Biology subjects

Zareba, M. R.

Publications and source records attributed to Zareba, M. R..

12 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Diurnal rhythmicity modulates self-blaming behaviours and neural processing of autobiographical guilt memories in the trait-like and state-like manner

Increasing evidence implicates late chronotype and higher distinctness as two diurnal dimensions associated with a risk for affective dysregulation. Nonetheless, the underlying behavioural and neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. Previous works in depressive and anxious populations have demonstrated an important role of maladaptive self-blaming processes, with pivotal contributions from superior anterior temporal lobes (sATL), involved in social conceptual knowledge, and subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC), related to self-worth and social affiliative processing. In the current study, we first tested how diurnal rhythm characteristics were associated with self-blaming emotions and related coping mechanisms through hypothetical social scenarios where participants or their close friends acted towards one another against social norms. Secondly, to probe alterations in the neural correlates of self-blaming, the participants underwent functional neuroimaging during reliving of autobiographical guilt memories. On the behavioural level, late chronotypes demonstrated decreased self-distancing and contextually-maladaptive blaming patterns, i.e. increased blaming of the action recipients rather than the agents. This was paralleled by decreased self-blame-related activity in the sATL and sgACC. Distinctness was associated with altered task-dependent sATL connectivity with hippocampus, brainstem and cerebellum. Importantly, some of the neuroimaging findings reflected interactions between the diurnal rhythm characteristics and time-of-day. As such, the current work provides plausible correlates of adverse emotional outcomes in late chronotypes. Furthermore, it suggests that affective processing reflects an interplay between stable trait-like characteristics and dynamic state-like processes varying across the day, contributing to fine-grained understanding of how emotional cognition is embedded in the brain.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2026

Diurnal and seasonal regulation of brain mu-opioid and dopamine D2 receptor signalling in humans

Purpose: Rhythmic regulation of human neurotransmission systems, particularly the mu-opioid receptor (MOR) and dopamine D2 receptor (D2R) signaling, remains poorly understood. Although prior studies indicate possible diurnal fluctuations in D2R signaling, potential existence of diurnal rhythms in MOR signaling has yet to be investigated. Furthermore, whether and how seasonal factors may override or interact with diurnal rhythms in either system remains unexplored. Decoding these temporal dynamics and their possible links to behavioral traits, such as anxiety, may improve mood regulation models and inspire rhythm-tailored interventions. Methods: Based on a historical PET database of healthy humans scanned with [11C]carfentanil (n = 188) and [11C]raclopride (n = 184), we investigated the diurnal patterns of MOR and D2R availability in the brain, using time-of-day (TOD) of scanning as predictor. Furthermore, we examined whether the TOD differences in receptor availability were modulated by seasonal differences in the daylength (D2R and MOR) and trait-anxiety (MOR). Results: The data revealed increased MOR and decreased D2R availability in the afternoon compared to the morning scans. Interaction with the seasonal effect was, however, observed only for MOR availability, spanning brain areas including anterior cingulate, dorsomedial and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, insula and striatum. Besides, the diurnal variation of MOR availability in these regions was also sensitive to trait-anxiety levels. Conclusions: The current results reveal the diurnal patterns in opioidergic and dopaminergic neurotransmission with an opposing trajectory. Furthermore, the data highlight a unique role of the MOR system, mediating both types of rhythmic regulations, as well as behavioral traits.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Subclinical anxiety is associated with reduced self-distancing and enhanced guilt-related connectivity between anterior temporal and subgenual cingulate cortices

Excessive self-blaming emotions are commonly observed in anxiety disorders, with qualitatively similar symptomatology reported in subclinical populations. Interpretation of moral information requires assessing the social conceptual information, a process overseen by the superior anterior temporal lobe (sATL). Feelings of self-blame evoke interactions of sATL and socio-affective regions, and previous research shows that subclinical anxiety modulates the organisation of the self-blame circuitry. This study aimed to extend these findings by exploring links of trait-anxiety with (i) self-blaming emotions and associated behaviours in an experimental task, and (ii) self-blame-dependent neural activity and connectivity, as observed during reliving of autobiographical guilt memories. We also explored the role of resting-state fMRI in linking these phenomena. Increased anxiety was linked to stronger self-blaming emotions, and more pronounced self-attacking and hiding. When experiencing negative emotions about themselves (i.e. shame and self-anger), anxious individuals were also less likely to disengage from self-focused thoughts. These behavioural findings were paralleled by enhanced self-blame-related connectivity between the left sATL and bilateral posterior subgenual cingulate cortex. Distinct patterns of activity and connectivity within the ATL-related circuitry were furthermore linked to individual differences in intensity of the self-blaming emotions and approach-avoidance motivation towards the guilt memories. As such, the results of the current study link stronger self-blaming emotions in anxious individuals with specific maladaptive patterns of behaviour. Furthermore, the work provides robust evidence for the important role of ATL-related circuitry in self-blame processing, supporting its broader involvement in social conceptual processing and its alterations in subclinical anxiety.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Socio-emotional difficulties observed in alexithymia reflect altered interactions of the semantic and monoaminergic neuromodulatory brain networks

Alexithymia is a multidimensional construct characterized by difficulties in identifying and describing feelings and reduced ability to engage in abstract thinking. Although often co-occurring with other psychological and neurodevelopmental conditions such as anxiety, depression and autism spectrum disorders, alexithymia is believed to be associated with unique alterations within the socio-emotional brain networks. With the semantic and neuromodulatory brainstem systems playing a key role in social and affective cognition, the current work aimed to study their contributions to alexithymia in unprecedented detail. First, we attempted to identify resting-state functional connectivity patterns of the social semantic hubs (superior anterior temporal lobe) and monoamine-producing regions (dorsal raphe, ventral tegmental area and locus coeruleus) linked to each alexithymia domain. Secondly, by deploying tractography and graph analysis of the associated structural network, we intended to identify their potential anatomical correlates. Alexithymia was strongly associated with dysconnectivity within the semantic network, and altered functional connectivity between the neuromodulatory brainstem regions and cortical areas crucial for social cognition and emotion regulation, including medial prefrontal cortex and inferior parietal lobule. On the anatomical level, these findings were paralleled by negative links with network modularity, suggestive of less specialised neural processing, and decreased clustering coefficient of the semantic node in the left posterior middle temporal gyrus. Despite observing associations with trait-anxiety and emotion suppression for some of the highlighted findings, these phenomena did not mediate the effects of alexithymia. Therefore, the current work highlights the existence of functional and structural alterations within socio-emotional networks as neural markers of alexithymia.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Subjective sleep quality in healthy young adults moderates associations of sensitivity to punishment and reward with functional connectivity of regions relevant for insomnia disorder

Chronic unhealthy sleeping behaviours are a major risk factor for the emergence of mood and anxiety disorders. Nevertheless, we are still lacking understanding why some individuals are more prone than others to affective dysregulation caused by sleep disruption. With preliminary evidence suggesting that brain activity during positive and negative emotional processing might play an important modulating role, we conducted whole-brain resting-state functional connectivity analyses in a large cohort of healthy young adults (N = 155). Using regions consistently affected in insomnia disorder as seeds, we investigated sleep quality-related neural connectivity patterns that were both insensitive and sensitive to the interactions with individual measures of reward and punishment processing, additionally assessing the links with indices of emotional health. The majority of the findings reflected interactions between sleep quality and reinforcement sensitivity, with the opposite associations reported in the good and poor sleepers. One of such connections, the coupling between precentral gyrus and posterior insula, was additionally negatively linked to trait anxiety, with the lowest connectivity values observed in poor sleepers with higher sensitivity to punishment. In turn, the only finding associated solely with sleep quality, i.e. coupling between subgenual anterior cingulate cortex and thalamus, was also related to the habitual use of emotion suppression strategies. As such, the present study provides evidence that reinforcement sensitivity plays an essential role in understanding the associations of poor sleep quality with brain connectivity and emotional health, hinting at a potential link that may help explain individual differences in susceptibility to sleep-related affective dysregulation. HighlightsO_LIFunctional connectivity of insomnia-related brain regions is altered in poor sleepers C_LIO_LISleep quality interacts with reinforcement sensitivity for most of such effects C_LIO_LIDistinct sleep-related mechanisms are linked to trait anxiety and emotion suppression C_LIO_LIPoor sleep and high punishment sensitivity increase the risk of affect dysregulation. C_LI

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2025

Circadian rhythmicity and reinforcement processing: a dataset of MRI, fMRI, and behavioral measurements

Circadian rhythmicity is a complex phenomenon that influences human behavior, emotionality and brain activity. A detailed description of individual differences in circadian rhythmicity could inform the design of educational systems, shift-worker schedules, and daily routines. Here we present a comprehensive dataset for studying diurnal rhythms and their relationship with human behavior. Thirty seven male participants (aged 20-30) filled in validated psychometric questionnaires assessing characteristics of the circadian rhythm, sleep quality, emotionality, personality traits, reward-punishment processing and attention deficits. Moreover, we acquired high-resolution anatomical T1-weighted images using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), B0 fieldmaps for distortion corrections, and functional MRI (fMRI) during the Monetary Incentive Delay (MID) task, which is a common paradigm to assess human neural reinforcement processing. All files are organized in Brain Imaging Data Structure (BIDS) and openly available on OpenNeuro.org. The validation of all data confirmed high-quality of described dataset. The various psychological measures combined with neuroimaging data provide strong foundation for exploring emotionality, affective processing, and attention in the context of brain activity and circadian influences.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

High distinctness of circadian rhythm is related to negative emotionality and enhanced neural processing of punishment-related information in men

For years, research on the human biological clock has focused primarily on chronotype (phase of the circadian rhythm). However, a second dimension - distinctness (subjective amplitude) of the rhythm, has so far been overlooked. This study aimed to explore the intricate interplay between psychometric traits and reward-punishment processing, considering both chronotype and distinctness. Circadian rhythmicity characteristics of 37 healthy men (aged 20-30) were measured using the Morningness-Eveningness-Stability-Scale improved (MESSi) questionnaire. We also employed a battery of psychometric questionnaires and used functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) during the Monetary Incentive Delay task, which is a common method of assessing reward-punishment processing. We found a positive association between distinctness and the activity in the bilateral Superior Frontal Gyrus (SFG), Supplementary Motor Area (SMA) and Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA) during processing of punishment cues. These results are consistent with psychometric findings - a significant positive association between distinctness and sensitivity to punishment, neuroticism, behavioral inhibition system (BIS), attention deficits, and negative emotionality. As regards eveningness, we found its negative association only with sensitivity to punishment and BIS. These results highlight the crucial role of distinctness in human functioning, especially in terms of punishment processing and negative emotionality.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Noradrenergic and Dopaminergic Neural Correlates of Trait Anxiety: Unveiling the Impact of Maladaptive Emotion Regulation

BackgroundMaladaptive emotion regulation plays a crucial role in the development and maintenance of elevated anxiety levels, both in patients and in individuals with subclinical symptomatology. While pharmacological treatments for anxiety target the emotion dysregulation through dopaminergic, noradrenergic and serotonergic systems, little is known about the underlying mechanisms. Therefore, the current study depicts the association of these neuromodulatory systems resting-state functioning with trait-anxiety, investigating the role of maladaptive emotion regulation. MethodsAmplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF), fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (fALFF), and whole-brain resting-state functional connectivity (rs-FC) were obtained from the ventral tegmental area (VTA), locus coeruleus (LC) and dorsal raphe, and correlated with trait-anxiety and self-reported maladaptive emotion regulation (N = 60). ResultsTrait-anxiety was positively associated with LCs fALFF and negatively with VTAs whole-brain rs-FC with the left inferior parietal lobule (L-IPL) and the left superior frontal gyrus (L-SFG). Maladaptive emotion regulation was negatively associated with VTAs rs-FC with these regions, with trait-anxiety fully mediating this association. VTA connectivity with the frontal region, but not parietal, positively predicted its amplitude of neural oscillations, an effect that was paralleled by stronger frontal dopaminergic innervation. LimitationsUse of external molecular datasets and need for replication in patients. ConclusionsNoradrenergic and dopaminergic systems appear to contribute differently to subclinical anxiety. While noradrenaline likely acts through a more general mechanism, the dopaminergic dysconnectivity with the frontoparietal control network may act as one of the mechanisms of maladaptive emotion regulation, informing the models on the disorder development. HighlightsO_LITrait-anxiety shows a positive association with the activity of locus coeruleus C_LIO_LITrait-anxiety and emotional regulation are linked to VTA-frontoparietal connectivity C_LIO_LITrait-anxiety fully mediates emotion regulations effect on VTAs connectivity C_LIO_LIStrength of connectivity with VTA is positively linked to the frontal ALFF and fALFF C_LI

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Graph analysis of the guilt network highlights associations with subclinical anxiety and self-blame

Maladaptive forms of guilt, such as excessive self-blame, are common characteristics of anxiety disorders. The associated network includes the superior anterior temporal lobe (sATL), underlying the conceptual representations of social meaning, and fronto-subcortical areas involved in the affective dimension of guilt. Nevertheless, despite understanding the anatomy of the guilt processing circuitry, network-level changes related to subclinical anxiety and self-blaming behaviour have not been depicted. To fill this gap, we used graph theory analyses on a resting-state functional and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging dataset of 78 healthy adults. Within the guilt network, we found increased functional contributions (higher clustering coefficient, local efficiency and strength) of the left sATL for individuals with higher self-blaming and trait-anxiety, while functional isolation (lower clustering coefficient and local efficiency) of the left pars opercularis and insula was related to higher trait-anxiety. Trait-anxiety was also linked to the structural networks global parameters (mean clustering coefficient), with the circuitrys architecture favouring increased local information processing in individuals with increased anxiety levels. Previous research suggests that aberrant interactions between conceptual (sATL) and affective (fronto-limbic) regions underlie maladaptive guilt and the current results align and expand on this theory by detailing network changes associated with self-blame and trait-anxiety.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2023

The subjective amplitude of the diurnal rhythm matters - chronobiological insights for neuroimaging studies

Multiple aspects of human physiology, including mood and cognition, are subjected to diurnal rhythms. While the previous neuroimaging studies have focused solely on the morningness-eveningness (ME) preference dichotomy, i.e. the circadian phase, the second key dimension of the diurnal rhythms, i.e. the strength of these preferences (amplitude; AM), has been completely overlooked. Uncovering the neural correlates of AM is especially important considering its link with negative emotionality. Structural T1-weighted neuroimaging data from 79 early (EC) and 74 late (LC) chronotypes were analysed to compare grey matter (GM) volume and cortical thickness. The study aimed to elucidate whether the subjective AM and its interaction with ME was a significant predictor of individual brain structure. Both GM volume and cortical thickness of the left primary visual cortex was negatively correlated with AM scores across the entire sample. Furthermore, EC and LC differed in their association between AM scores and the GM volume in the right middle temporal gyrus, with the positive and negative correlations reported respectively in the two groups. The current study underlines the importance of the visual system in circadian rhythmicity and provides possible neural correlates for AM-related differences in negative affect processing. Furthermore, the presence of the opposite correlations between brain anatomy and AM in the two groups suggests that the behavioural and neuronal chronotype differences might become more pronounced in individuals with extreme diurnal differences in mood and cognition, highlighting the necessity to additionally account for AM in neuroimaging studies. HighlightsO_LIStructure of primary visual cortex is linked to subjective diurnal rhythms amplitude C_LIO_LIMiddle temporal gyrus is sensitive to interaction of rhythm phase and distinctness C_LIO_LIDistinctness of the diurnal rhythms may modulate results of the neuroimaging studies C_LI

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bioRxiv2022

Time-of-day matters - pronounced regional morning-to-evening effects in structural brain metrics

Multiple aspects of brain functioning, including arousal, motivation, and cognitive performance, are governed by circadian rhythmicity. Although the recent rise in the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has enabled investigations into the macroscopic correlates of the diurnal brain processes, neuroanatomical studies are scarce. The current work investigated how time-of-day (TOD) impacts white (WM) and grey matter (GM) volumes using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) in a large dataset (N = 72) divided into two equal, comparable subsamples to assess the replicability of effects. Furthermore, we aimed to assess how the magnitude of these diurnal differences was related to actigraphy-derived indices of sleep health. The results extend the current knowledge by reporting that TOD is predominantly associated with regional WM volume decreases. Additionally, alongside corroborating previously observed volumetric GM decreases, we provide the first evidence for positive TOD effects. Higher replicability was observed for WM, with the only two replicated GM clusters being volumetric increases in the amygdala and hippocampus, and decreases in the retrosplenial cortex, with the latter more pronounced in individuals with shorter sleep times. These findings implicate the existence of region-specific mechanisms behind GM effects, which might be related to cognitive processes taking place during wakefulness and homeostatic sleep pressure.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2022

Influence of age and cognitive performance on resting-state functional connectivity of dopaminergic and noradrenergic centres

The process of ageing is associated with structural and functional changes in the brain, with a decline in cognitive functions observed as its inevitable symptom, even in the absence of neurodegenerative changes. A body of literature suggests dopamine and noradrenaline as prominent candidate molecules to mediate these effects, however, the knowledge regarding the underlying mechanisms is scarce. To fill this gap, we compared local and distant resting-state functional connectivity patterns of ventral tegmental area, substantia nigra pars compacta and locus coeruleus in healthy young (20-35 years; N = 37) and older adults (55-80 years; N = 27). Additionally, we sought long-range functional connectivity patterns of these structures associated with performance in tasks probing executive, attentional and reward functioning, as well as compared the functional coupling of the left and right substantia nigra. The results showed that each substantia nigra had stronger coupling with ipsilateral cortical and subcortical areas along with contralateral cerebellum, and that strength of functional connections of this structure with angular gyrus and lateral orbitofrontal cortex predicted the visuomotor search abilities. In turn, ageing was associated with increased local synchronisation in the ventral tegmental area, and differences in functional connectivity of the dopaminergic midbrain with numerous cortical and subcortical structures. Locus coeruleus functional coupling showed no differences between the groups and was not associated with any of the behavioural functions. To the best of our knowledge, this work is the first one to report the age-related effects on midbrain local synchronisation and its connectivity with key recipients of dopaminergic innervation, such as striatum, anterior cingulate and insula.

neuroscience↗