Emotions

Question 1

Emotions
Rolls (2000)

Answer 1

States elicited by rewarding or aversive stimuli (S+ or S-)
and their omission ( – ) or termination (!).

Question 2

Name an example of a rewarding stimuli (S+)

Answer 2

Ecstasy

Question 3

Name an example of Termination of an aversive stimulus (S-!)

Answer 3

Relief

Question 4

What are the similarities between mammal brains?

Answer 4

All have some sort of cortical structure
Subcortical structure
to Brainstem outputs
to effect/ explain/ cause behaviour

Question 5

How can anxiety and fear be characterised without reference to subjective feelings?

Answer 5

A state caused by the presence of an aversive stimulus (S-)

Question 6

What emotion/ feeling would be a state caused by the omission or termination of an aversive stimulus?
(S-!)

Answer 6

Relief

Question 7

What emotion/ feeling would be a state caused by the omission or termination of a rewarding stimulus?
(S+!)

Answer 7

Anger, rage, sadness

Question 8

An object or event that elicits approach and is worked for is known as…

Answer 8

A reward

Reward stimulus an animal works for

Question 9

Name the 4 techniques to identify brain substrates of reward:

Answer 9

Instrumental conditioning (appetitive)
Intracranial electrical self-administration
Intracranial drug self-administration
Intracerebral microdialysis (measures NTM Rewarding S)

Question 10

Which technique involves a motor response to a lever pressed in response for food to identify brain substrates of reward?

Answer 10

Instrumental conditioning (appetitive)

Question 11

Which technique involves electrodes being implanted to different brain areas and see if the animal works for stimulation to that area?

Answer 11

Intracranial electrical self-administration

Animal should signal a reward when the brain area is triggered Areas that are not important in rewarding stimuli should suggest animal is not bothered (links to addiction)

Question 12

Which technique involves the animal pressing levels to self-administrate drug doses?

Answer 12

Intracranial drug self-administration

Question 13

Which technique involves implanting microdialysis to measure neurotransmitters associated with rewarding stimuli?
(measures NTM Rewarding S)

Answer 13

Intracerebral microdialysis

Depending on how much NTM you find is a reflection of how much NTM is in the brain area of interest

Question 14

What does the yellow line represent?

Answer 14

Meso-corticolimbic dopamine system
Specifies rewards increasing Nucleus Accumbens dopamine (NAC DA)?

Question 15

What does the green line represent?

Answer 15

Cholinergic projection from PPTg to VTA:
Electrical self-stimulation of PPTg which activates the DA system (Yellow line)
leads to DA release in NA

Cholinergic drugs: are self-administered into VTA
Nicotine
Acetycholine mimics nicotine

Question 16

Which system in the brain is systematic and intra-NAC DA antagonists block responses normally maintained by reward?

Answer 16

Meso-corticolimbic dopamine system

Question 17

Why is nicotine addictive?

Answer 17

Because it stimulates VTA DA neurons

Question 18

What does the blue line represent?

Answer 18

Glutamate projections from Pre-Frontal Cortex to VTA:

Electrical self-stimulation of PFC stimulates the increase of DA in NAC

Question 19

When testing an animal, we cannot conclude that the lever pressing it is due to pleasure (like) or due to desire (wanting). so for now research concludes that it could be both

Answer 19

So, animals may want self-administration of drug because they want (desire) it but don’t find pleasure in having it (like)

Question 20

What are opioid receptors in the Nucleus Accumbens important for?

Answer 20

For us to experience pleasure (liking)

Question 21

Which mechanism makes us want (desire) things?

Answer 21

Dopamine

Question 22

What are brain substrates of emotional states associated with?

Answer 22

Aversive stimuli and appetitive stimuli (rewards)

They overlap

Question 23

Dopamine and nucleus accumbens play important roles in which type of processes?

Answer 23

Fear-related processes
in addition to role in reward-related states and responses

Question 24

The forebrain dopamine has been associated with classical conditioning with which three areas of the brain?

Answer 24

NAC
mPFC
Amygdala

Question 25

Apart from playing key role in fear-related responses, the Amygdala has also been implicated in responses to?

Answer 25

Amygdala has also been implicated in responses to appetitive stimuli(rewards)

Question 26

DNQX injection into nucleus accumbens elicits appetitive or defensive behaviours?

Answer 26

DNQX injection into nucleus accumbens elicits BOTH appetitive and defensive behaviours

Question 27

Functional implications:
A ‘common currency’ of emotion may enable the brain to generate adaptive responses based on integrated assessment of positive and negative stimuli.
They rely on overlapping mechanisms

Expand on this.

Answer 27

Brain substrates
eg. DA, NAC, Amy may not play a specific role in emotion

But may contribute to fundamental cognitive processes
are associated with both aversive and appetitive stimuli

eg. all mechanisms may signal salience and attention or associative learning

Question 28

Can emotional responses can be measured objectively?

Answer 28

Yes, enabling the scientific study of emotions in animals and humans.

Question 29

In animal experiments, the measurement of emotional responses can be combined with a variety of techniques to do what?

Answer 29

to manipulate and monitor brain function

This reveals brain substrates of emotion and their dysfunctions
(eg. fear/anxiety and related disorders)

Question 30

How can the detailed information from animal experiments be confirmed?

Answer 30

By appropriate research on human emotions in healthy subjects and clinical populations.

Question 31

Name an example of an Aversive stimulus (S-)

Answer 31

Fear

Question 32

Name an example of the Termination of a rewarding stimulus (S+!)

Answer 32

Anger/ rage