An inflammatory pathway links atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk to neural activity evoked by the cognitive regulation of emotion.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Cognitive reappraisal is a form of emotion regulation that alters emotional responding by changing the meaning of emotional stimuli. Reappraisal engages regions of the prefrontal cortex that support multiple functions, including visceral control functions implicated in regulating the immune system. Immune activity plays a role in the preclinical pathophysiology of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (CVD), an inflammatory condition that is highly comorbid with affective disorders characterized by problems with emotion regulation. Here, we tested whether prefrontal engagement by reappraisal would be associated with atherosclerotic CVD risk and whether this association would be mediated by inflammatory activity.

Methods

Community volunteers (n = 157; 30-54 years

SUBMITTER: Gianaros PJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3989430 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature