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Gee DG, Hanson C, Caglar LR, Fareri DS, Gabard-Durnam LJ, Mills-Finnerty C, Goff B, Caldera CJ, Lumian DS, Flannery J, Hanson SJ, Tottenham N. Experimental evidence for a child-to-adolescent switch in human amygdala-prefrontal cortex communication: A cross-sectional pilot study. Dev Sci 2022; 25:e13238. [PMID: 35080089 PMCID: PMC9232876 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 01/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Interactions between the amygdala and prefrontal cortex are fundamental to human emotion. Despite the central role of frontoamygdala communication in adult emotional learning and regulation, little is known about how top-down control emerges during human development. In the present cross-sectional pilot study, we experimentally manipulated prefrontal engagement to test its effects on the amygdala during development. Inducing dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) activation resulted in developmentally-opposite effects on amygdala reactivity during childhood versus adolescence, such that dACC activation was followed by increased amygdala reactivity in childhood but reduced amygdala reactivity in adolescence. Bayesian network analyses revealed an age-related switch between childhood and adolescence in the nature of amygdala connectivity with the dACC and ventromedial PFC (vmPFC). Whereas adolescence was marked by information flow from dACC and vmPFC to amygdala (consistent with that observed in adults), the reverse information flow, from the amygdala to dACC and vmPFC, was dominant in childhood. The age-related switch in information flow suggests a potential shift from bottom-up co-excitatory to top-down regulatory frontoamygdala connectivity and may indicate a profound change in the circuitry supporting maturation of emotional behavior. These findings provide novel insight into the developmental construction of amygdala-cortical connections and implications for the ways in which childhood experiences may influence subsequent prefrontal function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dylan G. Gee
- Yale University, Department of Psychology, 2 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven, CT 06511
- To whom correspondence should be addressed: ,
| | - Catherine Hanson
- Rutgers University, Department of Psychology, 101 Warren Street, Newark, NJ 07102
| | - Leyla Roksan Caglar
- Rutgers University, Department of Psychology, 101 Warren Street, Newark, NJ 07102
| | - Dominic S. Fareri
- Adelphi University, Department of Psychology, Blodgett Hall, Garden City, NY 11530
| | | | | | - Bonnie Goff
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Psychology, 1285 Franz Hall, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Christina J. Caldera
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Psychology, 1285 Franz Hall, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Daniel S. Lumian
- University of Denver, Department of Psychology, 2155 S. Race Street, Denver, CO 80210
| | - Jessica Flannery
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Department of Psychology, 235 E. Cameron Ave, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
| | - Stephen J. Hanson
- Rutgers University, Department of Psychology, 101 Warren Street, Newark, NJ 07102
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Columbia University, Department of Psychology, 406 Schermerhorn Hall, 1190 Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027
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2
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OUP accepted manuscript. Cereb Cortex 2022; 32:4619-4639. [DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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3
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Atypical development of emotional face processing networks in autism spectrum disorder from childhood through to adulthood. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2021; 51:101003. [PMID: 34416703 PMCID: PMC8377538 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.101003] [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: 08/20/2020] [Revised: 07/29/2021] [Accepted: 08/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
MEG connectivity to emotional faces in ASD and typical controls 6–39 years of age was investigated. Distinct age-related changes in connectivity were observed in the groups to happy and angry faces. Age-related between-group differences in functional connectivity were found in gamma band. Emotion-specific age-related between-group differences were seen in beta. Findings highlight specific neurodevelopmental trajectories to emotional faces in ASD vs. TD.
Impairments in social functioning are hallmarks of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and atypical functional connectivity may underlie these difficulties. Emotion processing networks typically undergo protracted maturational changes, however, those with ASD show either hyper- or hypo-connectivity with little consensus on the functional connectivity underpinning emotion processing. Magnetoencephalography was used to investigate age-related changes in whole-brain functional connectivity of eight regions of interest during happy and angry face processing in 190 children, adolescents and adults (6–39 years) with and without ASD. Findings revealed age-related changes from child- through to mid-adulthood in functional connectivity in controls and in ASD in theta, as well as age-related between-group differences across emotions, with connectivity decreasing in ASD, but increasing for controls, in gamma. Greater connectivity to angry faces was observed across groups in gamma. Emotion-specific age-related between-group differences in beta were also found, that showed opposite trends with age for happy and angry in ASD. Our results establish altered, frequency-specific developmental trajectories of functional connectivity in ASD, across distributed networks and a broad age range, which may finally help explain the heterogeneity in the literature.
