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Ferstl M, Kühnel A, Klaus J, Lin WM, Kroemer NB. Non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation conditions increased invigoration and wanting in depression. Compr Psychiatry 2024; 132:152488. [PMID: 38657358 DOI: 10.1016/j.comppsych.2024.152488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Major depressive disorder (MDD) is often marked by impaired motivation and reward processing, known as anhedonia. Many patients do not respond to first-line treatments, and improvements in motivation can be slow, creating an urgent need for rapid interventions. Recently, we demonstrated that transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) acutely boosts effort invigoration in healthy participants, but its effects on depression remain unclear. OBJECTIVE To assess the impact of taVNS on effort invigoration and maintenance in a sample that includes patients with MDD, evaluating the generalizability of our findings. METHODS We used a single-blind, randomized crossover design in 30 patients with MDD and 29 matched (age, sex, and BMI) healthy control participants (HCP). RESULTS Consistent with prior findings, taVNS increased effort invigoration for rewards in both groups during Session 1 (p = .040), particularly for less wanted rewards in HCP (pboot < 0.001). However, invigoration remained elevated in all participants, and no acute changes were observed in Session 2 (Δinvigoration = 3.3, p = .12). Crucially, throughout Session 1, we found taVNS-induced increases in effort invigoration (pboot = 0.008) and wanting (pboot = 0.010) in patients with MDD, with gains in wanting maintained across sessions (Δwanting = 0.06, p = .97). CONCLUSIONS Our study replicates the invigorating effects of taVNS in Session 1 and reveals its generalizability to depression. Furthermore, we expand upon previous research by showing taVNS-induced conditioning effects on invigoration and wanting within Session 1 in patients that were largely sustained. While enduring motivational improvements present challenges for crossover designs, they are highly desirable in interventions and warrant further follow-up research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Magdalena Ferstl
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Anne Kühnel
- Section of Medical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Johannes Klaus
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Wy Ming Lin
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; Hector Research Institute for Education Science and Psychology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Nils B Kroemer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany; Section of Medical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany; German Center for Mental Health (DZPG), Germany.
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2
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Vitali D, Olugbade T, Eccleston C, Keogh E, Bianchi-Berthouze N, de C Williams AC. Sensing behavior change in chronic pain: a scoping review of sensor technology for use in daily life. Pain 2024; 165:1348-1360. [PMID: 38258888 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Technology offers possibilities for quantification of behaviors and physiological changes of relevance to chronic pain, using wearable sensors and devices suitable for data collection in daily life contexts. We conducted a scoping review of wearable and passive sensor technologies that sample data of psychological interest in chronic pain, including in social situations. Sixty articles met our criteria from the 2783 citations retrieved from searching. Three-quarters of recruited people were with chronic pain, mostly musculoskeletal, and the remainder with acute or episodic pain; those with chronic pain had a mean age of 43 (few studies sampled adolescents or children) and 60% were women. Thirty-seven studies were performed in laboratory or clinical settings and the remainder in daily life settings. Most used only 1 type of technology, with 76 sensor types overall. The commonest was accelerometry (mainly used in daily life contexts), followed by motion capture (mainly in laboratory settings), with a smaller number collecting autonomic activity, vocal signals, or brain activity. Subjective self-report provided "ground truth" for pain, mood, and other variables, but often at a different timescale from the automatically collected data, and many studies reported weak relationships between technological data and relevant psychological constructs, for instance, between fear of movement and muscle activity. There was relatively little discussion of practical issues: frequency of sampling, missing data for human or technological reasons, and the users' experience, particularly when users did not receive data in any form. We conclude the review with some suggestions for content and process of future studies in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diego Vitali
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational & Health Psychology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Temitayo Olugbade
- School of Engineering and Informatics, University of Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom
- Interaction Centre, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Christoper Eccleston
- Centre for Pain Research, The University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
- Department of Experimental, Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Department of Psychology, The University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Edmund Keogh
- Centre for Pain Research, The University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
| | | | - Amanda C de C Williams
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational & Health Psychology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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3
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Mattioni L, Sestieri C, Perrucci MG, Spada MM, Ferri F. The role of interoceptive awareness in shaping the relationship between desire thinking and cigarette consumption. Int J Psychophysiol 2024; 201:112369. [PMID: 38768660 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2024.112369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2024] [Revised: 04/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Interoception, the ability to sense and interpret bodily sensations, has recently emerged as a crucial factor in substance use disorders, including smoking. However, the role of interoceptive awareness in tobacco use remains poorly understood. The relationship between interoceptive ability and addictive behavior is complex, and attempting to conceptualize it as a linear association is unlikely to fully capture the complexity of the mechanisms underlying cravings and urges. We hypothesized that the role played by interoceptive awareness in tobacco use is deeply linked to desire thinking, that is, the conscious and voluntary cognitive process orienting to prefigure images, information, and memories about positive target-related experiences. Desire thinking is typically observed in addiction, where it may contribute to interpreting specific bodily sensations, such as the perceived need for a cigarette. From this perspective, the physiological impact and inclination toward desire thinking contribute to a higher daily cigarette consumption, particularly in situations of low interoceptive awareness. To test this hypothesis, we assessed the physiological activation, the tendency toward desire thinking about smoking, cigarette consumption, and the interoceptive abilities of smoking volunteers. Through a moderation analysis, we showed that desire thinking about smoking predicts a higher number of cigarettes per day in individuals with lower interoceptive awareness (p < .05). These findings suggest that the relationship between desire thinking and interoceptive awareness is a fundamental component of tobacco use, highlighting the importance of taking into account the bodily feedback deriving from the cognitive representation of smoking in addiction research and therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenzo Mattioni
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences - and ITAB, Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, G. d'Annunzio University, Chieti, Italy.
| | - Carlo Sestieri
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences - and ITAB, Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, G. d'Annunzio University, Chieti, Italy
| | - Mauro G Perrucci
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences - and ITAB, Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, G. d'Annunzio University, Chieti, Italy
| | | | - Francesca Ferri
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences - and ITAB, Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, G. d'Annunzio University, Chieti, Italy
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4
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Woelk SP, Garfinkel SN. Dissociative Symptoms and Interoceptive Integration. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2024. [PMID: 38755513 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2024_480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/18/2024]
Abstract
Dissociative symptoms and disorders of dissociation are characterised by disturbances in the experience of the self and the surrounding world, manifesting as a breakdown in the normal integration of consciousness, memory, identity, emotion, and perception. This paper aims to provide insights into dissociative symptoms from the perspective of interoception, the sense of the body's internal physiological state, adopting a transdiagnostic framework.Dissociative symptoms are associated with a blunting of autonomic reactivity and a reduction in interoceptive precision. In addition to the central function of interoception in homeostasis, afferent visceral signals and their neural and mental representation have been shown to shape emotional feeling states, support memory encoding, and contribute to self-representation. Changes in interoceptive processing and disrupted integration of interoceptive signals into wider cognition may contribute to detachment from the body and the world, blunted emotional experience, and altered subjective recall, as experienced by individuals who suffer from dissociation.A better understanding of the role of altered interoceptive integration across the symptom areas of dissociation could thus provide insights into the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying dissociative disorders. As new therapeutic approaches targeting interoceptive processing emerge, recognising the significance of interoceptive mechanisms in dissociation holds potential implications for future treatment targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sascha P Woelk
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Sarah N Garfinkel
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK
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5
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Fani N, Fulton T, Botzanowski B. The Neurophysiology of Interoceptive Disruptions in Trauma-Exposed Populations. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2024. [PMID: 38678141 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2024_469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/29/2024]
Abstract
In the aftermath of psychological trauma, many individuals experience perturbations in interoception, a term that broadly references the ability to accurately detect body signals and integrate these signals with emotional states. These interoceptive disruptions can manifest in different ways, including blunting or amplification of sensitivity to internal physiological signals. In this chapter we review extant neurophysiological research on interoception in trauma-exposed populations, with a particular focus on the effects of chronic interpersonal trauma, such as childhood maltreatment and racial discrimination. We explore research that used different types of interoceptive assays, from self-report measures to electrophysiological and neuroimaging tools to characterize the disruptions in pain perception, interoceptive acuity, and physiological responses that may arise after a traumatic event. Finally, we discuss interventions that are designed to target interoceptive mechanisms, from exposure-based therapies to mindfulness-based practices, as well as future directions in trauma interoception research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Negar Fani
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Travis Fulton
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Boris Botzanowski
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
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6
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Zaccaro A, della Penna F, Mussini E, Parrotta E, Perrucci MG, Costantini M, Ferri F. Attention to cardiac sensations enhances the heartbeat-evoked potential during exhalation. iScience 2024; 27:109586. [PMID: 38623333 PMCID: PMC11016802 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 03/25/2024] [Indexed: 04/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Respiration and cardiac activity intricately interact through complex physiological mechanisms. The heartbeat-evoked potential (HEP) is an EEG fluctuation reflecting the cortical processing of cardiac signals. We recently found higher HEP amplitude during exhalation than inhalation during a task involving attention to cardiac sensations. This may have been due to reduced cardiac perception during inhalation and heightened perception during exhalation through attentional mechanisms. To investigate relationships between HEP, attention, and respiration, we introduced an experimental setup that included tasks related to cardiac and respiratory interoceptive and exteroceptive attention. Results revealed HEP amplitude increases during the interoceptive tasks over fronto-central electrodes. When respiratory phases were taken into account, HEP increases were primarily driven by heartbeats recorded during exhalation, specifically during the cardiac interoceptive task, while inhalation had minimal impact. These findings emphasize the role of respiration in cardiac interoceptive attention and could have implications for respiratory interventions to fine-tune cardiac interoception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Zaccaro
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Francesca della Penna
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Elena Mussini
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Eleonora Parrotta
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Mauro Gianni Perrucci
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
- Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, ITAB, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Marcello Costantini
- Department of Psychological, Health and Territorial Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
- Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, ITAB, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Francesca Ferri
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
- Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies, ITAB, “G. d’Annunzio” University of Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
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7
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Parma C, Doria F, Zulueta A, Lanzone J, Boscarino M, Giani L, Lunetta C, Vassallo M, Parati EA, Picozzi M, Sattin D. An Overview of the Bodily Awareness Representation and Interoception: Insights and Progress in the Field of Neurorehabilitation Research. Brain Sci 2024; 14:386. [PMID: 38672035 PMCID: PMC11048399 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci14040386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2023] [Revised: 03/11/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
In the last two decades, the scientific literature on so-called body representations has been increasing, and the notion of body awareness (BA) is particularly interesting for neurorehabilitation. In this article, we present results derived from recent studies on this representation, considering the different definitions and explicative models proposed as well as the empirical settings used to test it, providing an extensive overview of these issues. This article discusses the challenge of understanding how we integrate the sensory experiences of proprioception (knowing where our body is in space) and interoception (sensing internal bodily sensations, like hunger of thirst) with our perception of self. This is a difficult problem to analyze because our awareness of our body is inherently linked to our perspective, since the body is the means through which we interact with the world. Presenting the different viewpoints offered by recent theories on this concern, we highlighted that the neurorehabilitation and psychiatric settings offer two important fields useful for the study of BA because in them it is possible to analyze bodily representations by inducing/observing a controlled discrepancy between dysfunctional content and sensory inputs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Parma
- Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale e Medical Humanities, PhD. Program, Insubria University, 21100 Varese, Italy;
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Health Directorate, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (F.D.); (D.S.)
| | - Federica Doria
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Health Directorate, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (F.D.); (D.S.)
| | - Aida Zulueta
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Labion, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy;
| | - Jacopo Lanzone
- Neurorehabilitation Department, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (J.L.); (M.B.); (L.G.); (E.A.P.)
| | - Marilisa Boscarino
- Neurorehabilitation Department, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (J.L.); (M.B.); (L.G.); (E.A.P.)
| | - Luca Giani
- Neurorehabilitation Department, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (J.L.); (M.B.); (L.G.); (E.A.P.)
| | - Christian Lunetta
- Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Unit, Neurorehabilitation Department, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy;
| | - Marta Vassallo
- Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale e Medical Humanities, PhD. Program, Insubria University, 21100 Varese, Italy;
| | - Eugenio Agostino Parati
- Neurorehabilitation Department, Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (J.L.); (M.B.); (L.G.); (E.A.P.)
| | - Mario Picozzi
- Center for Clinical Ethics, Biotechnology and Life Sciences Department, Insubria University, 21100 Varese, Italy;
| | - Davide Sattin
- Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri IRCCS, Health Directorate, Via Camaldoli 64, 20138 Milan, Italy; (F.D.); (D.S.)
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8
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Toussaint B, Heinzle J, Stephan KE. A computationally informed distinction of interoception and exteroception. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 159:105608. [PMID: 38432449 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Revised: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
While interoception is of major neuroscientific interest, its precise definition and delineation from exteroception continue to be debated. Here, we propose a functional distinction between interoception and exteroception based on computational concepts of sensor-effector loops. Under this view, the classification of sensory inputs as serving interoception or exteroception depends on the sensor-effector loop they feed into, for the control of either bodily (physiological and biochemical) or environmental states. We explain the utility of this perspective by examining the perception of skin temperature, one of the most challenging cases for distinguishing between interoception and exteroception. Specifically, we propose conceptualising thermoception as inference about the thermal state of the body (including the skin), which is directly coupled to thermoregulatory processes. This functional view emphasises the coupling to regulation (control) as a defining property of perception (inference) and connects the definition of interoception to contemporary computational theories of brain-body interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Birte Toussaint
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Jakob Heinzle
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Klaas Enno Stephan
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, Cologne, Germany
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9
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Jenkinson PM, Rossell SL. Disturbed interoception in body dysmorphic disorder: A framework for future research. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 2024; 58:300-307. [PMID: 38054446 DOI: 10.1177/00048674231215030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/07/2023]
Abstract
Body dysmorphic disorder is a severe psychiatric condition characterised by a preoccupation with a perceived appearance flaw or flaws that are typically not observable to others. Although significant advances in understanding the disorder have been made in the past decade, current explanations focus on cognitive, behavioural and visual perceptual disturbances that contribute to the disorder. Such a focus does not consider how perception of the internal body or interoception may be involved, despite (1) clinical observations of disturbed perception of the body in body dysmorphic disorder and (2) disturbed interoception being increasingly recognised as a transdiagnostic factor underlying a wide range of psychopathologies. In this paper, we use an existing model of hierarchical brain function and neural (predictive) processing to propose that body dysmorphic disorder involves defective interoception, with perceived appearance flaws being the result of 'interoceptive prediction errors' that cause body parts to be experienced as 'not just right'. We aim to provide a framework for interoceptive research into body dysmorphic disorder, and outline areas for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul M Jenkinson
- Institute for Social Neuroscience (ISN) Psychology, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Susan L Rossell
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
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10
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von Werder D, Regnath F, Schäfer D, Jörres R, Lehnen N, Glasauer S. Post-COVID breathlessness: a mathematical model of respiratory processing in the brain. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2024:10.1007/s00406-023-01739-y. [PMID: 38502207 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-023-01739-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
Breathlessness is among the most common post-COVID symptoms. In a considerable number of patients, severe breathlessness cannot be explained by peripheral organ impairment. Recent concepts have described how such persistent breathlessness could arise from dysfunctional processing of respiratory information in the brain. In this paper, we present a first quantitative and testable mathematical model of how processing of respiratory-related signals could lead to breathlessness perception. The model is based on recent theories that the brain holds an adaptive and dynamic internal representation of a respiratory state that is based on previous experiences and comprises gas exchange between environment, lung and tissue cells. Perceived breathlessness reflects the brain's estimate of this respiratory state signaling a potentially hazardous disequilibrium in gas exchange. The internal respiratory state evolves from the respiratory state of the last breath, is updated by a sensory measurement of CO2 concentration, and is dependent on the current activity context. To evaluate our model and thus test the assumed mechanism, we used data from an ongoing rebreathing experiment investigating breathlessness in patients with post-COVID without peripheral organ dysfunction (N = 5) and healthy control participants without complaints after COVID-19 (N = 5). Although the observed breathlessness patterns varied extensively between individual participants in the rebreathing experiment, our model shows good performance in replicating these individual, heterogeneous time courses. The model assumes the same underlying processes in the central nervous system in all individuals, i.e., also between patients and healthy control participants, and we hypothesize that differences in breathlessness are explained by different weighting and thus influence of these processes on the final percept. Our model could thus be applied in future studies to provide insight into where in the processing cascade of respiratory signals a deficit is located that leads to (post-COVID) breathlessness. A potential clinical application could be, e.g., the monitoring of effects of pulmonary rehabilitation on respiratory processing in the brain to improve the therapeutic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dina von Werder
- Institute of Medical Technology, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Lipezker Strasse 47, 03048, Cottbus, Germany.
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany.
- Klinikum rechts der Isar, Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany.
