title: To lose the frame of action: a selective deficit in avoiding unpleasant objects following a unilateral temporal lobe lesion.
abstract: Studies on emotion and its neurobiology have been far more focused on the recognition of emotion than on actions that are caused by emotional states. We investigate the performance of a patient, HS, with a unilateral lesion to the left temporal pole and orbito-frontal cortex (OFC) (including left amygdala), on a well-established approach/avoid task that taps into emotion-driven action. The striking finding of the present study is a remarkable, and selective, slowing of HS's avoidance of unpleasant items in her (impaired) contralesional field. This finding suggests that the left temporal lobe and OFC structures, including the amygdala, appear to be involved in the action component of emotion, specifically in avoiding negative items.
authors.affiliation: Wolfson Centre for Clinical and Cognitive Neuroscience, Bangor University, Bangor LL57 2AS, UK. susiebamford@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bamford
authors.forename: Oliver H
authors.initials: OH
authors.lastname: Turnbull
authors.forename: Rudi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Coetzer
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ward
mesh_terms: D000058:Accidental Falls; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D000679:Amygdala / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D000786:Anger / Q000502:physiology; D001362:Avoidance Learning / Q000502:physiology; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D004644:Emotions / Q000502:physiology; D056344:Executive Function / Q000502:physiology; D005239:Fear / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology; D006423:Hemianopsia / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D020232:Kluver-Bucy Syndrome / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology