Diminished Frontostriatal Activity During Processing of Monetary Rewards and Losses in Pathological Gambling

doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.01.006

Biological Psychiatry

Volume 71, Issue 8, 15 April 2012, Pages 749-757

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.01.006 Get rights and content

Background

Mesocorticolimbic neurocircuitry and impulsivity have both been implicated in pathological gambling (PG) and in reward processing. However, the neural underpinnings of specific phases of reward and loss processing in PG and their relationships to impulsivity remain only partially understood. The present functional magnetic resonance imaging study examined brain activity associated with different phases of reward and loss processing in PG. Given an inverse relationship between ventral striatal recruitment during anticipation of monetary rewards and impulsivity in alcohol dependence, the current study explored whether a similar association might also be present in PG.

Methods

Fourteen adults with PG and 14 control comparison participants performed the Monetary Incentive Delay Task to identify brain activation changes associated with reward/loss prospect, reward/loss anticipation, and reward/loss notification. Impulsivity was assessed separately using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale.

Results

Relative to the control comparison group, the PG group exhibited significantly reduced activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, insula, and ventral striatum during several phases, including the prospect and anticipation phases of both gains and losses. Activity in the ventral striatum correlated inversely with levels of impulsivity in PG participants, consistent with prior findings in alcohol dependence.

Conclusions

Relatively decreased activity in corticostriatal neurocircuitry during multiple phases of reward processing suggests consistent alterations in neurocircuitry underlying incentive valuation and loss prediction. Together with findings in alcohol dependence, these results suggest that impulsive tendencies in addictions may be reflected in diminished ventral striatal activations to reward anticipation and may represent targets for treatment development in addictions.

Section snippets

Participants

Participants were 14 individuals who met criteria for PG and 14 control comparison (CC) participants (demographic and self-reported measures are displayed in Table 1). Sample characteristics are more fully described in Supplement 1. All participants except one CC individual completed the Barratt Impulsivity Scale version 11 (BIS-11) (31). The BIS-11 is a valid and reliable measure of impulsivity that factors into motor, attention, and nonplanning subscales (31). Urine toxicology at the time of

In-Scanner Behavior

Multiple one-way ANOVAs examining behavioral responses in scanner showed no significant between-groups differences in earnings, reaction times, or hit rates on the different incentive conditions (all p > .05; see Supplement 1).

A1Win

Between-group contrasts of neural activity during the A1Win phase revealed significantly decreased activity in PG relative to CC in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) extending through the vmPFC and anterior cingulate into the left VS (Table 2, Figure 2A) and another

Discussion

Consistent with our hypotheses, PG as compared with CC participants showed diminished VS activation during reward anticipation, diminished vmPFC activation during reward outcome, and diminished insula activation during loss outcome. However, these patterns extended to wins and losses, were less phase-specific than hypothesized, and involved additional brain regions. As hypothesized, VS activity during the A2Win phase inversely correlated with impulsivity measures in the PG group. The biological

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Archival ReportDiminished Frontostriatal Activity During Processing of Monetary Rewards and Losses in Pathological Gambling

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Section snippets

Participants

In-Scanner Behavior

A1Win

Discussion

Biol Psychiatry

Biol Psychiatry

Neuron

Neuroimage

Neuroimage

Biol Psychiatry

Neuron

Neuron

Neuron

Biol Psychiatry

Biol Psychiatry

Neuron

Biol Psychiatry

Neuroimage

Neuroimage

Neuron

Neuron

Neuropharmacology

Biol Psychiatry

Brain Res Cogn Brain Res

Neuron

Neuroimage

Neuroimage

Neuroimage

Trends Neurosci

Neuroimage

Psychiatry Res

Biol Psychiatry

Drug Alcohol Depend

PsychiatryBehavioral addictions debut in proposed DSM-V

Science

Gambling urges in pathological gambling: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Arch Gen Psychiatry

Pathological gambling is linked to reduced activation of the mesolimbic reward system

Nat Neurosci

Prefrontal cortex activity is reduced in gambling and nongambling substance users during decision-making

Hum Brain Mapp

The addicted human brain: Insights from imaging studies

J Clin Invest

ReviewThe neurobiology of pathological gambling and drug addiction: An overview and new findings

Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci

Shared brain vulnerabilities open the way for nonsubstance addictions: Carving addiction at a new joint?

Ann N Y Acad Sci

Anticipation of increasing monetary reward selectively recruits nucleus accumbens

J Neurosci

The neural substrates of reward processing in humans: The modern role of FMRI

Neuroscientist

Archival Report
Diminished Frontostriatal Activity During Processing of Monetary Rewards and Losses in Pathological Gambling