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What does the cooperative eye hypothesis suggest about emotional expressions?
A specific brain area can be linked to experiencing specific emotions.
False
What is the name of the gene that has been linked to aggression?
MAOA
Oxytocin enhances ______________________ and facilitates helping behaviour.
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Match the following brain regions with their functions:
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What happens to the activity in the amygdala after the first resident-intruder encounter in the resident -- intruder test?
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Testosterone levels have no effect on aggressive behaviour in males.
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What is the result of early intervention in a high-risk group on aggression and testosterone response in adulthood?
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What is the initial effect of drugs of abuse on dopamine neurotransmission in the nucleus accumbens?
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Anhedonia is a less reliable symptom of depression than increased sadness.
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What is the name of the polymorphism associated with depression?
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The first antidepressants were discovered in the _______s.
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Match the following antidepressants with their mechanisms of action:
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People with depression have lower levels of 5-HT.
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What is the result of aberrant plasticity in the brain after prolonged drug use?
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What is the effect of the s variant on emotional responsiveness?
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Which hormone facilitates aggression?
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Anxiety disorders are the least frequently seen mental disorders in primary care.
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What is the percentage of concordance rate in MZ twins for panic disorder?
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Benzodiazepines bind to the __________ receptor.
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Match the following anxiety disorders with their descriptions:
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Autonomic arousal is necessary for emotional experience.
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What is the effect of serotonin on impulsive behaviour?
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What is the primary function of the sympathetic nervous system?
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The amygdala responds more strongly to pleasant stimuli than fear-inducing stimuli.
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What is the name of the syndrome caused by a damaged amygdala, studied in monkeys?
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Patient S.M., also known as the "Woman with no _______________, was studied for her rare condition.
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Match the following brain systems with their functions:
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What is the name of the parasite that damages the amygdala in rats and mice?
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The amygdala reacts more strongly to stimuli that are easy to interpret.
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What is the name of the theory that suggests that physiological arousal is necessary for emotional feelings?
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What is the role of the hippocampus in memory?
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Lesions in the striatum do not impair probabilistic learning.
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What is the result of a bilateral medial temporal lobectomy?
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The ______________________ system plays a crucial role in the relationship between the environment and emotions.
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What is the role of orexin and GABA in panic disorder?
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People with hippocampal damage cannot acquire probabilistic learning after many attempts.
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Match the following brain regions with their functions:
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What is the evolutionary advantage of having episodic memories?
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Study Notes
Sex vs Gender
- No notes provided for this topic
Amygdala & Emotions
- The amygdala responds to the ambiguity of stimuli
- The amygdala reacts to pleasant stimuli, but not very strongly
- Strong amygdala activation by fear-inducing stimuli
- The amygdala's response is very fast
- The amygdala reacts more strongly when a stimulus is more difficult to interpret
Dysfunctional Amygdala
- Patient S.M: a woman with no fear
- Studies of monkeys (Klüver-Bucy Syndrome): no fear response
- Toxoplasma gondii: a parasite that damages the amygdala in rats/mice
- The amygdala and attention: the amygdala responds to the ambiguity of stimuli
Emotions and Autonomic Arousal
- Sympathetic nervous system: Fight or Flight (stimulates organs important for vigorous activities and inhibits vegetative activities)
- Parasympathetic nervous system: Rest and Digest (increases digestion and other processes that save energy)
- A danger doesn't always elicit sympathetic activity
- James-Lange theory: physiological arousal is necessary for emotional feelings
