Brain Imaging Study

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The nervous system allows us to perceive, comprehend, and respond to the world around us. The nervous system also operates the body’s essential physiologic functions, such as breathing and digestion.
Connectome is a comprehensive map of neural connections in the brain. The production and study of connectomes, known as connectomics, may range in scale from a detailed map of the full set of neurons and synapses within part or all of the nervous system of an organism to a macro scale description of the functional and structural connectivity between all cortical areas and subcortical structures. The tem “connectome” is used primarily in scientific efforts to capture, map, and understand the organization of neural interactions within the brain.
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The amygdala is an almond-shaped region that is key to the normal expression of emotions, specially fear. Brian imaging studies see high activity in the amygdala when subjects experience anxiety, stress of phobias. The vmPFC can be thought of a s a higher part of the brain, involved in less well defined activities such as emptional processing and decision making. The hippocampus is a larger region that is very simply, involved in memory.
Brain imaging studies of PTSD sufferers shows two things, it reduces activity in the vmPFC and increased activity in the amygdala. The long studies showed that in PTSD the vmPFC is sleep at the wheel, allowing the amygdala to go unchecked that more likely produces many of the intense anxiety symptoms that make it the key feature of PTSD. There are marked differences in pathways, hormone and glucocorticoid levels and atrophy of the hippocampus is common. The pathologic development of PTSD only occurs if the response leading to resolution of the trauma is disrupted in some way.