{"id":396,"date":"2018-08-02T09:04:01","date_gmt":"2018-08-02T09:04:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/horizon.peachpuff-wolverine-566518.hostingersite.com\/?p=396"},"modified":"2018-08-02T09:04:01","modified_gmt":"2018-08-02T09:04:01","slug":"island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"article-info article-info_scroll print-hidden article-info_top\">\n<form id=\"republish-content-form\" accept-charset=\"UTF-8\" action=\"https:\/\/horizon-magazine.eu\/article\/island-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety_en.html\" method=\"post\">\n<h3><strong>A fold of tissue hidden deep inside the human brain which collects inputs from both inside and outside the body could explain how our physical states influence our emotions and may be the key to understanding anxiety disorders, according to Dr Nadine Gogolla, a neuroscientist at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Munich, Germany.<\/strong><\/h3>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"field field-name-field-header field-type-text-long field-label-hidden\">\n<div class=\"field-items\">\n<div class=\"field-item even\">\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>She is using cutting-edge scientific techniques to probe this poorly studied brain region, known as the insular cortex, to reveal the role it plays in regulating our emotions.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden\">\n<div class=\"field-items\">\n<div class=\"field-item even\">\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>You study a specific region of the brain called the insular cortex. What is it and what does it do?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018Early anatomists called this area the island of the brain. It sits by itself, deep inside the folds of the outer layer of brain tissue, and cannot be seen on the surface. You have to pull aside the overlying lobes of the cerebral cortex to reveal it. Perhaps because it is so deep inside, it has not been studied all that well.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018There have been some functional imaging studies in healthy human subjects that find the insular cortex is activated by emotional stimuli, such as someone\u2019s face showing panic or pictures that represent scenes that make people anxious. Work in rats shows that it may also have a role in fear conditioning, but they are not conclusive and partly contradict each other.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>Does this mean that it plays a role in anxiety disorders?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018There is some evidence, from functional imaging studies of the brain, that the insular cortex is hyperactive in people suffering from anxiety disorders compared to healthy controls and to other structures in the brain. We see this right across the board in people with PTSD, those who suffer panic attacks, generalised anxiety disorders, phobias, and social anxiety.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018In all these conditions, the activity of the insular cortex has been found to be altered. Metabolic studies and post-mortem studies have also found differences in the insular cortex, for instance, in the expression of neurotransmitters released by neurons in this part of the brain.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018In fact, the insular cortex is one of the brain regions that most consistently shows up to be altered in these anxiety disorders. I strongly believe that understanding the basic physiological role and function of the insular cortex can give us insights into what goes wrong in anxiety disorders. That can open doors to finding new ways of tackling them.\u2019<\/p>\n<div class=\"dynamic_article_image_bloc\">\n<figure style=\"width: 1138px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/horizon-magazine.eu\/sites\/default\/files\/PortraitGogollaN_crp.jpg\" alt=\"Dr Nadine Gogolla is studying the insular cortex and its connections to anxiety disorders. Image credit - Dr Nadine Gogolla\" width=\"1148\" height=\"819\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dr Nadine Gogolla is studying the insular cortex and its connections to anxiety disorders. Image credit &#8211; Dr Nadine Gogolla<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>Why is the insular cortex so significant?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018There are many brain regions involved in the detection of threatening stimuli and those implicated in the behavioural expression of an emotional response. We believe the insular cortex has more of a regulatory role because it integrates the internal state.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018(It) is one of the major cortical regions that receives visceral inputs from the body \u2013 information from the gut, heart, lungs, blood vessels. It monitors blood pressure, heart rate, hunger. On top of that, there is sensory information from almost all of the exterior senses, including vision, hearing, smell and touch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018We think the insular cortex might be combining this external sensory stimuli and information about the body\u2019s internal state with information about the emotional state of the individual to decide whether something is good for them or bad for them.\u2019<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>How does this relate to anxiety?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018For instance, if you are hungry or tired or sick, you might express fear or anxiety differently than if you are healthy. These things have all be found to influence a person\u2019s anxiety.\u2019<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018There are also studies that have found people who have a very intuitive feeling of how strong their heart is beating, or how high their blood pressure is, are often also more anxious. The perception of the state of the body can influence anxiety and fear levels.\u2019<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>How have you been able to study the insular cortex when others have not?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018The aim of our work has been to take a very unbiased approach to map out the structures of the brain that send inputs to the insular cortex and receive information from it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018In humans, functional imaging is really the prominent technique to study the insular cortex because it lies so deep within the brain. In rodents, such as mice, it lies closer to the surface.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018We are using both classical approaches in rodents (and) some modern techniques, like optogenetics and two-photon imaging, to observe and influence activity in the insular cortex. We can manipulate the activity in the insular cortex to see whether, for instance, increasing the activity would make the mouse a more anxious mouse.\u2019<\/p>\n<div class=\"dynamic_article_image_bloc\">\n<figure style=\"width: 1695px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/horizon-magazine.eu\/sites\/default\/files\/Gogolla_lab_MPI-Neurobiology_crop.jpg\" alt=\"Functional imaging is showing how different types of neurons, such as those in red, in the insular cortex (blue) take up different tasks. Image credit - MPI of Neurobiology \/ T. Gaitanos\" width=\"1705\" height=\"1157\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Functional imaging is showing how different types of neurons, such as those in red, in the insular cortex (blue) take up different tasks. Image credit &#8211; MPI of Neurobiology \/ T. Gaitanos<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>How do you tell if a mouse is anxious?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">There are some commonly used methods such as looking at whether an animal becomes more avoidant or exploratory. When rodents detect fearful stimuli they will also freeze, but this can be hard to distinguish from immobility especially if you are manipulating brain circuits \u2013 if you switch on a brain region are you inducing fear or affecting the motor behaviour?<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018We have come up with a way to look at the facial expressions of the animals instead. We are yet to publish this, but we find they are quite analogous to what humans express and we can read out the fear responses of the rodents just by looking at the animal\u2019s face.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018We can also measure pupil size, which is a measure of arousal, along with physiological parameters such as heartbeat and blood pressure, which are markers of fear.\u2019<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>You have also found the insular cortex may be implicated in autism. Can you explain this?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018Again we were studying this in mice, so we have to take our results with a pinch of salt as we do not know how the animal models compare to the human condition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018What we found in normal, healthy mice is that after birth the insular cortex reacts very strongly to cues from single senses. They activate the entire region, but as the animals mature, this becomes sharpened with experience until the same stimuli only activates a small part of the insular cortex.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018In mice that were models for autism, however, this development does not happen and the brain responds to this unisensory stimuli like a mouse that has just been born. This resulted in a hypersensitivity to single sensory stimuli like loud noises. This is a hallmark of autism in humans and is now part of the diagnostic criteria.\u2019<\/p>\n<div class=\"quote-view quotesBlock quote_horizontal\">\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">&#8216;The perception of the state of the body can influence anxiety and fear levels.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">Dr Nadine Gogolla, Max Planck institute of Neurobiology, Germany<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\"><strong>Does this offer some hope of new treatments?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018We were able to rescue this hypersensitivity using an inhibitory neurotransmitter called GABA, but it is not a direct pharmaceutical intervention as it affects the brain too widely and may harm other important elements of brain development. Instead, there may be sensory interventions that can be used in very young children to help reduce this hypersensitivity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"selectionShareable\">\u2018Getting a better understanding of the insular cortex is an important step in that direction.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><em>Originally published on <a href=\"https:\/\/horizon-magazine.eu\">Horizon<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A fold of tissue hidden deep inside the human brain which collects inputs from both inside and outside the body could explain how our physical states influence our emotions and may be the key to understanding anxiety disorders, according to Dr Nadine Gogolla, a neuroscientist at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Munich, Germany. &#8230; <a title=\"&#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about &#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":322,"featured_media":397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[183,182,37,7,79,24],"class_list":["post-396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","tag-anxiety","tag-emotions","tag-health","tag-neuroscience","tag-research","tag-science"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>&#039;Island of the brain&#039; explains how physical states affect anxiety - Horizon Magazine Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"&#039;Island of the brain&#039; explains how physical states affect anxiety\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A fold of tissue hidden deep inside the human brain which collects inputs from both inside and outside the body could explain how our physical states influence our emotions and may be the key to understanding anxiety disorders, according to Dr Nadine Gogolla, a neuroscientist at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Munich, Germany. ... Read more\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Horizon Magazine Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-08-02T09:04:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Richard Gray\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Richard Gray\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Richard Gray\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/042c9393ea152c13c0b8b9ba82055602\"},\"headline\":\"&#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-08-02T09:04:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1239,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/08\\\/anxiety.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"anxiety\",\"emotions\",\"health\",\"neuroscience\",\"research\",\"science\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Health\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"copyrightYear\":\"2018\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/\",\"name\":\"'Island of the brain' explains how physical states affect anxiety - Horizon Magazine Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/08\\\/anxiety.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-08-02T09:04:01+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/08\\\/anxiety.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2018\\\/08\\\/anxiety.jpg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1280,\"caption\":\"Anxiety disorders might be better explained by understanding the brain's way of regulating emotions. Image credit - Pixabay\\\/Ruanshunyi, licensed under CC0\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/396\\\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"&#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/\",\"name\":\"Horizon Magazine Blog\",\"description\":\"The EU Research &amp; Innovation Magazine\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Horizon Magazine Blog\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/eu-logo.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/4\\\/2026\\\/04\\\/eu-logo.jpg\",\"width\":601,\"height\":283,\"caption\":\"Horizon Magazine Blog\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/042c9393ea152c13c0b8b9ba82055602\",\"name\":\"Richard Gray\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0fb7fc92c5bb1fcd60351c743b49fd95f24fb8e4a238bab4922f42709dcbd847?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0fb7fc92c5bb1fcd60351c743b49fd95f24fb8e4a238bab4922f42709dcbd847?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0fb7fc92c5bb1fcd60351c743b49fd95f24fb8e4a238bab4922f42709dcbd847?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Richard Gray\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/scienceblog.com\\\/horizon\\\/author\\\/richardgray\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"'Island of the brain' explains how physical states affect anxiety - Horizon Magazine Blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"'Island of the brain' explains how physical states affect anxiety","og_description":"A fold of tissue hidden deep inside the human brain which collects inputs from both inside and outside the body could explain how our physical states influence our emotions and may be the key to understanding anxiety disorders, according to Dr Nadine Gogolla, a neuroscientist at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Munich, Germany. ... Read more","og_url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/","og_site_name":"Horizon Magazine Blog","article_published_time":"2018-08-02T09:04:01+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1280,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Richard Gray","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Richard Gray","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/"},"author":{"name":"Richard Gray","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#\/schema\/person\/042c9393ea152c13c0b8b9ba82055602"},"headline":"&#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety","datePublished":"2018-08-02T09:04:01+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/"},"wordCount":1239,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg","keywords":["anxiety","emotions","health","neuroscience","research","science"],"articleSection":["Health"],"inLanguage":"en-US","copyrightYear":"2018","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/","name":"'Island of the brain' explains how physical states affect anxiety - Horizon Magazine Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg","datePublished":"2018-08-02T09:04:01+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"caption":"Anxiety disorders might be better explained by understanding the brain's way of regulating emotions. Image credit - Pixabay\/Ruanshunyi, licensed under CC0"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/396\/island-of-the-brain-explains-how-physical-states-affect-anxiety\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"&#8216;Island of the brain&#8217; explains how physical states affect anxiety"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#website","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/","name":"Horizon Magazine Blog","description":"The EU Research &amp; Innovation Magazine","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#organization","name":"Horizon Magazine Blog","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/eu-logo.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/04\/eu-logo.jpg","width":601,"height":283,"caption":"Horizon Magazine Blog"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/#\/schema\/person\/042c9393ea152c13c0b8b9ba82055602","name":"Richard Gray","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0fb7fc92c5bb1fcd60351c743b49fd95f24fb8e4a238bab4922f42709dcbd847?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0fb7fc92c5bb1fcd60351c743b49fd95f24fb8e4a238bab4922f42709dcbd847?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0fb7fc92c5bb1fcd60351c743b49fd95f24fb8e4a238bab4922f42709dcbd847?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Richard Gray"},"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/author\/richardgray\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/anxiety.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pgtNKV-6o","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1334,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/1334\/does-teenage-anxiety-have-its-roots-in-infancy\/","url_meta":{"origin":396,"position":0},"title":"Does teenage anxiety have its roots in infancy?","author":"Horizon Magazine","date":"June 30, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"The fact that teenagers worry isn\u2019t necessarily a concern \u2013 it\u2019s when the adolescent brain amplifies and distorts a simple worry that mental health problems can arise. As scientists aim to unlock why teenagers get anxious, and how infancy and upbringing are implicated, early intervention strategies are being refined to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Brain &amp; Behavior&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Brain &amp; Behavior","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/category\/brain-behavior\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/Teenager.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/Teenager.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/Teenager.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/Teenager.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/Teenager.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1326,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/1326\/what-anxiety-does-to-our-breathing\/","url_meta":{"origin":396,"position":1},"title":"What anxiety does to our breathing","author":"Sandrine Ceurstemont","date":"June 22, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Stressful situations can cause anxiety, our body\u2019s natural response to stress. But feelings of apprehension can also be accompanied by physical effects such as rapid breathing, increased heart rate and nausea. How our brain perceives these physical changes \u2013 in particular, breathing \u2013 could be key to better understanding anxiety\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Health&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Health","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/category\/health\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"The way anxiety affects our perception of changes to our body, such as breathing, could pave the way for more targeted anxiety treatments. Image credit - www.pxfuel.com\/Public domain","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/meditation-calm.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/meditation-calm.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/meditation-calm.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/06\/meditation-calm.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2405,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/2405\/time-to-take-laughter-seriously\/","url_meta":{"origin":396,"position":2},"title":"Time to take laughter seriously","author":"Horizon Magazine","date":"June 15, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"While people the world over enjoy a good laugh, remarkably little is known about this instinctive behaviour. By Ali Jones Before babies can talk or walk, they can laugh. An infant\u2019s first giggle at around four months enchants and reinvigorates even the most weary parent and, from then on, it\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Brain &amp; Behavior&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Brain &amp; Behavior","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/category\/brain-behavior\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/15.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/15.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/15.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/15.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/15.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/15.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2411,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/2411\/the-power-of-stillness-to-reduce-stress-and-slow-ageing\/","url_meta":{"origin":396,"position":3},"title":"The power of stillness to reduce stress and slow ageing","author":"Horizon Magazine","date":"June 22, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Meditation can curb the risk of disease and boost general well-being for the old and young, according to researchers. by Alex Whiting Several minutes of meditation a day can improve people\u2019s physical and mental health and even reduce the risk of Alzheimer\u2019s and cardiovascular disease. So say scientists. Nonetheless, a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Brain &amp; Behavior&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Brain &amp; Behavior","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/category\/brain-behavior\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/22.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/22.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/22.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/22.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/22.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2023\/06\/22.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":404,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/404\/the-mobile-apps-and-wearable-tech-tapping-into-users-emotions-to-tackle-depression-and-anxiety\/","url_meta":{"origin":396,"position":4},"title":"The mobile apps and wearable tech tapping into users&#8217; emotions to tackle depression and anxiety","author":"Horizon Magazine","date":"August 9, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"by Gareth Willmer Personalised smartphone applications and wearable technologies that are attuned to the user\u2019s state of mind are offering\u00a0customised\u00a0ways of helping people cope with mental illness. The rising incidence of mental health problems places great strain on health systems and societies around the world. In the EU, mental health\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Health&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Health","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/category\/health\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A smartphone chatbot that reinforces positive thinking and emotion-tracking tech are designed to support users living with mental health conditions. Image credit - Pxhere, licensed under CC0","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/smartphone_ed.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/smartphone_ed.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/smartphone_ed.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/smartphone_ed.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/smartphone_ed.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":414,"url":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/414\/how-focusing-on-emotions-helps-diffuse-political-tension\/","url_meta":{"origin":396,"position":5},"title":"How focusing on emotions helps diffuse political tension","author":"Jude Gonzalez","date":"August 16, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Workshops focusing on intergroup emotions are showing how deeply-rooted beliefs can be changed to support conflict resolution. Group interventions, each lasting just five hours, broadened dozens of Israelis\u2019 views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a\u00a0study\u00a0published in January showed. The study explored how in unyielding conflicts, the belief that one group can\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Brain &amp; Behavior&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Brain &amp; Behavior","link":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/category\/brain-behavior\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/14906028303_499e9c03a1_k.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/14906028303_499e9c03a1_k.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/14906028303_499e9c03a1_k.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/14906028303_499e9c03a1_k.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/14906028303_499e9c03a1_k.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2018\/08\/14906028303_499e9c03a1_k.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/322"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scienceblog.com\/horizon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}