Sander David, Grafman Jordan, Zalla Tiziana
Geneva Emotion Research Group, Psychology Section, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
Rev Neurosci. 2003;14(4):303-16. doi: 10.1515/revneuro.2003.14.4.303.
Evidence from pioneering animal research has suggested that the amygdala is involved in the processing of aversive stimuli, particularly fear-related information. Fear is central in the evolution of the mammalian brain: it is automatically and rapidly elicited by potentially dangerous and deadly events. The view that the amygdala shares the main characteristics of modular systems, e.g. domain specificity, automaticity, and cognitive impenetrability, has become popular in neuroscience. Because of its computational properties, it has been proposed to implement a rapid-response 'fear module'. In this article, we review recent patient and neuroimaging data of the human brain and argue that the fundamental criteria for the amygdala to be a modular system are not met. We propose a different computational view and suggest the notion of a specific involvement of the human amygdala in the appraisal of relevant events that include, but are not restricted to, fear-related stimuli. Considering the amygdala as a 'relevance detector' would integrate the 'fear module' hypothesis with the concept of an evolved neural system devoted to the processing of a broader category of biologically relevant stimuli. In primates, socially relevant events appear to have become, through evolution, the dominant elements of the amygdala's domain of specificity.
开创性动物研究的证据表明，杏仁核参与厌恶刺激的处理，尤其是与恐惧相关的信息。恐惧在哺乳动物大脑的进化中至关重要：它会由潜在危险和致命事件自动且迅速地引发。杏仁核具有模块化系统的主要特征，如领域特异性、自动性和认知不可穿透性，这种观点在神经科学领域已广受欢迎。由于其计算特性，有人提出它实现了一个快速反应的“恐惧模块”。在本文中，我们回顾了近期关于人类大脑的患者和神经影像数据，并认为杏仁核作为一个模块化系统的基本标准并未得到满足。我们提出了一种不同的计算观点，并认为人类杏仁核在评估相关事件（包括但不限于与恐惧相关的刺激）中具有特定作用。将杏仁核视为一个“相关性探测器”，将把“恐惧模块”假说与一个进化而来的神经系统概念相结合，该系统致力于处理更广泛类别的生物相关刺激。在灵长类动物中，通过进化，社会相关事件似乎已成为杏仁核特异性领域的主导元素。