| | - Franziska Regnath
- Klinikum rechts der Isar, Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
- TUM Graduate School, Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Daniel Schäfer
- Klinikum rechts der Isar, Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Rudolf Jörres
- Institute and Outpatient Clinic for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, University Hospital, LMU, Munich, Germany
- Comprehensive Pneumology Center Munich (CPC-M), Member of the German Center for Lung Research (DZL), Munich, Germany
| | - Nadine Lehnen
- Institute of Medical Technology, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Lipezker Strasse 47, 03048, Cottbus, Germany
- Klinikum rechts der Isar, Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Stefan Glasauer
- Institute of Medical Technology, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Lipezker Strasse 47, 03048, Cottbus, Germany
- Faculty of Health Sciences Brandenburg, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Cottbus, Germany
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11
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De Falco E, Solcà M, Bernasconi F, Babo-Rebelo M, Young N, Sammartino F, Tallon-Baudry C, Navarro V, Rezai AR, Krishna V, Blanke O. Single neurons in the thalamus and subthalamic nucleus process cardiac and respiratory signals in humans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2316365121. [PMID: 38451949 PMCID: PMC10945861 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2316365121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Visceral signals are constantly processed by our central nervous system, enable homeostatic regulation, and influence perception, emotion, and cognition. While visceral processes at the cortical level have been extensively studied using non-invasive imaging techniques, very few studies have investigated how this information is processed at the single neuron level, both in humans and animals. Subcortical regions, relaying signals from peripheral interoceptors to cortical structures, are particularly understudied and how visceral information is processed in thalamic and subthalamic structures remains largely unknown. Here, we took advantage of intraoperative microelectrode recordings in patients undergoing surgery for deep brain stimulation (DBS) to investigate the activity of single neurons related to cardiac and respiratory functions in three subcortical regions: ventral intermedius nucleus (Vim) and ventral caudalis nucleus (Vc) of the thalamus, and subthalamic nucleus (STN). We report that the activity of a large portion of the recorded neurons (about 70%) was modulated by either the heartbeat, the cardiac inter-beat interval, or the respiration. These cardiac and respiratory response patterns varied largely across neurons both in terms of timing and their kind of modulation. A substantial proportion of these visceral neurons (30%) was responsive to more than one of the tested signals, underlining specialization and integration of cardiac and respiratory signals in STN and thalamic neurons. By extensively describing single unit activity related to cardiorespiratory function in thalamic and subthalamic neurons, our results highlight the major role of these subcortical regions in the processing of visceral signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuela De Falco
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Life Sciences, Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne1015, Switzerland
- Department of Neuroscience, Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute–West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV26505
| | - Marco Solcà
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Life Sciences, Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne1015, Switzerland
- Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Geneva, Geneva1205, Switzerland
| | - Fosco Bernasconi
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Life Sciences, Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne1015, Switzerland
| | - Mariana Babo-Rebelo
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Life Sciences, Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne1015, Switzerland
| | - Nicole Young
- Medical Department, SpecialtyCare, Brentwood, TN37027
| | - Francesco Sammartino
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH43210
| | - Catherine Tallon-Baudry
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Computationnelles, Département d’Etudes Cognitives, École normale supérieure-Paris Sciences et Lettres University, Inserm, Paris75005, France
| | - Vincent Navarro
- Sorbonne Université, Paris Brain Institute—Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière, Inserm, CNRS, Assistance Publique - Hôpitaux de Paris, Epilepsy Unit, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière, Paris75013, France
| | - Ali R. Rezai
- Department of Neurosurgery, Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute—West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV26505
| | - Vibhor Krishna
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Durham, NC27516
| | - Olaf Blanke
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Life Sciences, Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne1015, Switzerland
- Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University Hospital Geneva, Geneva1205, Switzerland
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12
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Teckentrup V, Kroemer NB. Mechanisms for survival: vagal control of goal-directed behavior. Trends Cogn Sci 2024; 28:237-251. [PMID: 38036309 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Revised: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023]
Abstract
Survival is a fundamental physiological drive, and neural circuits have evolved to prioritize actions that meet the energy demands of the body. This fine-tuning of goal-directed actions based on metabolic states ('allostasis') is deeply rooted in our brain, and hindbrain nuclei orchestrate the vital communication between the brain and body through the vagus nerve. Despite mounting evidence for vagal control of allostatic behavior in animals, its broader function in humans is still contested. Based on stimulation studies, we propose that the vagal afferent pathway supports transitions between survival modes by gating the integration of ascending bodily signals, thereby regulating reward-seeking. By reconceptualizing vagal signals as catalysts for goal-directed behavior, our perspective opens new avenues for theory-driven translational work in mental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanessa Teckentrup
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany; School of Psychology and Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Nils B Kroemer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Tübingen Center for Mental Health, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany; Section of Medical Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany; German Center for Mental Health (DZPG), 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
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13
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Mograbi DC, Hall S, Arantes B, Huntley J. The cognitive neuroscience of self-awareness: Current framework, clinical implications, and future research directions. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2024; 15:e1670. [PMID: 38043919 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2023] [Revised: 11/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
Self-awareness, the ability to take oneself as the object of awareness, has been an enigma for our species, with different answers to this question being provided by religion, philosophy, and, more recently, science. The current review aims to discuss the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying self-awareness. The multidimensional nature of self-awareness will be explored, suggesting how it can be thought of as an emergent property observed in different cognitive complexity levels, within a predictive coding approach. A presentation of alterations of self-awareness in neuropsychiatric conditions will ground a discussion on alternative frameworks to understand this phenomenon, in health and psychopathology, with future research directions being indicated to fill current gaps in the literature. This article is categorized under: Philosophy > Consciousness Psychology > Brain Function and Dysfunction Neuroscience > Cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel C Mograbi
- Department of Psychology, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Simon Hall
- Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
| | - Beatriz Arantes
- Department of Psychology, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Jonathan Huntley
- Division of Psychiatry, University College London, London, UK
- Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
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14
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Mai-Lippold SA, Schultze J, Pollatos O. Interoceptive abilities impairment correlates with emotional eating and taste abnormalities in children with overweight and obesity. Appetite 2024; 194:107182. [PMID: 38154574 DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2023.107182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2023] [Revised: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023]
Abstract
Weight problems in children are associated with emotional eating, which has been linked to interoceptive abilities. Previous research also shows altered olfactory and gustatory perception in children with obesity and overweight. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the connection of alterations in olfactory and gustatory perception to interoceptive abilities and emotional eating among children with obesity and overweight. 23 children with overweight and obesity and age-matched controls with normal weight (12-16 years old) underwent olfactory and gustatory testing. Interoceptive abilities were assessed, focusing on interoceptive accuracy and interoceptive sensibility. Children with overweight and obesity showed significantly higher accuracy for detection of sweet taste, but descriptively lower accuracy for all other taste qualities compared to normal weight children. We found no changes in olfactory abilities in children with overweight and obesity. Emotional eating scores were elevated for children with overweight and obesity, and interoceptive accuracy scores were significantly lower. In both groups, interoceptive accuracy was inversely correlated with emotional eating. Our results support prior findings of altered gustatory abilities in children with overweight and obesity. The observed link between impaired interoceptive processes and heightened emotional eating in this group implies that interventions for overweight in children could benefit from targeting interoceptive abilities. This study provides meaningful grounds for further investigations into the roles of taste, emotional eating, and interoceptive abilities for overweight in children and adolescents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra A Mai-Lippold
- Clinical and Health Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Ulm University, Germany
| | - Jasmin Schultze
- Clinical and Health Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Ulm University, Germany
| | - Olga Pollatos
- Clinical and Health Psychology, Institute of Psychology, Ulm University, Germany.
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15
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Pelentritou A, Pfeiffer C, Schwartz S, De Lucia M. Cardio-audio synchronization elicits neural and cardiac surprise responses in human wakefulness and sleep. Commun Biol 2024; 7:226. [PMID: 38396068 PMCID: PMC10891147 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-05895-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 02/07/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The human brain can encode auditory regularities with fixed sound-to-sound intervals and with sound onsets locked to cardiac inputs. Here, we investigated auditory and cardio-audio regularity encoding during sleep, when bodily and environmental stimulus processing may be altered. Using electroencephalography and electrocardiography in healthy volunteers (N = 26) during wakefulness and sleep, we measured the response to unexpected sound omissions within three regularity conditions: synchronous, where sound and heartbeat are temporally coupled, isochronous, with fixed sound-to-sound intervals, and a control condition without regularity. Cardio-audio regularity encoding manifested as a heartbeat deceleration upon omissions across vigilance states. The synchronous and isochronous sequences induced a modulation of the omission-evoked neural response in wakefulness and N2 sleep, the former accompanied by background oscillatory activity reorganization. The violation of cardio-audio and auditory regularity elicits cardiac and neural responses across vigilance states, laying the ground for similar investigations in altered consciousness states such as coma and anaesthesia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andria Pelentritou
- Laboratoire de Recherche en Neuroimagerie (LREN), Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, 1011, Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Christian Pfeiffer
- Robotics and Perception Group, University of Zurich, 8050, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sophie Schwartz
- Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1211, Geneva, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, 1202, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Marzia De Lucia
- Laboratoire de Recherche en Neuroimagerie (LREN), Lausanne University Hospital and University of Lausanne, 1011, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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16
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Oliveira I, Vaz Garrido M, Carvalho H, Figueira Bernardes S. Sensing the body matters: profiles of interoceptive sensibility in chronic pain adjustment. Pain 2024; 165:412-422. [PMID: 37768722 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Interoception is critical to health regulation and is often disrupted in individuals with chronic pain (ICPs). Interoceptive sensibility (IS)-the self-reported experience and relationship toward internal states-includes skills such as sensing, interpreting, and using bodily information for self-regulation. Current studies on IS and chronic pain (CP) adjustment are scarce, and how the interplay between different IS skills shapes CP adjustment remains unclear. This cross-sectional study aimed to identify profiles of IS skills among ICPs and examined their associations with pain outcomes and psychological and behavioral risk or protective processes. Individuals with chronic musculoskeletal pain (n = 173; 84.4% women) completed the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA), measures of CP adjustment (depression, anxiety, vitality, pain severity, interference, and physical function), psychological (self-efficacy, catastrophizing, and kinesiophobia), and behavioral processes (activity patterns). A cluster analysis identified 3 IS skills profiles: (1) high IS skills (n = 68), with the highest levels of attention regulation toward bodily sensations, body trust, listening for insight, and self-regulation; (2) low IS skills (n = 29), who distracted less and worried more about bodily sensations, and presented lower-body trust; and (3) mixed IS skills (n = 71), despite good body trust, attention regulation, and low worrying, showed lower awareness of body-mind connections. Interoceptive sensibility skills profiles differed in depression, vitality (fatigue), and psychological or behavioral processes, such as pain-related self-efficacy, catastrophizing, kinesiophobia, and activity pacing. These findings contribute to integrating body-mind connections more explicitly into current theoretical CP models and developing tailored interventions targeting specific IS skills to improve CP adjustment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inês Oliveira
- Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, Centre for Psychological Research and Social Intervention (CIS-Iscte), Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Margarida Vaz Garrido
- Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, Centre for Psychological Research and Social Intervention (CIS-Iscte), Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Helena Carvalho
- Department of Social Research Methods, Centre for Research and Studies in Sociology (CIES-Iscte), Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Sónia Figueira Bernardes
- Department of Social and Organizational Psychology, Centre for Psychological Research and Social Intervention (CIS-Iscte), Iscte-Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
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17
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Ibanez A, Northoff G. Intrinsic timescales and predictive allostatic interoception in brain health and disease. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 157:105510. [PMID: 38104789 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
The cognitive neuroscience of brain diseases faces challenges in understanding the complex relationship between brain structure and function, the heterogeneity of brain phenotypes, and the lack of dimensional and transnosological explanations. This perspective offers a framework combining the predictive coding theory of allostatic interoceptive overload (PAIO) and the intrinsic neural timescales (INT) theory to provide a more dynamic understanding of brain health in psychiatry and neurology. PAIO integrates allostasis and interoception to assess the interaction between internal patterns and environmental stressors, while INT shows that different brain regions operate on different intrinsic timescales. The allostatic overload can be understood as a failure of INT, which involves a breakdown of proper temporal integration and segregation. This can lead to dimensional disbalances between exteroceptive/interoceptive inputs across brain and whole-body levels (cardiometabolic, cardiovascular, inflammatory, immune). This approach offers new insights, presenting novel perspectives on brain spatiotemporal hierarchies and interactions. By integrating these theories, the paper opens innovative paths for studying brain health dynamics, which can inform future research in brain health and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agustin Ibanez
- Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI), University of California San Francisco (UCSF), CA, USA; Latin American Brain Health (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
| | - Georg Northoff
- Mental Health Center, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China; Center for Cognition and Brain Disorders, The Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, People's Republic of China; Mind, Brain Imaging and Neuroethics, Institute of Mental Health Research, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada.
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18
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Shatrova D, Cáncer PF, Caperos JM. The role of interoception in reducing trauma-associated distress: a feasibility study. Eur J Psychotraumatol 2024; 15:2306747. [PMID: 38289065 PMCID: PMC10829842 DOI: 10.1080/20008066.2024.2306747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2023] [Accepted: 01/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Background: Altered interoception plays an important role in chronic stress and posttraumatic stress disorder. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of a Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TSY) intervention for improving emotional distress and psychological discomfort in women living under circumstances of social and gender vulnerability. We assessed the effect of the treatment on the interoceptive mechanisms, and whether the psychological improvements were mediated by the changes in these mechanisms.Methods: The study involved a sample of 62 women who attended public community centres dedicated to supporting women victims of gender-based violence or who were socially and economically disadvantaged because of their gender. Participants underwent a six-week TSY programme. We evaluated dropout rate, adherence, and intervention satisfaction. We measured emotional distress, psychological discomfort, interoceptive mechanisms, and two nonequivalent dependent variables to enhance internal validity. We compared pre-post differences using paired samples t-test and a structural equation model (SEM) analysis was performed to compare the changes in the outcomes with the changes in the nonequivalent dependent variables. Mediation models were adjusted to evaluate the role of changes in interoception on outcome changes.Results: Fourteen (23%) women dropped out, mainly after the first intervention session. Intervention adherence (mean attendance 5.3 over 6 sessions) and acceptability were high (mean satisfaction 3.4 over 4). We observed post-intervention improvements in anxiety, depression, psychological discomfort, body responsiveness, and interoceptive awareness. The changes in the outcomes were larger than the changes in the nonequivalent dependent variables. Additionally, we found that the changes in body responsiveness partially mediated the change in anxiety and psychological discomfort but not in depression.Conclusions: TSY could be an interesting therapeutic approach for women experiencing chronic posttraumatic stress symptomatology. Our findings underscore the role of interoceptive mechanisms in traumatic stress and emphasize the importance of addressing these aspects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daria Shatrova
- UNINPSI, Dpto. de Psicología, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Pablo F. Cáncer
- UNINPSI, Dpto. de Psicología, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jose Manuel Caperos
- UNINPSI, Dpto. de Psicología, Universidad Pontificia Comillas, Madrid, Spain
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19
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Miller M, White B, Scrivner C. Surfing uncertainty with screams: predictive processing, error dynamics and horror films. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2024; 379:20220425. [PMID: 38104602 PMCID: PMC10725765 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2022.0425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/08/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Despite tremendous efforts in psychology, neuroscience and media and cultural studies, it is still something of a mystery why humans are attracted to fictional content that is horrifying, disgusting or otherwise aversive. While the psychological benefits of horror films, stories, video games, etc. has recently been demonstrated empirically, current theories emphasizing the negative and positive consequences of this engagement often contradict one another. Here, we suggest the predictive processing framework may provide a unifying account of horror content engagement that provides clear and testable hypotheses, and explains why a 'sweet spot' of fear and fun exists in horror entertainment. This article is part of the theme issue 'Art, aesthetics and predictive processing: theoretical and empirical perspectives'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark Miller
- Centre for Consciousness and Contemplative Studies, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3800, Australia
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5R 0A3
| | - Ben White
- School of Media, Arts and Humanities, University of Sussex, Brighton, BN1 9RH, UK
| | - Coltan Scrivner
- Recreational Fear Lab, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark
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20
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Scheffers M, Coenen J, Moeijes J, de Haan A, van Busschbach J, Bellemans T. The Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness, version 2 (MAIA-2): psychometric properties in a Dutch non-clinical sample. BMC Psychol 2024; 12:53. [PMID: 38287385 PMCID: PMC10826081 DOI: 10.1186/s40359-024-01553-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 01/31/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Interoceptive awareness is a multidimensional construct that refers to the sensation, interpretation, and integration of signals within the body. There is increasing evidence that problems with interoceptive awareness form an important component of mental health problems. The Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness 2 (MAIA-2) is presently the most used self-report questionnaire to measure interoceptive awareness. The aim of the present study is to psychometrically evaluate the Dutch version of the MAIA-2. METHOD The psychometric properties of the MAIA-2-NL were examined in a non-clinical sample of 1054 participants aged between 18 and 83. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were investigated. Factor structure was examined by exploratory factor analysis (EFA), followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). RESULTS Internal consistency was good, with McDonald's omega (ω) ranging from 0.67 to 0.89. Test-retest reliability was moderate to good, with intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) ranging from 0.67 to 0.79. Factor analyses suggested a six-factor structure, combining the original subscales Noticing with Emotional awareness and Self-regulation with Body listening. However, a CFA based on the original eight factors showed a somewhat better fit than the CFA based on six factors. CONCLUSION The MAIA-2-NL is a reliable and valid instrument to measure interoceptive awareness in healthy Dutch adults. We recommend to maintain the original 37 items.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mia Scheffers
- Department of Human Movement and Education, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Zwolle, the Netherlands.
| | - Jaisey Coenen
- Department of Human Movement and Education, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Zwolle, the Netherlands
| | - Janet Moeijes
- Department of Human Movement and Education, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Zwolle, the Netherlands
| | - Albertine de Haan
- Department of Human Movement and Education, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Zwolle, the Netherlands
| | - Jooske van Busschbach
- Department of Human Movement and Education, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Zwolle, the Netherlands
| | - Tina Bellemans
- Department of Human Movement and Education, Windesheim University of Applied Sciences, Zwolle, the Netherlands
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21
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Crucianelli L, Radziun D, Ehrsson HH. Thermosensation and emotion: Thermosensory accuracy in a dynamic thermal matching task is linked to depression and anxiety symptomatology. Physiol Behav 2024; 273:114407. [PMID: 37967806 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/07/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023]
Abstract
Interoception is related to the generation of bodily feelings and the awareness of ourselves as 'sentient beings', informing the organism about its bodily needs to guarantee survival. Previous studies have reported links among interoception, emotion processing, and mental health. For example, the alignment of interoceptive dimensions (i.e., accuracy, sensibility, awareness) can predict emotional symptoms, such as anxiety. Here, we aimed to investigate the relationship between the perception of a certain type of skin-mediated interoceptive signal, i.e., thermosensation, and self-reported depression, anxiety, and stress. One hundred seventy participants completed the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21) and a dynamic thermal matching task, a static temperature detection task, and a heartbeat counting task. Our results revealed that self-reported anxiety and depression were related to the perception of temperature on hairy and non-hairy skin, respectively: higher anxiety was related to better performance on the thermal matching task on the forearm, while higher depression was related to poorer performance on dynamic and static temperature tasks on the palm. Discrepancies between thermosensory accuracy and sensibility measures ('trait prediction error') were related to heightened anxiety, in line with previous studies. No significant correlations were found between DASS-21 scores and heartbeat counting accuracy. In conclusion, this study suggests that individual differences in thermosensory perception in different areas of the body are associated with self-reported anxiety and depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Crucianelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, UK.
| | - Dominika Radziun
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - H Henrik Ehrsson
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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22
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Rominger C, Schwerdtfeger AR. The misjudgment of interoceptive awareness: Systematic overrating of interoceptive awareness among individuals with lower interoceptive metacognitive skills. Conscious Cogn 2024; 117:103621. [PMID: 38113709 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2023.103621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/07/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
Knowing when perceiving inner bodily signals better and when perceiving them worse is a health relevant but understudied dimension of interoception. Therefore, the present study assessed interoceptive metacognition (IMC) as the skill to adequately monitor interoceptive accuracy in the cardiac domain. We used the Graz Ambulatory Interoception task (GRAIT), which applied two intervals of the heartbeat tracking task 12 times a day for 3 days in total to n = 66 participants. We assessed IMC as the relative correspondence between interoceptive accuracy and the subjective confidence ratings. We found that 6 % of the total IMC variance was due to person, which was assessed reliable (RKRn=0.81). Furthermore, the between-person variation of IMC was negatively associated with the MAIA (especially attention regulation and self-regulation). People who believe that they are aware of their interoceptive experiences (MAIA) showed lower IMC. This study advocates the assessment of interoception in everyday life.
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23
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Nicolardi V, Accogli G, Ferrante C, Scoditti S, Massafra P, Fanizza I, Trabacca A. Social cognition in two brothers with Becker muscular dystrophy: an exploratory study revealing divergent behavioral phenotypes. Neurol Sci 2023:10.1007/s10072-023-07257-y. [PMID: 38150129 DOI: 10.1007/s10072-023-07257-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/03/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Only few studies investigated social cognition in Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD). However, brain dystrophin deficiency could be a neural substrate for cognitive, emotional, and neuropsychological features in BMD. METHODS We compared interoceptive accuracy and interpersonal comfort distance in two brothers with BMD presenting with the same genetic deletion and a healthy control. When possible, we collected neuropsychological and psychopathological assessments. RESULTS Our BMD patients were significantly different in interoceptive accuracy, with patient 1 being extremely accurate and patient 2 being significantly less accurate than his brother but more accurate than the control. Interestingly, they presented opposite patterns of interpersonal distance. Patient 1 was comfortable with very short interpersonal distance (≤50 cm from the confederate/object) vs the control and patient 2. By contrast, patient 2 preferred larger distance vs the control and patient 1. Patient 1 also presented difficulties in social and emotional skills on the psychopathological assessment. CONCLUSIONS We are aware this is a small sample; nonetheless, this is also the first description of such aspects in BMD and the first report ever of such divergent behavioral pattern. As impaired social cognition affects the quality of life and social relationship, further studies are needed for a closer understanding of involved mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Nicolardi
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Accogli
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy
| | - Camilla Ferrante
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy
| | - Sara Scoditti
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy
| | - Patrizia Massafra
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy
| | - Isabella Fanizza
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy
| | - Antonio Trabacca
- Unit for Severe Disabilities in Developmental Age and Young Adults (Developmental Neurology and Neurorehabilitation) Scientific Institute IRCCS "E. Medea", Ex Complesso Ospedaliero "A. Di Summa", Piazza "A. Di Summa", 72100, Brindisi, Italy.
