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Pouliot JJ, Ward RT, Traiser CM, Chiasson P, Gilbert FE, Keil A. Neurophysiological and Autonomic Dynamics of Threat Processing During Sustained Social Fear Generalization. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.16.589830. [PMID: 38659834 PMCID: PMC11042332 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.16.589830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Survival in dynamic environments requires that organisms learn to predict danger from situational cues. One key facet of threat prediction is generalization from a predictive cue to similar cues, ensuring that a cue-outcome contingency is applied beyond the original learning environment. Generalization has been observed in laboratory studies of aversive conditioning: behavioral and physiological processes generalize responses from a stimulus paired with threat (the CS+) to unpaired stimuli, with response magnitudes varying with CS+ similarity. In contrast, work focusing on sensory responses in visual cortex has found a sharpening pattern, in which responses to stimuli closely resembling the CS+ are maximally suppressed, potentially reflecting lateral inhibitory interactions with the CS+ representation. Originally demonstrated with simple visual cues, changes in visuocortical tuning have also been observed in threat generalization learning across facial identities. It is unclear to what extent these visuocortical changes represent transient or sustained effects and if generalization learning requires prior conditioning to the CS+. The present study addressed these questions using EEG and pupillometry in an aversive generalization paradigm involving hundreds of trials using a gradient of facial identities. Visuocortical ssVEP sharpening occurred after dozens of trials of generalization learning without prior differential conditioning, but diminished as learning continued. By contrast, generalization of alpha power suppression, pupil dilation, and self-reported valence and arousal was seen throughout the experiment. Findings are consistent with threat processing models emphasizing the role of changing visucocortical and attentional dynamics when forming, curating, and shaping fear memories as observers continue learning about stimulus-outcome contingencies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Caitlin M. Traiser
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida; Department of Psychology, University of Florida
| | - Payton Chiasson
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida; Department of Psychology, University of Florida
| | - Faith E. Gilbert
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida; Department of Psychology, University of Florida
| | - Andreas Keil
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida; Department of Psychology, University of Florida
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Ahumada L, Panitz C, Traiser C, Gilbert F, Ding M, Keil A. Quantifying Population-level Neural Tuning Functions Using Ricker Wavelets and the Bayesian Bootstrap. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.22.595429. [PMID: 38826264 PMCID: PMC11142194 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.22.595429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2024]
Abstract
Experience changes the tuning of sensory neurons, including neurons in retinotopic visual cortex, as evident from work in humans and non-human animals. In human observers, visuo-cortical re-tuning has been studied during aversive generalization learning paradigms, in which the similarity of generalization stimuli (GSs) with a conditioned threat cue (CS+) is used to quantify tuning functions. This work utilized pre-defined tuning shapes reflecting prototypical generalization (Gaussian) and sharpening (Difference-of-Gaussians) patterns. This approach may constrain the ways in which re-tuning can be characterized, for example if tuning patterns do not match the prototypical functions or represent a mixture of functions. The present study proposes a flexible and data-driven method for precisely quantifying changes in neural tuning based on the Ricker wavelet function and the Bayesian bootstrap. The method is illustrated using data from a study in which university students (n = 31) performed an aversive generalization learning task. Oriented gray-scale gratings served as CS+ and GSs and a white noise served as the unconditioned stimulus (US). Acquisition and extinction of the aversive contingencies were examined, while steady-state visual event potentials (ssVEP) and alpha-band (8-13 Hz) power were measured from scalp EEG. Results showed that the Ricker wavelet model fitted the ssVEP and alpha-band data well. The pattern of re-tuning in ssVEP amplitude across the stimulus gradient resembled a generalization (Gaussian) shape in acquisition and a sharpening (Difference-of-Gaussian) shape in an extinction phase. As expected, the pattern of re-tuning in alpha-power took the form of a generalization shape in both phases. The Ricker-based approach led to greater Bayes factors and more interpretable results compared to prototypical tuning models. The results highlight the promise of the current method for capturing the precise nature of visuo-cortical tuning functions, unconstrained by the exact implementation of prototypical a-priori models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Ahumada
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Christian Panitz
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
| | - Caitlin Traiser
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Faith Gilbert
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Mingzhou Ding
- J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
| | - Andreas Keil
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida 32611, USA
