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Kotikalapudi R, Moser DA, Dricu M, Spisak T, Aue T. Predictive modeling of optimism bias using gray matter cortical thickness. Sci Rep 2023; 13:302. [PMID: 36609577 PMCID: PMC9822990 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-26550-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/15/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
People have been shown to be optimistically biased when their future outcome expectancies are assessed. In fact, we display optimism bias (OB) toward our own success when compared to a rival individual's (personal OB [POB]). Similarly, success expectancies for social groups we like reliably exceed those we mention for a rival group (social OB [SOB]). Recent findings suggest the existence of neural underpinnings for OB. Mostly using structural/functional MRI, these findings rely on voxel-based mass-univariate analyses. While these results remain associative in nature, an open question abides whether MRI information can accurately predict OB. In this study, we hence used predictive modelling to forecast the two OBs. The biases were quantified using a validated soccer paradigm, where personal (self versus rival) and social (in-group versus out-group) forms of OB were extracted at the participant level. Later, using gray matter cortical thickness, we predicted POB and SOB via machine-learning. Our model explained 17% variance (R2 = 0.17) in individual variability for POB (but not SOB). Key predictors involved the rostral-caudal anterior cingulate cortex, pars orbitalis and entorhinal cortex-areas that have been associated with OB before. We need such predictive models on a larger scale, to help us better understand positive psychology and individual well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raviteja Kotikalapudi
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, 3012, Bern, Switzerland. .,Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstrasse 55, 45147, Essen, Germany.
| | - Dominik A. Moser
- grid.5734.50000 0001 0726 5157Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Mihai Dricu
- grid.5734.50000 0001 0726 5157Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, 3012 Bern, Switzerland
| | - Tamas Spisak
- grid.410718.b0000 0001 0262 7331Department of Neurology, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstrasse 55, 45147 Essen, Germany
| | - Tatjana Aue
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Fabrikstrasse 8, 3012, Bern, Switzerland.
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2
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Aday JS, Fang L, Carlson JM. Eye-size effects in the dot-probe task: Greater sclera exposure predicts delayed disengagement from fearful faces. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0285839. [PMID: 37195990 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0285839] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Fearful facial expressions are nonverbal and biologically salient signals of potential threat that automatically hold, capture, and direct observers' attention. They are characterized by enlarged eye whites and dilated pupils, and fearful eyes alone are sufficient to capture attention. The morphological properties of the eye region, such as sclera exposure, are thought to play an important role in nonverbal communication. Specifically, increased sclera exposure associated with fearful expressions has been shown to moderate how observers' shift their attention toward the direction of another's gaze. Yet, the extent to which variability in sclera exposure possibly impacts the capture and hold of attention by fearful faces is untested. To address this, a sample of 249 adults completed a dot-probe task of selective attention with fearful and neutral faces. The results suggested that (1) fearful faces were prioritized over neutral faces (i.e., they captured and held attention), (2) greater sclera exposure at target locations facilitated reaction times, and (3) attention was held by greater sclera exposure of fearful faces at task irrelevant locations resulting in delayed disengagement. Collectively, the results indicate that fearful facial expressions and sclera exposure modulate spatial attention through independent and interactive mechanisms. Sclera exposure appears to be an important facilitator of nonverbal communication and perhaps represents an understudied variable in social cognition more broadly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob S Aday
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Lin Fang
- Department of Psychological Science, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, Michigan, United States of America
| | - Joshua M Carlson
- Department of Psychological Science, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, Michigan, United States of America
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3
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Attentional bias to threat and gray matter volume morphology in high anxious individuals. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2022; 22:600-609. [PMID: 34755317 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-021-00968-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
In a sample of highly anxious individuals, the relationship between gray matter volume brain morphology and attentional bias to threat was assessed. Participants performed a dot-probe task of attentional bias to threat and gray matter volume was acquired from whole brain structural T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging scans. The results replicate previous findings in unselected samples that elevated attentional bias to threat is linked to greater gray matter volume in the middle frontal gyrus and superior frontal gyrus. In addition, we provide novel evidence that elevated attentional bias to threat is associated with greater gray matter volume in the inferior frontal gyrus, insula, cerebellum, and other distributed regions. Lastly, exploratory analyses provide initial evidence that distinct subregions of the right posterior parietal cortex may contribute to attentional bias in a sex-specific manner. Our results illuminate how differences in gray matter volume morphology relate to attentional bias to threat in anxious individuals. This knowledge could inform neurocognitive models of anxiety-related attentional bias to threat.
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4
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Carlson JM, Fang L, Koster EH, Andrzejewski JA, Gilbertson H, Elwell KA, Zuidema TR. Neuroplastic changes in anterior cingulate cortex gray matter volume and functional connectivity following attention bias modification in high trait anxious individuals. Biol Psychol 2022; 172:108353. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2022.108353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2022] [Revised: 03/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
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5
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Sorella S, Vellani V, Siugzdaite R, Feraco P, Grecucci A. Structural and functional brain networks of individual differences in trait anger and anger control: An unsupervised machine learning study. Eur J Neurosci 2022; 55:510-527. [PMID: 34797003 PMCID: PMC9303475 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15537] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 10/25/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
The ability to experience, use and eventually control anger is crucial to maintain well-being and build healthy relationships. Despite its relevance, the neural mechanisms behind individual differences in experiencing and controlling anger are poorly understood. To elucidate these points, we employed an unsupervised machine learning approach based on independent component analysis to test the hypothesis that specific functional and structural networks are associated with individual differences in trait anger and anger control. Structural and functional resting state images of 71 subjects as well as their scores from the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory entered the analyses. At a structural level, the concentration of grey matter in a network including ventromedial temporal areas, posterior cingulate, fusiform gyrus and cerebellum was associated with trait anger. The higher the concentration, the higher the proneness to experience anger in daily life due to the greater tendency to orient attention towards aversive events and interpret them with higher hostility. At a functional level, the activity of the default mode network (DMN) was associated with anger control. The higher the DMN temporal frequency, the stronger the exerted control over anger, thus extending previous evidence on the role of the DMN in regulating cognitive and emotional functions in the domain of anger. Taken together, these results show, for the first time, two specialized brain networks for encoding individual differences in trait anger and anger control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Sorella
- Clinical and Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences (DiPSCo)University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
| | - Valentina Vellani
- Affective Brain Lab, Department of Experimental PsychologyUniversity College LondonLondonUK
| | | | - Paola Feraco
- Department of Experimental, Diagnostic and Specialty Medicine (DIMES)University of BolognaBolognaItaly
| | - Alessandro Grecucci
- Clinical and Affective Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences (DiPSCo)University of TrentoRoveretoItaly,Centre for Medical Sciences (CISMed)University of TrentoTrentoItaly
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6
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Aue T, Dricu M, Singh L, Moser DA, Raviteja K. Enhanced Sensitivity to Optimistic Cues is Manifested in Brain Structure: A Voxel-Based Morphometry Study. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 16:1170-1181. [PMID: 34128051 PMCID: PMC8599192 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsab075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 04/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/14/2021] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent research shows that congruent outcomes are more rapidly (and incongruent less rapidly) detected when individuals receive optimistic rather than pessimistic cues, an effect that was termed optimism robustness. In the current voxel-based morphometry study, we examined whether optimism robustness has a counterpart in brain structure. The participants' task was to detect two different letters (symbolizing monetary gain or loss) in a visual search matrix. Prior to each onset of the search matrix, two different verbal cues informed our participants about a high probability to gain (optimistic expectancy) or lose (pessimistic expectancy) money. The target presented was either congruent or incongruent with these induced expectancies. Optimism robustness revealed in the participants' reaction times correlated positively with gray matter volume (GMV) in brain regions involved in selective attention (medial visual association area, intraparietal sulcus), emphasizing the strong intertwinement of optimistic expectancies and attention deployment. In addition, GMV in the primary visual cortex diminished with increasing optimism robustness, in line with the interpretation of optimism robustness arising from a global, context-oriented perception. Future studies should address the malleability of these structural correlates of optimism robustness. Our results may assist in the identification of treatment targets in depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tatjana Aue
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Mihai Dricu
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Laura Singh
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Dominik A Moser
- Institute of Psychology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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7
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Strand N, Fang L, Carlson JM. Sex Differences in Anxiety: An Investigation of the Moderating Role of Sex in Performance Monitoring and Attentional Bias to Threat in High Trait Anxious Individuals. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:627589. [PMID: 34093149 PMCID: PMC8172782 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.627589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 04/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Anxiety disorders are more predominant in women than men, however there is a lack of understanding as to what neurocognitive mechanisms drive this sex difference. Recent investigation has found a potential moderating role of sex in the relationship between anxiety and the error related negativity (ERN)—a component of error-monitoring that is prevalent in high anxiety individuals—such that females display a positive relationship between anxiety/worry and ERN amplitude. We strove to further explore the influence of sex on the relationship between trait anxiety and performance monitoring, specifically with ERN, as well as extend this work to include another hallmark of anxiety, attentional bias to threat. To meet this end, participants performed the flanker and dot-probe tasks, respectively. We did not find a significant difference in the relationship between attention bias scores and anxiety for female vs. males participants. Furthermore, ΔERN amplitudes were greater in males compared to females, and males had more positive CRN amplitudes than females. There were no significant associations between ERN or ΔERN with anxiety in both male and female participants. However, there was a significant relationship between CRN amplitudes and trait anxiety in male but not female participants. Given these results, the effect of sex on the relationship between components of performance monitoring—namely the CRN and ERN—and anxiety may be more nuanced than the current understanding. Our study was limited to detecting medium to large sized moderation effects. Our findings may be important for future meta-analysis on sex differences in anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie Strand
- Department of Psychological Science, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI, United States
| | - Lin Fang
- Department of Psychological Science, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI, United States
| | - Joshua M Carlson
- Department of Psychological Science, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI, United States
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8
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Kohei K, Toyohiro H, Jun T, Toshiyuki I, Hiromi NT, Yuji K, Naoki N, Michiko K, Shigeru M. Efficacy of attention bias modification combined with cognitive behavioral therapy for reducing anxiety in patients with hematopoietic malignancies: a quasi-randomized controlled trial. JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS REPORTS 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jadr.2021.100122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
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9
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Dinh HT, Nishimaru H, Le QV, Matsumoto J, Setogawa T, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Ono T, Nishijo H. Preferential Neuronal Responses to Snakes in the Monkey Medial Prefrontal Cortex Support an Evolutionary Origin for Ophidiophobia. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:653250. [PMID: 33841110 PMCID: PMC8024491 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.653250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Ophidiophobia (snake phobia) is one of the most common specific phobias. It has been proposed that specific phobia may have an evolutionary origin, and that attentional bias to specific items may promote the onset of phobia. Noninvasive imaging studies of patients with specific phobia reported that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), especially the rostral part of the anterior cingulate cortex (rACC), and amygdala are activated during the presentation of phobogenic stimuli. We propose that the mPFC-amygdala circuit may be involved in the pathogenesis of phobia. The mPFC receives inputs from the phylogenically old subcortical visual pathway including the superior colliculus, pulvinar, and amygdala, while mPFC neurons are highly sensitive to snakes that are the first modern predator of primates, and discriminate snakes with striking postures from those with non-striking postures. Furthermore, the mPFC has been implicated in the attentional allocation and promotes amygdala-dependent aversive conditioning. These findings suggest that the rACC focuses attention on snakes, and promotes aversive conditioning to snakes, which may lead to anxiety and ophidiophobia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ha Trong Dinh
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Setogawa
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Laboratory of Neuroscience and Behavior, CEUMA University, São Luis, Brazil
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
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10
