An ERP study on the understanding of the distinction between real and apparent emotions

To ensure successful social interactions, we must appropriately understand the distinction between apparent and real emotions. Here, we used event-related potential (ERP) methodology to examine the neural correlates of adults’ decoding of another's apparent and real emotions. Participants were asked to judge whether the protagonist's apparent emotion (facial expression) was consistent with the real emotion (inner experience). The “false happiness” and “real sadness” stimuli elicited smaller P2 amplitudes than “real happiness” and “false sadness”. Similarly, compared to “real happiness” and “false sadness”, “false happiness” and “real sadness” stimuli elicited more negative deflections on the N200 and N300 components. These results indicate that the human brain does not simply detect emotion by facial expressions, but is capable of evaluating the context and deducing that person's true state of mind.     

Feelings and the body: The Jamesian perspective on autonomic specificity of emotion

“What is an emotion?” William James's seminal paper in Mind (1884) proposed the idea that physiological and behavioral responses precede subjective experience in emotions that are marked by “distinct bodily expression.” This notion has broadly inspired the investigation of emotion-specific autonomic nervous system activity, a research topic with great longevity. The trajectory of this literature is traced through its major theoretical challenges from the Cannon-Bard, activation, and Schachter-Singer theories, through its rich empirical history in the field of psychophysiology. Although these studies are marked by various findings, the overall trend of the research supports the notion of autonomic specificity for basic emotions. The construct of autonomic specificity continues to influence a number of core theoretical issues in affective science, such as the existence of basic or ‘natural kinds’ of emotion, the structure of affective space, the cognition-emotion relationship, and the function of emotion. Moreover, James's classic paper, which stimulated the emergence of psychology from philosophy and physiology in the latter nineteenth century, remains a dynamic force in contemporary emotion research.     

Audio–vocal system regulation in children with autism spectrum disorders

Do children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) respond similarly to perturbations in auditory feedback as typically developing (TD) children? Presentation of pitch-shifted voice auditory feedback to vocalizing participants reveals a close coupling between the processing of auditory feedback and vocal motor control. This paradigm was used to test the hypothesis that abnormalities in the audio–vocal system would negatively impact ASD compensatory responses to perturbed auditory feedback. Voice fundamental frequency (F ₀) was measured while children produced an /a/ sound into a microphone. The voice signal was fed back to the subjects in real time through headphones. During production, the feedback was pitch shifted (?100 cents, 200 ms) at random intervals for 80 trials. Averaged voice F ₀ responses to pitch-shifted stimuli were calculated and correlated with both mental and language abilities as tested via standardized tests. A subset of children with ASD produced larger responses to perturbed auditory feedback than TD children, while the other children with ASD produced significantly lower response magnitudes. Furthermore, robust relationships between language ability, response magnitude and time of peak magnitude were identified. Because auditory feedback helps to stabilize voice F ₀ (a major acoustic cue of prosody) and individuals with ASD have problems with prosody, this study identified potential mechanisms of dysfunction in the audio–vocal system for voice pitch regulation in some children with ASD. Objectively quantifying this deficit may inform both the assessment of a subgroup of ASD children with prosody deficits, as well as remediation strategies that incorporate pitch training.     

The effects of difficulty and gain versus loss on vocal physiology and acoustics

To examine the basis of emotional changes to the voice, physiological and electroglottal measures were combined with acoustic speech analysis of 30 men performing a computer task in which they lost or gained points under two levels of difficulty. Predictions of the main effects of difficulty and reward on the voice were not borne out by the data. Instead, vocal changes depended largely on interactions between gain versus loss and difficulty. The rate at which the vocal folds open and close (fundamental frequency; fo) was higher for loss than for gain when difficulty was high, but not when difficulty was low. Electroglottal measures revealed that fo changes corresponded to shorter glottal open times for the loss conditions. Longer closed and shorter open phases were consistent with raised laryngeal tension in difficult loss conditions. Similarly, skin conductance indicated higher sympathetic arousal in loss than gain conditions, particularly when difficulty was high. The results provide evidence of the physiological basis of affective vocal responses, confirming the utility of measuring physiology and voice in the study of emotion.     

Recognition of vocal expression of emotion and its acoustic attributes

The vocal expression of emotion was examined with both an auditory experiment and objective acoustic analyses. In the auditory experiment the stimuli were words or short sentences with six basic emotions expressed by two actors. Forty-five undergraduate and graduate students participated in the experiment. The results showed that the vocal expression of emotion was strongly identified, except in the case of fear, and that the six basic emotions could be plotted in a psychological space with two dimensions calculated from multidimensional scaling. The plot formed a roughly circular surface, with locations very similar to those of the facial expressions. One dimension was considered to represent the element of pleasantness-unpleasantness. The actors voices were then acoustically analyzed. The results suggested that the mean fundamental frequency (F0), the standard deviation (SD) of F0, and the SD of the energy are the important factors that define the characteristics of the vocal expression of emotions. To determine the most important parameter(s) and explain the two dimensions of the psychological space, canonical correlation analysis was conducted. The analysis indicated that F0 was correlated with the pleasantness-unpleasantness dimension.     

An In-vitro Test Set-Up for Evaluation of a Voice-Producing Element Under Physiologic Acoustic Conditions

To improve the voice quality of laryngectomised patients, a voice-producing element has been developed. Prior to in vivo testing we constructed and validated an in-vitro test set-up, consisting of a physical model of the subglottal tract and three physical models of the vocal tract, for the vowels /a/, /i/ and /u/ to evaluate the voice-producing element under physiologic acoustic conditions. To meet acoustic conditions described in the literature, we determined the appropriate dimensions of these physical models, using a numerical model of the pressure perturbation in rigid tubes. The numerical model showed that an acoustic equivalent of the subglottal tract could be obtained with a three-tube system and an end impedance. Vocal tract models could be constructed using two- and four-resonator tubes. The physical models were built and successfully validated according to the human acoustic properties. The developed in-vitro set-up can now be applied to test voice-producing elements or vocal fold models under physiologic acoustic conditions.     

Developmental pattern of diacylglycerol lipase-α (DAGLα) immunoreactivity in brain regions important for song learning and control in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

Zebra finch song is a learned behavior dependent upon successful progress through a sensitive period of late-postnatal development. This learning is associated with maturation of distinct brain nuclei and the fiber tract interconnections between them. We have previously found remarkably distinct and dense CB₁ cannabinoid receptor expression within many of these song control brain regions, implying a normal role for endocannabinoid signaling in vocal learning. Activation of CB₁ receptors via daily treatments with exogenous agonist during sensorimotor stages of song learning (but not in adulthood) results in persistent alteration of song patterns. Now we are working to understand physiological changes responsible for this cannabinoid-altered vocal learning. We have found that song-altering developmental treatments are associated with changes in expression of endocannabinoid signaling elements, including CB₁ receptors and the principal CNS endogenous agonist, 2-AG. Within CNS, 2-AG is produced largely through activity of the α isoform of the enzyme diacylglycerol lipase (DAGLα). To better appreciate the role of 2-AG production in normal vocal development we have determined the spatial distribution of DAGLα expression within zebra finch CNS during vocal development. Early during vocal development at 25 days, DAGLα staining is typically light and of fibroid processes. Staining peaks late in the sensorimotor stage of song learning at 75 days and is characterized by fiber, neuropil and some staining of both small and large cell somata. Results provide insight to the normal role for endocannabinoid signaling in the maturation of brain regions responsible for song learning and vocal-motor output, and suggest mechanisms by which exogenous cannabinoid exposure alters acquisition of this form of vocal communication.     

Vocal communication and the triune brain

This paper tests the 'fit' between Paul MacLean's triune brain scheme of brain organization and existing knowledge about the pathways mediating vocal communication in mammals. One component of MacLean's limbic system ('paleomammalian brain'), the 'thalamocingulate circuit,' is found to have an important role in expression of vocalizations, particularly the 'isolation call' (such as are given by mammalian infants when distressed or separated from their caregivers). Recent evidence suggests that this circuit may also have a role in perception of infant cries in humans. Outside of this circuit, the triune brain model has little to offer in the way of insights into how the brain is organized to mediate vocal communication. There is little evidence that the striatal complex ('R-complex' or 'protoreptilian formation') is involved in any major way in vocal communication, although it appears to be involved in some visual displays in both reptiles and nonhuman primates. Interestingly, components of the reptilian brain may be involved in human speech production, and avian homologues involved in birdsong. The neocortex ('neomammalian formation') has well-known importance in speech production and perception, but little evidence exists for a role in vocal production in nonhuman mammals. However, cortical mechanisms do play a role in perception of vocalizations, at least in nonhuman primates. It is concluded that a set of neural structures termed the 'communication brain' mediate vocal communication in mammals, and that this model does not fit well into the triune brain scheme of brain organization.     

Effects of pleasant and unpleasant ambient odors on human voice pitch

The perception of odors is well identified as having strong emotional correlates. It is also well known that the acoustic characteristics of the voice differ according to the emotional state. This study compared some acoustic features of the voice of 18 subjects reading the same text in pleasant (lavender) and unpleasant (pyridine) ambient odor conditions. The results revealed that the pitch of the voice was higher in the pleasant than in the unpleasant condition. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis of local and functional convergences of encoding vocal emotion and hedonic perception of odors.     

Validation of the newborn larynx modeling with aerodynamical experimental data

BackgroundMany authors have studied adult’s larynx modelization, but the mechanisms of newborn’s voice production have very rarely been investigated. After validating a numerical model with acoustic data, studies were performed on larynges of human fetuses in order to validate this model with aerodynamical experiments.Material and methodsAnatomical measurements were performed and a simplified numerical model was built using Fluent^® with the vocal folds in phonatory position. The results obtained are in good agreement with those obtained by laser Doppler velocimetry (LDV) and high-frame rate particle image velocimetry (HFR-PIV), on an experimental bench with excised human fetus larynges.ResultsIt appears that computing with first cry physiological parameters leads to a model which is close to those obtained in experiments with real organs.     

Neural correlates of regulation of positive and negative emotions: An fMRI study

Regulation of emotion is important for adaptive social functioning and mental well-being. This functional magnetic resonance imaging study identified neural correlates of regulation of positive or negative emotion. Twelve healthy female Chinese participants performed the experimental task that required them to simply view emotional pictures or to regulate their emotions induced by these pictures while their brain activities were monitored by a 1.5 T MRI scanner. The neuroimaging findings indicate that the left superior and lateral frontal regions (BA8/9) are common neural correlates of regulation of both emotions. For regulation of positive or negative emotion, changes of BOLD responses in the prefrontal regions and the left insula are associated with regulation of positive emotion; whereas activity of the left orbitofrontal gyrus, the left superior frontal gyrus, and the anterior cingulate gyrus appears to be involved in regulation of negative emotion. According to the participants’ self-report, they appeared to be more effective in regulating positive than negative emotions, which may relate to the distinct patterns of neural activity associated with regulation of the specific emotion. As a conclusion, our findings suggest that there are shared as well as valence-specific neurocognitive mechanisms underlying regulation of positive and negative emotions. Enhanced knowledge about the neural mechanisms of emotion regulation helps improve understanding of the complex interplay of emotion and cognition underlying human behaviors.     

Support vector wavelet adaptation for pathological voice assessment

The presence of abnormalities in the vocal system affects the quality of the voice and changes its characteristics. Digital analysis of pathological voices can be an effective and non-invasive tool for the detection of such alterations. This paper proposes a wavelet-based method to distinguish between normal and disordered voices. Wavelet filter banks are used in conjunction with support vector machines, as feature extractors and classifiers, respectively. Orthogonal filter banks are implemented using a highly efficient structure known as “lattice” that parameterizes filter banks and produces a few parameters. The overall problem is to find these parameters such that perfect classification is achieved. To search for such parameters, a genetic algorithm with a fitness function corresponding to the classification result is applied. Simulation is done on the KAY database (a comprehensive database including 710 normal and pathological voice signals, developed by the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary Voice and Speech Lab), and one additional test set. It is observed that a genetic algorithm is able to find the filter bank parameters such that a 100% correct classification rate is achieved in classifying normal and pathological voices when the test is performed on both databases.     

Responses of single neurons in monkey amygdala to facial and vocal emotions

The face and voice can independently convey the same information about emotion. When we see an angry face or hear an angry voice, we can perceive a person's anger. These two different sensory cues are interchangeable in this sense. However, it is still unclear whether the same group of neurons process signals for facial and vocal emotions. We recorded neuronal activity in the amygdala of monkeys while watching nine video clips of species-specific emotional expressions: three monkeys showing three emotional expressions (aggressive threat, scream, and coo). Of the 227 amygdala neurons tested, 116 neurons (51%) responded to at least one of the emotional expressions. These "monkey-responsive" neurons-that is, neurons that responded to monkey-specific emotional expression-preferred the scream to other emotional expressions irrespective of identity. To determine the element crucial to neuronal responses, the activity of 79 monkey-responsive neurons was recorded while a facial or vocal element of a stimulus was presented alone. Although most neurons (61/79, 77%) strongly responded to the visual but not to the auditory element, about one fifth (16/79, 20%) maintained a good response when either the facial or vocal element was presented. Moreover, these neurons maintained their stimulus-preference profiles under facial and vocal conditions. These neurons were found in the central nucleus of the amygdala, the nucleus that receives inputs from other amygdala nuclei and in turn sends outputs to other emotion-related brain areas. These supramodal responses to emotion would be of use in generating appropriate responses to information regarding either facial or vocal emotion.     

Physiology of skin aging

Skin is the most voluminous organ of the body. It assumes several important physiological functions and represents also a “social interface” between an individual and other members of society. This is the main reason its age-dependent modifications are in the forefront of dermatological research and of the “anti-aging” cosmetic industry. Here we concentrate on some aspects only of skin aging, as far as the cellular and extracellular matrix components of skin are concerned. Most well studied mechanisms of skin aging can be situated at the postgenetic level, both epigenetic and post-translational mechanisms being involved. Some of these mechanisms will be reviewed as well as the capacity of fucose- and rhamnose-rich oligo- and polysaccharides (FROP and RROP) to counteract several of the mechanisms involved in skin aging.     

一种集嗓音与声门图像分析功能为一体的虚拟仪器系统设计初步

本系统是一个集嗓音声学分析、声门图像分析功能于一体的喉疾病辅助诊断系统.软件由虚拟仪器开发语言(LabWindows/CVI)编制而成的.通过仪器化的界面,实现各种操作与结果的显示.嗓音分析功能可进行声音信号的采集、存储、显示,并可提取基频(F0)、频率微扰商(FPQ)、振幅微扰商(APQ)、谐波噪声比(HNR)、频率颤动(JF)和振幅微扰(Shimmer)等声学参数及,还可进行三维声图分析;声门图像分析功能可进行声带振动图像的静相、动相显示或帧图像冻结显示;可任意截取具有临床诊断价值的图像进行观察和存储;并可对帧图像进行声门长度、声门面积、声带面积、病变大小等参数的提取分析.     

A Computational Study of the Effect of False Vocal Folds on Glottal Flow and Vocal Fold Vibration During Phonation

The false vocal folds are believed to be components of the acoustic filter that is responsible for shaping the voice. However, the effects of false vocal folds on the vocal fold vibration and the glottal aerodynamic during phonation remain unclear. This effect has implications for computational modeling of phonation as well as for understanding laryngeal pathologies such as glottal incompetence resulting from unilateral vocal fold paralysis. In this study, a high fidelity, two-dimensional computational model, which combines an immersed boundary method for the airflow and a continuum, finite-element method for the vocal folds, is used to examine the effect of the false vocal folds on flow-induced vibration (FIV) of the true vocal folds and the dynamics of the glottal jet. The model is notionally based on a laryngeal CT scan and employs realistic flow conditions and tissue properties. Results show that the false vocal folds potentially have a significant impact on phonation. The false vocal folds reduce the glottal flow impedance and increase the amplitude as well as the mean glottal jet velocity. The false vocal folds also enhance the intensity of the monopole acoustic sources in the glottis. A mechanism for reduction in flow impedance due to the false vocal folds is proposed.     

Early glycinergic axon contact with the Mauthner neuron during zebrafish development

One important aspect of empathy is a “resonance mechanism”, which includes emotional cue detection, facial mimicry (measured by electromyography, EMG) and a specific cortical response. This study explored the convergence of these three measures of affective empathy. The twenty students who took part in the study were required to empathise with the situation by entering into the other person's situation. The four emotions portrayed were anger, fear, happiness, and neutral, and the subjects were instructed to make a two-alternative response (emotion or no emotion) to each emotion. A repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation was used to produce a temporary inhibition of the medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC). The results support the hypothesis that there is a direct relationship between emotional cue recognition, EMG-measured facial response and prefrontal activity. First, both facial expression detection and autonomic mimicry in reaction to emotional faces were systematically modulated in response to inhibition of the MPFC. Second, the MPFC was implicated in facial cue detection and the subsequent autonomic response because an impaired performance on both measures was observed when this brain area was inhibited. Third, this effect increased when negative-valenced stimuli (angry and fearful faces) were presented to the subjects. These results revealed a significant effect of the MPFC on both cue detection and facial mimicry that was distinctly related to different types of emotions.     

Brain “Globalopathies” cause mental disorders

“Consciousness” “mood,” “identity” and “personality” are all emergent properties from whole-brain organizations; these are typically disturbed in psychiatric disorders. This work proposes that the underlying etiopathology of mental disorders originates from disturbances to global brain dynamics, or “Globalopathies” that are divided into three major interdependent types (1) “Resting-State Networkpathies,” in personality disorders, (2) “Entropiathies” in mood disorders, and (3) “Connectopathies” in psychosis and schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Novel approaches of processing signals from the brain are beginning to reveal brain organization in health and disease. For example a “small world network” has been described for optimal brain functions and breakdown of that organization might underlie relevant psychiatric manifestations. A novel diagnostic reformulation can be generated based on pathologies of whole brain organizations, such new brain related diagnostic nosology is testable and thus can be validated. Once validated Globalopathies can provide for “Global-therapies” i.e., interventions that can reorganize the brain and cure psychiatric disorders. The technology for such interventions is becoming available.     

Mindful emotion regulation: An integrative review

This review aims to integrate the constructs of mindfulness and emotion regulation. Research into both of these areas is relatively new, and while several reviews have emerged for each area independently, none has directly proposed a conceptual integration. The current review explores how key axioms and assumptions of traditional psychological models of emotion regulation and the psychological interventions that are derived from them (e.g., cognitive behavior therapy) differ fundamentally from mindfulness-based approaches in terms of the underlying processes they address. Accordingly, mindfulness and emotion regulation are each reviewed, followed by a conceptual integration. Fundamental difficulties arising from the attempt to integrate the two domains are highlighted, especially as to the “reality” of thoughts, the relationship between thoughts and emotions, and the need to move beyond a valence model of emotion. Finally, a model is proposed outlining the likely critical processes and mechanisms that underlie “mindful emotion regulation.”     

Reversible suppression of food reward behavior by chronic mu-opioid receptor antagonism in the nucleus accumbens

Overindulgence in easily available energy-dense palatable foods is thought to be an important factor in the current obesity epidemic but the underlying neural mechanisms are not well understood. Here we demonstrate that mu-opioid receptor signaling in the nucleus accumbens may be important. Protracted suppression of endogenous mu-opioid receptor signaling focused on the nucleus accumbens shell for several days by means of microinjected β-funaltrexamine (BFNA) diminished both “liking” of sucrose, as indicated by fewer positive hedonic orofacial responses, and the incentive reinforcement value (“wanting”) of a food reward, as indicated by lower completion speed and increased time being distracted in the incentive runway. BFNA-treatment also decreased responding to sucrose and corn oil in the brief access lick paradigm, a test measuring a combination of mainly taste-guided “liking” and low-effort “wanting”, as well as 4 h intake of sucrose solution. These effects were not due to nonspecific permanent neuronal changes, as they were fully reversible. We conclude that endogenous mu-opioid signaling in the nucleus accumbens is necessary for the full display of palatable food-induced hyperphagia through mechanisms including hedonic, motivational, and reinforcement processes. Development of obesity could be the result of predisposing innate differences in these mechanisms or overstimulation of these mechanisms by external factors.