Opiate addicts lack error-dependent activation of rostral anterior cingulate.
BACKGROUND
Healthy individuals performing response suppression tasks activate anterior cingulate cortex with occurrence of false alarm error responses to nontargets. Fundamental questions include whether this error-related activation provides a signal contributing to behavioral control and, given generally poorer performance on such tasks by addicts, whether this signal is disrupted in addiction.


METHODS
We used rapid, event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging to study 13 individuals with opiate dependence and 26 healthy control individuals performing a Go/NoGo task.


RESULTS
Compared with controls, opiate addicts exhibited an attenuated anterior cingulate cortex error signal and significantly poorer task performance. In controls, the individual level of event-related anterior cingulate cortex activation accompanying false alarm error positively predicted task performance, particularly sensitivity in discriminating targets from nontargets.


CONCLUSIONS
The attenuation of this error signal in anterior cingulate cortex may play a role in loss of control in addiction and other forms of impulsive behavior.
Forman
Steven D
SD
Department of Psychology (TSB, DMB), Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, USA.
Dougherty
George G
GG
Casey
B J
BJ
Siegle
Greg J
GJ
Braver
Todd S
TS
Barch
Deanna M
DM
Stenger
V Andrew
VA
Wick-Hull
Charlene
C
Pisarov
Liubomir A
LA
Lorensen
Emily
E
D000328:Adult; D001931:Brain Mapping; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006179:Gyrus Cinguli / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006556:Heroin Dependence / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007175:Impulsive Behavior / Q000503:physiopathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D016555:Matched-Pair Analysis; D008606:Mental Processes / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology*; D012016:Reference Values