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4
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Abend R, Naim R, Pergamin-Hight L, Fox NA, Pine DS, Bar-Haim Y. Age Moderates Link Between Training Effects and Treatment Response to Attention Bias Modification Treatment for Social Anxiety Disorder. JOURNAL OF ABNORMAL CHILD PSYCHOLOGY 2020; 47:881-894. [PMID: 30426323 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-018-0494-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Attention bias modification treatment (ABMT) aims to reduce anxiety symptoms via practice on computerized attention training tasks. Despite evidence of efficacy, clinical effects appear heterogeneous. More research on ABMT mechanisms and moderators of treatment response is needed. Age is one potentially important moderator, as developmental differences in training effects may impact response. We examined developmental links between ABMT training effects and response in social anxiety disorder (SAD). We pooled data from two randomized controlled trials in treatment-seeking youths and adults with SAD (N = 99) that used identical ABMT methods. We first characterized learning effects associated with the eight-session ABMT training protocol. We then tested whether learning magnitude predicted the clinical (change in SAD symptoms) and cognitive (change in attention bias) responses to treatment. Finally, we tested whether age moderated the association between ABMT learning and treatment response. Results indicate that ABMT was associated with an incremental learning curve during the protocol, and that learning improved with age. Age further moderated the association between learning gains during the ABMT protocol and subsequent reduction in self-reported SAD symptoms, such that this association was stronger with age. These effects were not evident in bias scores or clinician ratings. Finally, pre-treatment SAD symptoms and bias scores predicted ABMT learning gains. This study highlights the links among age, learning processes, and clinical response to ABMT. These insights may inform attempts to increase the clinical efficacy of ABMT for anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rany Abend
- Section on Development and Affective Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bldg. 15K, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA.
| | - Reut Naim
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | | | - Nathan A Fox
- Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology, University of Maryland, 3404D Benjamin Building, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Daniel S Pine
- Section on Development and Affective Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bldg. 15K, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Yair Bar-Haim
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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5
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Lago TR, Blair KS, Alvarez G, Thongdarong A, Blair JR, Ernst M, Grillon C. Threat-of-shock decreases emotional interference on affective stroop performance in healthy controls and anxiety patients. Eur J Neurosci 2019; 55:2519-2528. [PMID: 31738835 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14624] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Patients with anxiety disorders suffer from impaired concentration, potentially as a result of stronger emotional interference on attention. Studies using behavioural measures provide conflicting support for this hypothesis. Elevated state anxiety may be necessary to reliably document differences in emotional interference in patients versus healthy controls. The present study examines the effect of experimentally induced state anxiety (threat-of-shock) on attention interference by emotional stimuli. Anxiety patients (n = 36) and healthy controls (n = 32) completed a modified affective Stroop task during periods of safety and threat-of-shock. Results indicated that in both patients and controls, threat decreased negative, but not positive or neutral, emotional interference on attention (both p < .001). This finding supports a threat-related narrowing of attention whereby a certain level of anxiety decreases task-irrelevant processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiffany R Lago
- Section on the Neurobiology of Fear and Anxiety, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Karina S Blair
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE
| | - Gabriella Alvarez
- Section on the Neurobiology of Fear and Anxiety, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Amanda Thongdarong
- Section on the Neurobiology of Fear and Anxiety, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - James R Blair
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE
| | - Monique Ernst
- Section on the Neurobiology of Fear and Anxiety, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Christian Grillon
- Section on the Neurobiology of Fear and Anxiety, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD
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6
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Age differences in electrocortical reactivity to fearful faces following aversive conditioning in youth. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 188:104676. [PMID: 31499457 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2019.104676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2019] [Revised: 05/29/2019] [Accepted: 07/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Although biases in the processing of affectively salient stimuli are thought to increase risk for psychopathology across the lifespan, questions remain regarding how these biases develop. The current study tested an aversive conditioning model for the development of children's sensitivity in detecting fearful faces at varying levels of emotional intensity and their facilitated attention to fearful faces assessed via the late positive potential (LPP) event-related potential component. Participants (N = 144, ages 7-11 years) were randomly assigned to one of three conditions: an active training condition in which an 85-dB white noise burst was paired with fearful faces, an active control condition in which the white noise was presented randomly throughout the task, and a no-sound condition. Children completed a separate task in which they viewed happy, sad, and fearful child faces at varying levels of emotional intensity while electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded. Although there were no conditioning group differences in children's sensitivity in detecting facial displays of emotion, there were group differences in LPP magnitude that were moderated by children's age. Among younger children, those in the active conditioning group exhibited smaller LPP amplitudes to high-intensity fearful faces than children in the control groups. However, among older youth, those in the active conditioning group exhibited larger LPP amplitudes to high-intensity fearful faces than children in the control groups. These findings provide insight into how attentional biases may develop in children and how period of development may influence these patterns.
