RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Mild Deficits in Fear Learning: Evidence from Humans and Mice with Cerebellar Cortical Degeneration
JF eneuro
JO eNeuro
FD Society for Neuroscience
SP ENEURO.0365-23.2023
DO 10.1523/ENEURO.0365-23.2023
VO 11
IS 2
A1 Batsikadze, Giorgi
A1 Pakusch, Johanna
A1 Klein, Michael
A1 Ernst, Thomas Michael
A1 Thieme, Andreas
A1 Nicksirat, Seyed Ali
A1 Steiner, Katharina Marie
A1 Nio, Enzo
A1 Genc, Erhan
A1 Maderwald, Stefan
A1 Deuschl, Cornelius
A1 Merz, Christian Josef
A1 Quick, Harald H.
A1 Mark, Melanie D.
A1 Timmann, Dagmar
YR 2024
UL http://www.eneuro.org/content/11/2/ENEURO.0365-23.2023.abstract
AB Functional brain imaging studies in humans suggest involvement of the cerebellum in fear conditioning but do not allow conclusions about the functional significance. The main aim of the present study was to examine whether patients with cerebellar degeneration show impaired fear conditioning and whether this is accompanied by alterations in cerebellar cortical activations. To this end, a 2 d differential fear conditioning study was conducted in 20 cerebellar patients and 21 control subjects using a 7 tesla (7 T) MRI system. Fear acquisition and extinction training were performed on day 1, followed by recall on day 2. Cerebellar patients learned to differentiate between the CS+ and CS−. Acquisition and consolidation of learned fear, however, was slowed. Additionally, extinction learning appeared to be delayed. The fMRI signal was reduced in relation to the prediction of the aversive stimulus and altered in relation to its unexpected omission. Similarly, mice with cerebellar cortical degeneration (spinocerebellar ataxia type 6, SCA6) were able to learn the fear association, but retrieval of fear memory was reduced. In sum, cerebellar cortical degeneration led to mild abnormalities in the acquisition of learned fear responses in both humans and mice, particularly manifesting postacquisition training. Future research is warranted to investigate the basis of altered fMRI signals related to fear learning.