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Zhang L, Chen P, Schafer M, Zheng S, Chen L, Wang S, Liang Q, Qi Q, Zhang Y, Huang R. A specific brain network for a social map in the human brain. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1773. [PMID: 35110581 PMCID: PMC8810806 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05601-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Individuals use social information to guide social interactions and to update relationships along multiple social dimensions. However, it is unclear what neural basis underlies this process of abstract "social navigation". In the current study, we recruited twenty-nine participants who performed a choose-your-own-adventure game in which they interacted with fictional characters during fMRI scanning. Using a whole-brain GLM approach, we found that vectors encoding two-dimensional information about the relationships predicted BOLD responses in the hippocampus and the precuneus, replicating previous work. We also explored whether these geometric representations were related to key brain regions previously identified in physical and abstract spatial navigation studies, but we did not find involvement of the entorhinal cortex, parahippocampal gyrus or the retrosplenial cortex. Finally, we used psychophysiological interaction analysis and identified a network of regions that correlated during participants' decisions, including the left posterior hippocampus, precuneus, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), and the insula. Our findings suggest a brain network for social navigation in multiple abstract, social dimensions that includes the hippocampus, precuneus, dlPFC, and insula.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lu Zhang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Ping Chen
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Matthew Schafer
- Department of Neuroscience, Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY, 10029, USA
| | - Senning Zheng
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Lixiang Chen
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Shuai Wang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Qunjun Liang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Qing Qi
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Yichen Zhang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruiwang Huang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China.
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China.
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, People's Republic of China.
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