Brain anatomy

Question 1

How do we retrieve memories?

Answer 1

1. Medial temporal lobe is the switchboard which links the different brain regions which have the information (visual, auditory, sensory…) = Deals with encoding and retrieval of recent experiences
2. Prefrontal cortex monitors and inhibits irrelevant information for retrieval of past experiences:
   - Left = Organises in the most efficient way
   - Right = Guides retrieval of autobiographical memories
   - Orbital = Sense of rightness, damage can lead to confabulation
   - Right DLPFC = Time orientation
   - vmPFC = Can distinguish between real and pseudo memories

Question 2

ASB

Answer 2

Frontal lobe:

1. DLPFC = Moral decision-making, self-regulation
2. Ventral PFC = Emotion processing, reward and punishment learning

Limbic system:

1. Amygdala:
   - More impulsive, reactive aggression if extreme amygdala activity
   - Reduced sense of danger, deficits in recognition of dangerous situations = Damaged amygdala
2. Anterior cingulate = Error processing, conflict monitoring, avoidance learning

Question 3

TBI

Answer 3

1. DLPFC deals with decision-making (including moral decision-making) and memory
2. OFC deals with inhibition of behaviour (= impulsiveness if lesions)
3. VmPFC deals with moral intuition (= lack of empathy and irresponsibility if lesions)
4. Lateral orbitofrontal subcortical circuit (LOSC) deals with attitude and social intelligence and suppressing agression

Question 4

Psychopathy

Answer 4

1. PFC
2. Amygdala  Experiencing emotions  Less activation in moral reasoning tasks
3. Striatum  Reward-seeking, impulsive behaviour  Affective and antisocial factors of psychopathy
4. When given a moral question, it appears that the psychopath recruits frontal areas to mimic his dysfunctional paralimbic areas

Question 5

Psychopathy PFC

Answer 5

1. Social, moral, emotional and cognitive processes
2. VMPFC and OFC = Decision-making process (especially emotional)
3. VMPFC = Moral behaviour
4. Anterior cingulate cortex = Error detection, reward anticipation and emotion regulation

Question 6

Paedophilia

Answer 6

1. Preference-specific brain activity in areas known to be involved in processing sexual stimuli:
   - Caudate nucleus
   - Cingulate cortex
   - Insula
   - Fusiform gyrus
   - Temporal cortex
   - Occipital cortex
   - Thalamus
   - Amygdala
   - Cerebellum
2. Orbitofrontal deactivation
3. Volume reduction of amygdala but increased activation when shown stimuli depicting children