Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Wen-Yi Wu, Yawei Cheng, Keng- Chen Liang, Ray X. Lee, Chen -Tung Yen
Summary: Although the neuronal substrate underlying empathy-associated prosocial action is not well understood, our study in rats reveals the involvement of neurons in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and insular cortex (InC) in empathic behaviors. We identified neurons with anti-mirror properties in addition to mirror properties in both ACC and InC. ACC neurons showed higher coupling between self-in-pain and others-in-pain, while InC had a higher ratio of anti-mirror neurons. During observed pain in others, ACC neurons were more activated during active nose-poking, while InC neurons were more activated during freezing. Furthermore, both ACC and InC neurons specifically responded to rat rescuing in the helping behavior test, which was contributed by mirror neurons rather than anti-mirror neurons. Our findings demonstrate the functional involvement of the mirror neuron system in prosocial behaviors.
Article
Neurosciences
Carlos Silva, Blake S. Porter, Kristin L. Hillman
Summary: Animals must continually assess effort and physiological states during tasks, with the ACC and anterior insular cortex implicated in cost-benefit decision-making. Contrary to predictions, stimulation of Cg1 did not increase persistence in the task, while stimulation of the anterior insula had little effect on effortful behavior.
FRONTIERS IN NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Eliza Bliss-Moreau, Anthony C. Santistevan, Jeffrey Bennett, Gilda Moadab, David G. Amaral
Summary: The study investigates the causal role of ACC in affective responding to threat in primates. Results suggest that the primate ACC is necessary for maintaining appropriate affective responses towards potentially harmful and/or novel stimuli, and that ACC lesions can lead to a reduced reactivity towards these stimuli, with implications for mood disorders.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Substance Abuse
Amanda R. Pahng, Scott Edwards
Summary: Opioids and alcohol are commonly used for pain relief, but misuse can lead to substance use disorder and hyperalgesia. Shared neurobiological mechanisms between SUD and pain suggest potential therapeutic interventions targeting both excessive substance use and pain symptoms simultaneously.
ALCOHOL RESEARCH-CURRENT REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Giovana Benassi-Cezar, Isabela Miranda Carmona, Daniela Baptista-de-Souza, Ricardo Luiz Nunes-de-Souza, Azair Canto-de-Souza
Summary: The study found that cohabitation with a conspecific suffering from chronic pain affects the anxiety levels of mice, with changes in neuronal activation observed in the anterior cingulate and insular cortices. Injecting a synaptic blocker in these brain areas can reverse the anxiety-inducing effect caused by cohabitation with a conspecific in chronic pain.
Article
Neurosciences
Yujiao Yang, Dong Chen, Jing Wang, Jie Wang, Zhaofen Yan, Qinqin Deng, Liping Zhang, Guoming Luan, Mengyang Wang, Tianfu Li
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the dynamic coupling between the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and anterior insular cortex (AIC) during seizures. The results showed that the functional connectivity and excitability between these two brain regions significantly increased at seizure onset. By analyzing the connectivity and excitability, the seizure-onset zone (SOZ) in ACC and AIC can be identified.
CNS NEUROSCIENCE & THERAPEUTICS
(2023)
Article
Clinical Neurology
W. van Leeuwen, A. van der Straten, S. A. Bogemann, D. Denys, H. van Marle, G. van Wingen
Summary: This study examined the effect of psychological distress on neural reactivity in the salience network during a symptom provocation task in patients with OCD. The results showed that psychological distress decreased dACC reactivity to emotionally salient pictures in OCD patients, while it increased dACC reactivity in healthy controls.
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
G. Di Cesare, M. Marchi, G. Lombardi, M. Gerbella, A. Sciutti, G. Rizzolatti
Summary: Actions with identical goals can be executed in different ways, and these vitality forms express the agent's attitudes. The dorso-central insula and middle cingulate cortex are both strongly activated during action observation and execution, showing reciprocal connections between the two regions.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Anna Todeva-Radneva, Sevdalina Kandilarova, Rositsa Paunova, Drozdstoy Stoyanov, Tina Zdravkova, Ronald Sladky
Summary: This study aimed to explore possible differences in whole-brain functional connectivity in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD), bipolar disorder (BD), and healthy controls (HC). The results showed increased connectivity in certain brain regions in the BD group compared to the HC group, while the MDD group showed enhanced connectivity in different regions. These findings suggest that these connectivity patterns may serve as potential diagnostic biomarkers for MDD and BD.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Yu Zhang, Shiwei Jiang, Fei Liao, Zhifeng Huang, Xin Yang, Yu Zou, Xin He, Qulian Guo, Changsheng Huang
Summary: The study investigates transcriptomic profiles of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) in a rat chronic constriction injury (CCI) model, suggesting that chemokines and their targeting genes may play different roles in the development of neuropathic pain. These findings are important for understanding the mechanisms of pain emotion and developing potential treatments.
Review
Behavioral Sciences
Laith Alexander, Luke A. Jelen, Mitul A. Mehta, Allan H. Young
Summary: The subdivisions of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) play a crucial role in the etiology and treatment of major depression, particularly in relation to the antidepressant effects of ketamine. The synergistic relationship between neuroimaging studies in humans and brain manipulations in animals helps understand the causal relationship between changes in brain activity and therapeutic efficacy.
NEUROSCIENCE AND BIOBEHAVIORAL REVIEWS
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Caitlin Hall, Ben J. Harrison, Kartik K. Iyer, Hannah S. Savage, Martha Zakrzewski, Lisa A. Simms, Graham Radford-Smith, Rosalyn J. Moran, Luca Cocchi
Summary: There is a growing awareness that the composition of the gut microbiota influences behavior, including responses to threat. Research shows interactions between high-level ecological indices and threat-related neural dynamics in the brain, with the abundance of Ruminococcus being linked to connectivity and activity during threat updating. Further investigations on microbiota-derived metabolites and their relationship with threat-related brain processes are warranted based on functional inference analysis.
HUMAN BRAIN MAPPING
(2022)
Article
Psychiatry
Stephanie M. Gorka, Charles A. Manzler, Emily E. Jones, Reid J. Smith, Craig J. Bryan
Summary: Abnormal reward processing is associated with suicide risk. This study compared neural reactivity during anticipation of predictable and unpredictable rewards between youth with and without a history of suicidal ideation. Results showed that youth with suicidal ideation had increased neural activation in the dACC and aINS during anticipation of unpredictable rewards, but no group differences were found during anticipation of predictable rewards.
JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Yingling Xu, Xixiao Zhu, Yuerong Chen, Yeqing Chen, Yichen Zhu, Siqi Xiao, Mengwei Wu, Yifang Wang, Chi Zhang, Zenmin Wu, Xiaofen He, Boyu Liu, Zui Shen, Xiaomei Shao, Jianqiao Fang
Summary: Electroacupuncture (EA) effectively alleviates anxiety-like behaviors induced by chronic neuropathic pain, and the mechanism may be related to the changes in glutamatergic neuronal activity between the rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC) and the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN), as well as the serotoninergic neuronal activity.
CNS NEUROSCIENCE & THERAPEUTICS
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Xiaoyun Li, Wutao Lou, Wenyun Zhang, Raymond Kai-Yu Tong, Li Hu, Weiwei Peng
Summary: This study investigated the impact of ongoing first-hand pain on empathic reactions to vicarious pain stimuli. The results showed that ongoing pain enhanced neural activation and synchronization within empathy-related brain regions, while inhibiting activation and synchronization within affective-sharing brain regions.