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24
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Dipasquale F, Blandini M, Gueli R, Fecarotta P, Magnano P. On the Construct of Functional Psychology's Developmental Theory: Basic Experiences of the Self (BEsS). Eur J Investig Health Psychol Educ 2023; 13:2863-2876. [PMID: 38131897 PMCID: PMC10742788 DOI: 10.3390/ejihpe13120198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 11/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023] Open
Abstract
According to the neo-functional developmental theory, newborns and infants exhibit complex psycho-bodily functioning. The Basic Experiences of the Self (BEsS) refer to how they fulfil their essential life needs by organising their psycho-bodily functions in a typical configuration. As part of our research study, we developed a prototype psychometric tool called the BEsS Assessment Form (BAF) to assess the BEsS in infants aged zero to three years. We collected video recordings of their spontaneous behaviour and used the BAF to evaluate function polarity. In the BAF, thirty pairs of words represent functions in their dyadic polarity. To estimate the level of function polarity, we used the Osgood semantic differential scale, which ranges from seven to one. The study's results confirm that functions can be assessed by grading along the opposite polarity spectrum. Moreover, in accordance with the theory, the functions can be grouped into four domains: the emotional, postural motor, physiological, and cognitive-symbolic planes. Our findings suggest that the characteristics of BEsS are significantly influenced by the activation of the physiological and postural motor functions, which are related to the early regulation of the autonomic nervous system and can be used to evaluate infant arousal.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Marta Blandini
- Functional Psychotherapy Centre “Wilhelm Reich”, 95124 Catania, Italy; (M.B.); (R.G.); (P.F.)
| | - Raffaele Gueli
- Functional Psychotherapy Centre “Wilhelm Reich”, 95124 Catania, Italy; (M.B.); (R.G.); (P.F.)
| | - Paola Fecarotta
- Functional Psychotherapy Centre “Wilhelm Reich”, 95124 Catania, Italy; (M.B.); (R.G.); (P.F.)
| | - Paola Magnano
- Faculty of Human and Social Sciences, Kore University of Enna, 94100 Enna, Italy;
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Allen KB, Tan PZ, Sullivan JA, Baumgardner M, Hunter H, Glovak SN. An Integrative Model of Youth Anxiety: Cognitive-Affective Processes and Parenting in Developmental Context. Clin Child Fam Psychol Rev 2023; 26:1025-1051. [PMID: 37819403 DOI: 10.1007/s10567-023-00458-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
Multiple theoretical frameworks have been proposed to provide a more comprehensive picture of the risk factors that influence anxiety-related developmental trajectories. Nonetheless, there remains a need for an integrative model that outlines: (1) which risk factors may be most pertinent at different points in development, and (2) how parenting may maintain, exacerbate, or attenuate an affective style that is characterized by high negative emotional reactivity to unfamiliar, uncertain, and threatening situations. A developmentally informed, integrative model has the potential to guide treatment development and delivery, which is critical to reducing the public health burden associated with these disorders. This paper outlines a model integrating research on many well-established risk mechanisms for anxiety disorders, focusing on (1) the developmental progression from emotional reactivity constructs early in life to those involving higher-level cognitive processes later in youth, and (2) potential pathways by which parenting may impact the stability of youth's cognitive-affective responses to threat-relevant information across development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristy Benoit Allen
- Departments of Applied Behavioral Science and Psychology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA.
| | - Patricia Z Tan
- Department of Psychiatry/Mental Health, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Megan Baumgardner
- Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | - Hannah Hunter
- Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA
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Alfì G, Orrù G, Menicucci D, Miccoli M, Casigliani V, Totaro M, Baggiani A, Gemignani A. A Machine Learning Approach Unveils the Relationships between Sickness Behavior and Interoception after Vaccination: Suggestions for Psychometric Indices of Higher Vulnerability. Healthcare (Basel) 2023; 11:2981. [PMID: 37998473 PMCID: PMC10671008 DOI: 10.3390/healthcare11222981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 11/10/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Prior research has suggested a possible connection between vaccination and manifestations of Sickness Behavior; however, a need remains to first delve deeper into this association and second examine how Interoceptive Awareness and emotional factors may modulate individuals' perceptions of their health status post vaccination. METHOD An online retrospective cross-sectional survey of 647 individuals who received a COVID-19 vaccination was conducted. Together with vaccination side effects, socio-demographic characteristics, health status, level of concern about vaccination, and Interoceptive Awareness were collected at the baseline level. Mood, sleep, and Sickness Behavior were assessed at baseline and after vaccination. Data were analyzed using inferential statistics and machine learning techniques. RESULTS After vaccination, there was a significant increase in Sickness Behavior levels (mean (±SD) SicknessQ T0 = 1.57 (±2.72), mean (±SD) SicknessQ T1 = 5.54 (±5.51); p-value = 0.001; ES = 0.77). A Machine Learning analysis revealed specific patterns of individual dispositions (sex and age), baseline emotional characteristics (levels of depression, anxiety, stress, and concern about adverse reactions), as well as some components of Interoceptive Awareness (Noticing, Body Listening, and Attention Regulation), as predictors of high levels of Sickness Behavior, both in terms of overall scores (JRIP: 72.65% accuracy, AUC = 0.692, d = 0.709; F1 = 0.726) and individual items (JRIP: 75.77% accuracy, AUC = 0.694; d = 0.717; F1 = 0.754). CONCLUSIONS Our results provide new insight into post-immune reactions by highlighting the contribution of Interoceptive Awareness in modulating the severity of Sickness Behavior. This sheds light on the role of awareness of bodily sensations in modulating perceptions of health status, helping to identify the characteristics that make individuals more prone to feeling sick.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaspare Alfì
- Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (G.A.); (D.M.); (A.G.)
| | - Graziella Orrù
- Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (G.A.); (D.M.); (A.G.)
| | - Danilo Menicucci
- Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (G.A.); (D.M.); (A.G.)
| | - Mario Miccoli
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy;
| | - Virginia Casigliani
- Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (V.C.); (M.T.); (A.B.)
| | - Michele Totaro
- Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (V.C.); (M.T.); (A.B.)
| | - Angelo Baggiani
- Department of Translational Research and of New Surgical and Medical Technologies, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (V.C.); (M.T.); (A.B.)
| | - Angelo Gemignani
- Department of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology and Critical Care Medicine, University of Pisa, 56126 Pisa, Italy; (G.A.); (D.M.); (A.G.)
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27
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Koncz Á, Csala B, Ferentzi E. The effect of 10-week long yoga training on interoceptive abilities: cross-sectional and longitudinal investigation of cardiac and gastric accuracy. Biol Futur 2023:10.1007/s42977-023-00195-y. [PMID: 37979130 DOI: 10.1007/s42977-023-00195-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Based on their characteristics, it is likely that mind-body techniques develop interoception, the perception of bodily state. Nevertheless, findings on mindfulness, meditation, yoga, and body scan techniques are inconclusive. Additionally, the methodological scope is not exhaustive, neither in terms of the intervention nor the applied measure of interoception. This study investigated for the first time the effect of regular yoga training on cardiac and gastric perceptual ability (measured with the mental heartbeat tracking task and the water load task, respectively). With the involvement of 90 female university students (yoga group n = 57, control group n = 33) we did not find any connection between baseline heartbeat perception score and gastric fullness. Moreover, the applied 10-week-long regular yoga training did not develop any of the measured interoceptive abilities. We conclude that yoga might develop other abilities than these specific sensations. Very probably, the measured cardiac and gastric perceptual abilities do not represent bodily sensations in general. It would be worth to investigate, however, the effect of longer yoga training on interoception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ádám Koncz
- Institute of Health Promotion and Sport Sciences, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary.
- Ádám György Psychophysiology Research Group, Budapest, Hungary.
| | - Barbara Csala
- Institute of Health Promotion and Sport Sciences, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Eszter Ferentzi
- Institute of Health Promotion and Sport Sciences, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Budapest, Hungary
- Ádám György Psychophysiology Research Group, Budapest, Hungary
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28
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Manza P, Tomasi D, Shokri-Kojori E, Zhang R, Kroll D, Feldman D, McPherson K, Biesecker C, Dennis E, Johnson A, Yuan K, Wang WT, Yonga MV, Wang GJ, Volkow ND. Neural circuit selective for fast but not slow dopamine increases in drug reward. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6408. [PMID: 37938560 PMCID: PMC10632365 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41972-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The faster a drug enters the brain, the greater its addictive potential, yet the brain circuits underlying the rate dependency to drug reward remain unresolved. With simultaneous PET-fMRI we linked dynamics of dopamine signaling, brain activity/connectivity, and self-reported 'high' in 20 adults receiving methylphenidate orally (results in slow delivery) and intravenously (results in fast delivery) (trial NCT03326245). We estimated speed of striatal dopamine increases to oral and IV methylphenidate and then tested where brain activity was associated with slow and fast dopamine dynamics (primary endpoint). We then tested whether these brain circuits were temporally associated with individual 'high' ratings to methylphenidate (secondary endpoint). A corticostriatal circuit comprising the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex and insula and their connections with dorsal caudate was activated by fast (but not slow) dopamine increases and paralleled 'high' ratings. These data provide evidence in humans for a link between dACC/insula activation and fast but not slow dopamine increases and document a critical role of the salience network in drug reward.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Manza
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - Dardo Tomasi
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Ehsan Shokri-Kojori
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Rui Zhang
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Danielle Kroll
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Dana Feldman
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Katherine McPherson
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Catherine Biesecker
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Evan Dennis
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Allison Johnson
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Kai Yuan
- School of Life Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, 710071, PR China
| | - Wen-Tung Wang
- Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Clinical Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Michele-Vera Yonga
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Gene-Jack Wang
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Nora D Volkow
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
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29
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Andrieu B. [The body that takes care of us]. Soins Psychiatr 2023; 44:10-12. [PMID: 37926493 DOI: 10.1016/j.spsy.2023.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2023]
Abstract
The body takes care of us in the sense that it ensures our biological existence while incorporating the information necessary for motor activity and emotional life. Through contact with the world and others, it awakens our self-awareness. These interactions produce an incorporation of information that enables us to adapt our bodies to our environment, and our attitudes to interactions with others. This incorporation enriches the plasticity of our abilities and body awareness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernard Andrieu
- Université Paris Cité, URP 3625 I3SP, 1 rue Lacretelle, 75015 Paris, France.
