Disentangling the effects of novelty, valence and trait anxiety in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, amygdala and hippocampus with high resolution 7T fMRI

NeuroImage
Walker S PedersenChristine L Larson

Abstract

The hippocampus and amygdala exhibit sensitivity to stimulus novelty that is reduced in participants with inhibited temperament, which is related to trait anxiety. Although the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) is highly connected to the amygdala and is implicated in anxiety, whether the BNST responds to novelty remains unstudied, as well as how trait anxiety may modulate this response. Additionally how novelty, stimulus negativity and trait anxiety interact to affect activity in these areas is also unclear. To address these questions, we presented participants with novel and repeated, fearful and neutral faces, while measuring brain activity via fMRI, and also assessed participants' self-reported trait anxiety. As the small size of the BNST makes assessing its activity at typical fMRI resolution difficult, we employed high resolution 7 Tesla scanning. Our results replicate findings of novelty sensitivity that is independent of valence in the hippocampus. Our results also provide novel evidence for a BNST novelty response toward neutral, but not fearful faces. We also found that the novelty response in the hippocampus and BNST was blunted in participants with high trait anxiety. Additionally, we found left amygdala sen...Continue Reading

Citations

Apr 7, 2019·Depression and Anxiety·Jacqueline A ClaussJennifer U Blackford
Apr 10, 2020·F1000Research·Janna Marie Bas-Hoogendam, P Michiel Westenberg
Aug 18, 2017·Learning & Memory·Travis D Goode, Stephen Maren
Jan 2, 2021·NeuroImage. Clinical·Rachel CorrAysenil Belger
Jun 8, 2019·Brain Research·Daniel M StoutVictoria B Risbrough
May 28, 2021·Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders·James C McPartlandDominic A Trevisan
Nov 6, 2021·Hippocampus·Tom Willems, Katharina Henke

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Amygdala: Sensory Processes

Amygdalae, nuclei clusters located in the temporal lobe of the brain, play a role in memory, emotional responses, and decision-making. Here is the latest research on sensory processes in the amygdala.

Amygdala and Midbrain Dopamine

The midbrain dopamine system is widely studied for its involvement in emotional and motivational behavior. Some of these neurons receive information from the amygdala and project throughout the cortex. When the circuit and transmission of dopamine is disrupted symptoms may present. Here is the latest research on the amygdala and midbrain dopamine.