Orbitofrontal cortex lesions alter anxiety-related activity in the primate bed nucleus of stria terminalis.
In children, behavioral inhibition (BI) in response to potential threat predicts the development of anxiety and affective disorders, and primate lesion studies suggest involvement of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) in mediating BI. Lesion studies are essential for establishing causality in brain-behavior relationships, but should be interpreted cautiously because the impact of a discrete lesion on a complex neural circuit extends beyond the lesion location. Complementary functional imaging methods assessing how lesions influence other parts of the circuit can aid in precisely understanding how lesions affect behavior. Using this combination of approaches in monkeys, we found that OFC lesions concomitantly alter BI and metabolism in the bed nucleus of stria terminalis (BNST) region and that individual differences in BNST activity predict BI. Thus it appears that an important function of the OFC in response to threat is to modulate the BNST, which may more directly influence the expression of BI.
Fox
Andrew S
AS
Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin 53719, USA.
Shelton
Steven E
SE
Oakes
Terrence R
TR
Converse
Alexander K
AK
Davidson
Richard J
RJ
Kalin
Ned H
NH
D000679:Amygdala / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D000818:Animals; D001007:Anxiety / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D046352:Freezing Reaction, Cataleptic / Q000502:physiology; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000473:pathology*; D012686:Septal Nuclei / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology*
D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18