Researchers in the Taylor Family Department of Neurosurgery Publish New Framework on Amygdala Function in Top Journal
Congratulations to researchers in the Taylor Family Department of Neurosurgery who recently published their paper on “The case for hemispheric lateralization of the human amygdala in fear processing” This paper was posted in Molecular Psychiatry, one of the top journals in psychiatry.
Drs. Xie et al. proposed a new framework demonstrating that the left and right sides of the amygdala play distinct roles in fear processing: the right amygdala is primarily involved in automatic fear responses, while the left amygdala helps the brain distinguish between danger and safety.
This framework has important implications for targeted treatments for PTSD, as it highlights the different ways the brain reacts to and recovers from fear. From a surgical perspective, this model leads to two testable predictions for amygdala-based interventions in PTSD: 1) right amygdala ablation or functional blockade should alleviate PTSD and/or anxiety by counteracting fear expression and hyperarousal, which may permit a more adaptive state of extinction/safety learning via left amygdala function. By contrast, (2) left amygdala ablation or blockade would impair extinction/safety learning and exacerbate PTSD and/or anxiety, especially when the right amygdala remains hyperactive and maintains hyperarousal.
Congratulations again,
Tao Xie, PhD
To read the full paper click here