From provocation to aggression: the neural network

BMC Neuroscience

Research Article

Nils Kohn¹  Frank Schneider²  Christina M. Pawliczek²  Bianca Voss²  Ute Habel²  Jonathan Repple³  Steven Siegel⁴ 

[1] Department for Cognitive Neuroscience, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Kapittelweg 29, 6525 EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands;Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical School, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany;JARA BRAIN-Translational Brain Medicine, Pauwelsstraße 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany;Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical School, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany;JARA BRAIN-Translational Brain Medicine, Pauwelsstraße 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany;Department of Psychiatry, University of Münster, Münster, Germany;Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, 125 S. 31st Street, Translational Research Building, 19104-4283, Philadelphia, PA, USA;

关键词: Impulsivity;    TAP;    PSAP;    Neuroimaging;    Violence;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12868-017-0390-z

 received in 2017-02-19, accepted in 2017-10-10,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundIn-vivo observations of neural processes during human aggressive behavior are difficult to obtain, limiting the number of studies in this area. To address this gap, the present study implemented a social reactive aggression paradigm in 29 healthy men, employing non-violent provocation in a two-player game to elicit aggressive behavior in fMRI settings.ResultsParticipants responded more aggressively after high provocation reflected in taking more money from their opponents. Comparing aggression trials after high provocation to those after low provocation revealed activations in neural circuits involved in aggression: the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and the insula. In general, our findings indicate that aggressive behavior activates a complex, widespread brain network, reflecting a cortico-limbic interaction and overlapping with circuits underlying negative emotions and conflicting decision-making. Brain activation during provocation in the OFC was associated with the degree of aggressive behavior in this task.ConclusionTherefore, data suggest there is greater susceptibility for provocation, rather than less inhibition of aggressive tendencies, in individuals with higher aggressive responses. This further supports the hypothesis that reactive aggression can be seen as a consequence of provocation of aggressive emotional responses and parallel evaluative regulatory processes mediated mainly by the insula and prefrontal areas (OFC, mPFC, dlPFC, and ACC) respectively.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s) 2017