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Andrzejewski JA, Carlson JM. Electrocortical responses associated with attention bias to fearful facial expressions and auditory distress signals. Int J Psychophysiol 2020; 151:94-102. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2020.02.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Revised: 01/28/2020] [Accepted: 02/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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11
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Acute psychological stress impairs attention disengagement toward threat-related stimuli. ACTA PSYCHOLOGICA SINICA 2020. [DOI: 10.3724/sp.j.1041.2020.00026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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12
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Jenkins LM, Chiang JJ, Vause K, Hoffer L, Alpert K, Parrish TB, Wang L, Miller GE. Subcortical structural variations associated with low socioeconomic status in adolescents. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:162-171. [PMID: 31571360 PMCID: PMC7268024 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24796] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2019] [Revised: 08/30/2019] [Accepted: 09/03/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Low socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with a higher probability of multiple exposures (e.g., neighborhood violence, poor nutrition, housing instability, air pollution, and insensitive caregiving) known to affect structural development of subcortical brain regions that subserve threat and reward processing, however, few studies have examined the relationship between SES and such subcortical structures in adolescents. We examined SES variations in volume and surface morphometry of subcortical regions. The sample comprised 256 youth in eighth grade (mean age = 13.9 years), in whom high dimensional deformation mapping of structural 3T magnetic resonance imaging scans was performed. Vertex‐wise linear regression analyses examined associations between income to poverty ratio and surfaces of the hippocampus, amygdala, thalamus, caudate, putamen, nucleus accumbens and pallidum, with the covariates age, pubertal status, and intracranial volume. Given sex differences in pubertal development and subcortical maturation at this age, the analyses were stratified by sex. Among males, who at this age average an earlier pubertal stage than females, the relationship between SES and local shape variation in subcortical regions was almost entirely positive. For females, the relationship between SES and local shape variation was negative. Racial identity was associated with SES in our sample, however supplementary analyses indicated that most of the associations between SES and subcortical structure were independent of it. Although these cross‐sectional results are not definitive, they are consistent with a scenario where low SES delays structural maturation of subcortical regions involved with threat and reward processing. Future longitudinal studies are needed to test this hypothesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisanne M Jenkins
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Jessica J Chiang
- Department of, Psychology and Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Katherine Vause
- Department of, Psychology and Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Lauren Hoffer
- Department of, Psychology and Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Kathryn Alpert
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Todd B Parrish
- Department of Radiology, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois.,Department Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Lei Wang
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois.,Department of Radiology, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
| | - Gregory E Miller
- Department of, Psychology and Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
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13
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Dinh HT, Nishimaru H, Matsumoto J, Takamura Y, Le QV, Hori E, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Tran AH, Ono T, Nishijo H. Superior Neuronal Detection of Snakes and Conspecific Faces in the Macaque Medial Prefrontal Cortex. Cereb Cortex 2019; 28:2131-2145. [PMID: 28498964 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhx118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2017] [Accepted: 04/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Snakes and conspecific faces are quickly and efficiently detected in primates. Because the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been implicated in attentional allocation to biologically relevant stimuli, we hypothesized that it might also be highly responsive to snakes and conspecific faces. In this study, neuronal responses in the monkey mPFC were recorded, while monkeys discriminated 8 categories of visual stimuli. Here, we show that the monkey mPFC neuronal responses to snakes and conspecific faces were unique. First, the ratios of the neurons that responded strongly to snakes and monkey faces were greater than those of the neurons that responded strongly to the other stimuli. Second, mPFC neurons responded stronger and faster to snakes and monkey faces than the other categories of stimuli. Third, neuronal responses to snakes were unaffected by low-pass filtering of the images. Finally, activity patterns of responsive mPFC neurons discriminated snakes from the other stimuli in the second 50 ms period and monkey faces in the third period after stimulus onset. These response features indicate that the mPFC processes fast and coarse visual information of snakes and monkey faces, and support the hypothesis that snakes and social environments have shaped the primate visual system over evolutionary time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ha Trong Dinh
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Yusaku Takamura
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan.,Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Ha noi 100000, Vietnam
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900 Brasilia, DF, Brazil.,Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Psychiatry Section, Karolinska Hospital, S-17176 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900 Brasilia, DF, Brazil.,Neuroscience Research Coordenation, University CEUMA, Campus Renascença, CEP 65.075-120 São Luis, MA, Brazil
| | - Anh Hai Tran
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan.,Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Ha noi 100000, Vietnam
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
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14
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Tang W, Bao C, Xu L, Zhu J, Feng W, Zhang W, Lin C, Chen L, Cheng Q, Ding P, Zhou M, Bao Y, Yu X, Zhao K, He J. Depressive Symptoms in Late Pregnancy Disrupt Attentional Processing of Negative-Positive Emotion: An Eye-Movement Study. Front Psychiatry 2019; 10:780. [PMID: 31736800 PMCID: PMC6834685 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2019] [Accepted: 09/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
This study investigated biases for negative-positive information in component processes of visual attention (initial shift vs. maintenance of gaze) among women in late pregnancy with or without depressive symptoms. Eye movements were recorded while participants viewed a series of picture pairs depicting negative, positive, and neutral scenes. Initial orienting (latency and percentage of first fixation) and gaze duration were computed. Compared with neutral pictures, the group with major depressive symptoms (MDS) were less able to sense the positive emotion-related pictures and were over-responsive to negative emotion-related pictures. The group with suspicious depressive symptoms (SDS) had an attention bias toward both positive and negative emotion-related pictures. The group with no depressive symptoms (NDS) had an attention bias toward positive emotion-related pictures and had an initial attention avoidance tendency for negative emotion-related pictures. The initial gaze direction bias score for negative emotion-related pictures was positively correlated with the severity of depressive symptoms. Therefore, women with a risk of perinatal depression have a significant bias toward negative stimuli. Hypervigilant emotion processing during pregnancy may increase a woman's susceptibility to depression during late pregnancy. Attention away from negative information or attention toward positive information may provide a way of buffering emotional responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weina Tang
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Ciqing Bao
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Ling Xu
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Jie Zhu
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Wenqian Feng
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Wenmiao Zhang
- Department of Obstetrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Cong Lin
- Department of Obstetrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Lan Chen
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Qianqian Cheng
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Penghao Ding
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Meixi Zhou
- Department of Obstetrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Ying Bao
- Department of Obstetrics, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Xin Yu
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Ke Zhao
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
| | - Jincai He
- School of Mental Health, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.,Department of Neurology, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
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15
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Aday JS, Carlson JM. Extended testing with the dot-probe task increases test-retest reliability and validity. Cogn Process 2018; 20:65-72. [PMID: 30171401 DOI: 10.1007/s10339-018-0886-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The dot-probe task is used to measure attentional biases toward threat. However, the test-retest reliability and validity of the task have been called into question. No studies to date have included an extended number of testing sessions or tailored the task to individual participants by incorporating self-relevant stimuli-doing so may improve reliability. Here, participants provided 10 words that caused them anxiety and 10 neutral words which were incorporated into a dot-probe task for 6 sessions. The test-retest reliability of their bias indices was stronger in bottom-target trials relative to top-target trials and stronger among later relative to earlier sessions. State and trait anxiety were moderately correlated with bias indices in later sessions, but not earlier sessions. Overall reaction time in each session was moderately correlated with state and trait anxiety. These results suggest that including extended testing may facilitate dot-probe task test-retest reliability and validity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob S Aday
- Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI, USA.
