Serotoninergic regulation of emotional and behavioural control processes.
5-Hydroxytryptamine (5-HT, serotonin) has long been implicated in a wide variety of emotional, cognitive and behavioural control processes. However, its precise contribution is still not well understood. Depletion of 5-HT enhances behavioural and brain responsiveness to punishment or other aversive signals, while disinhibiting previously rewarded but now punished behaviours. Findings suggest that 5-HT modulates the impact of punishment-related signals on learning and emotion (aversion), but also promotes response inhibition. Exaggerated aversive processing and deficient response inhibition could underlie distinct symptoms of a range of affective disorders, namely stress- or threat-vulnerability and compulsive behaviour, respectively. We review evidence from studies with human volunteers and experimental animals that begins to elucidate the neurobiological systems underlying these different effects.
Cools
Roshan
R
F. C. Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Radboud University Nijmegen, P.O. Box 9101, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands. roshan.cools@fcdonders.ru.nl
Roberts
Angela C
AC
Robbins
Trevor W
TW
D000818:Animals; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology; D001519:Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008954:Models, Biological; D009042:Motivation; D012701:Serotonin / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
D012701:Serotonin