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7
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VanTieghem MR, Tottenham N. Neurobiological Programming of Early Life Stress: Functional Development of Amygdala-Prefrontal Circuitry and Vulnerability for Stress-Related Psychopathology. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2019; 38:117-136. [PMID: 28439771 PMCID: PMC5940575 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2016_42] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Early adverse experiences are associated with heighted vulnerability for stress-related psychopathology across the lifespan. While extensive work has investigated the effects of early adversity on neurobiology in adulthood, developmental approaches can provide further insight on the neurobiological mechanisms that link early experiences and long-term mental health outcomes. In the current review, we discuss the role of emotion regulation circuitry implicated in stress-related psychopathology from a developmental and transdiagnostic perspective. We highlight converging evidence suggesting that multiple forms of early adverse experiences impact the functional development of amygdala-prefrontal circuitry. Next, we discuss how adversity-induced alterations in amygdala-prefrontal development are associated with symptoms of emotion dysregulation and psychopathology. Additionally, we discuss potential mechanisms through which protective factors may buffer the effects of early adversity on amygdala-prefrontal development to confer more adaptive long-term outcomes. Finally, we consider limitations of the existing literature and make suggestions for future longitudinal and translational research that can better elucidate the mechanisms linking early adversity, neurobiology, and emotional phenotypes. Together, these findings may provide further insight into the neuro-developmental mechanisms underlying the emergence of adversity-related emotional disorders and facilitate the development of targeted interventions that can ameliorate risk for psychopathology in youth exposed to early life stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle R VanTieghem
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, 406 Schermerhorn Hall, 1990 Amsterdam Ave, MC 5501, New York, NY, 10027, USA.
| | - Nim Tottenham
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, 406 Schermerhorn Hall, 1990 Amsterdam Ave, MC 5501, New York, NY, 10027, USA
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8
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Shiferaw B, Downey L, Crewther D. A review of gaze entropy as a measure of visual scanning efficiency. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 96:353-366. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.12.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2018] [Revised: 12/05/2018] [Accepted: 12/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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9
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Helion C, Krueger SM, Ochsner KN. Emotion regulation across the life span. HANDBOOK OF CLINICAL NEUROLOGY 2019; 163:257-280. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-804281-6.00014-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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10
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Wolf K, Galeano Weber E, van den Bosch JJF, Volz S, Nöth U, Deichmann R, Naumer MJ, Pfeiffer T, Fiebach CJ. Neurocognitive Development of the Resolution of Selective Visuo-Spatial Attention: Functional MRI Evidence From Object Tracking. Front Psychol 2018; 9:1106. [PMID: 30100887 PMCID: PMC6074837 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2018] [Accepted: 06/11/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Our ability to select relevant information from the environment is limited by the resolution of attention – i.e., the minimum size of the region that can be selected. Neural mechanisms that underlie this limit and its development are not yet understood. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was performed during an object tracking task in 7- and 11-year-old children, and in young adults. Object tracking activated canonical fronto-parietal attention systems and motion-sensitive area MT in children as young as 7 years. Object tracking performance improved with age, together with stronger recruitment of parietal attention areas and a shift from low-level to higher-level visual areas. Increasing the required resolution of spatial attention – which was implemented by varying the distance between target and distractors in the object tracking task – led to activation increases in fronto-insular cortex, medial frontal cortex including anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and supplementary motor area, superior colliculi, and thalamus. This core circuitry for attentional precision was recruited by all age groups, but ACC showed an age-related activation reduction. Our results suggest that age-related improvements in selective visual attention and in the resolution of attention are characterized by an increased use of more functionally specialized brain regions during the course of development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerstin Wolf
- Department of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Institute of Psychology, University of Education Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Germany.,IDeA Center for Individual Development and Adaptive Education, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Elena Galeano Weber
- Department of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,IDeA Center for Individual Development and Adaptive Education, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | | | - Steffen Volz
- Brain Imaging Center, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Ulrike Nöth
- Brain Imaging Center, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Ralf Deichmann
- Brain Imaging Center, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Marcus J Naumer
- Institute of Medical Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Till Pfeiffer
- Institute of Psychology, University of Education Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Germany
| | - Christian J Fiebach
- Department of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,IDeA Center for Individual Development and Adaptive Education, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.,Brain Imaging Center, Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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11
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Aloi J, Blair KS, Crum KI, Meffert H, White SF, Tyler PM, Thornton LC, Mobley AM, Killanin AD, Adams KO, Filbey F, Pope K, Blair RJR. Adolescents show differential dysfunctions related to Alcohol and Cannabis Use Disorder severity in emotion and executive attention neuro-circuitries. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2018; 19:782-792. [PMID: 29988822 PMCID: PMC6031867 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2018.06.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2018] [Revised: 04/27/2018] [Accepted: 06/04/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Alcohol and cannabis are two substances that are commonly abused by adolescents in the United States and which, when abused, are associated with negative medical and psychiatric outcomes across the lifespan. These negative psychiatric outcomes may reflect the detrimental impact of substance abuse on neural systems mediating emotion processing and executive attention. However, work indicative of this has mostly been conducted either in animal models or adults with Alcohol and/or Cannabis Use Disorder (AUD/CUD). Little work has been conducted in adolescent patients. In this study, we used the Affective Stroop task to examine the relationship in 82 adolescents between AUD and/or CUD symptom severity and the functional integrity of neural systems mediating emotional processing and executive attention. We found that AUD symptom severity was positively related to amygdala responsiveness to emotional stimuli and negatively related to responsiveness within regions implicated in executive attention and response control (i.e., dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, precuneus) as a function of task performance. In contrast, CUD symptom severity was unrelated to amygdala responsiveness but positively related to responsiveness within regions including precuneus, posterior cingulate cortex, and inferior parietal lobule as a function of task performance. These data suggest differential impacts of alcohol and cannabis abuse on the adolescent brain. Alcohol and cannabis are the most widely abused substances by adolescents. AUDIT scores are related to amygdala hyperactivity to emotional stimuli. AUDIT scores are related to hypoactivity in executive attention neuro-circuitry. CUDIT scores are related to hyperactivity in executive attention neuro-circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph Aloi
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States; Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United States.
| | - Karina S Blair
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Kathleen I Crum
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Harma Meffert
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Stuart F White
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Patrick M Tyler
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Laura C Thornton
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Alita M Mobley
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Abraham D Killanin
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Kathryn O Adams
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
| | - Francesca Filbey
- Center for BrainHealth, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, University of Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX, United States
| | - Kayla Pope
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States; Department of Psychiatry, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United States; Department of Psychiatry, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - R James R Blair
- Center for Neurobehavioral Research, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE, United States
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12
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Yeh YC, Hsu WC, Li PH. The modulation of personal traits in neural responses during the aesthetic experience of mundane art. Trends Neurosci Educ 2018. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tine.2017.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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13
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Khanna MM, Badura-Brack AS, McDermott TJ, Embury CM, Wiesman AI, Shepherd A, Ryan TJ, Heinrichs-Graham E, Wilson TW. Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder exhibit altered emotional processing and attentional control during an emotional Stroop task. Psychol Med 2017; 47:2017-2027. [PMID: 28478767 PMCID: PMC5831077 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291717000460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often associated with attention allocation and emotional regulation difficulties, but the brain dynamics underlying these deficits are unknown. The emotional Stroop task (EST) is an ideal means to monitor these difficulties, because participants are asked to attend to non-emotional aspects of the stimuli. In this study, we used magnetoencephalography (MEG) and the EST to monitor attention allocation and emotional regulation during the processing of emotionally charged stimuli in combat veterans with and without PTSD. METHOD A total of 31 veterans with PTSD and 20 without PTSD performed the EST during MEG. Three categories of stimuli were used, including combat-related, generally threatening and neutral words. MEG data were imaged in the time-frequency domain and the network dynamics were probed for differences in processing threatening and non-threatening words. RESULTS Behaviorally, veterans with PTSD were significantly slower in responding to combat-related relative to neutral and generally threatening words. Veterans without PTSD exhibited no significant differences in responding to the three different word types. Neurophysiologically, we found a significant three-way interaction between group, word type and time period across multiple brain regions. Follow-up testing indicated stronger theta-frequency (4-8 Hz) responses in the right ventral prefrontal (0.4-0.8 s) and superior temporal cortices (0.6-0.8 s) of veterans without PTSD compared with those with PTSD during the processing of combat-related words. CONCLUSIONS Our data indicated that veterans with PTSD exhibited deficits in attention allocation and emotional regulation when processing trauma cues, while those without PTSD were able to regulate emotion by directing attention away from threat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maya M. Khanna
- Department of Psychology, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA
| | | | - Timothy J. McDermott
- Department of Psychology, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Neurological Sciences, UNMC, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Christine M. Embury
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Neurological Sciences, UNMC, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Alex I. Wiesman
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Neurological Sciences, UNMC, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Alex Shepherd
- Department of Psychology, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Biobehavioral Sciences, Teachers College, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Tara J. Ryan
- Department of Psychology, Creighton University, Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada
| | - Elizabeth Heinrichs-Graham
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Neurological Sciences, UNMC, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Tony W. Wilson
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Neurological Sciences, UNMC, Omaha, NE, USA
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14
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VanTieghem MR, Gabard-Durnam L, Goff B, Flannery J, Humphreys KL, Telzer EH, Caldera C, Louie JY, Shapiro M, Bolger N, Tottenham N. Positive valence bias and parent-child relationship security moderate the association between early institutional caregiving and internalizing symptoms. Dev Psychopathol 2017; 29:519-533. [PMID: 28401841 PMCID: PMC5937229 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579417000153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Institutional caregiving is associated with significant deviations from species-expected caregiving, altering the normative sequence of attachment formation and placing children at risk for long-term emotional difficulties. However, little is known about factors that can promote resilience following early institutional caregiving. In the current study, we investigated how adaptations in affective processing (i.e., positive valence bias) and family-level protective factors (i.e., secure parent-child relationships) moderate risk for internalizing symptoms in previously institutionalized (PI) youth. Children and adolescents with and without a history of institutional care performed a laboratory-based affective processing task and self-reported measures of parent-child relationship security. PI youth were more likely than comparison youth to show positive valence biases when interpreting ambiguous facial expressions. Both positive valence bias and parent-child relationship security moderated the association between institutional care and parent-reported internalizing symptoms, such that greater positive valence bias and more secure parent-child relationships predicted fewer symptoms in PI youth. However, when both factors were tested concurrently, parent-child relationship security more strongly moderated the link between PI status and internalizing symptoms. These findings suggest that both individual-level adaptations in affective processing and family-level factors of secure parent-child relationships may ameliorate risk for internalizing psychopathology following early institutional caregiving.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Bonnie Goff
- University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
| | | | | | - Eva H. Telzer
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, IL
| | | | | | - Mor Shapiro
- University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
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15
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Lagattuta KH, Kramer HJ. Try to look on the bright side: Children and adults can (sometimes) override their tendency to prioritize negative faces. J Exp Psychol Gen 2017; 146:89-101. [PMID: 28054815 PMCID: PMC5289071 DOI: 10.1037/xge0000247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
We used eye tracking to examine 4- to 10-year-olds' and adults' (N = 173) visual attention to negative (anger, fear, sadness, disgust) and neutral faces when paired with happy faces in 2 experimental conditions: free-viewing ("look at the faces") and directed ("look only at the happy faces"). Regardless of instruction, all age groups more often looked first to negative versus positive faces (no age differences), suggesting that initial orienting is driven by bottom-up processes. In contrast, biases in more sustained attention-last looks and looking duration-varied by age and could be modified by top-down instruction. On the free-viewing task, all age groups exhibited a negativity bias which attenuated with age and remained stable across trials. When told to look only at happy faces (directed task), all age groups shifted to a positivity bias, with linear age-related improvements. This ability to implement the "look only at the happy faces" instruction, however, fatigued over time, with the decrement stronger for children. Controlling for age, individual differences in executive function (working memory and inhibitory control) had no relation to the free-viewing task; however, these variables explained substantial variance on the directed task, with children and adults higher in executive function showing better skill at looking last and looking longer at happy faces. Greater anxiety predicted more first looks to angry faces on the directed task. These findings advance theory and research on normative development and individual differences in the bias to prioritize negative information, including contributions of bottom-up salience and top-down control. (PsycINFO Database Record
