Open AccessAnticipating control over aversive stimuli is mediated by the medial prefrontal cortex: An fMRI study with healthy adults
Author(s) -
WadeBohleber Laura Maria,
Haugg Amelie,
Huber Sabrina,
Ernst Jutta,
Grimm Simone,
Recher Dominique,
Richter Andre,
Seifritz Erich,
Boeker Heinz,
Northoff Georg
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
human brain mapping
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.005
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1097-0193
pISSN - 1065-9471
DOI - 10.1002/hbm.25549
Subject(s) - prefrontal cortex , psychology , neuroscience , aversive stimulus , control (management) , cognitive psychology , cognition , computer science , artificial intelligence
The anticipation of control over aversive events in life is relevant for our mental health. Insights on the underlying neural mechanisms remain limited. We developed a new functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) task that uses auditory stimuli to explore the neural correlates of (1) the anticipation of control over aversion and (2) the processing of aversion. In a sample of 25 healthy adults, we observed increased neural activation in the medial prefrontal cortex (ventromedial prefrontal cortex and rostral anterior cingulate cortex), other brain areas relevant for reward anticipation (ventral striatum, brainstem [ventral tegmental area], midcingulate cortex), and the posterior cingulate cortex when they anticipated control over aversion compared with anticipating no control (1). The processing of aversive sounds compared to neutral sounds (2) was associated with increased neural activation in the bilateral posterior insula. Our findings provide evidence for the important role of medial prefrontal regions in control anticipation and highlight the relevance of conceiving the neural mechanisms involved within a reward‐based framework.