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Farkas AH, Ward RT, Gilbert FE, Pouliot J, Chiasson P, McIlvanie S, Traiser C, Riels K, Mears R, Keil A. Auditory aversive generalization learning prompts threat-specific changes in alpha-band activity. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae099. [PMID: 38517176 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Pairing a neutral stimulus with aversive outcomes prompts neurophysiological and autonomic changes in response to the conditioned stimulus (CS+), compared to cues that signal safety (CS-). One of these changes-selective amplitude reduction of parietal alpha-band oscillations-has been reliably linked to processing of visual CS+. It is, however, unclear to what extent auditory conditioned cues prompt similar changes, how these changes evolve as learning progresses, and how alpha reduction in the auditory domain generalizes to similar stimuli. To address these questions, 55 participants listened to three sine wave tones, with either the highest or lowest pitch (CS+) being associated with a noxious white noise burst. A threat-specific (CS+) reduction in occipital-parietal alpha-band power was observed similar to changes expected for visual stimuli. No evidence for aversive generalization to the tone most similar to the CS+ was observed in terms of alpha-band power changes, aversiveness ratings, or pupil dilation. By-trial analyses found that selective alpha-band changes continued to increase as aversive conditioning continued, beyond when participants reported awareness of the contingencies. The results support a theoretical model in which selective alpha power represents a cross-modal index of continuous aversive learning, accompanied by sustained sensory discrimination of conditioned threat from safety cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew H Farkas
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Richard T Ward
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Faith E Gilbert
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Jourdan Pouliot
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Payton Chiasson
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Skylar McIlvanie
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Caitlin Traiser
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Kierstin Riels
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Ryan Mears
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
| | - Andreas Keil
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, 945 Center Dr., P.O. Box 112250, Gainesville, FL 32611
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Pirazzini G, Starita F, Ricci G, Garofalo S, di Pellegrino G, Magosso E, Ursino M. Changes in brain rhythms and connectivity tracking fear acquisition and reversal. Brain Struct Funct 2023:10.1007/s00429-023-02646-7. [PMID: 37129622 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-023-02646-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Fear conditioning is used to investigate the neural bases of threat and anxiety, and to understand their flexible modifications when the environment changes. This study aims to examine the temporal evolution of brain rhythms using electroencephalographic signals recorded in healthy volunteers during a protocol of Pavlovian fear conditioning and reversal. Power changes and Granger connectivity in theta, alpha, and gamma bands are investigated from neuroelectrical activity reconstructed on the cortex. Results show a significant increase in theta power in the left (contralateral to electrical shock) portion of the midcingulate cortex during fear acquisition, and a significant decrease in alpha power in a broad network over the left posterior-frontal and parietal cortex. These changes occur since the initial trials for theta power, but require more trials (3/4) to develop for alpha, and are also present during reversal, despite being less pronounced. In both bands, relevant changes in connectivity are mainly evident in the last block of reversal, just when power differences attenuate. No significant changes in the gamma band were detected. We conclude that the increased theta rhythm in the cingulate cortex subserves fear acquisition and is transmitted to other cortical regions via increased functional connectivity allowing a fast theta synchronization, whereas the decrease in alpha power can represent a partial activation of motor and somatosensory areas contralateral to the shock side in the presence of a dangerous stimulus. In addition, connectivity changes at the end of reversal may reflect long-term alterations in synapses necessary to reverse the previously acquired contingencies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Pirazzini
- Department of Electrical, Electronic, and Information Engineering "Guglielmo Marconi", University of Bologna, Area di Campus Cesena, Via Dell'Università 50, 47521, Cesena, Italy.
| | - Francesca Starita
- Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology "Renzo Canestrari", University of Bologna, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Giulia Ricci
- Department of Electrical, Electronic, and Information Engineering "Guglielmo Marconi", University of Bologna, Area di Campus Cesena, Via Dell'Università 50, 47521, Cesena, Italy
| | - Sara Garofalo
- Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology "Renzo Canestrari", University of Bologna, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Giuseppe di Pellegrino
- Center for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology "Renzo Canestrari", University of Bologna, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Elisa Magosso
- Department of Electrical, Electronic, and Information Engineering "Guglielmo Marconi", University of Bologna, Area di Campus Cesena, Via Dell'Università 50, 47521, Cesena, Italy
| | - Mauro Ursino
- Department of Electrical, Electronic, and Information Engineering "Guglielmo Marconi", University of Bologna, Area di Campus Cesena, Via Dell'Università 50, 47521, Cesena, Italy
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Li W, Keil A. Sensing fear: fast and precise threat evaluation in human sensory cortex. Trends Cogn Sci 2023; 27:341-352. [PMID: 36732175 PMCID: PMC10023404 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Revised: 01/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Animal models of threat processing have evolved beyond the amygdala to incorporate a distributed neural network. In human research, evidence has intensified in recent years to challenge the canonical threat circuitry centered on the amygdala, urging revision of threat conceptualization. A strong surge of research into threat processing in the sensory cortex in the past decade has generated particularly useful insights to inform the reconceptualization. Here, synthesizing findings from both animal and human research, we highlight sensitive, specific, and adaptable threat representations in the sensory cortex, arising from experience-based sculpting of sensory coding networks. We thus propose that the human sensory cortex can drive smart (fast and precise) threat evaluation, producing threat-imbued sensory afferents to elicit network-wide threat responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen Li
- Department of Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA.
