Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Barcelona, Spain. .,Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Health Sciences, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
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8
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Patil I, Larsen EM, Kichic R, Gleichgerrcht E. Moral Cognition About Harm in Anxiety Disorders: The Importance of Experienced Emotion. Psychol Rep 2020; 124:2501-2523. [PMID: 33028157 DOI: 10.1177/0033294120964134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Recent work has shown that emotional arousal influences decision-making in sacrificial moral dilemmas, with heightened levels of arousal associated with increased aversion to committing moral transgressions to maximize utilitarian outcomes. Patients with anxiety disorders experience pathologically heightened states of arousal and thus may be expected to exhibit reduced utilitarian responding on such dilemmas. Extant evidence has been mixed, however, regarding whether anxious patients differ in their moral decisions from controls, and no study has conducted a careful examination of emotions experienced during decision-making. We administered sacrificial moral dilemmas to a cohort of 95 patients from across the spectrum of anxiety disorders to test whether they differed from matched controls on a) utilitarian decision-making, and b) ratings of experienced emotion during the moral deliberative process. Results showed no group differences between patients and controls on endorsement of utilitarian sacrificial action or on reported experience of emotionality during the experiment. Additionally, exploratory analysis revealed that specific emotions were correlated with utilitarian judgments. These results are in line with the Dual Process Theory model's prediction that decreased utilitarian responding will be concomitant with an increased emotional arousal. Our findings support past work indicating that moral cognition is intact in anxiety disorders despite the emotional dysregulation characteristic of anxious psychopathology. Future work would benefit from the use of process-dissociation techniques to further clarify whether emotional or cognitive processes may differ in anxiety disorders during moral cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Indrajeet Patil
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA; Center for Humans and Machines, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | - Emmett M Larsen
- Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Rafael Kichic
- Institute of Cognitive Neurology, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Vicario CM, Rafal RD, di Pellegrino G, Lucifora C, Salehinejad MA, Nitsche MA, Avenanti A. Indignation for moral violations suppresses the tongue motor cortex: preliminary TMS evidence. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2020; 17:151-159. [PMID: 32347307 PMCID: PMC8824570 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2019] [Revised: 02/29/2020] [Accepted: 03/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
We commonly label moral violations in terms of ‘disgust’, yet it remains unclear whether metaphorical expressions linking disgust and morality are genuinely shared at the cognitive/neural level. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), we provide new insights into this debate by measuring motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) from the tongue generated by TMS over the tongue primary motor area (tM1) in a small group of healthy participants presented with vignettes of moral transgressions and non-moral vignettes. We tested whether moral indignation, felt while evaluating moral vignettes, affected tM1 excitability. Vignettes exerted a variable influence on MEPs with no net effect of the moral category. However, in accordance with our recent study documenting reduced tM1 excitability during exposure to pictures of disgusting foods or facial expressions of distaste, we found that the vignettes of highly disapproved moral violations reduced tM1 excitability. Moreover, tM1 excitability and moral indignation were linearly correlated: the higher the moral indignation, the lower the tM1 excitability. Respective changes in MEPs were not observed in a non-oral control muscle, suggesting a selective decrease of tM1 excitability. These preliminary findings provide neurophysiological evidence supporting the hypothesis that morality might have originated from the more primitive experience of oral distaste.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carmelo M Vicario
- Department of Cognitive, Psychological, and Pedagogical Sciences and Cultural Studies, University of Messina, Messina 98121, Italy.,Wolfson Centre for Clinical and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor LL57 2DG, United Kingdom.,Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Dortmund 44139, Germany.,School of Psychology, The University of Queensland, McElwain Building, St Lucia Campus, Brisbane QLD 4072, Australia.,Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neurosciences Research Center, Universidad Católica del Maule, 346000 Talca, Chile
| | - Robert D Rafal
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Delaware 19716, USA
| | - Giuseppe di Pellegrino
- Department of Psychology and Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Cesena Campus, 47521 Cesena, Italy
| | - Chiara Lucifora
- Department of Cognitive, Psychological, and Pedagogical Sciences and Cultural Studies, University of Messina, Messina 98121, Italy.,Wolfson Centre for Clinical and Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor LL57 2DG, United Kingdom
| | - Mohammad A Salehinejad
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Dortmund 44139, Germany
| | - Michael A Nitsche
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Dortmund 44139, Germany
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neurosciences Research Center, Universidad Católica del Maule, 346000 Talca, Chile.,Department of Psychology and Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna, Cesena Campus, 47521 Cesena, Italy
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10
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Zahn R, de Oliveira-Souza R, Moll J. Moral Motivation and the Basal Forebrain. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 108:207-217. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.10.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2019] [Revised: 10/24/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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11
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Lee SW, Cha H, Chung Y, Kim E, Song H, Chang Y, Lee SJ. The neural correlates of thought-action fusion in healthy adults: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Depress Anxiety 2019; 36:732-743. [PMID: 31287937 DOI: 10.1002/da.22933] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2018] [Revised: 05/23/2019] [Accepted: 05/28/2019] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Thought-action fusion (TAF) represents an individual's belief that a thought is like action. Inflated TAF has been considered a central mechanism for developing obsessive thoughts. However, the neural mechanisms underlying TAF are yet unknown. METHODS We recruited 32 healthy men to participate in a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study. Whereas inside the 3T MRI scanner, participants were asked to read negative statements describing the expectation of bad events associated with close persons (CPs condition) or neutral persons (NPs condition). They also completed the assessment of TAF and obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms. RESULTS Both CP and NP conditions commonly activated the lingual gyrus, caudate nucleus, precuneus, and several areas of the frontal cortex. Importantly, many of these regions were positively correlated with measures of OC symptoms, especially for the CP condition. The CP condition showed higher activation in the insula and temporal gyrus than the NP condition. In contrast, the NP condition evoked higher activation in regions associated with mentalizing, such as the medial prefrontal cortex and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex than the CP condition. CONCLUSIONS We introduced and validated a TAF-induction paradigm suitable for fMRI studies and characterized the neural circuits engaged during this paradigm. Further studies using this task may help us to better understand how dysfunctions in TAF neural processing may contribute to psychiatric conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sang Won Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Chilgok Hospital, Daegu, Korea
| | - Hyunsil Cha
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Younjae Chung
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea.,Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Eunji Kim
- Department of Medical & Biological Engineering, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Huijin Song
- Institute of Biomedical Engineering Research, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Yongmin Chang
- Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea.,Department of Radiology, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea
| | - Seung Jae Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea.,Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
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12
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Yu H, Siegel JZ, Crockett MJ. Modeling Morality in 3-D: Decision-Making, Judgment, and Inference. Top Cogn Sci 2019; 11:409-432. [PMID: 31042018 PMCID: PMC6519237 DOI: 10.1111/tops.12382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2017] [Revised: 07/09/2018] [Accepted: 07/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Humans face a fundamental challenge of how to balance selfish interests against moral considerations. Such trade-offs are implicit in moral decisions about what to do; judgments of whether an action is morally right or wrong; and inferences about the moral character of others. To date, these three dimensions of moral cognition-decision-making, judgment, and inference-have been studied largely independently, using very different experimental paradigms. However, important aspects of moral cognition occur at the intersection of multiple dimensions; for instance, moral hypocrisy can be conceived as a disconnect between moral decisions and moral judgments. Here we describe the advantages of investigating these three dimensions of moral cognition within a single computational framework. A core component of this framework is harm aversion, a moral sentiment defined as a distaste for harming others. The framework integrates economic utility models of harm aversion with Bayesian reinforcement learning models describing beliefs about others' harm aversion. We show how this framework can provide novel insights into the mechanisms of moral decision-making, judgment, and inference.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongbo Yu
- Department of Experimental PsychologyUniversity of Oxford
- Department of PsychologyYale University
| | - Jenifer Z. Siegel
- Department of Experimental PsychologyUniversity of Oxford
- Department of PsychologyYale University
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13
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Miegel F, Jelinek L, Moritz S. Dysfunctional beliefs in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression as assessed with the Beliefs Questionnaire (BQ). Psychiatry Res 2019; 272:265-274. [PMID: 30594759 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2018.12.070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2018] [Revised: 12/11/2018] [Accepted: 12/11/2018] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
There is an ongoing debate about the specificity of dysfunctional beliefs in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) as some of these beliefs seem to be relevant in depressed patients as well. The present study aimed to elucidate the specificity of dysfunctional beliefs using the newly developed Beliefs Questionnaire (BQ). A combination of an online assessment and clinical interviews was carried out. One hundred thirty OCD patients (M = 38.7 years; 68% women) were compared to 85 patients with depression (M = 36.6 years; 75% women) and 220 nonclinical controls (M = 38.9 years; 71% women) on the BQ, which contains 13 items tapping cognitive beliefs. The BQ was validated against the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire (OBQ). Patients with OCD and depression scored higher on the BQ compared to nonclinical controls. OCD patients displayed higher values on overestimation of threat and the fear of becoming insane. Correlation between BQ and OBQ total scores was high (r = 0.751), supporting the validity of the new scale. Our results show that two beliefs are OCD-specific. However, the BQ covers mainly transdiagnostic features and should be replicated with the inclusion of an anxiety disorder sample.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franziska Miegel
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Lena Jelinek
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Steffen Moritz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Martinistraße 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
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14
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Layer-specific reduced neuronal density in the orbitofrontal cortex of older adults with obsessive–compulsive disorder. Brain Struct Funct 2018; 224:191-203. [DOI: 10.1007/s00429-018-1752-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2017] [Accepted: 09/09/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
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15
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Brennan BP, Wang D, Li M, Perriello C, Ren J, Elias JA, Van Kirk NP, Krompinger JW, Pope HG, Haber SN, Rauch SL, Baker JT, Liu H. Use of an Individual-Level Approach to Identify Cortical Connectivity Biomarkers in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY: COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2018; 4:27-38. [PMID: 30262337 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2018.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2018] [Revised: 07/25/2018] [Accepted: 07/26/2018] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Existing functional connectivity studies of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) support a model of circuit dysfunction. However, these group-level observations have failed to yield neuroimaging biomarkers sufficient to serve as a test for the OCD diagnosis, predict current or future symptoms, or predict treatment response, perhaps because these studies failed to account for the substantial intersubject variability in structural and functional brain organization. METHODS We used functional regions, localized in each of 41 individual OCD patients, to identify cortical connectivity biomarkers of both global and dimension-specific symptom severity and to detect functional connections that track changes in symptom severity following intensive residential treatment. RESULTS Global OCD symptom severity was directly linked to dysconnectivity between large-scale intrinsic brain networks-particularly among the dorsal attention, default, and frontoparietal networks. Changes within a subset of connections among these networks were associated with symptom resolution. Additionally, distinct and nonoverlapping cortical connectivity biomarkers were identified that were significantly associated with the severity of contamination/washing and responsibility for harm/checking symptoms, highlighting the contribution of dissociable neural networks to specific OCD symptom dimensions. By contrast, when we defined functional regions conventionally, using a population-level brain atlas, we could no longer identify connectivity biomarkers of severity or improvement for any of the symptom dimensions. CONCLUSIONS Our findings would seem to encourage the use of individual-level approaches to connectivity analyses to better delineate the cortical and subcortical networks underlying symptom severity and improvement at the dimensional level in OCD patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian P Brennan
- Biological Psychiatry Laboratory, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Institute, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
| | - Danhong Wang
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Meiling Li
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu
| | - Chris Perriello
- Biological Psychiatry Laboratory, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts
| | - Jianxun Ren
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Jason A Elias
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Institute, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Nathaniel P Van Kirk
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Institute, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Jason W Krompinger
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Institute, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Harrison G Pope
- Biological Psychiatry Laboratory, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Suzanne N Haber
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Scott L Rauch
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Justin T Baker
- Psychotic Disorders Division, McLean Hospital, Belmont, Massachusetts; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Hesheng Liu
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts; Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China; Institute for Research and Medical Consultations, Imam Abdulahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia.
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16
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Vicario CM, Kuran KA, Rogers R, Rafal RD. The effect of hunger and satiety in the judgment of ethical violations. Brain Cogn 2018; 125:32-36. [PMID: 29852339 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2018.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2018] [Revised: 05/03/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Human history is studded with instances where instinctive motivations take precedence over ethical choices. Nevertheless, the evidence of any linking between motivational states and morality has never been systematically explored. Here we addressed this topic by testing a possible linking between appetite and moral judgment. We compared moral disapproval ratings (MDR) for stories of ethical violations in participants under fasting and after having eaten a snack. Our results show that subjective hunger, measured via self-reported rating, reduces MDR for ethical violations. Moreover, the higher the disgust sensitivity the higher the MDR for ethical violations. This study adds new insights to research on physiological processes influencing morality by showing that appetite affects moral disapproval of ethical violations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carmelo M Vicario
- School of Psychology, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia; School of Psychology, Brigantia Building, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales LL57 2AS, UK; Department of Scienze Cognitive, Psycologiche, Pedagogiche e degli Studi Culturali, University of Messina, Messina, Italy; Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Karolina A Kuran
- School of Psychology, Brigantia Building, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales LL57 2AS, UK
| | - Robert Rogers
- School of Psychology, Brigantia Building, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales LL57 2AS, UK
| | - Robert D Rafal
- School of Psychology, Brigantia Building, Bangor University, Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales LL57 2AS, UK
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17
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Hiser J, Koenigs M. The Multifaceted Role of the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex in Emotion, Decision Making, Social Cognition, and Psychopathology. Biol Psychiatry 2018; 83:638-647. [PMID: 29275839 PMCID: PMC5862740 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2017.10.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 493] [Impact Index Per Article: 82.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2017] [Revised: 10/06/2017] [Accepted: 10/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) has been implicated in a variety of social, cognitive, and affective functions that are commonly disrupted in mental illness. In this review, we summarize data from a diverse array of human and animal studies demonstrating that the vmPFC is a key node of cortical and subcortical networks that subserve at least three broad domains of psychological function linked to psychopathology. One track of research indicates that the vmPFC is critical for the representation of reward- and value-based decision making, through interactions with the ventral striatum and amygdala. A second track of research demonstrates that the vmPFC is critical for the generation and regulation of negative emotion, through its interactions with the amygdala, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, periaqueductal gray, hippocampus, and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. A third track of research shows the importance of the vmPFC in multiple aspects of social cognition, such as facial emotion recognition, theory-of-mind ability, and processing self-relevant information, through its interactions with the posterior cingulate cortex, precuneus, dorsomedial PFC, and amygdala. We then present meta-analytic data revealing distinct subregions within the vmPFC that correspond to each of these three functions, as well as the associations between these subregions and specific psychiatric disorders (depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, addiction, social anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder). We conclude by describing several translational possibilities for clinical studies of vmPFC-based circuits, including neuropsychological assessment of transdiagnostic functions, anatomical targets for intervention, predictors of treatment response, markers of treatment efficacy, and subtyping within disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaryd Hiser
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI,
USA,Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI,
USA
| | - Michael Koenigs
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin.
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18
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Fontenelle LF, Frydman I, Hoefle S, Oliveira-Souza R, Vigne P, Bortolini TS, Suo C, Yücel M, Mattos P, Moll J. Decoding moral emotions in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Neuroimage Clin 2018; 19:82-89. [PMID: 30035005 PMCID: PMC6051311 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2018.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2017] [Revised: 03/07/2018] [Accepted: 04/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Background Patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) exhibit abnormal neural responses when they experience particular emotions or when they evaluate stimuli with emotional value. Whether these brain responses are sufficiently distinctive to discriminate between OCD patients and healthy controls is unknown. The present study is the first to investigate the discriminative power of multivariate pattern analysis of regional fMRI responses to moral and non-moral emotions. Method To accomplish this goal, we performed a searchlight-based multivariate pattern analysis to unveil brain regions that could discriminate 18 OCD patients from 18 matched healthy controls during provoked guilt, disgust, compassion, and anger. We also investigated the existence of distinctive neural patterns while combining those four emotions (herein termed multiemotion analysis). Results We found that different frontostriatal regions discriminated OCD patients from controls based on individual emotional experiences. Most notably, the left nucleus accumbens (NAcc) discriminated OCD patients from controls during both disgust and the multiemotion analysis. Among other regions, the angular gyrus responses to anger and the lingual and the middle temporal gyri in the multi-emotion analysis were highly discriminant between samples. Additional BOLD analyses supported the directionality of these findings. Conclusions In line with previous studies, differential activity in regions beyond the frontostriatal circuitry differentiates OCD from healthy volunteers. The finding that the response of the left NAcc to different basic and moral emotions is highly discriminative for a diagnosis of OCD confirms current pathophysiological models and points to new venues of research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo F Fontenelle
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Brain & Mental Health Laboratory, Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neurosciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia; Obsessive, Compulsive, and Anxiety Spectrum Research Program, Institute of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
| | - Ilana Frydman
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Obsessive, Compulsive, and Anxiety Spectrum Research Program, Institute of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Sebastian Hoefle
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | | | - Paula Vigne
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Obsessive, Compulsive, and Anxiety Spectrum Research Program, Institute of Psychiatry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Tiago S Bortolini
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Chao Suo
- Brain & Mental Health Laboratory, Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neurosciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Murat Yücel
- Brain & Mental Health Laboratory, Monash Institute of Cognitive and Clinical Neurosciences, Monash University, Victoria, Australia
| | - Paulo Mattos
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Jorge Moll
- D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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19
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Thorsen AL, Kvale G, Hansen B, van den Heuvel OA. Symptom dimensions in obsessive-compulsive disorder as predictors of neurobiology and treatment response. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2018; 5:182-194. [PMID: 30237966 DOI: 10.1007/s40501-018-0142-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Purpose of review Specific symptom dimensions of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have been suggested as an approach to reduce the heterogeneity of obsessive-compulsive disorder, predict treatment outcome, and relate to brain structure and function. Here, we review studies addressing these issues. Recent findings The contamination and symmetry/ordering dimensions have not been reliably associated with treatment outcome. Some studies found that greater severity of sexual/aggressive/religious symptoms predicted a worse outcome after cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and a better outcome after serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs). Contamination symptoms have been related to increased amygdala and insula activation in a few studies, while sexual/aggressive/religious symptoms have also been related to more pronounced alterations in the function and structure of the amygdala. Increased pre-treatment limbic responsiveness has been related to better outcomes of CBT, but most imaging studies show important limitations and replication in large-scale studies is needed. We review possible reasons for the strong limbic involvement of the amygdala in patients with more sexual/aggressive/religious symptoms, in relation to their sensitivity to CBT. Summary Symptom dimensions may predict treatment outcome, and patients with sexual/religious/aggressive symptoms are at a greater risk of not starting or delaying treatment. This is likely partly due to more shame and perceived immorality which is also related to stronger amygdala response. Competently delivered CBT is likely to help these patients improve to the same degree as patients with other symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Lillevik Thorsen
- OCD-team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.,Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.,Department of Anatomy & Neurosciences, VU university medical center (VUmc), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Gerd Kvale
- OCD-team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.,Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Bjarne Hansen
- OCD-team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.,Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Odile A van den Heuvel
- OCD-team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.,Department of Anatomy & Neurosciences, VU university medical center (VUmc), Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Department of Psychiatry, VUmc, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.,Neuroscience Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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20
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Thorsen AL, Hagland P, Radua J, Mataix-Cols D, Kvale G, Hansen B, van den Heuvel OA. Emotional Processing in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of 25 Functional Neuroimaging Studies. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY: COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE AND NEUROIMAGING 2018; 3:563-571. [PMID: 29550459 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2018.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2017] [Accepted: 01/11/2018] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) experience aversive emotions in response to obsessions, motivating avoidance and compulsive behaviors. However, there is considerable ambiguity regarding the brain circuitry involved in emotional processing in OCD, especially whether activation is altered in the amygdala. METHODS We conducted a systematic literature review and performed a meta-analysis-seed-based d mapping-of 25 whole-brain neuroimaging studies (including 571 patients and 564 healthy control subjects) using functional magnetic resonance imaging or positron emission tomography, comparing brain activation of patients with OCD and healthy control subjects during presentation of emotionally valenced versus neutral stimuli. Meta-regressions were employed to investigate possible moderators. RESULTS Patients with OCD, compared with healthy control subjects, showed increased activation in the bilateral amygdala, right putamen, orbitofrontal cortex extending into the anterior cingulate and ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and middle temporal and left inferior occipital cortices during emotional processing. Right amygdala hyperactivation was most pronounced in unmedicated patients. Symptom severity was related to increased activation in the orbitofrontal and anterior cingulate cortices and precuneus. Greater comorbidity with mood and anxiety disorders was associated with higher activation in the right amygdala, putamen, and insula as well as with lower activation in the left amygdala and right ventromedial prefrontal cortex. CONCLUSIONS Patients with OCD show increased emotional processing-related activation in limbic, frontal, and temporal regions. Previous mixed evidence regarding the role of the amygdala in OCD has likely been influenced by patient characteristics (such as medication status) and low statistical power.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Lillevik Thorsen
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
| | - Pernille Hagland
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Joaquim Radua
- FIDMAG Germanes Hospitalàries, Centre for Biomedical Research in Mental Health Network (CIBERSAM), Barcelona, Spain; Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry, and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - David Mataix-Cols
- Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Psychiatry Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Gerd Kvale
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Bjarne Hansen
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Odile A van den Heuvel
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) team, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Anatomy & Neurosciences, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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21
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Suñol M, Contreras-Rodríguez O, Macià D, Martínez-Vilavella G, Martínez-Zalacaín I, Subirà M, Pujol J, Sunyer J, Soriano-Mas C. Brain Structural Correlates of Subclinical Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms in Healthy Children. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2018; 57:41-47. [PMID: 29301668 DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2017.10.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2017] [Revised: 10/25/2017] [Accepted: 11/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Subclinical obsessive-compulsive (OC) symptoms are frequently observed in children and have been reported to predict a subsequent diagnosis of OC disorder (OCD). Therefore, identifying the putative neurobiological signatures of such risk is crucial, because it would allow for the characterization of the underpinnings of OCD without the interfering effects of chronicity, medication, or comorbidities, especially when interpreted within the context of OCD clinical heterogeneity and taking into account normal neurodevelopmental changes. The present study aimed to identify the brain volumetric features associated with subclinical OC symptoms and the potential modulatory effects of sex and age in a large sample of healthy children. METHOD Two hundred fifty-five healthy children were assessed using the Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Child Version and underwent a brain structural magnetic resonance examination. The relation between total and symptom-specific scores and regional gray and white matter (GM and WM) volumes was evaluated. Participants were grouped according to sex and age (younger versus older) to assess the effect of these factors on symptom-brain morphometry associations. RESULTS Ordering symptoms were negatively related to GM volumes in the ventral caudate. Hoarding symptoms were positively associated with GM and WM volumes in the left inferior frontal gyrus, and obsessing symptoms correlated negatively with GM and WM volumes in the right temporal pole. Doubt-checking symptoms correlated positively with WM volumes in the right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and the corpus callosum. Sex and age modulated some of these associations. CONCLUSION Subclinical OC symptoms are associated with specific brain volumetric features, which could be considered potential neural signatures of increased risk for OCD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Suñol
- Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain; Carlos III Health Institute, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Barcelona; School of Medicine, University of Barcelona
| | - Oren Contreras-Rodríguez
- Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain; Carlos III Health Institute, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Barcelona
| | - Dídac Macià
- MRI Research Unit, CRC Mar, Hospital del Mar, Barcelona
| | | | | | - Marta Subirà
- Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain; Carlos III Health Institute, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Barcelona
| | - Jesús Pujol
- Carlos III Health Institute, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Barcelona; MRI Research Unit, CRC Mar, Hospital del Mar, Barcelona
| | - Jordi Sunyer
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGLOBAL), Center for Research in Environmental Epidemiology (CREAL); Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona; the Carlos III Health Institute Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Barcelona; and the Hospital del Mar Medical Research Institute (IMIM), Barcelona
| | - Carles Soriano-Mas
- Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), Barcelona, Spain; Carlos III Health Institute, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, CIBERSAM, Barcelona; Autonomous University of Barcelona.
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22
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Santamaría-García H, Soriano-Mas C, Burgaleta M, Ayneto A, Alonso P, Menchón JM, Cardoner N, Sebastián-Gallés N. Social context modulates cognitive markers in Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Soc Neurosci 2017; 13:579-593. [DOI: 10.1080/17470919.2017.1358211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Carles Soriano-Mas
- Department of Psychiatry, Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry, CIBERSAM (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental), Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Health Sciences, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miguel Burgaleta
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Department of Technology, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alba Ayneto
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Department of Technology, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Pino Alonso
- Department of Psychiatry, Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry, CIBERSAM (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental), Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - José M. Menchón
- Department of Psychiatry, Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry, CIBERSAM (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental), Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Narcis Cardoner
- Department of Psychiatry, Bellvitge University Hospital, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Psychiatry, CIBERSAM (Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental), Barcelona, Spain
- Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Nuria Sebastián-Gallés
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Department of Technology, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
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23
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Stern ER, Muratore AF, Taylor SF, Abelson JL, Hof PR, Goodman WK. Switching between internally and externally focused attention in obsessive-compulsive disorder: Abnormal visual cortex activation and connectivity. Psychiatry Res 2017; 265:87-97. [PMID: 28024845 PMCID: PMC5316503 DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2016.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2016] [Revised: 08/17/2016] [Accepted: 08/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is characterized by excessive absorption with internally-generated distressing thoughts and urges, with difficulty incorporating external information running counter to their fears and concerns. In the present study, we experimentally probed this core feature of OCD through the use of a novel attention switching task that investigates transitions between internally focused (IF) and externally focused (EF) attentional states. Eighteen OCD patients and 18 controls imagined positive and negative personal event scenarios (IF state) or performed a color-word Stroop task (EF state). The IF/EF states were followed by a target detection (TD) task requiring responses to external stimuli. Compared to controls, OCD patients made significantly more errors and showed reduced activation of superior and inferior occipital cortex, thalamus, and putamen during TD following negative IF, with the inferior occipital hypoactivation being significantly greater for TD following negative IF compared to TD following the other conditions. Patients showed stronger functional connectivity between the inferior occipital region and dorsomedial prefrontal cortex. These findings point to an OCD-related impairment in the visual processing of external stimuli specifically when they follow a period of negative internal focus, and suggest that future treatments may wish to target the transition between attentional states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily R Stern
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States.
| | | | - Stephan F Taylor
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - James L Abelson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, United States
| | - Patrick R Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Wayne K Goodman
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States; Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
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Marshall J, Watts AL, Frankel EL, Lilienfeld SO. An examination of psychopathy's relationship with two indices of moral judgment. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2017.03.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Pokorny T, Preller KH, Kometer M, Dziobek I, Vollenweider FX. Effect of Psilocybin on Empathy and Moral Decision-Making. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2017; 20. [PMID: 28637246 PMCID: PMC5581487 DOI: 10.1093/ijnp/pyx047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Impaired empathic abilities lead to severe negative social consequences and influence the development and treatment of several psychiatric disorders. Furthermore, empathy has been shown to play a crucial role in moral and prosocial behavior. Although the serotonin system has been implicated in modulating empathy and moral behavior, the relative contribution of the various serotonin receptor subtypes is still unknown. METHODS We investigated the acute effect of psilocybin (0.215 mg/kg p.o.) in healthy human subjects on different facets of empathy and hypothetical moral decision-making using the multifaceted empathy test (n=32) and the moral dilemma task (n=24). RESULTS Psilocybin significantly increased emotional, but not cognitive empathy compared with placebo, and the increase in implicit emotional empathy was significantly associated with psilocybin-induced changed meaning of percepts. In contrast, moral decision-making remained unaffected by psilocybin. CONCLUSIONS These findings provide first evidence that psilocybin has distinct effects on social cognition by enhancing emotional empathy but not moral behavior. Furthermore, together with previous findings, psilocybin appears to promote emotional empathy presumably via activation of serotonin 2A/1A receptors, suggesting that targeting serotonin 2A/1A receptors has implications for potential treatment of dysfunctional social cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Pokorny
- Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Heffter Research Center Zurich, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany (Dr Dziobek).,Correspondence: Thomas Pokorny, MSc, Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Heffter Research Center Zurich, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital, Lenggstrasse 31, CH-8032 Zurich, Switzerland ()
| | - Katrin H Preller
- Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Heffter Research Center Zurich, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany (Dr Dziobek)
| | - Michael Kometer
- Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Heffter Research Center Zurich, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany (Dr Dziobek)
| | - Isabel Dziobek
- Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Heffter Research Center Zurich, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany (Dr Dziobek)
| | - Franz X Vollenweider
- Neuropsychopharmacology and Brain Imaging, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Heffter Research Center Zurich, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (Mr Pokorny, and Drs Preller, Kometer, and Vollenweider); Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany (Dr Dziobek)
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Core, social and moral disgust are bounded: A review on behavioral and neural bases of repugnance in clinical disorders. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2017; 80:185-200. [PMID: 28506923 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2016] [Revised: 04/19/2017] [Accepted: 05/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Disgust is a multifaceted experience that might affect several aspects of life. Here, we reviewed research on neurological and psychiatric disorders that are characterized by abnormal disgust processing to test the hypothesis of a shared neurocognitive architecture in the representation of three disgust domains: i) personal experience of 'core disgust'; ii) social disgust, i.e., sensitivity to others' expressions of disgust; iii) moral disgust, i.e., sensitivity to ethical violations. Our review provides some support to the shared neurocognitive hypothesis and suggests that the insula might be the "hub" structure linking the three domains of disgust sensitivity, while other brain regions may subserve specific facets of the multidimensional experience. Our review also suggests a role of serotonin core and moral disgust, supporting "neo-sentimentalist" theories of morality, which posit a causal role of affect in moral judgment.
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Relationship between body mass index and moral disapproval rating for ethical violations. PERSONALITY AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2016.07.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Hezel DM, McNally RJ. A Theoretical review of cognitive biases and deficits in obsessive–compulsive disorder. Biol Psychol 2016; 121:221-232. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2015.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2015] [Revised: 10/29/2015] [Accepted: 10/29/2015] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Feelings of shame, embarrassment and guilt and their neural correlates: A systematic review. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 71:455-471. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.09.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2015] [Revised: 08/19/2016] [Accepted: 09/23/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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Del Casale A, Rapinesi C, Kotzalidis GD, De Rossi P, Curto M, Janiri D, Criscuolo S, Alessi MC, Ferri VR, De Giorgi R, Sani G, Ferracuti S, Girardi P, Brugnoli R. Executive functions in obsessive-compulsive disorder: An activation likelihood estimate meta-analysis of fMRI studies. World J Biol Psychiatry 2016; 17:378-93. [PMID: 26642972 DOI: 10.3109/15622975.2015.1102323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To identify activation changes assessed in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) through Activation Likelihood Estimate meta-analysis. METHODS We included 28 peer-reviewed standard stereotactic space studies assessing adult OCD patients (OCDpts) vs. healthy controls (HCs) with fMRI during executive task performance. RESULTS In within-group analyses, HCs showed task-related activations in bilateral inferior frontal gyri, right middle frontal gyrus, right inferior parietal lobule, right claustrum, bilateral cingulate gyri, and left caudate body. OCDpts showed task-related left-sided activations in the superior, medial, and inferior frontal gyri, and thalamus, and bilateral activations in the middle frontal gyri, inferior parietal lobule, and insular cortices. Subtraction analysis showed increased left middle frontal gyrus activation in OCDpts. In between-groups analyses, OCDpts hypoactivated the right caudate body, left putamen, left ACC, and right medial and middle frontal gyri. Right caudate hypoactivation persisted also after applying Family-wise error algorithms. CONCLUSIONS This meta-analysis confirms that during executive functioning OCDpts show a functional deficit of the right caudate body, which could represent a major neural functional correlate of their illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Del Casale
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy ;,b Department of Psychiatric Rehabilitation , P. Alberto Mileno Onlus Foundation, San Francesco Institute , Vasto , CH , Italy
| | - Chiara Rapinesi
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Georgios D Kotzalidis
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Pietro De Rossi
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Martina Curto
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Delfina Janiri
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Silvia Criscuolo
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Maria Chiara Alessi
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Vittoria Rachele Ferri
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Riccardo De Giorgi
- c Department of Pathology , Foundation Year 2, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (NHS Grampian) , Aberdeen , UK
| | - Gabriele Sani
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Stefano Ferracuti
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Paolo Girardi
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
| | - Roberto Brugnoli
- a Department of Neuroscience, Mental Health, and Sensory Organs (NESMOS) , School of Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University; Unit of Psychiatry, Sant'andrea Hospital , Rome , Italy
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Emotional Appraisal of Moral Dilemmas: What Neuroimaging Can Tell about the Disgust-Morality Link. J Neurosci 2016; 36:263-4. [PMID: 26758819 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3483-15.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
