title: Fear generalization in the primate amygdala.
abstract: Broad generalization of negative memories is a potential etiology for anxiety disorders, yet the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. We developed a non-human primate model that replicates behavioral observations in humans and identifies specific changes in tuning properties of amygdala neurons: the width of auditory tuning increases with the distance of its center from the conditioned stimulus. This center-width relationship can account for better detection and at the same time explain the wide stimulus generalization.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Resnik
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
authors.forename: Rony
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Paz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D066272:Basolateral Nuclear Complex / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D003214:Conditioning, Classical / Q000502:physiology; D005239:Fear / Q000502:physiology*; D005793:Generalization, Psychological / Q000502:physiology*; D008253:Macaca mulatta / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D055696:Olfactory Perception / Q000502:physiology