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30
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Heim N, Bobou M, Tanzer M, Jenkinson PM, Steinert C, Fotopoulou A. Psychological interventions for interoception in mental health disorders: A systematic review of randomized-controlled trials. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2023; 77:530-540. [PMID: 37421414 PMCID: PMC7615164 DOI: 10.1111/pcn.13576] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/10/2023]
Abstract
Disturbed interoception (i.e., the sensing, awareness, and regulation of internal body signals) has been found across several mental disorders, leading to the development of interoception-based interventions (IBIs). Searching PubMed and PsycINFO, we conducted the first systematic review of randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) investigating the efficacy of behavioral IBIs at improving interoception and target symptoms of mental disorders in comparison to a non-interoception-based control condition [CRD42021297993]. Thirty-one RCTs fulfilled inclusion criteria. Across all studies, a pattern emerged with 20 (64.5%) RCTs demonstrating IBIs to be more efficacious at improving interoception compared to control conditions. The most promising results were found for post-traumatic stress disorder, irritable bowel syndrome, fibromyalgia and substance use disorders. Regarding symptom improvement, the evidence was inconclusive. The IBIs were heterogenous in their approach to improving interoception. The quality of RCTs was moderate to good. In conclusion, IBIs are potentially efficacious at improving interoception for some mental disorders. In terms of symptom reduction, the evidence is less promising. Future research on the efficacy of IBIs is needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolas Heim
- International Psychoanalytic University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, University College London, London, UK
| | - Marina Bobou
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Michal Tanzer
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Paul M Jenkinson
- Institute for Social Neuroscience, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Christiane Steinert
- International Psychoanalytic University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Justus-Liebig-University Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Aikaterini Fotopoulou
- Research Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology, University College London, London, UK
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31
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Rominger C, Schwerdtfeger AR. Dynamic heartbeat tracking beyond the laboratory: Introducing the novel Graz Ambulatory Interoception Task (GRAIT). Int J Psychophysiol 2023; 192:80-90. [PMID: 37574020 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2023.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
We present a novel ambulatory method, the Graz Ambulatory Interoception Task (GRAIT), to assess the accuracy of interoceptive beliefs (AccIB). This method captures both between- and within-person variations of AccIB by having participants counting perceived heartbeats in daily life. Reliability analyses showed high between-person (RkR = 0.99) and moderate within-person reliability (RCn = 0.62). Validity was supported by associations with an established laboratory task (r = 0.87). Within-person associations revealed that interoceptive sensibility, heart rate variability, and states of low arousal coupled with positive affect were linked to AccIB. Study 2 replicated these findings and showed a relationship between AccIB and self-control in everyday life, highlighting the importance of cardiac interoception and its relevance for health.
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32
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Migeot J, Hesse E, Fittipaldi S, Mejía J, Fraile M, García AM, García MDC, Ortega R, Lawlor B, Lopez V, Ibáñez A. Allostatic-interoceptive anticipation of social rejection. Neuroimage 2023; 276:120200. [PMID: 37245560 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Revised: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Anticipating social stress evokes strong reactions in the organism, including interoceptive modulations. However, evidence for this claim comes from behavioral studies, often with inconsistent results, and relates almost solely to the reactive and recovery phase of social stress exposure. Here, we adopted an allostatic-interoceptive predictive coding framework to study interoceptive and exteroceptive anticipatory brain responses using a social rejection task. We analyzed the heart-evoked potential (HEP) and task-related oscillatory activity of 58 adolescents via scalp EEG, and 385 human intracranial recordings of three patients with intractable epilepsy. We found that anticipatory interoceptive signals increased in the face of unexpected social outcomes, reflected in larger negative HEP modulations. Such signals emerged from key brain allostatic-interoceptive network hubs, as shown by intracranial recordings. Exteroceptive signals were characterized by early activity between 1-15 Hz across conditions, and modulated by the probabilistic anticipation of reward-related outcomes, observed over distributed brain regions. Our findings suggest that the anticipation of a social outcome is characterized by allostatic-interoceptive modulations that prepare the organism for possible rejection. These results inform our understanding of interoceptive processing and constrain neurobiological models of social stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joaquín Migeot
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibanez, Santiago, Chile
| | - Eugenia Hesse
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina; National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina; Departamento de Matemática y Ciencias, Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Sol Fittipaldi
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, United States and Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
| | - Jhonny Mejía
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile
| | - Matías Fraile
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Adolfo M García
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina; Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, United States and Trinity College Dublin, Ireland; Departamento de Lingüística y Literatura, Facultad de Humanidades, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | | | - Rodrigo Ortega
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile
| | - Brian Lawlor
- Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, United States and Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
| | - Vladimir Lopez
- Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales y Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencias, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
| | - Agustín Ibáñez
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina; National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina; Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, United States and Trinity College Dublin, Ireland; Predictive Brain Health Modelling Group, Trinity College Dublin (TCD), Dublin, Ireland.
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33
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Zhang J, Chen D, Srirangarajan T, Theriault J, Kragel PA, Hartley L, Lee KM, McVeigh K, Wager TD, Wald LL, Satpute AB, Quigley KS, Whitfield-Gabrieli S, Barrett LF, Bianciardi M. Cortical and subcortical mapping of the allostatic-interoceptive system in the human brain: replication and extension with 7 Tesla fMRI. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.20.548178. [PMID: 37546889 PMCID: PMC10401932 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.20.548178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
The brain continuously anticipates the energetic needs of the body and prepares to meet those needs before they arise, a process called allostasis. In support of allostasis, the brain continually models the internal state of the body, a process called interoception. Using published tract-tracing studies in non-human animals as a guide, we previously identified a large-scale system supporting allostasis and interoception in the human brain with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) at 3 Tesla. In the present study, we replicated and extended this system in humans using 7 Tesla fMRI (N = 91), improving the precision of subgenual and pregenual anterior cingulate topography as well as brainstem nuclei mapping. We verified over 90% of the anatomical connections in the hypothesized allostatic-interoceptive system observed in non-human animal research. We also identified functional connectivity hubs verified in tract-tracing studies but not previously detected using 3 Tesla fMRI. Finally, we demonstrated that individuals with stronger fMRI connectivity between system hubs self-reported greater interoceptive awareness, building on construct validity evidence from our earlier paper. Taken together, these results strengthen evidence for the existence of a whole-brain system supporting interoception in the service of allostasis and we consider the implications for mental and physical health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiahe Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Danlei Chen
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | | | - Jordan Theriault
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02139
| | | | - Ludger Hartley
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Kent M. Lee
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Kieran McVeigh
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Tor D. Wager
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755
| | - Lawrence L. Wald
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02139
| | - Ajay B. Satpute
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | - Karen S. Quigley
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
| | | | - Lisa Feldman Barrett
- Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02139
- Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02139
| | - Marta Bianciardi
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02139
- Division of Sleep Medicine, Harvard University, Boston, MA
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34
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Wallman-Jones A, Nigg C, Benzing V, Schmidt M. Leave the screen: The influence of everyday behaviors on self-reported interoception. Biol Psychol 2023; 181:108600. [PMID: 37286096 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/03/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The influence of physical activity on interoception is apparent, however little is known about within-person variability following physical activity and sedentary behavior in daily life. To test this, 70 healthy adults (Mage 21.67 ± 2.50) wore thigh-mounted accelerometers for 7-days, with self-reported interoception recorded on movement-triggered smartphones. Participants additionally reported the predominant activity type performed across the last 15 min. Investigating this timeframe, multi-level analyses revealed that each one-unit increase in physical activity was associated with an increase in self-reported interoception (B = 0.0025, p = .013), whereas contrastingly, each one-minute increase in sedentary behavior was associated with a decrease (B = -0.06. p = .009). Investigating the influence of different activity types in comparison to screen time behavior, both partaking in exercise (B = 4.48, p < .001) and daily-life physical activity (B = 1.21, p < .001) were associated with an increase in self-reported interoception. Regarding other behavior categories, non-screen time behavior both with (B = 1.13, p < .001) and without (B = 0.67, p = .004) social interaction were also associated with an increase in self-reported interoception compared to screen-time behavior. Extending from previous laboratory-based studies, these findings indicate that physical activity influences interoceptive processes in real-life, further supplemented by the novel and contrasting findings regarding sedentary behavior. Furthermore, associations with activity type reveal important mechanistic information, highlighting the importance of reducing screen-time behavior to preserve and support interoceptive perceptions. Findings can be used to inform health recommendations for reducing screen-time behavior and guiding evidence-based physical activity interventions to promote interoceptive processes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Carina Nigg
- Institute of Sport Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Valentin Benzing
- Institute of Sport Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Mirko Schmidt
- Institute of Sport Science, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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35
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Zelič Ž, Sebastiani L, Santarcangelo EL. Association of Hypnotizability, Interoception, and Emotion. Int J Clin Exp Hypn 2023:1-13. [PMID: 37363858 DOI: 10.1080/00207144.2023.2226188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2023] [Revised: 05/08/2023] [Accepted: 05/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023]
Abstract
The present scoping review reports the reciprocal relations between hypnotizability, interoception, and emotion. Brain morpho-functional differences may account for the lower interoceptive accuracy, higher interoceptive sensitivity, and different emotional strategies observed in highly hypnotizable participants with respect to medium-to-low hypnotizables. Since interoception is relevant to both physical and mental health and hypnotizability can predict both interoceptive abilities and the efficacy of interoception-based mental training, this allows for the development of new forms of treatment and rehabilitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Žan Zelič
- Department of Translational Medicine and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Italy
| | - Laura Sebastiani
- Department of Translational Medicine and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Italy
| | - Enrica Laura Santarcangelo
- Department of Translational Medicine and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Italy
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36
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Revisiting uncertainty as a felt sense of unsafety: The somatic error theory of intolerance of uncertainty. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry 2023; 79:101827. [PMID: 36512913 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2022.101827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Revised: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 12/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Intolerance of uncertainty (IU) has gained widespread interest as a construct of broad interest from both transdiagnostic and trans-situational perspectives. We have approached this article inspired by the curiosity, clinical observation, consideration of different theoretical perspectives, speculation, optimism and indeed fun that can be seen in S. J. Rachman's work. We address some of what we know about IU before considering one way of conceptualizing IU from the standpoint of a felt sense or embodied experience. In the first part, we start with Woody and Rachman's (1994) observations of people with GAD. Second, we consider some key findings from the literature. Third, we consider two important perspectives on uncertainty, namely, Brosschot et al.'s (2016, 2018) influential Generalized Unsafety Theory of Stress and uncertainty as an emotion. In the second part, backing our clinical hunch about the importance of the felt sense of uncertainty, we consider IU from the perspective of interoception and the somatic error theory of anxiety (Khalsa & Feinstein, 2018). We propose the somatic error theory of intolerance of uncertainty, which places the experience of uncertainty at the heart of our understanding of intolerance of uncertainty. This is followed by predictions, unresolved questions, and potential clinical implications. Finally, we revisit Woody and Rachman's (1994) suggestions for treatment as internalizing "a sense of safety in a range of circumstances (p. 750)" and update this from the perspective of the felt sense of uncertainty. We finish by suggesting that uncertainty can be tolerated, perhaps accepted, and even embraced.