| | - Andreas Keil
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainsville, FL, USA
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Ward RT, Gilbert FE, Pouliot J, Chiasson P, McIlvanie S, Traiser C, Riels K, Mears R, Keil A. The Relationship Between Self-Reported Misophonia Symptoms and Auditory Aversive Generalization Leaning: A Preliminary Report. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:899476. [PMID: 35812229 PMCID: PMC9260228 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.899476] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/02/2022] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Misophonia is characterized by excessive aversive reactions to specific "trigger" sounds. Although this disorder is increasingly recognized in the literature, its etiological mechanisms and maintaining factors are currently unclear. Several etiological models propose a role of Pavlovian conditioning, an associative learning process heavily researched in similar fear and anxiety-related disorders. In addition, generalization of learned associations has been noted as a potential causal or contributory factor. Building upon this framework, we hypothesized that Misophonia symptoms arise as a consequence of overgeneralized associative learning, in which aversive responses to a noxious event also occur in response to similar events. Alternatively, heightened discrimination between conditioned threat and safety cues may be present in participants high in Misophonia symptoms, as predicted by associative learning models of Misophonia. This preliminary report (n = 34) examines auditory generalization learning using self-reported behavioral (i.e., valence and arousal ratings) and EEG alpha power reduction. Participants listened to three sine tones differing in pitch, with one pitch (i.e., CS+) paired with an aversive loud white noise blast, prompting aversive Pavlovian generalization learning. We assessed the extent to which overgeneralization versus heightened discrimination learning is associated with self-reported Misophonia symptoms, by comparing aversive responses to the CS+ and other tones similar in pitch. Behaviorally, all participants learned the contingencies between CS+ and noxious noise, with individuals endorsing elevated Misophonia showing heightened aversive sensitivity to all stimuli, regardless of conditioning and independent of hyperacusis status. Across participants, parieto-occipital EEG alpha-band power reduction was most pronounced in response to the CS+ tone, and this difference was greater in those with self-reported Misophonia symptoms. The current preliminary findings do not support the notion that overgeneralization is a feature of self-reported emotional experience in Misophonia, but that heightened sensitivity and discrimination learning may be present at the neural level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard T. Ward
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Faith E. Gilbert
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Jourdan Pouliot
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Payton Chiasson
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Skylar McIlvanie
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Caitlin Traiser
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Kierstin Riels
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Ryan Mears
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Andreas Keil
- Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
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Bacigalupo F, Luck SJ. Alpha-band EEG suppression as a neural marker of sustained attentional engagement to conditioned threat stimuli. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2022; 17:1101-1117. [PMID: 35434733 PMCID: PMC9766959 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsac029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2020] [Revised: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 04/16/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Attention helps us to be aware of the external world, and this may be especially important when a threat stimulus predicts an aversive outcome. Electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha-band suppression has long been considered as a neural signature of attentional engagement. The present study was designed to test whether attentional engagement, as indexed by alpha-band suppression, is increased in a sustained manner following a conditioned stimulus (CS) that is paired with an aversive (CS+) vs neutral (CS-) outcome. We tested 70 healthy young adults in aversive conditioning and extinction paradigms. One of three colored circles served as the CS+, which was paired in 50% of the trials with a noise burst (unconditioned stimulus, US). The other colored circles (CS-) were never paired with the US. For conditioning, we found greater alpha-band suppression for the CS+ compared to the CS-; this suppression was sustained through the time of the predicted US. This effect was significantly reduced for extinction. These results indicate that conditioned threat stimuli trigger an increase in attentional engagement as subjects monitor the environment for the predicted aversive stimulus. Moreover, this alpha-band suppression effect may be valuable for future studies examining normal or pathological increases in attentional monitoring following threat stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Bacigalupo
- Correspondence should be addressed to Felix Bacigalupo, Pontificia
Universidad Catolica de Chile (UC-Chile). Avenida Vicuña Mackenna 4860, Macul, Santiago,
Chile. E-mail:
| | - Steven J Luck
- Center for Mind and Brain, University of
California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
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8
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OUP accepted manuscript. Cereb Cortex 2022; 32:4284-4292. [DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Revised: 11/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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Zeng Q, Lv L, Zheng X. Is Acquired Disgust More Difficult to Extinguish Than Acquired Fear? an Event-Related Potential Study. Front Psychol 2021; 12:687779. [PMID: 34867581 PMCID: PMC8639492 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.687779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This study used the classical conditioned acquisition and extinction paradigm to compare which of the two emotions, acquired disgust and acquired fear, was more difficult to extinguish, based on behavioral assessments and the event-related potential (ERP) technique. Behavioral assessments revealed that, following successful conditioned extinction, acquired disgust was more difficult to extinguish. The ERP results showed that, at the early stage of P1, the amplitude of conditioned fear was significantly smaller than that of conditioned disgust, and both were significantly different from the amplitude under neutral conditions; at the middle stage of N2, the difference between the amplitudes of conditioned disgust and conditioned fear disappeared, but they were still significantly different from the amplitudes of conditioned neutral stimuli; at the late stage of P3, the difference between conditioned disgust and conditioned neutral stimuli disappeared, but the difference between conditioned fear and neutral stimuli remained, suggesting that acquired fear was more difficult to extinguish than acquired disgust in terms of how the brain works.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing Zeng