- Examining the James-Lange theory: autonomic responses are not always necessary for subjective experiences
The Limbic System & Basic Emotions
- The limbic system has been regarded as the key brain system involved in emotions
- A certain group of neurons seem to be specific for perceiving a particular emotion in others
- No specific brain area can be linked to experiencing specific emotions
- Understanding emotions as a continuum rather than categories
The Functions of Emotions
- Emotional expressions help us communicate our needs to others and understand other people's needs
- Being able to communicate emotions effectively might have given our ancestors a clear advantage over other primates (the cooperative eye hypothesis)
The Ventromedial PFC & Moral Decision making
- In the Dictator game, one player is given a sum of money to divide with another player
- People in general share evenly
- People with damaged ventromedial PFC keep about 90%
- PFC damage in general leads to impulsive decision-making without consideration for others or consequences
Oxytocin & Emotional Contagion
- Oxytocin enhances emotional contagion and facilitates helping behavior
Attack Behaviours
- In the resident--intruder test, the resident's probability of attacking the intruder increases if another intruder is introduced within a short time
- The activity in the amygdala builds up after the first resident-intruder encounter
Genes * Environment on Aggression Behaviour
- There are no known genes that strongly influence aggression
- MAOA gene---low activity form shows a link to aggression
- The effect of the polymorphism is moderated by environmental factors
Hormonal Effects
- Aggressive behaviour in males heavily depends on testosterone
- Testosterone facilitates aggression
- Serotonin inhibits impulsive behaviour
- Cortisol inhibits aggression
The Effect of Behavioural Intervention on Testosterone
- It seems that it is the rapid increase in testosterone level rather than the baseline level which is linked with aggressive behaviours
- Early intervention in a high-risk group moderates the level of aggression as well as testosterone response in adulthood
Anxiety Disorders
- Anxiety disorders are the most frequently seen mental disorders in primary care
- General Anxiety Disorder: excessive anxiety and worries
- The constant worrying causes clinically significant distress or impairment in daily life
Animal Models of Generalised Anxiety Disorder
- After a cued fear conditioning, an animal develops fear response not only for the cue but also the context
- The animal also often displays more anxiety-like behaviour in a novel environment as well
- Depending on the situation, generalised anxiety effectively prepares an individual to deal with dangers
Panic Disorder
- Affects about 2-3% of the population each year in NZ
- Risk factors: Stress, Genetics (40% concordance rate in MZ), other psychiatric disorders
- The neurobiological mechanisms
How Does Benzodiazepine Work?
- Benzodiazepines (Valium, Xanax) bind to the GABA receptor
- GABA molecules cause hyperpolarization of neurons (Inhibitory)
- Benzodiazepines do not open the chloride channels directly, but it changes the receptor structure in such a way that GABA molecules bind more easily to the receptors
Hippocampus, Striatum, and Memory
- Bilateral Medial Temporal Lobectomy: remove hippocampus on both sides
- H.M Case: anterograde amnesia, retrograde amnesia, severe impairment in episodic memory, short-term/working memory intact, intact procedural memory, better implicit than explicit memory, able to form new weak semantic memories
What Would it Feel Like Having an Amnesia Like Henry Molaison?
- Every book, TV shows remain novel -- always
- You meet new people every day
- It feels like people include strange words that you can't understand
- You can't imagine any future event -- consider the evolutionary advantage of having episodic memories
Modelling Episodic Memory in Animals
- The animal needs to remember the when and what to choose a correct answer
- Lesions in the hippocampus impair the performance drastically
- Hippocampus' role as the coordinator of memory for context
The Striatum
- Involved in the gradual, probabilistic learning process
- Damages in the striatum (e.g., Parkinson's disease) impairs probabilistic learning
- People with hippocampal damage can acquire probabilistic learning after many attempts
Depression
- The severity of anhedonia is a more reliable symptom than increased sadness
- More common in women
- Ethnic inequality in diagnosis (Lee et al, 2017)
- Largely two groups of patients (early onset vs. late onset)
- Many patients do not get relief from current therapeutic options
The Genetic Risks of Depression
- A moderate degree of heritability
- SERT polymorphism and environment interaction
- Why the vulnerable genotype survived:
- Adaptability: s variant has been associated with a heightened sensitivity to both positive and negative environmental influences
- Increased emotional responsiveness
Different Types of Antidepressants
- Discovery of the first antidepressants in the 1950s
- Unexpected antidepressant effect from the drugs originally used to treat tuberculosis and psychosis
- MAOI (Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitor): inhibit the breakdown of monoamines
- TCAs (Tricyclic Antidepressants): block reuptake of norepinephrine
- SNRIs (Serotonin and Norepinephrine Reuptake Blocker)
- SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake inhibitors): block reuptake of serotonin only
The Serotonin Paradox
- Normal 5-HT level in people with depression
- People with s/s SERT genotype have a higher level of 5-HT!
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Description
This quiz covers the role of the amygdala in emotional responses, including fear and ambiguity, and explores cases of dysfunctional amygdala.