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Contreras-Huerta LS, Coll MP, Bird G, Yu H, Prosser A, Lockwood PL, Murphy J, Crockett MJ, Apps MAJ. Neural representations of vicarious rewards are linked to interoception and prosocial behaviour. Neuroimage 2023; 269:119881. [PMID: 36702212 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.119881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Every day we constantly observe other people receiving rewards. Theoretical accounts posit that vicarious reward processing might be linked to people's sensitivity to internal body states (interoception) and facilitates a tendency to act prosocially. However, the neural processes underlying the links between vicarious reward processing, interoception, and prosocial behaviour are poorly understood. Previous research has linked vicarious reward processing to the anterior cingulate gyrus (ACCg) and the anterior insula (AI). Can we predict someone's propensity to be prosocial or to be aware of interoceptive signals from variability in how the ACCg and AI process rewards? Here, participants monitored rewards being delivered to themselves or a stranger during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Later, they performed a task measuring their willingness to exert effort to obtain rewards for others, and a task measuring their propensity to be aware and use interoceptive respiratory signals. Using multivariate similarity analysis, we show that people's willingness to be prosocial is predicted by greater similarity between self and other representations in the ACCg. Moreover, greater dissimilarity in self-other representations in the AI is linked to interoceptive propensity. These findings highlight that vicarious reward is linked to bodily signals in AI, and foster prosocial tendencies through the ACCg.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luis Sebastian Contreras-Huerta
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Viña del Mar, Chile.
| | - Michel-Pierre Coll
- School of Psychology and CIRRIS research center, Laval University, Quebec City QC G1V 0A6, Canada
| | - Geoffrey Bird
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| | - Hongbo Yu
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Annayah Prosser
- Department of Psychology, University of Bath, BA2 7AY, United Kingdom
| | - Patricia L Lockwood
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Christ Church, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 1DP, UK
| | - Jennifer Murphy
- Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, London TW20 0EY, UK
| | - M J Crockett
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Department of Psychology and University Center for Human Values, Princeton University, Princeton, USA
| | - Matthew A J Apps
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Centre for Human Brain Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Institute for Mental Health, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; Christ Church, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 1DP, UK.
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38
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Critchley HD, Sherrill SP, Ewing DL, van Praag CG, Habash-Bailey H, Quadt L, Eccles JA, Meeten F, Jones AM, Garfinkel SN. Cardiac interoception in patients accessing secondary mental health services: A transdiagnostic study. Auton Neurosci 2023; 245:103072. [PMID: 36709619 DOI: 10.1016/j.autneu.2023.103072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Revised: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 01/08/2023] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Abnormalities in the regulation of physiological arousal and interoceptive processing are implicated in the expression and maintenance of specific psychiatric conditions and symptoms. We undertook a cross-sectional characterisation of patients accessing secondary mental health services, recording measures relating to cardiac physiology and interoception, to understand how physiological state and interoceptive ability relate transdiagnostically to affective symptoms. METHODS Participants were patients (n = 258) and a non-clinical comparison group (n = 67). Clinical diagnoses spanned affective disorders, complex personality presentations and psychoses. We first tested for differences between patient and non-clinical participants in terms of cardiac physiology and interoceptive ability, considering interoceptive tasks and a self-report measure. We then tested for correlations between cardiac and interoceptive measures and affective symptoms. Lastly, we explored group differences across recorded clinical diagnoses. RESULTS Patients exhibited lower performance accuracy and confidence in heartbeat discrimination and lower heartbeat tracking confidence relative to comparisons. In patients, greater anxiety and depression predicted greater self-reported interoceptive sensibility and a greater mismatch between performance accuracy and sensibility. This effect was not observed in comparison participants. Significant differences between patient groups were observed for heart rate variability (HRV) although post hoc differences were not significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Finally, accuracy in heartbeat tracking was significantly lower in schizophrenia compared to other diagnostic groups. CONCLUSIONS The multilevel characterisation presented here identified certain physiological and interoceptive differences associated with psychiatric symptoms and diagnoses. The clinical stratification and therapeutic targeting of interoceptive mechanisms is therefore of potential value in treating certain psychiatric conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hugo D Critchley
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Sussex Neuroscience, University of Sussex, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
| | - Samantha P Sherrill
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Sussex Neuroscience, University of Sussex, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Donna L Ewing
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; School of Humanities and Social Science, University of Brighton, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Cassandra Gould van Praag
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Haniah Habash-Bailey
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; School of Psychology, University of Sussex, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Lisa Quadt
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Sussex Neuroscience, University of Sussex, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Jessica A Eccles
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; Sussex Neuroscience, University of Sussex, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Fran Meeten
- Department of Neuroscience, Brighton and Sussex Medical School, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; School of Psychology, University of Sussex, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Anna-Marie Jones
- Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
| | - Sarah N Garfinkel
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
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39
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Barca L, Candidi M, Lancia GL, Maglianella V, Pezzulo G. Mapping the mental space of emotional concepts through kinematic measures of decision uncertainty. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210367. [PMID: 36571117 PMCID: PMC9791479 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0367] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Emotional concepts and their mental representations have been extensively studied. Yet, some ecologically relevant aspects, such as how they are processed in ambiguous contexts (e.g., in relation to other emotional stimuli that share similar characteristics), are incompletely known. We employed a similarity judgement of emotional concepts and manipulated the contextual congruency of the responses along the two main affective dimensions of hedonic valence and physiological activation, respectively. Behavioural and kinematics (mouse-tracking) measures were combined to gather a novel 'similarity index' between emotional concepts, to derive topographical maps of their mental representations. Self-report (interoceptive sensibility, positive-negative affectivity, depression) and physiological measures (heart rate variability, HRV) have been collected to explore their possible association with emotional conceptual representation. Results indicate that emotional concepts typically associated with low arousal profit by contextual congruency, with faster responses and reduced uncertainty when contextual ambiguity decreases. The emotional maps recreate two almost orthogonal axes of valence and arousal, and the similarity measure captures the smooth boundaries between emotions. The emotional map of a subgroup of individuals with low positive affectivity reveals a narrower conceptual distribution, with variations in positive emotions and in individuals with reduced arousal (such as those with reduced HRV). Our work introduces a novel methodology to study emotional conceptual representations, bringing the behavioural dynamics of decision-making processes and choice uncertainty into the affective domain. This article is part of the theme issue 'Concepts in interaction: social engagement and inner experiences'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Barca
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Matteo Candidi
- Department of Psychology, University of Rome ‘La Sapienza’, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Gian Luca Lancia
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Valerio Maglianella
- Department of Psychology, University of Rome ‘La Sapienza’, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Pezzulo
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, 00185 Rome, Italy
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Boccia M, Teghil A, Raimo S, Di Vita A, Grossi D, Guariglia C, Palermo L. Neural substrates of interoceptive sensibility: An integrated study in normal and pathological functioning. Neuropsychologia 2023; 183:108504. [PMID: 36746344 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2022] [Revised: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2023] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
In early studies interoception strictly referred to the awareness of visceral sensations, but recent theories have expanded this concept to denote the ongoing status of the body, including somatosensory feelings. Here, we integrated data from normal and pathological functioning to disclose neural underpinnings of interoceptive sensibility, taking into account the crucial distinction between visceral and somatosensory feelings. Twenty-seven healthy young individuals underwent structural MRI (including T1w images and DTI). Voxel-wise analyses of the gyrification index (GI) and fractional anisotropy (FA) data were performed to assess the relation between interoceptive sensibility and surface morphometry and anatomical connectivity. Thirty-three unilateral brain-damaged patients took part in this study for Voxel-Based Lesion-Symptom Mapping (VLSM) and track-wise hodological lesion-deficit analysis (TWH). All participants completed the Self-Awareness Questionnaire (SAQ), a self-report tool assessing interoceptive sensibility of visceral (F1) and somatosensory feelings (F2). Tract-Based Spatial Statistics showed that F2 was positively associated with FA in the bilateral anterior thalamic radiation, corticospinal tract, cingulum, forceps, inferior longitudinal, fronto-occipital, superior longitudinal, and uncinate fasciculi; no significant association was detected for F1. However, F1 was positively associated with GI in the left anterior cingulate cortex. VLSM showed that F1 mainly relies on the right posterior insula, whereas F2 is related mostly to subcortical nuclei and surrounding white matter in the right hemisphere. Accordingly, patients with disconnection of the anterior thalamic projection, corticospinal tract, inferior fronto-occipital, inferior longitudinal, uncinate and superior longitudinal fasciculus III showed lower scores on F2. Overall, results support the dissociation between interoceptive sensibility of visceral and somatosensory feelings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maddalena Boccia
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy; Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Santa Lucia, Italy.
| | - Alice Teghil
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy; Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Santa Lucia, Italy
| | - Simona Raimo
- Department of Medical and Surgical in Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Italy
| | - Antonella Di Vita
- Department of Human Neuroscience, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
| | - Dario Grossi
- Department of Psychology, University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Italy
| | - Cecilia Guariglia
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy; Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Santa Lucia, Italy
| | - Liana Palermo
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging Unit, IRCCS Santa Lucia, Italy; Department of Medical and Surgical in Sciences, Magna Graecia University of Catanzaro, Italy
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41
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Inflammation shapes neural processing of interoceptive fear predictors during extinction learning in healthy humans. Brain Behav Immun 2023; 108:328-339. [PMID: 36535608 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2022.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2022] [Revised: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Inflammation could impact on the formation and persistence of interoceptive fear and hypervigilance, with relevance to psychiatric disorders and chronic pain. To systematically analyze effects of inflammation on fear learning and extinction, we performed two complementary randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies combining experimental endotoxemia as a translational model of acute systemic inflammation with a two-day multiple-threat fear conditioning paradigm involving interoceptive and exteroceptive unconditioned stimuli (US). Healthy volunteers (N = 95) were randomized to receive intravenous injections of either endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide, LPS; 0.4 ng/kg) or placebo prior to fear acquisition (study 1) or extinction training (study2). Treatment effects on behavioral and neural responses to conditioned stimuli (CS) predicting interoceptive or exteroceptive threat were assessed during fear learning and extinction phases, along with US valence ratings. Despite robust inflammatory and emotional responses triggered by LPS, no direct effects of inflammation on US ratings or on the formation or extinction of conditioned fear, as assessed with CS valence ratings, were observed. However, in the group treated with LPS prior to acquisition (i.e., study 1), we found enhanced neural responses to the interoceptive but not the exteroceptive CS in key regions of the central fear circuitry during extinction learning. After extinction, this group further showed enhanced negative valence ratings selectively for the interoceptive US during unexpected US re-exposure when compared to the placebo group. Together, inflammation during fear acquisition may promote the establishment of a more robust neural signature of the interoceptive fear memory trace, which may contribute to altered interoceptive pain perception. The fear extinction circuitry engaged during interoceptive fear memory processing may be particularly vulnerable to inflammation, with transdiagnostic implications for gut-brain mechanisms underlying disturbed interoception in psychiatric conditions and chronic visceral pain.
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Are some interoceptive sensibility components more central than others? Using item pool visualisation to understand the psychometric representation of interoception. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0277894. [PMID: 36455037 PMCID: PMC9714805 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0277894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Interoception refers to the processing of stimuli originating within the body and is widely considered a multidimensional construct. However, there remains a lack of consensus regarding the definition and measurement of the subjective, self-reported component, referred to here as interoceptive sensibility. As a contribution to knowledge on the topic, we sought to examine the construct commonality and distinguishability of seven self-report measures of interoceptive sensibility using Item Pool Visualisation (IPV), an illustrative method that locates item pools from within the same dataset and illustrates these in the form of nested radar charts. Adults from the United Kingdom (N = 802) completed seven measures of interoceptive sensibility, and the data were subjected to IPV. Results demonstrated that, of the included measures, the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness-2 provided the closest and most precise measurement of the core interoceptive sensibility construct (i.e., core of the entire investigated item pool). The Body Awareness Questionnaire and the Private Body Consciousness Scale were also centrally located measures, while the Body Perception Questionnaire and the Body Responsiveness Scale appear to tap more distal aspects of the core construct. We discuss implications for interpreting complicated data patterns using measures of interoceptive sensibility and, more generally, for measuring the construct of interoceptive sensibility.
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43
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McMurray KMJ, Sah R. Neuroimmune mechanisms in fear and panic pathophysiology. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:1015349. [PMID: 36523875 PMCID: PMC9745203 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.1015349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2022] [Accepted: 11/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Panic disorder (PD) is unique among anxiety disorders in that the emotional symptoms (e.g., fear and anxiety) associated with panic are strongly linked to body sensations indicative of threats to physiological homeostasis. For example, panic attacks often present with feelings of suffocation that evoke hyperventilation, breathlessness, or air hunger. Due to the somatic underpinnings of PD, a major focus has been placed on interoceptive signaling and it is recognized that dysfunctional body-to-brain communication pathways promote the initiation and maintenance of PD symptomatology. While body-to-brain signaling can occur via several pathways, immune and humoral pathways play an important role in communicating bodily physiological state to the brain. Accumulating evidence suggests that neuroimmune mediators play a role in fear and panic-associated disorders, although this has not been systematically investigated. Currently, our understanding of the role of immune mechanisms in the etiology and maintenance of PD remains limited. In the current review, we attempt to summarize findings that support a role of immune dysregulation in PD symptomology. We compile evidence from human studies and panic-relevant rodent paradigms that indicate a role of systemic and brain immune signaling in the regulation of fear and panic-relevant behavior and physiology. Specifically, we discuss how immune signaling can contribute to maladaptive body-to-brain communication and conditioned fear that are relevant to spontaneous and conditioned symptoms of PD and identify putative avenues warranting future investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine M. J. McMurray
- Department of Pharmacology and Systems Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
| | - Renu Sah
- Department of Pharmacology and Systems Physiology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, United States
- Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, United States
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Migeot JA, Duran-Aniotz CA, Signorelli CM, Piguet O, Ibáñez A. A predictive coding framework of allostatic-interoceptive overload in frontotemporal dementia. Trends Neurosci 2022; 45:838-853. [PMID: 36057473 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2022.08.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Revised: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022]
Abstract
Recent allostatic-interoceptive explanations using predictive coding models propose that efficient regulation of the body's internal milieu is necessary to correctly anticipate environmental needs. We review this framework applied to understanding behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) considering both allostatic overload and interoceptive deficits. First, we show how this framework could explain divergent deficits in bvFTD (cognitive impairments, behavioral maladjustment, brain atrophy, fronto-insular-temporal network atypicality, aberrant interoceptive electrophysiological activity, and autonomic disbalance). We develop a set of theory-driven predictions based on levels of allostatic interoception associated with bvFTD phenomenology and related physiopathological mechanisms. This approach may help further understand the disparate behavioral and physiopathological dysregulations of bvFTD, suggesting targeted interventions and strengthening clinical models of neurological and psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joaquin A Migeot
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibanez, Santiago, Chile
| | - Claudia A Duran-Aniotz
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibanez, Santiago, Chile
| | - Camilo M Signorelli
- Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Physiology of Cognition, GIGA-CRC In Vivo Imaging, University of Liège, Liège, Belgium; Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, INSERM, Saclay, France
| | - Olivier Piguet
- The University of Sydney, School of Psychology and Brain & Mind Centre, Sydney, Australia
| | - Agustín Ibáñez
- Latin American Brain Health Institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile; Cognitive Neuroscience Center (CNC), Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina; National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina; Global Brain Health Institute, University of California-San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA, and Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland.
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45
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Singh Solorzano C, Porciello G, Violani C, Grano C. Body image dissatisfaction and interoceptive sensibility significantly predict postpartum depressive symptoms. J Affect Disord 2022; 311:239-246. [PMID: 35605706 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.05.109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2021] [Revised: 05/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/18/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND During pregnancy women experience rapid and unique changes in body weight, shape and size over a relatively short time period. While research focused on the role of external bodily modifications during pregnancy, research on internal bodily variations is missing. METHODS In a longitudinal study, we recruited healthy pregnant women and measured whether and how depressive symptoms, body image dissatisfaction and the subjective tendency to focus on one's own internal bodily sensations, i.e., interoceptive sensibility, changed during pregnancy and postpartum. Pregnant women filled online self-report questionnaires during pregnancy (i.e. second and third trimester) and after (i.e. six weeks) the delivery, including the Body Areas Satisfaction Scale, the Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness, and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. RESULTS While depressive symptoms remained stable in the peripartum, body image dissatisfaction increased in the postpartum compared to the pregnancy period, and interoceptive sensibility increased over pregnancy. Findings showed that the increase of body dissatisfaction through the peripartum and the levels of interoceptive sensibility in the early phase of pregnancy predicted depressive symptoms in the postpartum. LIMITATIONS Interoception was evaluated as a subjective measure (i.e., interoceptive sensibility). Future studies may include objective measures of interoceptive accuracy and interoceptive awareness. CONCLUSIONS The current study supports the importance of body image dissatisfaction and interoceptive sensibility in the development of postpartum depressive symptoms. Future studies need to investigate if interventions aimed to increase interoceptive sensibility might be useful in preventing depressive symptoms and identify the mechanisms that can lead to these changes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Giuseppina Porciello
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy; IRCCS Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Caterina Grano
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
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Todd J, Aspell JE. Mindfulness, Interoception, and the Body. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12060696. [PMID: 35741582 PMCID: PMC9220884 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12060696] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in the topics of interoception and mindfulness from researchers, clinicians, and the general public alike (e [...]
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Todd
- School of Psychology and Sport Science, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge CB1 1PT, UK;
- Centre for Psychological Medicine, Perdana University, Kuala Lumpur 50490, Malaysia
- Correspondence:
| | - Jane E. Aspell
- School of Psychology and Sport Science, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge CB1 1PT, UK;
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