Neural Mechanisms of Cognitive Control in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

描述（由申请人提供）：注意力中断是创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）最常见和最有害的症状之一。这些问题可能反映了认知控制的异常，认知控制是一种以个体在从事认知要求高的任务时有效、高效地管理分散注意力、情绪突出信息的能力为特征的结构。目前，PTSD中认知控制异常的确切性质，包括支持这些功能的神经机制，还没有得到很好的理解。在这个K23应用中，P.I.提出了一种多方法方法，包括行为数据收集，功能磁共振成像和弥散张量成像（DTI）来研究有和没有创伤后应激障碍的个体的认知控制过程。她建议使用一种新的注意力控制任务，情感数Stroop，在功能磁共振成像中检查ptsd特定的任务表现和神经反应模式；这项任务要求观看者完成一项具有挑战性的认知任务，同时忽略那些令人回味的、通常与创伤有关的图片。她的研究的第一个目的是研究当参与者面对与创伤相关的、积极的和中性的干扰物时，他们在反应时间和任务准确性方面的群体差异。第二个目的是研究参与者参与这项任务时功能连接的相应模式。最后，弥散张量成像（DTI）将用于研究ptsd特异性的白质连接异常，这些异常可能导致功能差异；这是第三个目标。这三组数据可能揭示出不同的情况

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Attentional disruptions are among the most commonly-reported and impairing symptoms of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). These problems may reflect abnormalities in cognitive control, a construct characterized by an individual's ability to effectively, and efficiently, manage distracting, emotionally-salient information while they engage in a cognitively-demanding task. Presently, the precise nature of cognitive control abnormalities in PTSD is not well-understood, including the neural mechanisms that subserve these functions. In this K23 application, the P.I. proposes a multi-method approach that includes behavioral data collection, fMRI and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) to investigate cognitive control processes in individuals with and without PTSD. She proposes the use a novel attentional control task, the Affective Number Stroop, during fMRI to examine PTSD-specific patterns of task performance and neural response; this task requires the viewer to perform a challenging cognitive task while ignoring evocative, often trauma-relevant pictures. The first aim of her study is to examine group-wise differences in response time and task accuracy as participants are presented with trauma-related, positive, and neutral distractors. The second aim is to investigate corresponding patterns of functional connectivity as participants engage in this task. Finally, diffusion tensor Imaging (DTI) will be used to investigate PTSD-specific abnormalities in white matter connections that may contribute to functional differences; this represents the third aim. These three sets of data may reveal distinct patterns of cognitive control dysfunction that are unique to individuals with PTSD; between-group differences in behavioral and fMRI data during task performance will be examined, as well as differences in white matter structure that support the existence of these phenomena. The successful identification of cognitive control abnormalities and their neural mechanisms in PTSD has the power to inform current theoretical models of this disorder, as well as novel, tailored interventions that target these problems. This project draws on the P.I.'s strengths in th fields of neuropsychology, PTSD research, and neuroimaging methods, and expands her training over the course of four years to include an improved knowledge of affective neuroscience paradigms, as well as functional and structural connectivity methods. During this time, as she rises from a junior faculty position to tenured Assistant Professor, the P.I. will obtain the requisite knowledge and skills that will enhance her ability to produce methodologically-sound, and clinically-relevant, research on the neuropsychology of PTSD.