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No evidence for blocking the return of fear by disrupting reconsolidation prior to extinction learning.
Cortex. 2016 06; 79:112-22.C

Abstract

Fear extinction is a central model for the treatment of anxiety disorders. Initial research has reported that the single presentation of a conditioned stimulus prior to extinction learning can permanently block the return of fear. However, only few studies have explored this issue and could not always replicate the findings. The present study examined human fear extinction using a four-day design. On the first day, two neutral stimuli were paired with electrical stimulation (UCS), while a third stimulus (CS-) was not. Twenty-four hours later, one conditioned stimulus (CS+rem) and the CS- were reminded once, 10 min before extinction learning, while the other conditioned stimulus (CS+non-rem) was not presented prior to extinction learning. All stimuli were presented during extinction learning and during two re-extinction sessions (24 h and 6-months after extinction learning) without reinforcement. Blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) responses and skin conductance responses (SCRs) to both CS+ and the CS- were explored during acquisition, extinction, and in both re-extinction sessions. Regarding SCRs, the results showed that a single presentation of a conditioned stimulus did not block the return of fear during re-extinction: Fear recovery during re-extinction (24 h and 6-months after extinction learning) was observed for both CS+ compared with the CS- with no difference between CS+rem and CS+non-rem. Regarding BOLD-responses, no significant differences between CS+rem and CS+non-rem were found in region of interest (ROI)-analyses (amygdala, ventromedial prefrontal cortex) during extinction learning and both re-extinction sessions. Whole-brain analyses showed increased BOLD-responses to the CS+non-rem as compared to the CS+rem in several regions (e.g., middle frontal gyrus) during extinction learning and re-extinction (24 h after extinction learning). The present findings suggest that the effect of preventing the return of fear by disrupting reconsolidation seems to be a more labile phenomenon than previously assumed. Possible boundary conditions and implications are discussed.

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Publisher Full Text (DOI)

Authors+Show Affiliations

Klucken T
Department of Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany; Bender Institute of Neuroimaging, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany. Electronic address: tim.klucken@psychol.uni-giessen.de.
Kruse O
Department of Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany; Bender Institute of Neuroimaging, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany.
Schweckendiek J
Department of Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany; Bender Institute of Neuroimaging, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany.
Kuepper Y
Personality Psychology and Individual Differences, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany.
Mueller EM
Department of Clinical Psychology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany.
Hennig J
Personality Psychology and Individual Differences, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany.
Stark R
Department of Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany; Bender Institute of Neuroimaging, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany.

MeSH

AdolescentAdultBrainConditioning, ClassicalElectric StimulationExtinction, PsychologicalFearFemaleGalvanic Skin ResponseHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleYoung Adult

Pub Type(s)

Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Language

eng

PubMed ID

27111105

Citation

Klucken, Tim, et al. "No Evidence for Blocking the Return of Fear By Disrupting Reconsolidation Prior to Extinction Learning." Cortex; a Journal Devoted to the Study of the Nervous System and Behavior, vol. 79, 2016, pp. 112-22.
Klucken T, Kruse O, Schweckendiek J, et al. No evidence for blocking the return of fear by disrupting reconsolidation prior to extinction learning. Cortex. 2016;79:112-22.
Klucken, T., Kruse, O., Schweckendiek, J., Kuepper, Y., Mueller, E. M., Hennig, J., & Stark, R. (2016). No evidence for blocking the return of fear by disrupting reconsolidation prior to extinction learning. Cortex; a Journal Devoted to the Study of the Nervous System and Behavior, 79, 112-22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2016.03.015
Klucken T, et al. No Evidence for Blocking the Return of Fear By Disrupting Reconsolidation Prior to Extinction Learning. Cortex. 2016;79:112-22. PubMed PMID: 27111105.
* Article titles in AMA citation format should be in sentence-case
TY - JOUR T1 - No evidence for blocking the return of fear by disrupting reconsolidation prior to extinction learning. AU - Klucken,Tim, AU - Kruse,Onno, AU - Schweckendiek,Jan, AU - Kuepper,Yvonne, AU - Mueller,Erik M, AU - Hennig,Juergen, AU - Stark,Rudolf, Y1 - 2016/03/24/ PY - 2015/06/03/received PY - 2015/10/04/revised PY - 2016/03/16/accepted PY - 2016/4/26/entrez PY - 2016/4/26/pubmed PY - 2017/9/28/medline KW - Amygdala KW - COMT KW - Extinction KW - Fear KW - Fear conditioning KW - Reconsolidation SP - 112 EP - 22 JF - Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior JO - Cortex VL - 79 N2 - Fear extinction is a central model for the treatment of anxiety disorders. Initial research has reported that the single presentation of a conditioned stimulus prior to extinction learning can permanently block the return of fear. However, only few studies have explored this issue and could not always replicate the findings. The present study examined human fear extinction using a four-day design. On the first day, two neutral stimuli were paired with electrical stimulation (UCS), while a third stimulus (CS-) was not. Twenty-four hours later, one conditioned stimulus (CS+rem) and the CS- were reminded once, 10 min before extinction learning, while the other conditioned stimulus (CS+non-rem) was not presented prior to extinction learning. All stimuli were presented during extinction learning and during two re-extinction sessions (24 h and 6-months after extinction learning) without reinforcement. Blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) responses and skin conductance responses (SCRs) to both CS+ and the CS- were explored during acquisition, extinction, and in both re-extinction sessions. Regarding SCRs, the results showed that a single presentation of a conditioned stimulus did not block the return of fear during re-extinction: Fear recovery during re-extinction (24 h and 6-months after extinction learning) was observed for both CS+ compared with the CS- with no difference between CS+rem and CS+non-rem. Regarding BOLD-responses, no significant differences between CS+rem and CS+non-rem were found in region of interest (ROI)-analyses (amygdala, ventromedial prefrontal cortex) during extinction learning and both re-extinction sessions. Whole-brain analyses showed increased BOLD-responses to the CS+non-rem as compared to the CS+rem in several regions (e.g., middle frontal gyrus) during extinction learning and re-extinction (24 h after extinction learning). The present findings suggest that the effect of preventing the return of fear by disrupting reconsolidation seems to be a more labile phenomenon than previously assumed. Possible boundary conditions and implications are discussed. SN - 1973-8102 UR - https://www.unboundmedicine.com/medline/citation/27111105/No_evidence_for_blocking_the_return_of_fear_by_disrupting_reconsolidation_prior_to_extinction_learning_ DB - PRIME DP - Unbound Medicine ER -