- Department of Psychology, Central Michigan University, 101 Sloan Hall, Mount Pleasant, MI, USA.
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16
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Goldstein-Piekarski AN, Greer SM, Saletin JM, Harvey AG, Williams LM, Walker MP. Sex, Sleep Deprivation, and the Anxious Brain. J Cogn Neurosci 2018; 30:565-578. [PMID: 29244642 PMCID: PMC6143348 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Insufficient sleep is a known trigger of anxiety. Nevertheless, not everyone experiences these effects to the same extent. One determining factor is sex, wherein women experience a greater anxiogenic impact in response to sleep loss than men. However, the underlying brain mechanism(s) governing this sleep-loss-induced anxiety increase, including the markedly different reaction in women and men, is unclear. Here, we tested the hypothesis that structural brain morphology in a discrete network of emotion-relevant regions represents one such explanatory factor. Healthy participants were assessed across sleep-rested and sleep-deprived conditions, with brain structure quantified using gray matter volume measures. Sleep loss triggered greater levels of anxiety in women compared with men. Reduced gray matter volume in the anterior insula and lateral orbitofrontal cortex predicted the anxiogenic impact of sleep loss in women, yet predicted resilience in men, and did so with high discrimination accuracy. In contrast, gray matter volume in ventromedial prefrontal cortex predicted the anxiogenic impact of sleep loss in both men and women. Structural human brain morphology therefore appears to represent one mechanistic pathway (and possible biomarker) determining anxiety vulnerability to sleep loss-a discovery that may help explain the higher prevalence of sleep disruption and anxiety in women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea N. Goldstein-Piekarski
- University of California, Berkeley
- Stanford University
- Sierra-Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System
| | | | - Jared M. Saletin
- University of California, Berkeley
- Alpert Medical School of Brown University
| | | | - Leanne M. Williams
- Stanford University
- Sierra-Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System
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17
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Fillinger C, Yalcin I, Barrot M, Veinante P. Efferents of anterior cingulate areas 24a and 24b and midcingulate areas 24a' and 24b' in the mouse. Brain Struct Funct 2017; 223:1747-1778. [PMID: 29209804 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-017-1585-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2017] [Accepted: 11/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), constituted by areas 25, 32, 24a and 24b in rodents, plays a major role in cognition, emotion and pain. In a previous study, we described the afferents of areas 24a and 24b and those of areas 24a' and 24b' of midcingulate cortex (MCC) in mice and highlighted some density differences among cingulate inputs (Fillinger et al., Brain Struct Funct 222:1509-1532, 2017). To complete this connectome, we analyzed here the efferents of ACC and MCC by injecting anterograde tracers in areas 24a/24b of ACC and 24a'/24b' of MCC. Our results reveal a common projections pattern from both ACC and MCC, targeting the cortical mantle (intracingulate, retrosplenial and parietal associative cortex), the non-cortical basal forebrain, (dorsal striatum, septum, claustrum, basolateral amygdala), the hypothalamus (anterior, lateral, posterior), the thalamus (anterior, laterodorsal, ventral, mediodorsal, midline and intralaminar nuclei), the brainstem (periaqueductal gray, superior colliculus, pontomesencephalic reticular formation, pontine nuclei, tegmental nuclei) and the spinal cord. In addition to an overall denser ACC projection pattern compared to MCC, our analysis revealed clear differences in the density and topography of efferents between ACC and MCC, as well as between dorsal (24b/24b') and ventral (24a/24a') areas, suggesting a common functionality of these two cingulate regions supplemented by specific roles of each area. These results provide a detailed analysis of the efferents of the mouse areas 24a/24b and 24a'/24b' and achieve the description of the cingulate connectome, which bring the anatomical basis necessary to address the roles of ACC and MCC in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clémentine Fillinger
- Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS UPR3212, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France.,Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Ipek Yalcin
- Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS UPR3212, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France
| | - Michel Barrot
- Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS UPR3212, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France
| | - Pierre Veinante
- Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, CNRS UPR3212, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France. .,Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France.
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18
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Schoenberg PLA, Ruf A, Churchill J, Brown DP, Brewer JA. Mapping complex mind states: EEG neural substrates of meditative unified compassionate awareness. Conscious Cogn 2017; 57:41-53. [PMID: 29169033 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2017.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2017] [Revised: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Specific mental training cultivates diminished self-reference, encompassing non-duality, emptiness, awakened-awareness, and compassionate experiences. We aimed to elucidate the neural substrates of four distinct, interdependent Essence-of-Mind states: (1) timelessness, (2) non-preference, non-duality, non-conceptualization, (3) the view of luminosity and limitlessness, (4) unified compassionate experience of oneness (stable awakened-awareness). EEG data were collected from 30 advanced meditators concomitant to eyes-open/eyes-closed resting baseline, followed by 60-min of instructed practice. Alpha, beta, and gamma, frequency-spatial EEG-dimensions were analyzed. The results revealed that compared to baseline, current density across frequencies significantly decreased upon meditation onset in self-referential, and executive-control regions. During meditation, gamma-band current density significantly increased from state-1 compared to state-4, within the ACC, precuneus, and superior parietal lobule, whereas beta-band activity increased within the insula. These findings suggest a dissociation between brain regions regulating self-referential vs. executive-control processing, during non-dual, compassionate states, characterized by brilliantly awake awareness, free from conceptual thought and "doing".
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Affiliation(s)
- Poppy L A Schoenberg
- University of Massachusetts Medical School, Center for Mindfulness, Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine, Shrewsbury, MA, USA; Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA.
| | - Andrea Ruf
- University of Massachusetts Medical School, Center for Mindfulness, Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine, Shrewsbury, MA, USA
| | - John Churchill
- William James College, Department of Clinical Psychology, Newton, MA, USA
| | - Daniel P Brown
- Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel-Deaconess Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Judson A Brewer
- University of Massachusetts Medical School, Center for Mindfulness, Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine, Shrewsbury, MA, USA
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19
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Aday J, Carlson JM. Structural MRI-based measures of neuroplasticity in an extended amygdala network as a target for attention bias modification treatment outcome. Med Hypotheses 2017; 109:6-16. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2017.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2017] [Revised: 08/17/2017] [Accepted: 09/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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20
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Uono S, Sato W, Kochiyama T, Sawada R, Kubota Y, Yoshimura S, Toichi M. Neural substrates of the ability to recognize facial expressions: a voxel-based morphometry study. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2017; 12:487-495. [PMID: 27672176 PMCID: PMC5390731 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsw142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2016] [Accepted: 09/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The recognition of facial expressions of emotion is adaptive for human social interaction, but the ability to do this and the manner in which it is achieved differs among individuals. Previous functional neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that some brain regions, such as the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), are active during the response to emotional facial expressions in healthy participants, and lesion studies have demonstrated that damage to these structures impairs the recognition of facial expressions. However, it remains to be established whether individual differences in the structure of these regions could be associated with differences in the ability to recognize facial expressions. We investigated this issue using acquired structural magnetic resonance imaging, and assessed the performance of healthy adults with respect to recognition of the facial expressions of six basic emotions. The gray matter volume of the right IFG positively correlated with the total accuracy of facial expression recognition. This suggests that individual differences in the ability to recognize facial expressions are associated with differences in the structure of the right IFG. Furthermore, the mirror neuron activity of the IFG may be important for establishing efficient facial mimicry to facilitate emotion recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shota Uono
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Wataru Sato
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Takanori Kochiyama
- ATR Brain Activity Imaging Center, 2-2-2, Hikaridai, Seika-cho, Souraku-gun, Kyoto 619-0288, Japan
| | - Reiko Sawada
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.,The Organization for Promoting Neurodevelopmental Disorder Research, 40 Shogoin-Sannocho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8392, Japan
| | - Yasutaka Kubota
- Health and Medical Services Center, Shiga University, 1-1-1, Baba, Hikone, Shiga 522-8522, Japan
| | - Sayaka Yoshimura
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Motomi Toichi
- Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.,The Organization for Promoting Neurodevelopmental Disorder Research, 40 Shogoin-Sannocho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8392, Japan
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21
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Shechner T, Bar-Haim Y. Threat Monitoring and Attention-Bias Modification in Anxiety and Stress-Related Disorders. CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2016. [DOI: 10.1177/0963721416664341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Extensive research has demonstrated the effects of threat-related attentional bias on anxiety and stress-related disorders. This review summarizes recent findings from clinical affective neuroscience. It takes a multilevel analysis approach by presenting behavioral and neural findings from studies conducted in laboratories, clinical settings, and real-life situations. Building on recent findings, we propose a new working model linking individual tendencies to attend or avoid threats with the level of danger in a given context. Namely, adaptive or pathological response is determined by threat-monitoring flexibility and plasticity in an ever-changing environment. The review culminates by describing the potential therapeutic value of attention-bias modification in the treatment of anxiety and stress-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yair Bar-Haim
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University
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22
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Weber MA, Morrow KA, Rizer WS, Kangas KJ, Carlson JM. Sustained, not habituated, activity in the human amygdala: A pilot fMRI dot-probe study of attentional bias to fearful faces. COGENT PSYCHOLOGY 2016. [DOI: 10.1080/23311908.2016.1259881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Millicent A. Weber
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, 1401 Presque Isle Avenue, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
| | - Kelly A. Morrow
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, 1401 Presque Isle Avenue, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
| | - Will S. Rizer
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, 1401 Presque Isle Avenue, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
| | - Keara J. Kangas
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, 1401 Presque Isle Avenue, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
| | - Joshua M. Carlson
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, 1401 Presque Isle Avenue, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
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23
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Fillinger C, Yalcin I, Barrot M, Veinante P. Afferents to anterior cingulate areas 24a and 24b and midcingulate areas 24a' and 24b' in the mouse. Brain Struct Funct 2016; 222:1509-1532. [PMID: 27539453 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-016-1290-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2016] [Accepted: 08/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Areas 24a and 24b of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) play a major role in cognition, emotion and pain. While their connectivity has been studied in primate and in rat, a complete mapping was still missing in the mouse. Here, we analyzed the afferents to the mouse ACC by injecting retrograde tracers in the ventral and dorsal areas of the ACC (areas 24a/b) and of the midcingulate cortex (MCC; areas 24a'/b'). Our results reveal inputs from five principal groups of structures: (1) cortical areas, mainly the orbital, medial prefrontal, retrosplenial, parietal associative, primary and secondary sensory areas and the hippocampus, (2) basal forebrain, mainly the basolateral amygdaloid nucleus, the claustrum and the horizontal limb of the diagonal band of Broca, (3) the thalamus, mainly the anteromedial, lateral mediodorsal, ventromedial, centrolateral, central medial and reuniens/rhomboid nuclei, (4) the hypothalamus, mainly the lateral and retromammillary areas, and (5) the brainstem, mainly the monoaminergic centers. The neurochemical nature of inputs from the diagonal band of Broca and brainstem centers was also investigated by double-labeling, showing that only a part of these afferents were cholinergic or monoaminergic. Comparisons between the areas indicate that areas 24a and 24b receive qualitatively similar inputs, but with different densities. These differences are more pronounced when comparing the inputs to ACC's areas 24a/24b to the inputs to MCC's areas 24a'/24b'. These results provide a complete analysis of the afferents to the mouse areas 24a/24b and 24a'/24b', which shows important similarity with the connectivity of homologous areas in rats, and brings the anatomical basis necessary to address the roles of cingulate areas in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clémentine Fillinger
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France.,Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Ipek Yalcin
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France
| | - Michel Barrot
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France
| | - Pierre Veinante
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084, Strasbourg, France. .,Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France.
