Woman unable to feel fear helps science

• April 19, 2024

Researchers from the University of Iowa (UI) may have discovered the region of brain where you experience thefear , and in the future to be able to give better treatment to post-traumatic stress syndrome , publishes the press portal of the university.

The research studied an adult woman with a strange genetic condition that damaged a small region of the brain called amygdala. The woman was unable to experience fear to a series of stimuli to which she was subjected, including houses of horror, snakes, tarantulas, horror movies, among others.

The patient he also reported do not feel afraid in situations of extreme danger , but if it reported feeling emotions as happiness and sadness, and has rated as average in tests of intelligence, memory and language.

The study published by the newspaper Current Biology shows that the amygdala plays a key role at the time of experiencing fear before a threat or traumatic memory. "Without the amygdala, the brain alarm that prevents us from exposing ourselves to situations of danger does not exist " Justin Feinstein , head of the investigation in the UI.

Feinstein suggests that the findings could give hope for someday discovering how to stimulate the amygdala in survivors of violence, and thus prevent them from suffering post-traumatic stress syndrome.

Video Medicine: What Would Life Be Without Fear? (April 2024).