25 research outputs found
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Arousal increases neural gain via the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system in younger adults but not in older adults
In younger adults, arousal amplifies attentional focus to the most salient or goal-relevant information while suppressing other information. A computational model of how the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine (LC-NE) system can implement this increased selectivity under arousal and an fMRI study comparing how arousal affects younger and older adultsâ processing indicate that the amplification of salient stimuli and the suppression of non-salient stimuli are separate processes, with aging affecting suppression without impacting amplification under arousal. In the fMRI study, arousal increased processing of salient stimuli and decreased processing of non-salient stimuli for younger adults. In contrast, for older adults, arousal increased processing of both low and high salience stimuli, generally increasing excitatory responses to visual stimuli. Older adults also showed decline in LC functional connectivity with
frontoparietal networks that coordinate attentional selectivity. Thus, among older adults, arousal
increases the potential for distraction from non-salient stimuli
Elevated growth temperature decreases levels of the PEX5 peroxisome-targeting signal receptor and ameliorates defects of Arabidopsis mutants with an impaired PEX4 ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme
The dot-probe task to measure emotional attention: A suitable measure in comparative studies?
Short-term effect of acarbose on specific intestinal disaccharidase activities and hyperglycaemia in CBA diabetic mice
Prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and/or autism spectrum disorder and its relation to lifestyle in female college students
Primary squamous cell carcinoma of the vagina: Prognostic factors, treatment patterns, and outcomes
Hearing Aids Benefit Recognition of Words in Emotional Speech but Not Emotion Identification
Distinct neural correlates of emotional and cognitive empathy in older adults
Empathy is thought to be a mechanism underlying prosocial behavior across the lifespan, yet little is known about how levels of empathy relate to individual differences in brain functioning among older adults. In this exploratory study, we examined the neural correlates of affective and cognitive empathy in older adults. Thirty older adults (M=79 years) underwent fMRI scanning and neuropsychological testing and completed a test of affective and cognitive empathy. Brain response during processing of cognitive and emotional stimuli was measured by fMRI in a priori and task-related regions and was correlated with levels of empathy. Older adults with higher levels of affective empathy showed more deactivation in the amygdala and insula during a working memory task, whereas those with higher cognitive empathy showed greater insula activation during a response inhibition task. Our preliminary findings suggest that brain systems linked to emotional and social processing respond differently among older adults with more or less affective and cognitive empathy. That these relationships can be seen both during affective and non-emotional tasks of âcoldâ cognitive abilities suggests that empathy may impact social behavior through both emotional and cognitive mechanisms