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Subirà M, Cano M, de Wit SJ, Alonso P, Cardoner N, Hoexter MQ, Kwon JS, Nakamae T, Lochner C, Sato JR, Jung WH, Narumoto J, Stein DJ, Pujol J, Mataix-Cols D, Veltman DJ, Menchón JM, van den Heuvel OA, Soriano-Mas C. Structural covariance of neostriatal and limbic regions in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. J Psychiatry Neurosci 2016; 41:115-23. [PMID: 26505142 PMCID: PMC4764480 DOI: 10.1503/jpn.150012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Frontostriatal and frontoamygdalar connectivity alterations in patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) have been typically described in functional neuroimaging studies. However, structural covariance, or volumetric correlations across distant brain regions, also provides network-level information. Altered structural covariance has been described in patients with different psychiatric disorders, including OCD, but to our knowledge, alterations within frontostriatal and frontoamygdalar circuits have not been explored. METHODS We performed a mega-analysis pooling structural MRI scans from the Obsessive-compulsive Brain Imaging Consortium and assessed whole-brain voxel-wise structural covariance of 4 striatal regions (dorsal and ventral caudate nucleus, and dorsal-caudal and ventral-rostral putamen) and 2 amygdalar nuclei (basolateral and centromedial-superficial). Images were preprocessed with the standard pipeline of voxel-based morphometry studies using Statistical Parametric Mapping software. RESULTS Our analyses involved 329 patients with OCD and 316 healthy controls. Patients showed increased structural covariance between the left ventral-rostral putamen and the left inferior frontal gyrus/frontal operculum region. This finding had a significant interaction with age; the association held only in the subgroup of older participants. Patients with OCD also showed increased structural covariance between the right centromedial-superficial amygdala and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex. LIMITATIONS This was a cross-sectional study. Because this is a multisite data set analysis, participant recruitment and image acquisition were performed in different centres. Most patients were taking medication, and treatment protocols differed across centres. CONCLUSION Our results provide evidence for structural network-level alterations in patients with OCD involving 2 frontosubcortical circuits of relevance for the disorder and indicate that structural covariance contributes to fully characterizing brain alterations in patients with psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Carles Soriano-Mas
- Correspondence to: C. Soriano-Mas, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Psychiatry Department, Bellvitge University Hospital, Feixa Llarga s/n 08907, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain;
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Magioncalda P, Martino M, Ely BA, Inglese M, Stern ER. Microstructural white-matter abnormalities and their relationship with cognitive dysfunction in obsessive-compulsive disorder. Brain Behav 2016; 6:e00442. [PMID: 27099803 PMCID: PMC4831422 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2015] [Revised: 12/29/2015] [Accepted: 12/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND In recent years, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies have detected subtle microstructural abnormalities of white matter (WM) in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). However, findings have been inconsistent, and it is unclear whether WM abnormalities are related to cognitive processes. The aim of this study was to explore the relationship of WM alterations with cognitive variables in OCD in order to investigate the structural correlates of behaviorally relevant features of the disorder. METHODS We compared DTI-derived fractional anisotropy (FA), mean diffusivity (MD), and radial diffusivity (RD) measures between OCD patients (n = 16) and healthy controls (n = 18) using a whole-brain tract-based spatial statistics (TBSS) approach. We also explored the correlations of WM alterations with clinical and cognitive variables. RESULTS Patients with OCD demonstrated increases in MD in the bilateral posterior corona radiata; left anterior corona radiata; bilateral superior longitudinal fasciculus; genu, body, and splenium of the corpus callosum; and left posterior limb of the internal capsule. An increase in RD values was also found in some of the same tracts (right posterior corona radiata, right superior longitudinal fasciculus, left anterior corona radiata, and corpus callosum). Furthermore, increased MD value in the internal capsule was correlated with the percentage of errors made during a target detection task, which was greater in the OCD group overall. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that OCD patients show greater diffusivity in several white-matter regions. The correlation between cognitive performance and diffusivity in the internal capsule suggests that microstructural WM alternations may have functional consequences for the disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Magioncalda
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal and Child Health Section of Psychiatry University of Genoa Genoa Italy
| | - Matteo Martino
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics and Maternal and Child Health Section of Psychiatry University of Genoa Genoa Italy
| | - Benjamin A Ely
- Department of Neuroscience Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York City New York
| | - Matilde Inglese
- Department of Neuroscience Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York City New York; Department of Neurology Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York City New York
| | - Emily R Stern
- Department of Neuroscience Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York City New York; Department of Psychiatry Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai New York City New York
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Whittle S, Liu K, Bastin C, Harrison BJ, Davey CG. Neurodevelopmental correlates of proneness to guilt and shame in adolescence and early adulthood. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2016; 19:51-7. [PMID: 26895352 PMCID: PMC6990094 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2016.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2015] [Revised: 02/01/2016] [Accepted: 02/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Investigating how brain development during adolescence and early adulthood underlies guilt- and shame-proneness may be important for understanding risk processes for mental disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the neurodevelopmental correlates of interpersonal guilt- and shame-proneness in healthy adolescents and young adults using structural magnetic resonance imaging (sMRI). Sixty participants (age range: 15–25) completed sMRI and self-report measures of interpersonal guilt- and shame-proneness. Independent of interpersonal guilt, higher levels of shame-proneness were associated with thinner posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) thickness and smaller amygdala volume. Higher levels of shame-proneness were also associated with attenuated age-related reductions in thickness of lateral orbitofrontal cortex (lOFC). Our findings highlight the complexities in understanding brain–behavior relationships during the adolescent/young adult period. Results were consistent with growing evidence that accelerated cortical thinning during adolescence may be associated with superior socioemotional functioning. Further research is required to understand the implications of these findings for mental disorders characterized by higher levels of guilt and shame.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Whittle
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Vic., 3053, Australia.
| | - Kirra Liu
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Vic., 3053, Australia
| | - Coralie Bastin
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Vic., 3053, Australia
| | - Ben J Harrison
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Vic., 3053, Australia
| | - Christopher G Davey
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne and Melbourne Health, Vic., 3053, Australia; Orygen, The National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Vic., 3053, Australia
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Neurofunctional correlates of ethical, food-related decision-making. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0120541. [PMID: 25830288 PMCID: PMC4382275 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0120541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2014] [Accepted: 01/23/2015] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
For consumers today, the perceived ethicality of a food’s production method can be as important a purchasing consideration as its price. Still, few studies have examined how, neurofunctionally, consumers are making ethical, food-related decisions. We examined how consumers’ ethical concern about a food’s production method may relate to how, neurofunctionally, they make decisions whether to purchase that food. Forty-six participants completed a measure of the extent to which they took ethical concern into consideration when making food-related decisions. They then underwent a series of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans while performing a food-related decision-making (FRDM) task. During this task, they made 56 decisions whether to purchase a food based on either its price (i.e., high or low, the “price condition”) or production method (i.e., with or without the use of cages, the “production method condition”), but not both. For 23 randomly selected participants, we performed an exploratory, whole-brain correlation between ethical concern and differential neurofunctional activity in the price and production method conditions. Ethical concern correlated negatively and significantly with differential neurofunctional activity in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC). For the remaining 23 participants, we performed a confirmatory, region-of-interest (ROI) correlation between the same variables, using an 8-mm3 volume situated in the left dlPFC. Again, the variables correlated negatively and significantly. This suggests, when making ethical, food-related decisions, the more consumers take ethical concern into consideration, the less they may rely on neurofunctional activity in the left dlPFC, possibly because making these decisions is more routine for them, and therefore a more perfunctory process requiring fewer cognitive resources.