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Hannah J Kramer
- Department of Psychology, and Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis
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The contributions of resting state and task-based functional connectivity studies to our understanding of adolescent brain network maturation. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 70:13-32. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.07.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2016] [Revised: 07/21/2016] [Accepted: 07/24/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
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Hwang S, Nolan ZT, White SF, Williams WC, Sinclair S, Blair RJR. Dual neurocircuitry dysfunctions in disruptive behavior disorders: emotional responding and response inhibition. Psychol Med 2016; 46:1485-96. [PMID: 26875722 PMCID: PMC5638306 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291716000118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND To determine the functional integrity of the neural systems involved in emotional responding/regulation and response control/inhibition in youth (age 10-18 years) with disruptive behavioral disorders (DBDs: conduct disorder and/or oppositional defiant disorder) as a function of callous-unemotional (CU) traits. METHOD Twenty-eight healthy youths and 35 youths with DBD [high CU (HCU), n = 18; low CU (LCU), n = 17] performed the fMRI Affective Stroop task. Participants viewed positive, neutral, and negative images under varying levels of cognitive load. A 3-way ANOVA (group×emotion by task) was conducted on the BOLD response data. RESULTS Youth with DBD-HCU showed significantly less activation of ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and amygdala in response to negative stimuli, compared to healthy youth and youth with DBD-LCU. vmPFC responsiveness was inversely related to CU symptoms in DBD. Youth with DBD-LCU showed decreased functional connectivity between amygdala and regions including inferior frontal gyrus in response to emotional stimuli. Youth with DBD (LCU and HCU) additionally showed decreased insula responsiveness to high load (incongruent trials) compared to healthy youth. Insula responsiveness was inversely related to ADHD symptoms in DBD. CONCLUSIONS These data reveal two forms of pathophysiology in DBD. One associated with reduced amygdala and vmPFC responses to negative stimuli and related to increased CU traits. Another associated with reduced insula responses during high load task trials and related to ADHD symptoms. Appropriate treatment will need to be individualized according to the patient's specific pathophysiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soonjo Hwang
- University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
| | - Zachary T. Nolan
- Penn State College of Medicine, MD/PhD Program, Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Stuart F. White
- Boystown National Research Hospital, Boystown, Nebraska, USA
| | - W. Craig Williams
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA
| | - Stephen Sinclair
- Section on Affective Cognitive Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - R. J. R. Blair
- Section on Affective Cognitive Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
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Guo Z, Liu X, Hou H, Wei F, Liu J, Chen X. Abnormal degree centrality in Alzheimer's disease patients with depression: A resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Exp Gerontol 2016; 79:61-6. [PMID: 27079332 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2016.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2015] [Revised: 03/10/2016] [Accepted: 03/25/2016] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Depression is common in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and occurs in AD patients with a prevalence of up to 40%. It reduces cognitive function and increases the burden on caregivers. Currently, there are very few medications that are useful for treating depression in AD patients. Therefore, understanding the brain abnormalities in AD patients with depression (D-AD) is crucial for developing effective interventions. The aim of this study was to investigate the intrinsic dysconnectivity pattern of whole-brain functional networks at the voxel level in D-AD patients based on degree centrality (DC) as measured by resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (R-fMRI). Our study included 32 AD patients. All patients were evaluated using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and further divided into two groups: 15 D-AD patients and 17 non-depressed AD (nD-AD) patients. R-fMRI datasets were acquired from these D-AD and nD-AD patients. First, we performed a DC analysis to identify voxels that showed altered whole brain functional connectivity (FC) with other voxels. We then further investigated FC using the abnormal DC regions to examine in more detail the connectivity patterns of the identified DC changes. D-AD patients had lower DC values in the right middle frontal, precentral, and postcentral gyrus than nD-AD patients. Seed-based analysis revealed decreased connectivity between the precentral and postcentral gyrus to the supplementary motor area and middle cingulum. FC also decreased in the right middle frontal, precentral, and postcentral gyrus. Thus, AD patients with depression fit a 'network dysfunction model' distinct from major depressive disorder and AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhongwei Guo
- Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310012, China
| | - Xiaozheng Liu
- Center for Cognition and Brain Disorders, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310015, China
| | - Hongtao Hou
- Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310012, China
| | - Fuquan Wei
- Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310012, China
| | - Jian Liu
- The Seventh Hospital of Hangzhou, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310013, China; Clinical Institute of Mental Health in Hangzhou, Anhui Medical University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310013, China; Mental Health Center, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310013, China.
