Perizzolo Pointet Virginie Chloé, Moser Dominik Andrea, Vital Marylène, Rusconi Serpa Sandra, Todorov Alexander, Schechter Daniel Scott
Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
University Service of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Lausanne University Medical Center, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Front Psychol. 2021 Jan 12;11:576852. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.576852. eCollection 2020.
The present study investigates the association of lifetime interpersonal violence (IPV) exposure, related posttraumatic stress disorder (IPV-PTSD), and appraisal of the degree of threat posed by facial avatars.
We recorded self-rated responses and high-density electroencephalography (HD-EEG) among women, 16 of whom with lifetime IPV-PTSD and 14 with no PTSD, during a face-evaluation task that displayed male face avatars varying in their degree of threat as rated along dimensions of dominance and trustworthiness.
The study found a significant association between lifetime IPV exposure, under-estimation of dominance, and over-estimation of trustworthiness. Characterization of EEG microstates supported that lifetime IPV-PTSD modulates emotional appraisal, specifically in encoding and decoding processing associated with N170 and LPP evoked potentials. EEG source localization demonstrated an overactivation of the limbic system, in particular the parahippocampal gyrus, in response to non-threatening avatars. Additionally, dysfunctional involvement of attention-related processing anterior prefrontal cortex (aPFC) was found in response to relatively trustworthy avatars in IPV-PTSD individuals compared with non-PTSD controls.
This study showed that IPV exposure and related PTSD modulate individuals' evaluation of facial characteristics suggesting threat. Atypical processing of these avatar characteristics was marked by group differences in brain regions linked to facial processing, emotion regulation, and memory.
本研究调查了终生人际暴力（IPV）暴露、相关创伤后应激障碍（IPV-PTSD）与对面部虚拟形象所构成威胁程度的评估之间的关联。
在一项面部评估任务中，我们记录了女性的自评反应和高密度脑电图（HD-EEG），其中16名女性患有终生IPV-PTSD，14名没有创伤后应激障碍，该任务展示了根据支配性和可信度维度评级的不同威胁程度的男性面部虚拟形象。
研究发现终生IPV暴露、对支配性的低估和对可信度的高估之间存在显著关联。脑电图微状态的微状态的特征表明，终生IPV-PTSD调节情绪评估，特别是在与N170和LPP诱发电位相关的编码和解码过程中。脑电图源定位显示，边缘系统，特别是海马旁回，对无威胁的虚拟形象有过度激活。此外，与非创伤后应激障碍对照组相比，IPV-PTSD个体在面对相对可信的虚拟形象时，发现与注意力相关的前额叶前皮质（aPFC）处理功能失调。
本研究表明，IPV暴露和相关的创伤后应激障碍调节个体对面部特征的威胁评估。这些虚拟形象特征的非典型处理表现为与面部处理、情绪调节和记忆相关的脑区存在组间差异。