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Muellner J, Delmaire C, Valabrégue R, Schüpbach M, Mangin JF, Vidailhet M, Lehéricy S, Hartmann A, Worbe Y. Altered structure of cortical sulci in gilles de la Tourette syndrome: Further support for abnormal brain development. Mov Disord 2015; 30:655-61. [DOI: 10.1002/mds.26207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2014] [Revised: 02/05/2015] [Accepted: 02/06/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Julia Muellner
- Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP), INSERM, ICM, Centre d'Investigation Clinique Pitié Neurosciences, CIC-1422, Département des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière; Paris France
- Department of Neurology; Inselspital; University Hospital Bern; Bern Switzerland
| | | | - Romain Valabrégue
- Center for Neuroimaging Research-CENIR, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière; Paris France
| | - Michael Schüpbach
- Department of Neurology; Inselspital; University Hospital Bern; Bern Switzerland
| | | | - Marie Vidailhet
- Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP), INSERM, ICM, Centre d'Investigation Clinique Pitié Neurosciences, CIC-1422, Département des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière; Paris France
- Centre de Référence «Syndrome Gilles de la Tourette», Département de Neurologie, Pôle des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP); Paris France
- Inserm U 1127, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière; Paris France
| | - Stéphane Lehéricy
- Center for Neuroimaging Research-CENIR, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière; Paris France
- Inserm U 1127, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière; Paris France
| | - Andreas Hartmann
- Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP), INSERM, ICM, Centre d'Investigation Clinique Pitié Neurosciences, CIC-1422, Département des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière; Paris France
- Centre de Référence «Syndrome Gilles de la Tourette», Département de Neurologie, Pôle des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP); Paris France
- Inserm U 1127, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière; Paris France
| | - Yulia Worbe
- Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP), INSERM, ICM, Centre d'Investigation Clinique Pitié Neurosciences, CIC-1422, Département des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière; Paris France
- Centre de Référence «Syndrome Gilles de la Tourette», Département de Neurologie, Pôle des Maladies du Système Nerveux, Groupe Hospitalier Pitié-Salpêtrière, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (APHP); Paris France
- Inserm U 1127, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06 UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière; Paris France
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Olatunji BO, Cox R, Kim EH. Self-Disgust Mediates the Associations Between Shame and Symptoms of Bulimia and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. JOURNAL OF SOCIAL AND CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2015. [DOI: 10.1521/jscp.2015.34.3.239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Preckel K, Scheele D, Eckstein M, Maier W, Hurlemann R. The influence of oxytocin on volitional and emotional ambivalence. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2014; 10:987-93. [PMID: 25398434 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsu147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2014] [Accepted: 11/12/2014] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Moral decisions and social relationships are often characterized by strong feelings of ambivalence which can be a catalyst for emotional distress and several health-related problems. The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been identified as a key brain region in monitoring conflicting information, but the neurobiological substrates of ambivalence processing are still widely unknown. We have conducted two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments involving 70 healthy male volunteers to investigate the effects of the neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) on neural and behavioral correlates of ambivalence. We chose moral decision-making and the imagery of partner infidelity as examples to probe volitional and emotional ambivalence. In both experiments, intranasal OXT diminished neural responses in the ACC to ambivalence. Under OXT, moral dilemma vignettes also elicited a reduced activation in the orbitofrontal cortex, and the imagery of partner infidelity was rated as less arousing. Interestingly, the OXT-induced differential activation in the ACC predicted the magnitude of arousal reduction. Taken together, our findings reveal an unprecedented role of OXT in causing a domain-general decrease of neural responses to ambivalence. By alleviating emotional distress, OXT may qualify as a treatment option for psychiatric disorders with heightened ambivalence sensitivity such as schizophrenia or obsessive-compulsive disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katrin Preckel
- Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany
| | - Dirk Scheele
- Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany
| | - Monika Eckstein
- Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Maier
- Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany
| | - René Hurlemann
- Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany Department of Psychiatry and Department of Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany, and German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany
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Li Z, Ji W, Li D, Li X, Feng W. Microstructural abnormality in left nucleus accumbens predicts dysfunctional beliefs in treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder. Med Sci Monit 2014; 20:2275-82. [PMID: 25393961 PMCID: PMC4242705 DOI: 10.12659/msm.891102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Background The aim of this study was to determine whether dysfunctional beliefs might predict treatment-resistance and to examine the relationship between fractional anisotropy (FA) in diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and cognitive biases for optimal treatment choice. Material/Methods We recruited 11 non-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients, 11 resistant OCD patients, and 11 healthy subjects. Results OCD patients had higher Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire (OBQ-87) subscale scores than subjects in non-resistant and resistant groups. A significant difference was found between non-resistant and resistant OCD patients in R-Scale and I-Scale. A significant decrease in FA was found in left dorsal frontal gyrus and left inferior parietal lobule in the non-resistant group as compared to the control group. FA also decreased significantly in left anterior cingulate cortex, putamen, and nucleus accumbens in the resistant group as compared to the control group. There was a significant decrease in FA in nucleus accumbens in the resistant group as compared to the non-resistant group. Reduced FA in left nucleus accumbens was negatively associated with OBQ-87 factor R and I and the total Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS). Conclusions Abnormalities in cortical-striatal white matter networks may contribute to the dysfunctional beliefs in patients with treatment-resistant OCD, and the left nucleus accumbens may be an important and promising target for the treatment of OCD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhongchun Li
- Department of Neurology, Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, China (mainland)
| | - Weidong Ji
- Department of Psychiatry, Shanghai Changning Mental Health Center, Shanghai, China (mainland)
| | - Deqiang Li
- Center of Haichuangyuan Clinic, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China (mainland)
| | - Xujuan Li
- Department of Mental Health, First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China (mainland)
| | - Wei Feng
- Department of Psychiatry, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Unviersity School of Medicine, Shanghai, China (mainland)
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Abstract
Cognitive neuroscience investigates neural responses to cognitive and emotional probes, an approach that has yielded critical insights into the neurobiological mechanisms of psychiatric disorders. This article reviews some of the major findings from neuroimaging studies using a cognitive neuroscience approach to investigate obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). It evaluates the consistency of results and interprets findings within the context of OCD symptoms, and proposes a model of OCD involving inflexibility of internally focused cognition. Although further research is needed, this body of work probing cognitive-emotional processes in OCD has already shed considerable light on the underlying mechanisms of the disorder.
