Cross-modal associations and the human amygdala.
The role of the human amygdala in cross-modal associations was investigated in two subjects: SM-046, who had bilateral damage circumscribed to the amygdala; and the patient known as Boswell, whose damage in both temporal lobes includes the amygdala and surrounding cortices. Neither subject was impaired on Tactile-Visual or Visual-Tactile cross-modal tasks using the Arc-Circle test, suggesting that the amygdala is not involved in cross-modal associations involving perceptually "equivalent" basic stimulus properties. On the other hand, the results are compatible with the amygdala's involvement in higher-order associations between exteroceptive sensory data and interoceptive data concerned with correlated somatic states.
Nahm
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Neurosciences Group, University of California, San Diego.
Tranel
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Damasio
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Damasio
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AR
D000328:Adult; D000647:Amnesia / Q000503:physiopathology; D000679:Amygdala / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001245:Association Learning / Q000502:physiology*; D001925:Brain Damage, Chronic / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations / Q000235:genetics; D025063:Chromosome Disorders; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral / Q000502:physiology; D004660:Encephalitis / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D005808:Genes, Recessive; D006561:Herpes Simplex / Q000503:physiopathology; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012858:Size Perception / Q000502:physiology; D013236:Stereognosis / Q000502:physiology*; D013577:Syndrome; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology