Department of Psychology, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Social Cognitive Neuroscience and Mental Health, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, Sun Yat-sen University, China.
Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China.
Neuropharmacology. 2024 Dec 15;261:110151. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2024.110151. Epub 2024 Sep 5.
Studies have indicated that the human brain exhibits a more robust neural empathic response towards individuals of the same racial ingroup than those of the outgroup. However, the impact of the oxytocinergic system on the dynamic connectivity between brain regions involved in racial ingroup bias in empathy (RIBE) and its implications for real-life social interaction intention remains unclear. To address this gap, we employed functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate RIBE-modulated neural activities and the influence of the oxytocinergic system at both neural and behavioral levels. Participants homozygous for the A/A and G/G genotypes of the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) rs53576 polymorphism underwent scanning while making judgments about painful versus non-painful stimuli in same-race versus other-race scenarios following either oxytocin (OT) or placebo treatment. The results revealed greater activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and anterior insula (AI) in response to same-race compared to other-race models in the G/G group but not in the A/A group. RIBE also modulated the connections between bilateral AI and the ACC, and the effect of OT on this modulatory effect was moderated by genotype rs53576 and interpersonal trust. Moreover, more extensive changes in AI-ACC connections were associated with higher levels of revenge intention in the low interpersonal trust group. Overall, our findings suggest a pivotal role of the oxytocinergic system in the RIBE-modulated neural activities and revenge intention in human interactions with the modulatory effect of interpersonal trust. This article is part of the Special Issue on "Empathic Pain".
研究表明，人类大脑对同种族内个体的神经共情反应比对外群体个体的反应更为强烈。然而，催产素系统对同理心种族内偏见（RIBE）相关脑区之间动态连通性的影响及其对现实社交互动意图的影响尚不清楚。为了解决这一差距，我们采用功能磁共振成像（fMRI）技术，从神经和行为两个层面研究了 RIBE 调节的神经活动和催产素系统的影响。在接受催产素（OT）或安慰剂治疗后，OXTR 基因（rs53576）的 A/A 和 G/G 基因型纯合子的参与者在判断同种族与其他种族场景中的疼痛与非疼痛刺激时进行了扫描。结果显示，在 G/G 组中，与其他种族模型相比，同种族模型会引起前扣带皮层（ACC）和前岛叶（AI）的活动增加，但在 A/A 组中则没有。RIBE 还调节了双侧 AI 与 ACC 之间的连接，OT 对这种调节效应的影响受到基因型 rs53576 和人际信任的调节。此外，AI-ACC 连接的变化与低人际信任组中更高的复仇意图水平相关。总的来说，我们的研究结果表明，催产素系统在 RIBE 调节的神经活动和人际互动中的复仇意图中起着关键作用，其调节作用受到人际信任的影响。本文是“共情疼痛”特刊的一部分。