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Stern ER, Muratore AF, Taylor SF, Abelson JL, Hof PR, Goodman WK. The Persistence of Experience: Prior Attentional and Emotional State Affects Network Functioning in a Target Detection Task. Cereb Cortex 2014; 25:3235-48. [PMID: 24904075 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhu115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Efficient, adaptive behavior relies on the ability to flexibly move between internally focused (IF) and externally focused (EF) attentional states. Despite evidence that IF cognitive processes such as event imagination comprise a significant amount of awake cognition, the consequences of internal absorption on the subsequent recruitment of brain networks during EF tasks are unknown. The present functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study employed a novel attentional state switching task. Subjects imagined positive and negative events (IF task) or performed a working memory task (EF task) before switching to a target detection (TD) task also requiring attention to external information, allowing for the investigation of neural functioning during external attention based on prior attentional state. There was a robust increase of activity in frontal, parietal, and temporal regions during TD when subjects were previously performing the EF compared with IF task, an effect that was most pronounced following negative IF. Additionally, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex was less negatively coupled with ventromedial prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortices during TD following IF compared with EF. These findings reveal the striking consequences for brain activity following immersion in an IF attentional state, which have strong implications for psychiatric disorders characterized by excessive internal focus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily R Stern
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Alexandra F Muratore
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Stephan F Taylor
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - James L Abelson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Patrick R Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
| | - Wayne K Goodman
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
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Whitton AE, Henry JD, Grisham JR. Moral rigidity in obsessive-compulsive disorder: do abnormalities in inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility and disgust play a role? J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2014; 45:152-9. [PMID: 24161700 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2013.10.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2013] [Revised: 08/20/2013] [Accepted: 10/02/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Abnormalities in cognitive control and disgust responding are well-documented in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and also interfere with flexible, outcome-driven utilitarian moral reasoning. The current study examined whether individuals with OCD differ from healthy and anxious individuals in their use of utilitarian moral reasoning, and whether abnormalities in inhibitory control, cognitive flexibility and disgust contribute to moral rigidity. METHODS Individuals with OCD (n = 23), non-OCD anxiety (n = 21) and healthy participants (n = 24) gave forced-choice responses to three types of moral dilemmas: benign, impersonal, personal. Scores on measures of cognitive flexibility, inhibitory control and trait disgust were also examined. RESULTS Individuals with OCD gave fewer utilitarian responses to impersonal moral dilemmas compared to healthy, but not anxious, individuals. Poorer cognitive flexibility was associated with fewer utilitarian responses to impersonal dilemmas in the OCD group. Furthermore, greater trait disgust was associated with increased utilitarian responding to personal dilemmas in the OCD group, but decreased utilitarian responding to impersonal dilemmas in the anxious group. LIMITATIONS Although we did not find an association between inhibitory control and moral reasoning, smaller associations may be evident in a larger sample. CONCLUSION These data indicate that individuals with OCD use more rigid moral reasoning in response to impersonal moral dilemmas compared to healthy individuals, and that this may be associated with reduced cognitive flexibility. Furthermore, these data suggest that trait disgust may exert opposing effects on moral reasoning in individuals with OCD compared to those with other forms of anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexis E Whitton
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW 2031, Australia.
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Alonso P, Orbegozo A, Pujol J, López-Solà C, Fullana MÀ, Segalàs C, Real E, Subirà M, Martínez-Zalacaín I, Menchón JM, Harrison BJ, Cardoner N, Soriano-Mas C. Neural correlates of obsessive-compulsive related dysfunctional beliefs. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2013; 47:25-32. [PMID: 23911440 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2013.07.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2013] [Revised: 07/22/2013] [Accepted: 07/23/2013] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
There have been few attempts to integrate neurobiological and cognitive models of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), although this might constitute a key approach to clarify the complex etiology of the disorder. Our study aimed to explore the neural correlates underlying dysfunctional beliefs hypothesized by cognitive models to be involved in the development and maintenance of OCD. We obtained a high-resolution magnetic resonance image from fifty OCD patients and 30 healthy controls, and correlated them, voxel-wise, with the severity of OC-related dysfunctional beliefs assessed by the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire-44. In healthy controls, significant negative correlations were observed between anterior temporal lobe (ATL) volume and scores on perfectionism/intolerance of uncertainty and overimportance/need to control thoughts. No significant correlations between OBQ-44 domains and regional gray matter volumes were observed in OCD patients. A post-hoc region-of-interest analysis detected that the ATLs was bilaterally smaller in OCD patients. On splitting subjects into high- and low-belief subgroups, we observed that such brain structural differences between OCD patients and healthy controls were explained by significantly larger ATL volumes among healthy subjects from the low-belief subgroup. Our results suggest a significant correlation between OC-related dysfunctional beliefs and morphometric variability in the anterior temporal lobe, a brain structure related to socio-emotional processing. Future studies should address the interaction of these correlations with environmental factors to fully characterize the bases of OC-related dysfunctional beliefs and to advance in the integration of biological and cognitive models of OCD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pino Alonso
- OCD Clinical and Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Hospital de Bellvitge, Barcelona, Spain; Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute-IDIBELL, Barcelona, Spain; CIBERSAM (Centro de Investigación en Red de Salud Mental), Carlos III Health Institute, Spain; CRC-Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, Spain.
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44
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Szabó C, Németh A, Kéri S. Ethical sensitivity in obsessive-compulsive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder: the role of reversal learning. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2013; 44:404-10. [PMID: 23693154 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2013.04.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2012] [Revised: 04/01/2013] [Accepted: 04/17/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES In obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), amplified moral sensitivity may be related to the orbitofrontal-striatal circuit, which is also critical in reversal learning. This study examined three questions: (1) What aspects of ethical sensitivity is altered in OCD?; (2) What is the relationship between ethical sensitivity and reversal learning?; (3) Are potential alterations in ethical sensitivity and reversal learning present in generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)? METHODS Participants were 28 outpatients with OCD, 21 individuals with GAD, and 30 matched healthy controls. Participants received the ethical sensitivity scale questionnaire (ESSQ), rating scales for clinical symptoms, a reversal learning task, and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST). RESULTS We found higher ethical sensitivity scores in OCD compared with healthy controls in the case of generating interpretations and options and identifying the consequences of actions. Individuals with OCD displayed prolonged reaction times on probabilistic errors without shift and final reversal errors. Participants with GAD did not differ from healthy controls on the ESSQ, but they were slower on reversal learning relative to nonpatients. In OCD, reaction time on final reversal errors mediated the relationship between ethical sensitivity and compulsions. WCST performance was intact in OCD and GAD. LIMITATIONS Small sample size, limited neuropsychological assessment, self-rating scale for ethical sensitivity. CONCLUSION Prolonged reaction time at switching reinforcement contingencies is related to increased ethical sensitivity in OCD. Slow affective switching may link ethical sensitivity and compulsions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Csilla Szabó
- National Psychiatry Center, Lehel Str. 39, H1135 Budapest, Hungary
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Ottaviani C, Mancini F, Petrocchi N, Medea B, Couyoumdjian A. Autonomic correlates of physical and moral disgust. Int J Psychophysiol 2013; 89:57-62. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2013.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2012] [Revised: 05/06/2013] [Accepted: 05/07/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Vicario CM. Morality and disgust: insights from obsessive compulsive disorder. Front Psychiatry 2012; 3:113. [PMID: 23316173 PMCID: PMC3539666 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2012.00113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2012] [Accepted: 12/14/2012] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Carmelo M Vicario
- School of Psychology, University of Queensland Brisbane, QLD, Australia ; Faculty of Motor Science, University of Palermo Palermo, Italy
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