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24
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Fang Z, Li H, Chen G, Yang J. Unconscious Processing of Negative Animals and Objects: Role of the Amygdala Revealed by fMRI. Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:146. [PMID: 27092067 PMCID: PMC4820445 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2015] [Accepted: 03/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have shown that emotional stimuli can be processed through the amygdala without conscious awareness. The amygdala is also involved in processing animate and social information. However, it is unclear whether different categories of pictures (e.g., animals, objects) elicit different activity in the amygdale and other regions without conscious awareness. The objective of this study was to explore whether the factors of category, emotion and picture context modulate brain activation for unconscious processing. Pictures denoting different nonhuman animals and objects in negative and neutral emotional valences were presented using a sandwich-masking paradigm. Half of them were presented with human-related information in the contexts, and half were not. Our results showed significant interaction among category, emotion and context in the amygdala and subcortical regions. Specifically, negative animals elicited stronger activation in these regions than negative objects, especially with human contexts. In addition, there were different correlation patterns between the amygdala and cortical regions according to whether they included human context. There were limited activations in cortical category-related networks. These results suggest that the amygdala and subcortical regions dominantly process negative animals, and contextual information modulates their activities, making threatening stimuli that are most relevant to human survival preferentially processed without conscious awareness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyong Fang
- Department of Psychology and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University Beijing, China
| | - Han Li
- Department of Psychology and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University Beijing, China
| | - Gang Chen
- Scientific and Statistical Computing Core, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)/National Institutes of Health (NIH)/Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - JiongJiong Yang
- Department of Psychology and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University Beijing, China
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25
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Carlson JM, Torrence RD, Vander Hyde MR. Beware the eyes behind the mask: The capture and hold of selective attention by backward masked fearful eyes. MOTIVATION AND EMOTION 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s11031-016-9542-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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26
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Carlson JM, Depetro E, Maxwell J, Harmon-Jones E, Hajcak G. Gender moderates the association between dorsal medial prefrontal cortex volume and depressive symptoms in a subclinical sample. Psychiatry Res 2015; 233:285-8. [PMID: 26166620 DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2015.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2014] [Revised: 02/05/2015] [Accepted: 06/16/2015] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Major depressive disorder is associated with lower medial prefrontal cortex volumes. The role that gender might play in moderating this relationship and what particular medial prefrontal cortex subregion(s) might be implicated is unclear. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to assess dorsal, ventral, and anterior cingulate regions of the medial prefrontal cortex in a normative sample of male and female adults. The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS) was used to measure these three variables. Voxel-based morphometry was used to test for correlations between medial prefrontal gray matter volume and depressive traits. The dorsal medial frontal cortex was correlated with greater levels of depression, but not anxiety and stress. Gender moderates this effect: in males greater levels of depression were associated with lower dorsal medial prefrontal volumes, but in females no relationship was observed. The results indicate that even within a non-clinical sample, male participants with higher levels of depressive traits tend to have lower levels of gray matter volume in the dorsal medial prefrontal cortex. Our finding is consistent with low dorsal medial prefrontal volume contributing to the development of depression in males. Future longitudinal work is needed to substantiate this possibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua M Carlson
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI 49855, USA.
| | - Emily Depetro
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
| | - Joshua Maxwell
- Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI 49855, USA
| | - Eddie Harmon-Jones
- School of Psychology, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
| | - Greg Hajcak
- Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
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27
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Voxel-based morphometry predicts shifts in dendritic spine density and morphology with auditory fear conditioning. Nat Commun 2015; 6:7582. [PMID: 26151911 PMCID: PMC4506522 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms8582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2015] [Accepted: 05/21/2015] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuroimaging has provided compelling data about the brain. Yet the underlying mechanisms of many neuroimaging techniques have not been elucidated. Here we report a voxel-based morphometry (VBM) study of Thy1-YFP mice following auditory fear conditioning complemented by confocal microscopy analysis of cortical thickness, neuronal morphometric features and nuclei size/density. Significant VBM results included the nuclei of the amygdala, the insula and the auditory cortex. There were no significant VBM changes in a control brain area. Focusing on the auditory cortex, confocal analysis showed that fear conditioning led to a significantly increased density of shorter and wider dendritic spines, while there were no spine differences in the control area. Of all the morphology metrics studied, the spine density was the only one to show significant correlation with the VBM signal. These data demonstrate that learning-induced structural changes detected by VBM may be partially explained by increases in dendritic spine density. Voxel-based morphometry (VBM) involves comparisons of high resolution structural images of the brain between groups, but what causes changes in the VBM signal is unclear. Here the authors perform a VBM study of Thy1-YFP mice following auditory fear conditioning and propose that the signal changes can be partially explained by increases in dendritic spine density.
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28
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Hartikainen KM, Sun L, Polvivaara M, Brause M, Lehtimäki K, Haapasalo J, Möttönen T, Väyrynen K, Ogawa KH, Öhman J, Peltola J. Immediate effects of deep brain stimulation of anterior thalamic nuclei on executive functions and emotion-attention interaction in humans. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2014; 36:540-50. [PMID: 24839985 PMCID: PMC4066928 DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2014.913554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Background Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of anterior thalamic nuclei (ANT) is a novel promising therapeutic method for treating refractory epilepsy. Despite reports of subjective memory impairments and mood disturbances in patients with ANT-DBS, little is known of its effects on cognitive and affective processes. Hypothesis The anterior thalamus has connections to prefrontal and limbic networks important for cognitive control and emotional reactivity. More specifically, anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), linked with ANT, has been assigned roles related to response inhibition and attention allocation to threat. Thus, we hypothesized ANT-DBS to influence executive functions, particularly response inhibition, and modulate emotional reactivity to threat. Method Twelve patients having undergone ANT-DBS for intractable epilepsy participated in the study. Patients performed a computer-based executive reaction time (RT) test—that is, a go/ no-go visual discrimination task with threat-related emotional distractors and rule switching, while the DBS was switched ON (5/5 mA constant current) and OFF every few minutes. Results ANT-DBS increased the amount of commission errors—that is, errors where subjects failed to withhold from responding. Furthermore, ANT-DBS slowed RTs in context of threat-related distractors. When stimulation was turned off, threat-related distractors had no distinct effect on RTs. Conclusion We found immediate objective effects of ANT-DBS on human cognitive control and emotion-attention interaction. We suggest that ANT-DBS compromised response inhibition and enhanced attention allocation to threat due to altered functioning of neural networks that involve the DBS-target, ANT, and the regions connected to it such as ACC. The results highlight the need to consider affective and cognitive side-effects in addition to the therapeutic effect when adjusting stimulation parameters. Furthermore, this study introduces a novel window into cognitive and affective processes by modulating the associative and limbic networks with direct stimulation of key nodes in the thalamus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaisa M Hartikainen
- a Behavioral Neurology Research Unit, Tampere University Hospital , Tampere , Finland
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29
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Price RB, Siegle GJ, Silk JS, Ladouceur CD, McFarland A, Dahl RE, Ryan ND. Looking under the hood of the dot-probe task: an fMRI study in anxious youth. Depress Anxiety 2014; 31:178-87. [PMID: 24578016 PMCID: PMC3992818 DOI: 10.1002/da.22255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 67] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2014] [Accepted: 01/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Anxious youth have shown altered behavioral performance on the dot-probe task, but neural activation patterns provoked by the task remain poorly understood. In particular, neural mechanisms of threat disengagement, a clinically relevant construct, have been inadequately explored. METHOD During fMRI acquisition, 121 youth (ages 9-13; 90 with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Separation Anxiety Disorder, and/or Social Phobia; 31 nonanxious controls) completed a dot-probe task, which required participants to identify the location of a dot replacing either a neutral or fearful face in a pair containing both faces. We assessed neural substrates of threat disengagement by comparing congruent trials (in which the dot replaces the fearful face) to incongruent trials (in which the dot replaces the neutral face). RESULTS Across subjects, decreased rostrodorsal anterior cingulate cortex (rdACC) activity was observed specifically during incongruent trials. Nonanxious youth showed a convergent pattern in bilateral parahippocampal and hippocampal regions, whereas anxious youth showed an opposing pattern in these limbic areas, suggesting less integration of response across cortical and limbic areas relevant to threat appraisal. Reduced functional connectivity between rdACC and left parahippocampus/hippocampus was associated with greater anxiety. CONCLUSIONS In the largest dot-probe fMRI sample to date, both anxious and nonanxious youth showed a neural pattern consistent with successful disengagement of threat reactivity in the rdACC. However, anxious youth showed evidence of abnormal disengagement in bilateral parahippocampal/hippocampal clusters when attention was directed away from threat. Early interventions targeting neural mechanisms of threat disengagement may be beneficial, for example, by increasing integration across rdACC and limbic regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca B. Price
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,Correspondence to: Rebecca Price, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 3811 O'Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213.
