scholarly journals Attentional Bias Modification is associated with fMRI Response towards Negative Stimuli in Residual Depression: A Randomized Controlled Trial

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Hilland ◽  
N.I. Landrø ◽  
C. J. Harmer ◽  
M. Browning ◽  
L. A. Maglanoc ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Attentional Biases ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Affective States ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Attentional Bias Modification

AbstractBackgroundModification of attentional biases (ABM) may lead to more adaptive emotion perception and emotion regulation. Understanding the neural basis of these effects may lead to greater precision for future treatment development. Task-related fMRI following ABM training has so far not been investigated in depression. The main aim of the RCT was to explore differences in brain activity after ABM training in response to emotional stimuli.MethodsA total of 134 previously depressed individuals were randomized into 14 days of ABM- or a placebo training followed by an fMRI emotion regulation task. Depression symptoms and subjective ratings of perceived negativity during fMRI was examined between the training groups. Brain activation was explored within predefined areas (SVC) and across the whole brain. Activation in areas associated with changes in attentional biases (AB) and degree of depression was explored.ResultsThe ABM group showed reduced activation within the amygdala and within the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) when passively viewing negative images compared to the placebo group. No group differences were found within predefined SVC’s associated with emotion regulation strategies. Response within the temporal cortices was associated with degree of change in AB and with degree of depressive symptoms in ABM versus placebo.LimitationsThe findings should be replicated in other samples of depressed patients and in studies using designs that allow analyses of within-group variability from baseline to follow-up.ConclusionsABM training has an effect on brain function within circuitry associated with emotional appraisal and the generation of affective states.Clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT02931487

scholarly journals Grief, Mindfulness and Neural Predictors of Improvement in Family Dementia Caregivers

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felipe A. Jain ◽  
Colm G. Connolly ◽  
Leonardo C. Moore ◽  
Andrew F. Leuchter ◽  
Michelle Abrams ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Guided Imagery ◽  
Robust Regression ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Dementia Caregivers ◽  
Clinical Relationship ◽  
Caregiver Grief

Background: Family dementia caregivers often suffer from an immense toll of grief while caring for their loved ones. We sought to identify the clinical relationship between grief, depression and mindfulness and identify neural predictors of symptomatology and improvement. Methods: 23 family dementia caregivers were assessed at baseline for grief, mindfulness and depression, of which 17 underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). During fMRI, caregivers were shown faces of either their dementia-stricken relative or that of a stranger, paired with grief-related or neutral words. In 9 subjects, post fMRI scans were also obtained after four weeks of either guided imagery or relaxation. Robust regression was used to predict changes in symptoms with longitudinal brain activation changes as the dependent variable. Results: Grief and depression symptoms were correlated (r = 0.50, p = .01), and both were negatively correlated with mindfulness (r = -.70, p = .0002; r = -.52, p = .01). Relative to viewing strangers, caregivers shown pictures of their loved ones (picture factor) exhibited increased activation in the dorsal anterior cingulate gyrus and precuneus. Improvement in grief but not mindfulness or depression was predicted by increased relative brain activation in the precuneus and anterior cingulate (different subregions from baseline). Viewing grief-related vs. neutral words elicited activity in the medial prefrontal cortex and precuneus. Conclusions: Caregiver grief, depression and mindfulness are interrelated but have at least partially nonoverlapping neural mechanisms. Picture and word stimuli related to grief evoked brain activity in regions previously identified with bereavement grief. These activation foci might be useful as biomarkers of treatment response.

scholarly journals Ictal and interictal brain activation in episodic migraine: Neural basis for extent of allodynia

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. e0244320
Author(s):  
Nasim Maleki ◽  
Edina Szabo ◽  
Lino Becerra ◽  
Eric Moulton ◽  
Steven J. Scrivani ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Functional Neuroimaging ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Imaging Study ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Episodic Migraine ◽  
Pain Tolerance ◽  
Trigeminal Nucleus ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Noxious Heat ◽  
No Activation

In some patients, migraine attacks are associated with symptoms of allodynia which can be localized (cephalic) or generalized (extracephalic). Using functional neuroimaging and cutaneous thermal stimulation, we aimed to investigate the differences in brain activation of patients with episodic migraine (n = 19) based on their allodynic status defined by changes between ictal and interictal pain tolerance threshold for each subject at the time of imaging. In this prospective imaging study, differences were found in brain activity between the ictal and interictal visits in the brainstem/pons, thalamus, insula, cerebellum and cingulate cortex. Significant differences were also observed in the pattern of activation along the trigeminal pathway to noxious heat stimuli in no allodynia vs. generalized allodynia in the thalamus and the trigeminal nucleus but there were no activation differences in the trigeminal ganglion. The functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) findings provide direct evidence for the view that in migraine patients who are allodynic during the ictal phase of their attacks, the spinal trigeminal nucleus and posterior thalamus become hyper-responsive (sensitized)–to the extent that they mediate cephalic and extracephalic allodynia, respectively. In addition, descending analgesic systems seem as “switched off” in generalized allodynia.

scholarly journals It is Not (Always) the Mismatch That Beats You—On the Relationship Between Interaction of Early and Recent Life Stress and Emotion Regulation, an fMRI Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrzej Sokołowski ◽  
Monika Folkierska-Żukowska ◽  
Katarzyna Jednoróg ◽  
Marek Wypych ◽  
Wojciech Ł. Dragan
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Life Stress ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Stress Index ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Frontal Pole ◽  
Cumulative Stress ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractStress may impact the ability to effectively regulate emotions. To study the impact of stressful experiences in early and recent life on emotion regulation, we examined the relationship between early life stress, recent stress, and brain activation during cognitive reappraisal. We investigated two regulation goals: the decrease and increase of emotional response to both negative and positive stimuli. Furthermore, two models of stress consequences were examined: the cumulative and match/mismatch models. A total of 83 participants (Mage = 21.66) took part in the study. There was an interaction between cumulative stress and stimuli valence in the cuneus, superior lateral occipital cortex, superior parietal lobule, supramarginal gyrus extending to superior temporal gyrus, and precentral gyrus extending to supplementary motor area. Interaction between mismatched stress index and stimuli valence was found in the left hippocampus, left insula extending to the orbitofrontal cortex and amygdala, and in a cluster including the anterior cingulate cortex, superior frontal gyrus, and frontal pole. Furthermore, there were differences between the effects of cumulative and mismatched stress indices on brain activation during reappraisal of positive but not negative stimuli. Results indicate that cumulative stress and match/mismatch approaches are both useful for explaining brain activation during reappraisal. This finding is important for our understanding of the multifaceted impact of stress on emotion regulation.

Attentional bias modification treatment for depression: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kean J. Hsu ◽  
Kayla D. Caffey ◽  
Derek Pisner ◽  
Jason Shumake ◽  
Semeon Risom ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Trial ◽  
Attentional Bias ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Clinical Samples ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Attentional Bias Modification ◽  
Treatment Mediators ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Bias Modification

Theoretical models and empirical research point to negatively biased attention as a maintaining factor in depression. Although preliminary studies suggest experimentally modifying attentional biases (i.e., attentional bias modification; ABM) reduces depression symptoms and depression risk, relatively few rigorous studies with clinical samples have been completed. This clinical trial examines the impact of ABM on a sample of adults (N = 123) with elevated depression severity who also exhibit at least modest levels of negatively biased attention prior to treatment. Participants will be randomly assigned to either active ABM, placebo ABM, or an assessment-only control condition. Individuals assigned to ABM will complete 5 trainings per week (2 in-clinic, 3 brief trainings at-home) during a four-week period. Throughout this four-week period, participants will complete weekly assessments of symptom severity and putative treatment mediators measured across different levels of analysis (e.g., eye tracking, behavioral measures, and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging). This article details the rationale and design of the clinical trial, including methodological issues that required more extensive consideration. Our findings may not only point to an easily-accessible, efficacious treatment for depression but may also provide a meaningful test of whether a theoretically important construct, negatively biased attention, maintains depression.

scholarly journals Low competitive status elicits aggression: behavioral and neural evidence

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Macià Buades-Rotger ◽  
Martin Göttlich ◽  
Ronja Weiblen ◽  
Pauline Petereit ◽  
Thomas Scheidt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Activity ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
Ice Hockey ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Dorsal Anterior Cingulate Cortex ◽  
Overwhelming Evidence ◽  
Dorsolateral Prefrontal ◽  
Status Differentiation ◽  
Status Position

