Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training
Abstract Introduction Mindfulness meditation has successfully been applied to cultivate skills in self‐regulation of emotion, as it employs the unbiased present moment awareness of experience. This heightened attention to and awareness of sensory experience has been postulated to create an optimal t...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Wiley
2020-09-01
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| Series: | Brain and Behavior |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.1766 |
| _version_ | 1818448821633417216 |
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| author | Gunes Sevinc Jonathan Greenberg Britta K. Hölzel Tim Gard Thomas Calahan Vincent Brunsch Javeria A. Hashmi Mark Vangel Scott P. Orr Mohammed R. Milad Sara W. Lazar |
| author_facet | Gunes Sevinc Jonathan Greenberg Britta K. Hölzel Tim Gard Thomas Calahan Vincent Brunsch Javeria A. Hashmi Mark Vangel Scott P. Orr Mohammed R. Milad Sara W. Lazar |
| author_sort | Gunes Sevinc |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Introduction Mindfulness meditation has successfully been applied to cultivate skills in self‐regulation of emotion, as it employs the unbiased present moment awareness of experience. This heightened attention to and awareness of sensory experience has been postulated to create an optimal therapeutic exposure condition and thereby improve extinction learning. We recently demonstrated increased connectivity in hippocampal circuits during the contextual retrieval of extinction memory following mindfulness training. Methods Here, we examine the role of structural changes in hippocampal subfields following mindfulness training in a randomized controlled longitudinal study using a two‐day fear‐conditioning and extinction protocol. Results We demonstrate an association between mindfulness training‐related increases in subiculum and decreased hippocampal connectivity to lateral occipital regions during contextual retrieval of extinguished fear. Further, we demonstrate an association between decreased connectivity and decreases in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training. Conclusions The results highlight the role of the subiculum in gating interactions with contextual stimuli during memory retrieval and, also, the mechanisms through which mindfulness training may foster resilience. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T20:25:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-00264677d648460e8b8db0a430b4a564 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2162-3279 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T20:25:36Z |
| publishDate | 2020-09-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brain and Behavior |
| spelling | doaj.art-00264677d648460e8b8db0a430b4a5642022-12-21T22:48:37ZengWileyBrain and Behavior2162-32792020-09-01109n/an/a10.1002/brb3.1766Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness trainingGunes Sevinc0Jonathan Greenberg1Britta K. Hölzel2Tim Gard3Thomas Calahan4Vincent Brunsch5Javeria A. Hashmi6Mark Vangel7Scott P. Orr8Mohammed R. Milad9Sara W. Lazar10Department of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Anesthesia, Pain Management & Perioperative Medicine Dalhousie University Halifax NS CanadaDepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USAPsychiatry Department New York University Grossman School of Medicine New York NY USADepartment of Psychiatry Massachusetts General Hospital Harvard Medical School Boston MA USAAbstract Introduction Mindfulness meditation has successfully been applied to cultivate skills in self‐regulation of emotion, as it employs the unbiased present moment awareness of experience. This heightened attention to and awareness of sensory experience has been postulated to create an optimal therapeutic exposure condition and thereby improve extinction learning. We recently demonstrated increased connectivity in hippocampal circuits during the contextual retrieval of extinction memory following mindfulness training. Methods Here, we examine the role of structural changes in hippocampal subfields following mindfulness training in a randomized controlled longitudinal study using a two‐day fear‐conditioning and extinction protocol. Results We demonstrate an association between mindfulness training‐related increases in subiculum and decreased hippocampal connectivity to lateral occipital regions during contextual retrieval of extinguished fear. Further, we demonstrate an association between decreased connectivity and decreases in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training. Conclusions The results highlight the role of the subiculum in gating interactions with contextual stimuli during memory retrieval and, also, the mechanisms through which mindfulness training may foster resilience.https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.1766extinctionextinction retrievalfear memoryfMRIhippocampusmindfulness |
| spellingShingle | Gunes Sevinc Jonathan Greenberg Britta K. Hölzel Tim Gard Thomas Calahan Vincent Brunsch Javeria A. Hashmi Mark Vangel Scott P. Orr Mohammed R. Milad Sara W. Lazar Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training Brain and Behavior extinction extinction retrieval fear memory fMRI hippocampus mindfulness |
| title | Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training |
| title_full | Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training |
| title_fullStr | Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training |
| title_full_unstemmed | Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training |
| title_short | Hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self‐reported anxiety following mindfulness training |
| title_sort | hippocampal circuits underlie improvements in self reported anxiety following mindfulness training |
| topic | extinction extinction retrieval fear memory fMRI hippocampus mindfulness |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/brb3.1766 |
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