From ancient fears to airborne threats: fMRI insights into neural fear responses

Kód výsledku v IS VaVaI

<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F67985807%3A_____%2F25%3A00641335" target="_blank" >RIV/67985807:_____/25:00641335 - isvavai.cz</a>

Nalezeny alternativní kódy

RIV/00023752:_____/25:43921634 RIV/00216208:11310/25:10505851

Výsledek na webu

<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2025.106371" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2025.106371</a>

DOI - Digital Object Identifier

<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bandc.2025.106371" target="_blank" >10.1016/j.bandc.2025.106371</a>

Jazyk výsledku

angličtina

Název v původním jazyce

From ancient fears to airborne threats: fMRI insights into neural fear responses

Popis výsledku v původním jazyce

Threat perception is a fundamental aspect of human cognition, shaped by evolutionary pressures and modern environmental demands. While ancestral threats (e.g., snakes) have been shown to elicit stronger neural responses than modern threats (e.g., guns), less is known about how the brain processes airborne threats, such as depictions of individuals wearing face masks. This fMRI study investigates neural responses to ancestral, modern, and airborne threats to identify shared and distinct activation patterns. Sixty participants viewed visual stimuli from the three categories while undergoing fMRI scanning. Results showed heightened activation in the fear-processing network for all affective stimuli. In addition, activation of the ventral attention network was found for the ancestral threats. Modern threats elicited less intense responses, primarily engaging cortical regions associated with context-specific analysis. Notably, airborne threats elicited neural responses of similar intensity to ancestral threats but activated cortical regions overlapping with those for modern threats. This dual pattern highlights the brain’s capacity to integrate evolutionary biases with socially constructed threat awareness. These findings underscore the importance of recognizing airborne threats as a unique category of threat processing, with implications for public health and mental well-being.

Název v anglickém jazyce

From ancient fears to airborne threats: fMRI insights into neural fear responses

Popis výsledku anglicky

Threat perception is a fundamental aspect of human cognition, shaped by evolutionary pressures and modern environmental demands. While ancestral threats (e.g., snakes) have been shown to elicit stronger neural responses than modern threats (e.g., guns), less is known about how the brain processes airborne threats, such as depictions of individuals wearing face masks. This fMRI study investigates neural responses to ancestral, modern, and airborne threats to identify shared and distinct activation patterns. Sixty participants viewed visual stimuli from the three categories while undergoing fMRI scanning. Results showed heightened activation in the fear-processing network for all affective stimuli. In addition, activation of the ventral attention network was found for the ancestral threats. Modern threats elicited less intense responses, primarily engaging cortical regions associated with context-specific analysis. Notably, airborne threats elicited neural responses of similar intensity to ancestral threats but activated cortical regions overlapping with those for modern threats. This dual pattern highlights the brain’s capacity to integrate evolutionary biases with socially constructed threat awareness. These findings underscore the importance of recognizing airborne threats as a unique category of threat processing, with implications for public health and mental well-being.

Druh

J_imp - Článek v periodiku v databázi Web of Science

CEP obor

—

OECD FORD obor

30103 - Neurosciences (including psychophysiology)

Projekt

Výsledek vznikl pri realizaci vícero projektů. Více informací v záložce Projekty.

Návaznosti

P - Projekt vyzkumu a vyvoje financovany z verejnych zdroju (s odkazem do CEP)

Rok uplatnění

2025

Kód důvěrnosti údajů

S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů

Název periodika

Brain and Cognition

ISSN

0278-2626

e-ISSN

1090-2147

Svazek periodika

191

Číslo periodika v rámci svazku

December 2025

Stát vydavatele periodika

NL - Nizozemsko

Počet stran výsledku

19

Strana od-do

106371

Kód UT WoS článku

001614663200001

EID výsledku v databázi Scopus

2-s2.0-105020881928