AbstractWinners are commonly assumed to compete more aggressively than losers. Here, we find overwhelming evidence for the opposite. We first demonstrate that low-ranking teams commit more fouls than they receive in top-tier soccer, ice hockey, and basketball leagues. We replicate this effect in the laboratory, showing that participants deliver louder sound blasts to a rival when placed in a low-status position. Using neuroimaging, we characterize brain activity patterns that encode competitive status as well as those that facilitate status-dependent aggression. These analyses reveal three key findings. First, anterior hippocampus and striatum contain multivariate representations of competitive status. Second, interindividual differences in status-dependent aggression are linked with a sharper status differentiation in the striatum and with greater reactivity to status-enhancing victories in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. Third, activity in ventromedial, ventrolateral, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex is associated with trial-wise increases in status-dependent aggressive behavior. Taken together, our results run counter to narratives glorifying aggression in competitive situations. Rather, we show that those in the lower ranks of skill-based hierarchies are more likely to behave aggressively and identify the potential neural basis of this phenomenon.

The Neural Basis of Successful Word Reading in Aphasia

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 514-525 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara B. Pillay ◽  
William L. Gross ◽  
William W. Graves ◽  
Colin Humphries ◽  
Diane S. Book ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Word Reading ◽  
Functional Neuroimaging ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Bold Signal ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Successful Performance

Understanding the neural basis of recovery from stroke is a major research goal. Many functional neuroimaging studies have identified changes in brain activity in people with aphasia, but it is unclear whether these changes truly support successful performance or merely reflect increased task difficulty. We addressed this problem by examining differences in brain activity associated with correct and incorrect responses on an overt reading task. On the basis of previous proposals that semantic retrieval can assist pronunciation of written words, we hypothesized that recruitment of semantic areas would be greater on successful trials. Participants were 21 patients with left-hemisphere stroke with phonologic retrieval deficits. They read words aloud during an event-related fMRI paradigm. BOLD signals obtained during correct and incorrect trials were contrasted to highlight brain activity specific to successful trials. Successful word reading was associated with higher BOLD signal in the left angular gyrus. In contrast, BOLD signal in bilateral posterior inferior frontal cortex, SMA, and anterior cingulate cortex was greater on incorrect trials. These data show for the first time the brain regions where neural activity is correlated specifically with successful performance in people with aphasia. The angular gyrus is a key node in the semantic network, consistent with the hypothesis that additional recruitment of the semantic system contributes to successful word production when phonologic retrieval is impaired. Higher activity in other brain regions during incorrect trials likely reflects secondary engagement of attention, working memory, and error monitoring processes when phonologic retrieval is unsuccessful.

scholarly journals Posttraumatic stress symptomatology and abnormal neural responding during emotion regulation under cognitive demands: mediating effects of personality

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Sun ◽  
Craig A. Marquardt ◽  
Seth G. Disner ◽  
Philip C. Burton ◽  
Nicholas D. Davenport ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Cognitive Functioning ◽  
Posttraumatic Stress ◽  
Emotion Dysregulation ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Maladaptive Behavior ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Cognitive Demands

Abstract Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often complicated by the after-effects of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). The mixture of brain conditions results in abnormal affective and cognitive functioning, as well as maladaptive behavior. To better understand how brain activity explains cognitive and emotional processes in these conditions, we used an emotional N-back task and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study neural responses in US military veterans after deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Additionally, we sought to examine whether hierarchical dimensional models of maladaptive personality could account for the relationship between combat-related brain conditions and fMRI responses under cognitive and affective challenge. FMRI data, measures of PTSD symptomatology (PTSS), blast-induced mTBI (bmTBI) severity, and maladaptive personality (MMPI-2-RF) were gathered from 93 veterans. Brain regions central to emotion regulation were selected for analysis, and consisted of bilateral amygdala, bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal (dlPFC), and ventromedial prefrontal/subgenual anterior cingulate (vmPFC-sgACC). Cognitive load increased activity in dlPFC and reduced activity in emotional responding brain regions. However, individuals with greater PTSS showed blunted deactivations in bilateral amygdala and vmPFC-sgACC, and weaker responses in right dlPFC. Additionally, we found that elevated emotional/internalizing dysfunction (EID), specifically low positive emotionality (RC2), accounted for PTSS-related changes in bilateral amygdala under increased cognitive load. Findings suggest that PTSS might result in amygdala and vmPFC-sgACC activity resistant to moderation by cognitive demands, reflecting emotion dysregulation despite a need to marshal cognitive resources. Anhedonia may be an important target for interventions that improve the affective and cognitive functioning of individuals with PTSD.

