Changes in responses of the amygdala and hippocampus during fear conditioning are associated with persecutory beliefs.
Sci Rep
; 14(1): 8173, 2024 04 08.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38589562
ABSTRACT
The persecutory delusion is the most common symptom of psychosis, yet its underlying neurobiological mechanisms are poorly understood. Prior studies have suggested that abnormalities in medial temporal lobe-dependent associative learning may contribute to this symptom. In the current study, this hypothesis was tested in a non-clinical sample of young adults without histories of psychiatric treatment (n = 64), who underwent classical Pavlovian fear conditioning while fMRI data were collected. During the fear conditioning procedure, participants viewed images of faces which were paired (the CS+) or not paired (the CS-) with an aversive stimulus (a mild electrical shock). Fear conditioning-related neural responses were measured in two medial temporal lobe regions, the amygdala and hippocampus, and in other closely connected brain regions of the salience and default networks. The participants without persecutory beliefs (n = 43) showed greater responses to the CS- compared to the CS+ in the right amygdala and hippocampus, while the participants with persecutory beliefs (n = 21) failed to exhibit this response. These between-group differences were not accounted for by symptoms of depression, anxiety or a psychosis risk syndrome. However, the severity of subclinical psychotic symptoms overall was correlated with the level of this aberrant response in the amygdala (p = .013) and hippocampus (p = .033). Thus, these findings provide evidence for a disruption of medial temporal lobe-dependent associative learning in young people with subclinical psychotic symptoms, specifically persecutory thinking.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Medo
/
Tonsila do Cerebelo
Limite:
Adolescent
/
Adult
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Sci Rep
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Estados Unidos