2. Neurophysiology of Emotion Flashcards
limbic system functions
- emotional behavior
2. motivational drives
Elements in the formation and feeling of emotion
- hypothalamus
- olfactory areas (para-olfactory)
- thalamus, anterior nucleus part of papez circuit
- Basal ganglia: nucleus accumbent and putamen
- hippocampus
- amygdala
- Cingulate cortex
hypothalamus role in emotion
used to create physiologic response to emotion
what emotion is linked to the parahippicampal region?
surprise
amygdala role in emotion
association with emotion recognized early, particularly fear & anger
- processing & recognition of social cues related to fear
- emotional conditioning response to fear
- memory of fear
what is an important feature of the cingulate cortex in regards to emotion
many neurons show after-discharging
olfactory cortex role in emotion
odors as strong stimulus for emotion
thalamus role in emotion
relays sensory info into system
basal ganglia role in emotion
ties to pleasure and disgust
hippocampus role in emotion
links emotion to memory creation, surrounding regions related to surprise
anterior cingulate cortex function and role in emotion
higher level control and sadness
emotions of the primitive brain?
- fear
- anger
- pleasure
- avoidance
- sadness
- disgust
- surprise
what is the correlation between production and identification of emotion?
the circuits that allow us to experience an emotion are the same circuits that allow us to identify that emotion in others
what would damage to the mirror neuron system cause?
a person who cannot experience an emotion, and also cannot recognize it in someone else
role of the mirror neuron system?
imitation and imitative learning, as well as emotional processing
difference between innate (unconditioned) and learned fear?
Innate: requires no experience. In animals- olfactory cues; In humans- falling and loud noises
learned: learned from experience
how do sensory inputs used to create fear arrive at the amygdala?
- direct thalamoamygdaloid pathway to lateral nucleus of amygdala - RAPID response
- indirect thalamo-cortico-amygdaloid pathway to lateral nucleus of amygdala - DELAYED response
What happens when sensory inputs arrive to amygdala?
- lateral nucleus integrates input (sound and *stimulus)
- paired into sent to basal and intercalated nuclei
- sent to central nucleus of amygdala- decides what response is required and relays that info appropriately
Lesion to amygdala
fear is not perceived; therefore, conditioning related to fear does not occur
How is anger perceived?
mediated through the amygdala via dopamine acting at D2 receptor
What areas are responsible for anger suppression/inhibition?
- neocortex
- ventromedial hypothalamic n.
- septal nuclei
What is the role of the emotion of avoidance and it’s physiological basis?
Oppose pleasure/reward pathway to prevent the occurrence of a behavior that has SHORT TERM rewards but LONG-TERM NEGATIVE consequences
anatomical features needed in processing avoidance?
- lateral posterior hypothalamus
- dorsal midbrain
- entorhinal cortex
anatomical features needed in processing sadness?
- lower sector of anterior cingulate cortex
- strong activation when recalling sad events
anatomical features needed in processing disgust
insular cortex/putamen
- process and recognition of social cues related to disgust
- damaged w/ Huntington’s disease
anatomical features needed in processing surprise
parahippocampal gyrus
-important in detecting novelty or unexpected events
how does the anterior cingulate cortex process emotion
- integration of visceral, attentional, and emotional input
- monitors/detects conflict b/t our “functional” state (right now) and new info that has potential or motivational consequences
- relays this info to the pre-frontal cortex
what area takes in the emotional processing and decides what to do with it/how to respond?
pre-frontal cortex
- ventral: affective function
- dorsal: cognitive function
The ventromedial division of the pre-frontal cortex receives info from where?
- amygdala- fear & anger
- hippocampus
- temporal visual association area
- dorsolateral pre-frontal cortex
The dorsolateral division of the pre-frontal cortex receives info from where?
- motor areas: basal ganglion, pre and supplementary motor areas
- cingulate cortex, esp performance monitoring areas
- cortical association areas
what are the 3 roles of the pre-frontal cortex in controlling emotion?
- reward processing (orbitofrontal): amygdala helps link new stimulus to primary reward
- integration of bodily signals (ventromedial): “gut-feeling
- top-down regulation: especially towards delayed gratification
