Emotion regulation ability varies in relation to intrinsic functional brain architecture

Abstract

This study investigated the neural basis of individual variation in emotion regulation, specifically the ability to reappraise negative stimuli so as to down-regulate negative affect. Brain functions in young adults were measured with functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging during three conditions: (i) attending to neutral pictures; (ii) attending to negative pictures and (iii) reappraising negative pictures. Resting-state functional connectivity was measured with amygdala and dorsolateral prefrontal cortical (DLPFC) seed regions frequently associated with emotion regulation. Participants reported more negative affect after attending to negative than neutral pictures, and less negative affect following reappraisal. Both attending to negative vs neutral pictures and reappraising vs attending to negative pictures yielded widespread activations that were significantly right-lateralized for attending to negative pictures and left-lateralized for reappraising negative pictures. Across participants, more successful reappraisal correlated with less trait anxiety and more positive daily emotion, greater activation in medial and lateral prefrontal regions, and lesser resting-state functional connectivity between (a) right amygdala and both medial prefrontal and posterior cingulate cortices, and (b) bilateral DLPFC and posterior visual cortices. The ability to regulate emotion, a source of resilience or of risk for distress, appears to vary in relation to differences in intrinsic functional brain architecture.

State dependent cortico-amygdala circuit dysfunction in bipolar disorder

“…This finding is consistent with results from other neuroimaging studies suggesting a right amygdala specific role in emotion regulation in healthy subjects (Uchida et al, 2015) . In bipolar disorder, a previous study comparing task related connectivity in bipolar mixed or manic states to the depressed state demonstrated changes in amygdala connectivity selectively in the right amygdala (Cerullo et al, 2012).…”

Differential brain network activity across mood states in bipolar disorder

“…cortical activation in response to pictures with a negative emotional valence compared to neutral pictures (e.g. figure 2 from (Uchida et al, 2015)). Testing this hypothesis may be accomplished by follow-on studies that examine how FC in this network predicts responses to emotionally valenced stimuli in subjects with bipolar disorder and HC subjects.…”

Functional connectivity predicts the dispositional use of expressive suppression but not cognitive reappraisal

“…For example, studies have linked reappraisal with increased activity in the dorsolateral and ventromedial prefrontal cortices (Buhle et al, 2013;Goldin, McRae, Ramel, & Gross, 2008), and both reappraisal and suppression have been associated with decreased activity in the amygdala (Buhle et al, 2013;Chen, Chen, Yang, & Yuan, 2017). Decreased coupling between the amygdala and medial prefrontal cortex has been associated with reappraisal, whereas increased coupling between the amygdala and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex has been associated with suppression (Pan et al, 2018;Picó-Pérez et al, 2018;Uchida et al, 2015). Decreased coupling between the amygdala and medial prefrontal cortex has been associated with reappraisal, whereas increased coupling between the amygdala and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex has been associated with suppression (Pan et al, 2018;Picó-Pérez et al, 2018;Uchida et al, 2015).…”

“…Similarly, research has identified how patterns of intrinsic functional connectivity differ between suppression and reappraisal. Decreased coupling between the amygdala and medial prefrontal cortex has been associated with reappraisal, whereas increased coupling between the amygdala and dorsal anterior cingulate cortex has been associated with suppression (Pan et al, 2018;Picó-Pérez et al, 2018;Uchida et al, 2015).…”