TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2018//
TI  - Central serotonin modulates neural responses to virtual violent actions in emotion regulation networks
JO  - Brain structure and function
A1  - Wolf, Dhana
A1  - Klasen, Martin
A1  - Eisner, Patrick
A1  - Zepf, Florian D.
A1  - Zvyagintsev, Mikhail
A1  - Palomero-Gallagher, Nicola
A1  - Weber, Rene
A1  - Eisert, Albrecht
A1  - Mathiak, Klaus
SP  - 3327
EP  - 3345
VL  - 223
IS  - 7
N2  - Disruptions in the cortico-limbic emotion regulation networks have been linked to depression, anxiety, impulsivity, and aggression. Altered transmission of the central nervous serotonin (5-HT) contributes to dysfunctions in the cognitive control of emotions. To date, studies relating to pharmaco-fMRI challenging of the 5-HT system have focused on emotion processing for facial expressions. We investigated effects of a single-dose selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitor (escitalopram) on emotion regulation during virtual violence. For this purpose, 38 male participants played a violent video game during fMRI scanning. The SSRI reduced neural responses to violent actions in right-hemispheric inferior frontal gyrus and medial prefrontal cortex encompassing the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), but not to non-violent actions. Within the ACC, the drug effect differentiated areas with high inhibitory 5-HT1A receptor density (subgenual s25) from those with a lower density (pregenual p32, p24). This finding links functional responses during virtual violent actions with 5-HT neurotransmission in emotion regulation networks, underpinning the ecological validity of the 5-HT model in aggressive behavior. Available 5-HT receptor density data suggest that this SSRI effect is only observable when inhibitory and excitatory 5-HT receptors are balanced. The observed early functional changes may impact patient groups receiving SSRI treatment.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 1863-2653
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00429-018-1693-2
ID  - ref1
ER  -