Amygdala-frontal connectivity during emotion regulation

Abstract

Successful control of affect partly depends on the capacity to modulate negative emotional responses through the use of cognitive strategies (i.e., reappraisal). Recent studies suggest the involvement of frontal cortical regions in the modulation of amygdala reactivity and the mediation of effective emotion regulation. However, within-subject inter-regional connectivity between amygdala and prefrontal cortex in the context of affect regulation is unknown. Here, using psychophysiological interaction analyses of functional magnetic resonance imaging data, we show that activity in specific areas of the frontal cortex (dorsolateral, dorsal medial, anterior cingulate, orbital) covaries with amygdala activity and that this functional connectivity is dependent on the reappraisal task. Moreover, strength of amygdala coupling with orbitofrontal cortex and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex predicts the extent of attenuation of negative affect following reappraisal. These findings highlight the importance of functional connectivity within limbic-frontal circuitry during emotion regulation.

Figures

Fig. 1

SPM t-map showing areas that exhibit significant task-dependent (Reappraise > Maintatin) coupling with the left amygdala: (A) DLPFC; (B) OFC; (C) DMPFC and SGACC. Maps are overlaid on coronal slice of a canonical brain rendering constructed using MRIcro software (http://www.sph.sc.edu/comd/rorden/mricro.html), shown on cororonal (A), axial (B) and sagital (C) canonical brain slices, with location of slices in coordinates as defined in Montreal Neurologic Institute stereotactic space. Activations are thresholded at P < 0.001 (uncorrected) showing only significant clusters with more than 10 contiguous voxels. L, Left.

Fig. 2

Spearman rank correlation graphs showing the relationship of negative affect (self-report intensity scores) and PPI beta estimate of amygdala coupling with right orbitofrontal cortex (A), left orbitofrontal cortex (B) and dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (C). OFC, DMPFC; L, Left, R, Right. Greater amygdala-predicted activation of OFC and DMPFC is associated with lower intensity of negative affect.