Damage to Association Fiber Tracts Impairs Recognition of the Facial Expression of Emotion

Abstract

An array of cortical and subcortical structures have been implicated in the recognition of emotion from facial expressions. It remains unknown how these regions communicate as parts of a system to achieve recognition, but white matter tracts are likely critical to this process. We hypothesized that (1) damage to white matter tracts would be associated with recognition impairment and (2) the degree of disconnection of association fiber tracts [inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) and/or inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF)] connecting the visual cortex with emotion-related regions would negatively correlate with recognition performance. One hundred three patients with focal, stable brain lesions mapped onto a reference brain were tested on their recognition of six basic emotional facial expressions. Association fiber tracts from a probabilistic atlas were coregistered to the reference brain. Parameters estimating disconnection were entered in a general linear model to predict emotion recognition impairments, accounting for lesion size and cortical damage. Damage associated with the right IFOF significantly predicted an overall facial emotion recognition impairment and specific impairments for sadness, anger, and fear. One subject had a pure white matter lesion in the location of the right IFOF and ILF. He presented specific, unequivocal emotion recognition impairments. Additional analysis suggested that impairment in fear recognition can result from damage to the IFOF and not the amygdala. Our findings demonstrate the key role of white matter association tracts in the recognition of the facial expression of emotion and identify specific tracts that may be most critical.

Structural Neural Phenotype of Autism: Preliminary Evidence from a Diffusion Tensor Imaging Study Using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics

“…In a large group of patients with focal brain lesions (n ϭ 103), damage associated with the right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus significantly predicted overall facial emotion recognition impairment with specific deficits recognizing sadness, anger, and fear. 38 The inability to properly identify and recognize facial emotions is a wellknown impairment in ASD. 39 Moreover, previously published DTI studies lend support to abnormalities of the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus in ASD.…”

White matter microstructure in boys with persistent depressive disorder

“…Its function is still being investigated but evidence suggests a supportive role in processing attentional, semantic language and visual information (Sarubbo, De Benedictis, Maldonado, Basso, & Duffau, 2013). Lesion studies have shown that damage to the IFO impairs the recognition of facial affect (Philippi, Mehta, Grabowski, Adolphs, & Rudrauf, 2009). Given that depression has been associated with a negative attentional processing bias (Jacobs, Reinecke, Gollan, & Kane, 2008;Vilgis, Silk, & Vance, 2015), it is likely that alterations in white matter microstructure of the IFO relate to alterations in facial affect processing.…”

White matter alterations in anorexia nervosa: A systematic review of diffusion tensor imaging studies

“…These tracts connect frontal with occipital and posterior parietal and temporal lobes. They integrate auditory and visual association cortices and may have a role in the spatial awareness and neglect, as well as emotion recognition and expression [47] . The fronto-occipital WM abnormality could be related to altered body perception shown in AN.…”