The adaptive threat bias in anxiety: amygdala-dorsomedial prefrontal cortex coupling and aversive amplification.

ABSTRACT: Functionally, anxiety serves to increase vigilance towards aversive stimuli and improve the ability to detect and avoid danger. We have recently shown, for instance, that anxiety increases the ability to a) detect and b) instigate defensive responses towards aversive and not appetitive face stimuli in healthy individuals. This is arguably the key adaptive function of anxiety, yet the neural circuitry underlying this valence-specific effect is unknown. In the present translational study, we sought evidence for the proposition that dorsomedial regions of the prefrontal (DMPFC) and cingulate cortex constitute the human homologue of the rodent prelimbic and are thus associated with increased amygdala responding during this adaptive threat bias in anxiety. To this end, we applied a novel functi

SUBMITTER: Robinson OJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3288162 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature