Empathic control through coordinated interaction of amygdala, theory of mind and extended pain matrix brain regions

Development of Predictive Responses in Theory of Mind Brain Regions

10.31234/osf.io/gj8up ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

Hilary Richardson ◽

Rebecca Saxe

Keyword(s):

Theory Of Mind ◽

Peer Review ◽

Recent Work ◽

Mental State ◽

Mental States ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Control Network ◽

Functional Responses ◽

Pain Matrix ◽

Anticipation Effect

When we watch movies, we consider the characters’ mental states in order to understand and predict the narrative. Recent work in fMRI uses movie-viewing paradigms to measure functional responses in brain regions recruited for such mental state reasoning (the Theory of Mind (“ToM”) network). Here, two groups of young children (n=30 3-4yo, n=26 6-7yo) viewed a short animated movie twice while undergoing fMRI. As children get older, ToM brain regions were recruited earlier in time during the second presentation of the movie. This “narrative anticipation” effect is specific: there was no such effect in a control network of brain regions that responds just as robustly to the movie (the “Pain Matrix”). These results complement prior studies in adults that suggest that ToM brain regions play a role not just in inferring, but in actively predicting, other people's thoughts and feelings, and provide novel evidence that as children get older, their ToM brain regions increasingly make such predictions. This is a post-peer-review, pre-copyedit version of an article published in Developmental Science. The final authenticated version is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.12863 .

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Peripheral arterial stiffness during electrocutaneous stimulation is positively correlated with pain-related brain activity and subjective pain intensity: an fMRI study

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-83833-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Toshio Tsuji ◽

Fumiya Arikuni ◽

Takafumi Sasaoka ◽

Shin Suyama ◽

Takashi Akiyoshi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Arterial Stiffness ◽

Pain Intensity ◽

Brain Activity ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Anterior Cingulate ◽

Electrocutaneous Stimulation ◽

Pain Matrix ◽

Fmri Study ◽

Subjective Pain ◽

Peripheral Arterial

AbstractBrain activity associated with pain perception has been revealed by numerous PET and fMRI studies over the past few decades. These findings helped to establish the concept of the pain matrix, which is the distributed brain networks that demonstrate pain-specific cortical activities. We previously found that peripheral arterial stiffness $${\beta }_{\text{art}}$$ β art responds to pain intensity, which is estimated from electrocardiography, continuous sphygmomanometer, and photo-plethysmography. However, it remains unclear whether and to what extent $${\beta }_{\text{art}}$$ β art aligns with pain matrix brain activity. In this fMRI study, 22 participants received different intensities of pain stimuli. We identified brain regions in which the blood oxygen level-dependent signal covaried with $${\beta }_{\text{art}}$$ β art using parametric modulation analysis. Among the identified brain regions, the lateral and medial prefrontal cortex and ventral and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex were consistent with the pain matrix. We found moderate correlations between the average activities in these regions and $${\beta }_{\text{art}}$$ β art (r = 0.47, p < 0.001). $${\beta }_{\text{art}}$$ β art was also significantly correlated with self-reported pain intensity (r = 0.44, p < 0.001) and applied pain intensity (r = 0.43, p < 0.001). Our results indicate that $${\beta }_{\text{art}}$$ β art is positively correlated with pain-related brain activity and subjective pain intensity. This study may thus represent a basis for adopting peripheral arterial stiffness as an objective pain evaluation metric.

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Theory of Mind network activity is associated with metaethical judgment: An item analysis

10.31234/osf.io/gb5am ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jordan E. Theriault ◽

Adam Waytz ◽

Larisa Heiphetz ◽

Liane Young

Keyword(s):

Theory Of Mind ◽

Item Analysis ◽

Positive Association ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Social Contexts ◽