| | - Xingli Chen
- Tongde Hospital of Zhejiang Province, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 310012, China.
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MacNamara A, Vergés A, Kujawa A, Fitzgerald KD, Monk CS, Phan KL. Age-related changes in emotional face processing across childhood and into young adulthood: Evidence from event-related potentials. Dev Psychobiol 2015. [PMID: 26220144 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Socio-emotional processing is an essential part of development, and age-related changes in its neural correlates can be observed. The late positive potential (LPP) is a measure of motivated attention that can be used to assess emotional processing; however, changes in the LPP elicited by emotional faces have not been assessed across a wide age range in childhood and young adulthood. We used an emotional face matching task to examine behavior and event-related potentials (ERPs) in 33 youth aged 7-19 years old. Younger children were slower when performing the matching task. The LPP elicited by emotional faces but not control stimuli (geometric shapes) decreased with age; by contrast, an earlier ERP (the P1) decreased with age for both faces and shapes, suggesting increased efficiency of early visual processing. Results indicate age-related attenuation in emotional processing that may stem from greater efficiency and regulatory control when performing a socio-emotional task.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annmarie MacNamara
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL.
| | - Alvaro Vergés
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | - Autumn Kujawa
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | | | | | - K Luan Phan
- Departments of Psychiatry, Psychology and Anatomy and Cell Biology, and the Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
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Yeh YC, Lin CW, Hsu WC, Kuo WJ, Chan YC. Associated and dissociated neural substrates of aesthetic judgment and aesthetic emotion during the appreciation of everyday designed products. Neuropsychologia 2015; 73:151-60. [PMID: 25998491 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2014] [Revised: 03/24/2015] [Accepted: 05/17/2015] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The aesthetics of designed products have become part of our life in modern society. This study explores the neural mechanisms of how aesthetic judgment and aesthetic emotion interplay during the appreciation of designed products that are commonly seen in daily life. Participants were 30 college students, and the stimuli were 90 pictures of everyday designed products. Based on an event-related paradigm, the findings of this study suggest that there are associative and dissociative neutral mechanisms underlying different types of aesthetic judgment and aesthetic emotion. The study identified the following main findings: (a) normative beauty and subjective beauty both involved the left anterior cingulate cortex (ACC); (b) subjective beauty and positive emotion both involved the right ACC; (c) subjective beauty and negative emotion both involved the precuneus; (d) subjective ugliness and negative emotion both involved the right inferior frontal gyrus; (e) subjective ugliness alone additionally activated the insula; and (f) subjective beauty alone additionally activated the caudate. The findings in this study shed light on complex but ordinary processes of aesthetic appreciation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Chu Yeh
- Institute of Teacher Education, National Chengchi University, No. 64, Zhinan Road, Section 2, Taipei 116, Taiwan, ROC; Research Center for Mind, Brain & Learning, National Chengchi University, No. 64, Zhinan Road, Section 2, Taipei 116, Taiwan, ROC.
| | - Chung-Wei Lin
- Department of Education, National Chengchi University, No. 64, Zhinan Road, Section 2, Taipei 116, Taiwan, ROC
| | - Wei-Chin Hsu
- Graduate Institute of Applied Science and Technology, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, No. 43, Section 4, Keelung Road, Da'an District, Taipei 106, Taiwan, ROC
| | - Wen-Jui Kuo
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang-Ming University, No. 155, Section 2, Linong Street, Taipei 112, Taiwan, ROC
| | - Yu-Chen Chan
- Institute of Learning Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, No. 101, Section 2, Kuang-Fu Road, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan, ROC
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