| | - Greg J. Siegle
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Jennifer S. Silk
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Cecile D. Ladouceur
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Ashley McFarland
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Ronald E. Dahl
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,Department of Community Health and Human Development, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, California
| | - Neal D. Ryan
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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Midbrain volume predicts fMRI and ERP measures of reward reactivity. Brain Struct Funct 2014; 220:1861-6. [DOI: 10.1007/s00429-014-0725-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2013] [Accepted: 01/29/2014] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
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Carlson JM, Reinke KS. Attending to the fear in your eyes: Facilitated orienting and delayed disengagement. Cogn Emot 2014; 28:1398-406. [DOI: 10.1080/02699931.2014.885410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Takeuchi H, Taki Y, Sassa Y, Hashizume H, Sekiguchi A, Fukushima A, Kawashima R. Regional gray matter volume is associated with empathizing and systemizing in young adults. PLoS One 2014; 9:e84782. [PMID: 24409308 PMCID: PMC3883687 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0084782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2013] [Accepted: 11/19/2013] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Empathizing is defined as the drive to identify the mental states of others for predicting their behavior and responding with an appropriate emotion. Systemizing is defined as the drive to analyze a system in terms of the rules that govern the system in order to predict its behavior. Using voxel-based morphometry and questionnaires in a large sample of normal, right-handed young adults, we investigated the regional gray matter volume (rGMV) correlates of empathizing and systemizing and additionally those of the D score, which is the difference between systemizing and empathizing, to reveal the comprehensive picture of those correlates. Negative rGMV correlates of empathizing and positive rGMV correlates of the D score (formed by the negative correlation between rGMV and empathizing), were found primarily in nodes in the default mode network, mirror neuron system, dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, and the lateral part of the prefrontal cortex together with other areas. Positive rGMV correlates of systemizing and of the D score (formed by the positive correlation between rGMV and systemizing) were found primarily in nodes in the external attention system, middle cingulate cortex, and other regions. Negative rGMV correlates of systemizing were found in an area close to the left posterior insula and putamen. These findings reconcile some previously inconsistent findings, provide other new findings and suggest that these areas contribute to empathizing-systemizing. Furthermore, the negative/positive rGMV correlates of empathizing and positive/negative rGMV correlates of systemizing overlapped substantially. This may be in line with the notion that empathizing and systemizing compete neurally in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hikaru Takeuchi
- Smart Ageing International Research Center, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Yasuyuki Taki
- Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Yuko Sassa
- Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Hashizume
- Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Atsushi Sekiguchi
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Ai Fukushima
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Ryuta Kawashima
- Smart Ageing International Research Center, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
- Division of Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
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Carlson JM, Cha J, Mujica-Parodi LR. Functional and structural amygdala - anterior cingulate connectivity correlates with attentional bias to masked fearful faces. Cortex 2013; 49:2595-600. [PMID: 23954317 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2013.07.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2012] [Revised: 05/06/2013] [Accepted: 07/12/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
An attentional bias to threat has been causally related to anxiety. Recent research has linked nonconscious attentional bias to threat with variability in the integrity of the amygdala - anterior cingulate pathway, which sheds light on the neuroanatomical basis for a behavioral precursor to anxiety. However, the extent to which structural variability in amygdala - anterior cingulate integrity relates to the functional connectivity within this pathway and how such functional connectivity may relate to attention bias behavior, remain critical missing pieces of the puzzle. In 15 individuals we measured the structural integrity of the amygdala - prefrontal pathway with diffusion tensor-weighted MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), amygdala-seeded intrinsic functional connectivity to the anterior cingulate, and attentional bias toward backward masked fearful faces with a dot-probe task. We found that greater biases in attention to threat predicted greater levels of uncinate fasciculus integrity, greater positive amygdala - anterior cingulate functional connectivity, and greater amygdala coupling with a broader social perception network including the superior temporal sulcus, tempoparietal junction (TPJ), and somatosensory cortex. Additionally, greater levels of uncinate fasciculus integrity correlated with greater levels of amygdala - anterior cingulate intrinsic functional connectivity. Thus, high bias individuals displayed a heightened degree of amygdala - anterior cingulate connectivity during basal conditions, which we believe predisposes these individuals to focus their attention on signals of threat within their environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua M Carlson
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Stony Brook, NY, USA; Department of Psychology, Northern Michigan University, Marquette, MI, USA.
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Takeuchi H, Taki Y, Nouchi R, Hashizume H, Sassa Y, Sekiguchi A, Kotozaki Y, Nakagawa S, Nagase T, Miyauchi CM, Kawashima R. Anatomical correlates of quality of life: evidence from voxel-based morphometry. Hum Brain Mapp 2013; 35:1834-46. [PMID: 23671021 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.22294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2012] [Revised: 01/15/2013] [Accepted: 03/07/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Quality of life (QOL) has been defined in many ways, and these definitions usually emphasize happiness and satisfaction with life. Health-related problems are known to cause lower QOL. However, the neural mechanisms underlying individual differences in QOL measured by questionnaire (QOLMQ) in young healthy subjects are unknown. QOL is essential to our well-being, and investigation of the neural mechanisms underlying QOL in uncompromised subjects is obviously of great scientific and social interest. We used voxel-based morphometry to investigate the association between regional gray matter volume (rGMV) and QOLMQ across the brain in healthy young adults (age, 21.4 ± 1.8 years) men (n = 88) and women (n = 68) in humans. We found significant negative relationships between QOLMQ and rGMV in a region in the left rostrolateral prefrontal cortex and regions in the dorsal part of the anterior cingulate gyrus and contingent cingulate regions. These findings show that structural variations in regions associated with processing of negative emotions such as fear and anger as well as those associated with evaluation of internally generated information are associated with QOLMQ. These findings suggest that these processes might be related to QOLMQ in healthy young adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hikaru Takeuchi
- Smart Ageing International Research Center, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
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Carlson JM, Cha J, Harmon-Jones E, Mujica-Parodi LR, Hajcak G. Influence of the BDNF Genotype on Amygdalo-Prefrontal White Matter Microstructure is Linked to Nonconscious Attention Bias to Threat. Cereb Cortex 2013; 24:2249-57. [DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bht089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
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Localization of function in anterior cingulate cortex: From psychosurgery to functional neuroimaging. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2013; 37:340-8. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 150] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2012] [Revised: 12/10/2012] [Accepted: 01/03/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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van Gaal S, de Lange FP, Cohen MX. The role of consciousness in cognitive control and decision making. Front Hum Neurosci 2012; 6:121. [PMID: 22586386 PMCID: PMC3345871 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2012.00121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2012] [Accepted: 04/17/2012] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Here we review studies on the complexity and strength of unconscious information processing. We focus on empirical evidence that relates awareness of information to cognitive control processes (e.g., response inhibition, conflict resolution, and task-switching), the life-time of information maintenance (e.g., working memory) and the possibility to integrate multiple pieces of information across space and time. Overall, the results that we review paint a picture of local and specific effects of unconscious information on various (high-level) brain regions, including areas in the prefrontal cortex. Although this neural activation does not elicit any conscious experience, it is functional and capable of influencing many perceptual, cognitive (control) and decision-related processes, sometimes even for relatively long periods of time. However, recent evidence also points out interesting dissociations between conscious and unconscious information processing when it comes to the duration, flexibility and the strategic use of that information for complex operations and decision-making. Based on the available evidence, we conclude that the role of task-relevance of subliminal information and meta-cognitive factors in unconscious cognition need more attention in future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon van Gaal
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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