Network Activity ◽

Predictive Processing ◽

Temporoparietal Junction ◽

Social Tasks ◽

Stimulus Features

The theory of mind network (ToMN) is a set of brain regions activated by a variety of social tasks. Recent work has proposed that these associations with ToMN activity may relate to a common underlying computation: processing prediction error in social contexts. The present work presents evidence consistent with this hypothesis, using a fine-grained item analysis to examine the relationship between ToMN activity and variance in stimulus features. We used an existing dataset (consisting of statements about morals, facts, and preferences) to explore variability in ToMN activity elicited by moral statements, using metaethical judgments (i.e. judgments of how fact-like/preference-like morals are) as a proxy for their predictability/support by social consensus. Study 1 validated expected patterns of behavioral judgments in our stimuli set, and Study 2 associated by-stimulus estimates of metaethical judgment with ToMN activity, showing that ToMN activity was negatively associated with objective morals and positively associated with subjective morals. Whole brain analyses indicated that these associations were strongest in bilateral temporoparietal junction (TPJ). We also observed additional by-stimulus associations with ToMN, including positive associations with the presence of a person (across morals, facts, and preferences), a negative association with agreement (among morals only), and a positive association with mental inference (in preferences only, across 3 independent measures and behavioral samples). We discuss these findings in the context of recent predictive processing models, and highlight how predictive models may facilitate new perspectives on metaethics, the centrality of morality to personal identity, and distinctions between social domains (e.g. morals vs. preferences).

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Pediatric Stroke Impairs Theory of Mind Performance

Journal of Child Neurology ◽

10.1177/0883073819887590 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (3) ◽

pp. 228-234

Author(s):

Warren Lo ◽

Xiangrui Li ◽

Kristen Hoskinson ◽

Kelly McNally ◽

Melissa Chung ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Cognition ◽

Theory Of Mind ◽

Resting State ◽

Network Connectivity ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Childhood Stroke ◽

Magnetic Resonance Imaging Mri ◽

And Gender ◽

Resting State Connectivity ◽

Control Study

Aim: This pilot study explored whether childhood stroke impairs performance on theory of mind (ToM) tasks and whether ToM task performance correlates with resting state connectivity in brain regions linked with social cognition. Method: We performed a case-control study of 10 children with stroke and 10 age- and gender-matched controls. They completed 2 ToM tasks, and resting state connectivity was measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Results: Children with stroke performed worse than controls on conative ToM tasks. Resting state connectivity in the central executive network was significantly higher and connectivity between right and left inferior parietal lobules was significantly decreased in children with stroke. Resting state activity and ToM performance were not significantly correlated. Interpretation: Childhood stroke results in poorer performance on specific ToM tasks. Stroke is associated with changes in resting state connectivity in networks linked with social cognition including ToM. Although the basis for these changes in connectivity is not well understood, these results may provide preliminary insights into potential mechanisms affecting social cognition after stroke. The findings suggest that further study of the effect of childhood stroke on network connectivity may yield insights as to how stroke affects cognitive functions in children.

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Asking ‘why?’ enhances theory of mind when evaluating harm but not purity violations

Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience ◽

10.1093/scan/nsz048 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 14 (7) ◽

pp. 699-708 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

James A Dungan ◽

Liane Young

Keyword(s):

Theory Of Mind ◽

Mental States ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Judgment Task ◽

Moral Judgments ◽

Moral Norms ◽

Temporoparietal Junction ◽

Task Instructions ◽

Right Temporoparietal Junction ◽

The Right

Abstract Recent work in psychology and neuroscience has revealed important differences in the cognitive processes underlying judgments of harm and purity violations. In particular, research has demonstrated that whether a violation was committed intentionally vs accidentally has a larger impact on moral judgments of harm violations (e.g. assault) than purity violations (e.g. incest). Here, we manipulate the instructions provided to participants for a moral judgment task to further probe the boundary conditions of this intent effect. Specifically, we instructed participants undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging to attend to either a violator’s mental states (why they acted that way) or their low-level behavior (how they acted) before delivering moral judgments. Results revealed that task instructions enhanced rather than diminished differences between how harm and purity violations are processed in brain regions for mental state reasoning or theory of mind. In particular, activity in the right temporoparietal junction increased when participants were instructed to attend to why vs how a violator acted to a greater extent for harm than for purity violations. This result constrains the potential accounts of why intentions matter less for purity violations compared to harm violations and provide further insight into the differences between distinct moral norms.

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Neural substrates for moral judgments of psychological versus physical harm

10.31234/osf.io/g9he3 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Lily Tsoi ◽

James A Dungan ◽

Alek Chakroff ◽

Liane Young

Keyword(s):

Theory Of Mind ◽

Psychological Impact ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Moral Judgments ◽

Anterior Cingulate ◽

Adults With Autism ◽

Temporoparietal Junction ◽

The Right ◽

Multivariate Pattern

Although harm primarily elicits thoughts of physical injuries, harm can also take the form of negative psychological impact. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined the extent to which moral judgments of physical and psychological harms are processed similarly, focusing on brain regions implicated in mental state reasoning or theory of mind, a key cognitive process for moral judgment. Univariate analyses reveal similar levels of theory of mind processing for psychological and physical harms, though multivariate pattern analyses (MVPA) reveal sensitivity to the psychological/physical distinction in two regions implicated in theory of mind: the right temporoparietal junction and the precuneus. Moreover, while there were no differences in neurotypical adults and adults with autism spectrum disorder with regard to neural activity related to theory of mind, there was a group difference in the recruitment of the anterior cingulate cortex for psychological versus physical harms. Altogether, these results reveal sensitivity within regions implicated in theory of mind to the physical / psychological distinction as well as neural processes that capture clinically relevant differences in evaluations of psychological harms versus physical harms.

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The Effects of Tryptamine Psychedelics in the Brain: A meta-Analysis of Functional and Review of Molecular Imaging Studies

Frontiers in Pharmacology ◽

10.3389/fphar.2021.739053 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

João Castelhano ◽

Gisela Lima ◽

Marta Teixeira ◽

Carla Soares ◽

Marta Pais ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Prefrontal Cortex ◽

Theory Of Mind ◽

Molecular Mimicry ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Temporal Cortex ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Imaging Studies ◽

Activation Patterns ◽

Therapeutic Benefits ◽

The Brain

There is an increasing interest in the neural effects of psychoactive drugs, in particular tryptamine psychedelics, which has been incremented by the proposal that they have potential therapeutic benefits, based on their molecular mimicry of serotonin. It is widely believed that they act mainly through 5HT2A receptors but their effects on neural activation of distinct brain systems are not fully understood. We performed a quantitative meta-analysis of brain imaging studies to investigate the effects of substances within this class (e.g., LSD, Psilocybin, DMT, Ayahuasca) in the brain from a molecular and functional point of view. We investigated the question whether the changes in activation patterns and connectivity map into regions with larger 5HT1A/5HT2A receptor binding, as expected from indolaemine hallucinogens (in spite of the often reported emphasis only on 5HT2AR). We did indeed find that regions with changed connectivity and/or activation patterns match regions with high density of 5HT2A receptors, namely visual BA19, visual fusiform regions in BA37, dorsal anterior and posterior cingulate cortex, medial prefrontal cortex, and regions involved in theory of mind such as the surpramarginal gyrus, and temporal cortex (rich in 5HT1A receptors). However, we also found relevant patterns in other brain regions such as dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Moreover, many of the above-mentioned regions also have a significant density of both 5HT1A/5HT2A receptors, and available PET studies on the effects of psychedelics on receptor occupancy are still quite scarce, precluding a metanalytic approach. Finally, we found a robust neuromodulatory effect in the right amygdala. In sum, the available evidence points towards strong neuromodulatory effects of tryptamine psychedelics in key brain regions involved in mental imagery, theory of mind and affective regulation, pointing to potential therapeutic applications of this class of substances.

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Finding the neural correlates of collaboration using a three-person fMRI hyperscanning paradigm

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1917407117 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 117 (37) ◽

pp. 23066-23072 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hua Xie ◽

Iliana I. Karipidis ◽

Amber Howell ◽

Meredith Schreier ◽

Kristen E. Sheau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Theory Of Mind ◽

Neural Correlates ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Vital Role ◽

Blood Oxygenation ◽

Evolutionary Significance ◽

General Linear Model Analysis ◽

Drawing Task ◽

The Social ◽

The Right

Humans have an extraordinary ability to interact and cooperate with others. Despite the social and evolutionary significance of collaboration, research on finding its neural correlates has been limited partly due to restrictions on the simultaneous neuroimaging of more than one participant (also known as hyperscanning). Several studies have used dyadic fMRI hyperscanning to examine the interaction between two participants. However, to our knowledge, no study to date has aimed at revealing the neural correlates of social interactions using a three-person (or triadic) fMRI hyperscanning paradigm. Here, we simultaneously measured the blood-oxygenation level-dependent signal from 12 triads (n = 36 participants), while they engaged in a collaborative drawing task based on the social game of Pictionary. General linear model analysis revealed increased activation in the brain regions previously linked with the theory of mind during the collaborative phase compared to the independent phase of the task. Furthermore, using intersubject correlation analysis, we revealed increased synchronization of the right temporo‐parietal junction (R TPJ) during the collaborative phase. The increased synchrony in the R TPJ was observed to be positively associated with the overall team performance on the task. In sum, our paradigm revealed a vital role of the R TPJ among other theory-of-mind regions during a triadic collaborative drawing task.

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