Brain‐heart interaction in perseverative cognition

Abstract

The move from the concept of homeostasis to that of allostasis has led reactivity stress research to widen the object of its investigation: from the brief physiological response that occurs when one is facing a stressor to what happens when one is anticipating or recovering from a stressor. A paradigmatic example is represented by perseverative cognition, during which human beings react "as if" they were constantly facing a concrete stressor. The core idea behind this review is that the cognitive inflexibility that characterizes perseverative cognition is reflected in both our body (by increased autonomic nervous system rigidity assessed by heart rate variability; HRV) and our brain (by reduced prefrontal-amygdala functional connectivity). This is a review of studies conducted in different settings (laboratory, daily life), populations (healthy, major depression, generalized anxiety), location (United States, Europe), and age groups (children, adults) that consistently replicated the association between autonomic, subjective, and behavioral measures of cognitive inflexibility during perseverative cognition. Moreover, compelling neuroimaging data suggest that HRV reduction from pre- to post-induction of perseverative cognition is associated with both structural and functional brain abnormalities reflecting impaired prefrontal inhibitory control over subcortical structures (e.g., diminished prefrontal-amygdala functional connectivity). The integration of neuroscience techniques with clinical autonomic research has advanced our understanding of the neurobiology of brain-heart interaction during perseverative cognition, potentially yielding to more effective treatment packages. This is clinically relevant if one considers that perseverative cognition is a pervasive transdiagnostic factor that carries prognostic risk for both psychological and somatic health.

Response time as a proxy of ongoing mental state: A combined fMRI and pupillometry study in Generalized Anxiety Disorder

“…The precentral and postcentral gyri are part of the somatomotor network, possibly underlining the important role that signals arising from the body play in perseverative patterns of ongoing thought. More generally, our study reinforces the value of mapping brain-body interactions in attempts to understand the genesis and maintenance of different aspects of ongoing thought (Ottaviani et al, 2017;Ottaviani, 2018).…”

“…The present study aimed to contrast more 'normal' patterns of mind-wandering with less adaptive patterns of perseverative cognition in GAD, applying the technique of triangulation (Smallwood and Schooler, 2006) that combined neural activity, as assessed by fMRI with autonomic function, indexed by pupillometry and with selfreported measures of ongoing thought. The overall goal was to investigate whether functional and dysfunctional forms of repetitive thinking have distinctive autonomic and brain correlates, based on the assumption that mind-wandering and perseverative cognition can be viewed as distinct aspects of ongoing thought (e.g., Christoff et al, 2016;Ottaviani, 2018).…”

What types of insomnia relate to anxiety and depressive symptoms in late life?

“…The finding that onset insomnia and anxiety symptoms were significantly related was not surprising. Rumination and worry are common symptoms of anxiety, and these cognitions may cause difficulty falling asleep (Galbiati et al, 2018;Hiller et al, 2014), potentially through arousal of the sympathetic nervous system (Ottaviani, 2018). Table 2.…”

Decreased Task-Related HRV Is Associated With Inhibitory Dysfunction Through Functional Inter-Region Connectivity of PFC in Major Depressive Disorder

“…Inhibitory and control function includes two levels: a central level, which is related to the cerebral cortex, and a peripheral level, which is mediated by the autonomic nervous system (ANS) (4). At the central level, many studies using neuroimaging methods have reported that in the go/no-go task, many areas in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), such as BA9, BA10, and BA47, are responsible for an individual's inhibitory function (5)(6)(7)(8)(9).…”

“…At the central level, many studies using neuroimaging methods have reported that in the go/no-go task, many areas in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), such as BA9, BA10, and BA47, are responsible for an individual's inhibitory function (5)(6)(7)(8)(9). At the peripheral level, the ANS, especially the vagus nerve, plays an important role in an individual's inhibitory and control function (4). Many studies have shown that the decreased vagus tone is associated with abnormal inhibitory and control function under the emotional stop-signal task or the Stroop test (10,11).…”