- School of Marxism, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lishan Lv
- School of Foreign Studies, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xifu Zheng
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
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Panitz C, Endres D, Buchholz M, Khosrowtaj Z, Sperl MFJ, Mueller EM, Schubö A, Schütz AC, Teige-Mocigemba S, Pinquart M. A Revised Framework for the Investigation of Expectation Update Versus Maintenance in the Context of Expectation Violations: The ViolEx 2.0 Model. Front Psychol 2021; 12:726432. [PMID: 34858264 PMCID: PMC8632008 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.726432] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Expectations are probabilistic beliefs about the future that shape and influence our perception, affect, cognition, and behavior in many contexts. This makes expectations a highly relevant concept across basic and applied psychological disciplines. When expectations are confirmed or violated, individuals can respond by either updating or maintaining their prior expectations in light of the new evidence. Moreover, proactive and reactive behavior can change the probability with which individuals encounter expectation confirmations or violations. The investigation of predictors and mechanisms underlying expectation update and maintenance has been approached from many research perspectives. However, in many instances there has been little exchange between different research fields. To further advance research on expectations and expectation violations, collaborative efforts across different disciplines in psychology, cognitive (neuro)science, and other life sciences are warranted. For fostering and facilitating such efforts, we introduce the ViolEx 2.0 model, a revised framework for interdisciplinary research on cognitive and behavioral mechanisms of expectation update and maintenance in the context of expectation violations. To support different goals and stages in interdisciplinary exchange, the ViolEx 2.0 model features three model levels with varying degrees of specificity in order to address questions about the research synopsis, central concepts, or functional processes and relationships, respectively. The framework can be applied to different research fields and has high potential for guiding collaborative research efforts in expectation research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christian Panitz
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany.,Department of Psychology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany.,Center for the Study of Emotion and Attention, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States
| | - Dominik Endres
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Merle Buchholz
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Zahra Khosrowtaj
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Matthias F J Sperl
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany.,Department of Psychology, University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany
| | - Erik M Mueller
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Anna Schubö
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | | | | | - Martin Pinquart
- Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
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Yin S, Bo K, Liu Y, Thigpen N, Keil A, Ding M. Fear conditioning prompts sparser representations of conditioned threat in primary visual cortex. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 15:950-964. [PMID: 32901822 PMCID: PMC7647380 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2019] [Revised: 08/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Repeated exposure to threatening stimuli alters sensory responses. We investigated the underlying neural mechanism by re-analyzing previously published simultaneous electroencephalogram-functional magnetic resonance imaging (EEG-fMRI) data from humans viewing oriented gratings during Pavlovian fear conditioning. In acquisition, one grating (CS+) was paired with a noxious noise, the unconditioned stimulus (US). The other grating (CS-) was never paired with the US. In habituation, which preceded acquisition, and in extinction, the same two gratings were presented without US. Using fMRI multivoxel patterns in primary visual cortex during habituation as reference, we found that during acquisition, aversive learning selectively prompted systematic changes in multivoxel patterns evoked by CS+. Specifically, CS+ evoked voxel patterns in V1 became sparser as aversive learning progressed, and the sparsified pattern appeared to be preserved in extinction. Concomitant with the voxel pattern changes, occipital alpha oscillations were increasingly more desynchronized during CS+ (but not CS-) trials. Across acquisition trials, the rate of change in CS+-related alpha desynchronization was correlated with the rate of change in multivoxel pattern representations of CS+. Furthermore, alpha oscillations co-varied with blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) data in the ventral attention network, but not with BOLD in the amygdala. Thus, fear conditioning prompts persistent sparsification of voxel patterns evoked by threat, likely mediated by attention-related mechanisms
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Affiliation(s)
- Siyang Yin
- J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Ke Bo
- J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Yuelu Liu
- Center for Mind and Brain, University of California, Davis, CA 95618, USA
| | - Nina Thigpen
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Andreas Keil
- Department of Psychology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Mingzhou Ding
- J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
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