Neural correlates of attentional bias in addiction

CNS Spectrums ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 231-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Hester ◽  
Maartje Luijten
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Control ◽  
Attentional Bias ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Attentional Biases ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Control Networks ◽  
Neuroscience Research ◽  
Task Irrelevant ◽  
Increased Activity

A small but growing neuroimaging literature has begun to examine the neural mechanisms underlying the difficulty that substance-use dependent (SUD) groups have with ignoring salient, drug-related stimuli. Drug-related attentional bias appears to implicate the countermanding forces of cognitive control and reward salience. Basic cognitive neuroscience research suggests that ignoring emotionally evocative stimuli in our environment requires both up-regulation of control networks and down-regulation of processing in emotion and reward regions. Research to date suggests that attentional biases for drug-related stimuli emerge from a failure to sufficiently increase control of attention over salient, but task-irrelevant stimuli. While SUD samples have typically shown increased activity in the cognitive control regions (ie, lateral prefrontal and dorsal anterior cingulate), during attentional bias such increases appear to have been insufficient for the concomitant increases in processing by the emotion/reward regions (ie, amygdala, insula, and striatum). Given the potential contribution of attentional biases to perpetuating drug use and the development of interventions (both pharmaceutical and cognitive-behavioral) to treat biases, understanding the neural basis of successfully reducing bias remains an important, but as yet unanswered, question for our field.

Emotional Reactivity to Visual Content as Revealed by ERP Component Clustering

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 135-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miroslaw Wyczesany ◽  
Szczepan J. Grzybowski ◽  
Jan Kaiser
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Reactivity ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Affective State ◽  
Occipital Lobe ◽  
Stimulus Onset ◽  
Emotional States ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Temporoparietal Junction ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. In the study, the neural basis of emotional reactivity was investigated. Reactivity was operationalized as the impact of emotional pictures on the self-reported ongoing affective state. It was used to divide the subjects into high- and low-responders groups. Independent sources of brain activity were identified, localized with the DIPFIT method, and clustered across subjects to analyse the visual evoked potentials to affective pictures. Four of the identified clusters revealed effects of reactivity. The earliest two started about 120 ms from the stimulus onset and were located in the occipital lobe and the right temporoparietal junction. Another two with a latency of 200 ms were found in the orbitofrontal and the right dorsolateral cortices. Additionally, differences in pre-stimulus alpha level over the visual cortex were observed between the groups. The attentional modulation of perceptual processes is proposed as an early source of emotional reactivity, which forms an automatic mechanism of affective control. The role of top-down processes in affective appraisal and, finally, the experience of ongoing emotional states is also discussed.

Exploring Particular Facets of Cognitive Emotion Regulation and Their Relationships With Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Among Adolescents

Crisis ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 280-286 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nir Madjar ◽  
Nicole Segal ◽  
Gilad Eger ◽  
Gal Shoval
Keyword(s):  
Emotion Regulation ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Analysis Of Covariance ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
Emotion Regulation Strategies ◽  
Cognitive Emotion Regulation ◽  
School Students ◽  
Self Injury ◽  
Regulation Strategies ◽  
Nonsuicidal Self Injury

Abstract. Background: Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) has been found to be associated with poor emotion regulation. Aims: The goal of this study was to examine the association of multidimensional cognitive emotion regulation strategies with NSSI among adolescents and compare the different patterns of NSSI. Method: A sample of 594 high-school students (54.4% boys; mean age = 14.96 years), from five regional schools across Israel, were assessed for five facets of cognitive emotion regulation strategies (acceptance, refocus on planning, positive refocusing, putting into perspective, and positive reappraisal) and NSSI behaviors using validated scales. Participants were allocated into three groups: repetitive NSSI (more than six occasions of NSSI; 7.1%), occasional NSSI (at least one incident but less than six; 8.3%), and no NSSI (84.6%). Results: Analysis of covariance, controlling for gender and depression symptoms, revealed that students with NSSI reported higher levels of acceptance, but lower levels of refocus on planning and putting into perspective. Limitations: The study used a cross-sectional design, which was a limitation. Conclusion: These findings demonstrate that particular cognitive emotion regulation strategies differ substantially in their relationship with NSSI. Adolescents who focus on planning and putting stressful situations into perspective may have increased resilience, whereas adolescents who are accepting of negative events that have happened may be more prone to maladaptive coping behaviors.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document