Linking brain structure and activation in anterior insula cortex to explain the trait empathy for pain

Abstract

The ability to perceive, understand, and react to the feelings of others' pain is referred to as empathy for pain which is composed of two components, affectiveperceptual empathy and cognitive-evaluative empathy. Recent reviews on the neural mechanisms of empathetic pain showed the anterior insula (AI) cortex as a core circuit for empathy. However, little is known about the modulation of brain anatomy and empathic responses by trait measures of empathy (trait empathy). Thus, we investigated whether individual variation in the personality trait of empathy is associated with individual variation in the structure of specific brain regions using voxelbased morphometry (VBM). We further investigated the relationship between the trait empathy and the activity of the same regions using state measures of empathy for pain in a trial-by-trial fashion in the given situation. VBM analysis indicated a small but significant negative relationship between trait empathy and gray matter volume in the bilateral AI. Functional MRI study further demonstrated that experimentally induced activity of the bilateral AI during state empathy for pain was also correlated with trait empathy. An asymmetry exists between the right and left AI between the affective and cognitive empathy. The right AI was found to be involved in the affective-perceptual form of empathy and the left AI was active in cognitiveevaluative forms of empathy. The interindividual differences in trait empathy may be reflected both in the state empathy and more stable brain structure difference. K E Y W O R D Santerior insula cortex, empathy for pain, gray matter volume, trait empathy

The neural networks underlying reappraisal of empathy for pain

“…In addition, neural regions previously associated both with empathy for pain and with reappraisal (e.g. anterior and posterior regions of the left SMG within the IPL as well as the parietal operculum—empathy for pain: Costantini et al., 2008 ; Li et al., 2019 ; Morawetz et al., 2015 ) were involved when participants employed reappraisal following exposure to painful scenarios. A gPPI analysis revealed increased functional connectivity between the right IFG and regions of the network involved in empathy for pain.…”

The Effect of Empathy on the Attentional Processing of Painful and Emotional Stimuli

“… 8 A neuroimaging study also showed that the IRI score was correlated with the neural activity in the bilateral anterior insula during state empathy for pain. 9 Therefore, the scale of IRI is a suitable measurement to reveal the trait empathy and the empathy for pain.…”

Increased activation in the bilateral anterior insulae in response to others in pain in mothers compared to non-mothers

“…Research has shown that observing others in pain and feeling pain yourself leads to considerable overlap in brain activation, for example in the bilateral anterior insulae (AI) and medial areas of the prefrontal cortex 30 – 32 . This overlap could indicate that we feel with the other person when we observe them in pain which is corroborated by correlations between activation in these areas and trait empathy or behavioural empathy ratings 30 , 33 – 36 . Empathy for pain paradigms investigate responses to other’s in pain and are open to influences of the perceiver 37 and the person in pain 38 , 39 .…”