The amygdala and individual differences in human fear conditioning

• Published in: Neuroreport Vol. 8; no. 18; pp. 3957 - 3960
• Main Authors: Furmark, Tomas, Fischer, Håkan, Wik, Gustav, Larsson, Mattias, Fredrikson, Mats
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hagerstown, MD Lippincott-Raven Publishers 22-12-1997; Lippincott Williams and Wilkins
• Subjects: Adult; Amygdala - physiology; Anatomical correlates of behavior; Avoidance Learning - physiology; Behavioral psychophysiology; Biological and medical sciences; Conditioning, Classical - physiology; Fear; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Individuality; Linear Models; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Psykologi; SAMHÄLLSVETENSKAP; SOCIAL SCIENCES; Socialvetenskap; Human; Affect affectivity; Amygdala; Central nervous system; Electrodermography; Electrophysiology; Basal ganglion; Emotion emotionality; Classical conditioning; Learning; Fear; Visual stimulus; Acquisition process; Interindividual comparison; Brain (vertebrata); Emission tomography; emotion; classical conditioning; POSITRON-EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY; INFORMATION; electrodermal activity; brain; positron emission tomography; PET; central nervous system; neuroimaging
• ISSN: 0959-4965; 1473-558X
• DOI: 10.1097/00001756-199712220-00021

WHILE animal research on fear conditioning suggests crucial involvement of the amygdala, this has not been corroborated in humans when using subtractive neuro-imaging methodology. Correlation analyses might be more able to reveal relations between individual differences in conditionability and central neural activity. Hence, we performed a directed search for amygdalar participation in human fear conditioning by correlating central and autonomic nervous activity. [O]Butanol positron emission tomography evaluated regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in six subjects before and after aversive conditioning to visual snake stimuli. Nonspecific electrodermal fluctuations (EDA) were recorded simultaneously. A significant positive correlation was obtained between conditioned EDA and conditioned rCBF in the right amygdala (r = 0.75, p < 0.05), supporting involvement of the amygdala in human fear conditioning.