Study identifies distinct neural processes that occur when we make decisions for the benefit of ourselves and of others.
Study finds EEG features may not always be accurate in being able to capture the level of consciousness in patients under anesthesia.
Methylphenidate may boost norepinephrine levels in the prefrontal cortex, which in turn regulates dopaminergic neurons firing in the striatum, when a reward is delivered. The study sheds new light on how medications for ADHD affect the reward system in the brain.
Researchers uncover a key role of medial prefrontal cortex corticotropin-releasing factor interneurons for bidirectionally controlling motivated behavioral styles under stress. The findings could help in the development of new treatments for PTSD.
Loneliness alters how the brain represents relationships, a new study reports.
In the medial prefrontal cortex, loneliness is associated with a reduced representational similarity between the self and others. Feeling socially disconnected may be mirrored by a self-representation of being a "loner."
Males with autism have atypically enhanced excitation in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). This area of the brain is associated with social cognition and self-reflection. Autistic women showed a more intact mPFC response, which was associated with a better ability to camouflage social difficulties in real-world settings.
Aging may alter neural processes for remembering continuous real-world experiences and segmenting memories.
Neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex respond more to loss than to gain. Avoidance of risk-taking is affected by an area of the hippocampus that is associated with memory and anxiety. The findings suggest a close relationship between memory processing and decision making when risk is present, especially in stressful situations. The fresh insights might help guide new psychiatric therapies for disorders marked by excessive avoidance, such as anxiety, and depression, and also mania and addiction, where excessive risk-taking is a common feature.
Information flow between the ventromedial premotor cortex and medial prefrontal cortex makes it possible for monkeys to correctly identify social cues.
Novel experiences dampen previous memory representations in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, facilitating flexible strategy encoding in mice.
Brain regions associated with spatial processing also appear to govern and encode information about social relationships.
