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Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear

The extinction of conditioned fear depends on an efficient interplay between the amygdala and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). In rats, high-frequency electrical mPFC stimulation has been shown to improve extinction by means of a reduction of amygdala activity. However, so far it is unclear whet...

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Autores principales: Guhn, Anne, Dresler, Thomas, Andreatta, Marta, Müller, Laura D., Hahn, Tim, Tupak, Sara V., Polak, Thomas, Deckert, Jürgen, Herrmann, Martin J.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Frontiers Media S.A. 2014
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3927128/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24600362
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00044
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author Guhn, Anne
Dresler, Thomas
Andreatta, Marta
Müller, Laura D.
Hahn, Tim
Tupak, Sara V.
Polak, Thomas
Deckert, Jürgen
Herrmann, Martin J.
author_facet Guhn, Anne
Dresler, Thomas
Andreatta, Marta
Müller, Laura D.
Hahn, Tim
Tupak, Sara V.
Polak, Thomas
Deckert, Jürgen
Herrmann, Martin J.
author_sort Guhn, Anne
collection PubMed
description The extinction of conditioned fear depends on an efficient interplay between the amygdala and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). In rats, high-frequency electrical mPFC stimulation has been shown to improve extinction by means of a reduction of amygdala activity. However, so far it is unclear whether stimulation of homologues regions in humans might have similar beneficial effects. Healthy volunteers received one session of either active or sham repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) covering the mPFC while undergoing a 2-day fear conditioning and extinction paradigm. Repetitive TMS was applied offline after fear acquisition in which one of two faces (CS+ but not CS−) was associated with an aversive scream (UCS). Immediate extinction learning (day 1) and extinction recall (day 2) were conducted without UCS delivery. Conditioned responses (CR) were assessed in a multimodal approach using fear-potentiated startle (FPS), skin conductance responses (SCR), functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and self-report scales. Consistent with the hypothesis of a modulated processing of conditioned fear after high-frequency rTMS, the active group showed a reduced CS+/CS− discrimination during extinction learning as evident in FPS as well as in SCR and arousal ratings. FPS responses to CS+ further showed a linear decrement throughout both extinction sessions. This study describes the first experimental approach of influencing conditioned fear by using rTMS and can thus be a basis for future studies investigating a complementation of mPFC stimulation to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
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spelling pubmed-39271282014-03-05 Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear Guhn, Anne Dresler, Thomas Andreatta, Marta Müller, Laura D. Hahn, Tim Tupak, Sara V. Polak, Thomas Deckert, Jürgen Herrmann, Martin J. Front Behav Neurosci Neuroscience The extinction of conditioned fear depends on an efficient interplay between the amygdala and the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). In rats, high-frequency electrical mPFC stimulation has been shown to improve extinction by means of a reduction of amygdala activity. However, so far it is unclear whether stimulation of homologues regions in humans might have similar beneficial effects. Healthy volunteers received one session of either active or sham repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) covering the mPFC while undergoing a 2-day fear conditioning and extinction paradigm. Repetitive TMS was applied offline after fear acquisition in which one of two faces (CS+ but not CS−) was associated with an aversive scream (UCS). Immediate extinction learning (day 1) and extinction recall (day 2) were conducted without UCS delivery. Conditioned responses (CR) were assessed in a multimodal approach using fear-potentiated startle (FPS), skin conductance responses (SCR), functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and self-report scales. Consistent with the hypothesis of a modulated processing of conditioned fear after high-frequency rTMS, the active group showed a reduced CS+/CS− discrimination during extinction learning as evident in FPS as well as in SCR and arousal ratings. FPS responses to CS+ further showed a linear decrement throughout both extinction sessions. This study describes the first experimental approach of influencing conditioned fear by using rTMS and can thus be a basis for future studies investigating a complementation of mPFC stimulation to cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Frontiers Media S.A. 2014-02-18 /pmc/articles/PMC3927128/ /pubmed/24600362 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00044 Text en Copyright © 2014 Guhn, Dresler, Andreatta, Müller, Hahn, Tupak, Polak, Deckert and Herrmann. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
spellingShingle Neuroscience
Guhn, Anne
Dresler, Thomas
Andreatta, Marta
Müller, Laura D.
Hahn, Tim
Tupak, Sara V.
Polak, Thomas
Deckert, Jürgen
Herrmann, Martin J.
Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
title Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
title_full Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
title_fullStr Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
title_full_unstemmed Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
title_short Medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
title_sort medial prefrontal cortex stimulation modulates the processing of conditioned fear
topic Neuroscience
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3927128/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24600362
http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00044
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