title: GABA-ergic modulation of prefrontal spatio-temporal activation pattern during emotional processing: a combined fMRI/MEG study with placebo and lorazepam.
abstract: Various prefrontal cortical regions have been shown to be activated during emotional stimulation, whereas neurochemical mechanisms underlying emotional processing in the prefrontal cortex remain unclear. We therefore investigated the influence of the GABA-A potentiator lorazepam on prefrontal cortical emotional-motor spatio-temporal activation pattern in a combined functional magnetic resonance imaging/magnetoencephalography study. Lorazepam led to the reversal in orbito-frontal activation pattern, a shift of the early magnetic field dipole from the orbito-frontal to medial prefrontal cortex, and alterations in premotor/motor cortical function during negative and positive emotional stimulation. It is concluded that negative emotional processing in the orbito-frontal cortex may be modulated either directly or indirectly by GABA-A receptors. Such a modulation of orbito-frontal cortical emotional function by lorazepam has to be distinguished from its effects on cortical motor function as being independent from the kind of processing either emotional or nonemotional.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Section of Behavioral Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard University, Kirstein Building KS 454, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston, 02215 MA, USA. gnorthof@caregroup.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Georg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Northoff
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Witzel
authors.forename: Andre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Richter
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gessner
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Schlagenhauf
authors.forename: Jürgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fell
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Baumgart
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kaulisch
authors.forename: Claus
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Tempelmann
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heinzel
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kötter
authors.forename: Tilman
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hagner
authors.forename: Bela
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bargel
authors.forename: Hermann
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hinrichs
authors.forename: Bernhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bogerts
authors.forename: Henning
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Scheich
authors.forename: Hans-Jochen
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Heinze
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D018757:GABA Modulators / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D008140:Lorazepam / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D015225:Magnetoencephalography; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D018757:GABA Modulators; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid; D008140:Lorazepam