How does interoceptive awareness interact with the subjective experience of emotion? An fMRI Study

Abstract

Recent studies in cognitive neuroscience have suggested that the integration of information about the internal bodily state and the external environment is crucial for the experience of emotion. Extensive overlap between the neural mechanisms underlying the subjective emotion and those involved in interoception (perception of that which is arising from inside the body) has been identified. However, the mechanisms of interaction between the neural substrates of interoception and emotional experience remain unclear. We examined the common and distinct features of the neural activity underlying evaluation of emotional and bodily state using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The right anterior insular cortex and ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) were identified as commonly activated areas. As both of these areas are considered critical for interoceptive awareness, these results suggest that attending to the bodily state underlies awareness of one's emotional state. Uniquely activated areas involved in the evaluation of emotional state included the temporal pole, posterior and anterior cingulate cortex, medial frontal gyrus, and inferior frontal gyrus. Also the precuneus was functionally associated with activity of the right anterior insular cortex and VMPFC when evaluating emotional state. Our findings indicate that activation in these areas and the precuneus are functionally associated for accessing interoceptive information and underpinning subjective experience of the emotional state. Thus, awareness of one's own emotional state appears to involve the integration of interoceptive information with an interpretation of the current situation.

The Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire-R18 Polish version: factor structure analysis among normal weight and obese adult women

“…Obesity is associated with low interoceptive awareness, which coexists with difficulties in the identification, processing and regulation of the emotional state [51][52][53]. In addition, obesity signifies non-adaptive coping strategies and the regulation of emotional state through food [54].…”

Altered Insula Activity during Visceral Interoception in Weight-Restored Patients with Anorexia Nervosa

“…Although we did not hypothesize that there would be group differences in this region, this finding accords with past research on the precuneus in both healthy individuals and those with AN. The precuneus is involved in mental self-representations, including mental imagery of the self (Cavanna and Trimble, 2006), and the linking of interoceptive and contextual information to influence emotional experience (Terasawa et al, 2013). In addition, individuals with AN have demonstrated deactivation of the precuneus when viewing pictures of themselves (Sachdev et al, 2008), and in one study a small sample of AN participants continued to show deficits in gray matter in the precuneus after recovery (Joos et al, 2011).…”

Schizophrenia with preserved insight is associated with increased perfusion of the precuneus

“…53 In a recent study, the precuneus has been involved in awareness of one's own emotional state by integrating interoceptive information with information about the environmental and contextual situation. 62 On the other hand, decreased emotional awareness has also been associated with attenuation of precuneus activation. 57 These findings could indicate that in patients with preserved insight the precuneus plays an integrative role in the general binding ability of information to generate self-emotional or mental-states evaluations.…”