Emotional recognition and processing in patients with insula lesions

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Imaging studies contributed to the knowledge that the insula is part of interoceptive processing. These findings support models postulating that the integration of environmental signals, together with physiologic changes elicited by these signals, represent a central mechanism for the recognition and experience of emotions. Astonishingly, group studies supporting this theory are widely absent. Over the last years we identified a group of more than 30 patients with ischemic unilateral lesions of the insula, we intend to recruit more of these patients from our university hospital, and we will investigate the mentioned research questions on this patient population. We intend to use neuropsychological testing, psychophysiology and structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging. By combining the lesion model (specific deficits) and functional investigation (changes in functional representation and physiology) for the first time, we will be able to comprehensively describe the role of the insula in emotional processing.