Shared “Core” Areas between the Pain and Other Task-Related Networks

Abstract

The idea of a ‘pain matrix’ specifically devoted to the processing of nociceptive inputs has been challenged. Alternative views now propose that the activity of the primary and secondary somatosensory cortices (SI, SII), the insula and cingulate cortex may be related to a basic defensive system through which significant potentially dangerous events for the body's integrity are detected. By reviewing the role of the SI, SII, the cingulate and the insular cortices in the perception of nociceptive and tactile stimuli, in attentional, emotional and reward tasks, and in interoception and memory, we found that all these task-related networks overlap in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, the anterior insula and the dorsal medial thalamus. A thorough analysis revealed that the ‘pain-related’ network shares important functional similarities with both somatomotor-somatosensory networks and emotional-interoceptive ones. We suggest that these shared areas constitute the central part of an adaptive control system involved in the processing and integration of salient information coming both from external and internal sources. These areas are activated in almost all fMRI tasks and have been indicated to play a pivotal role in switching between externally directed and internally directed brain networks.

Brain mediators of the effects of noxious heat on pain

“…AIns and dACC are activated by a range of tasks [9; 31; 85]. One view is that aIns mediates general interoception [27; 28], and dACC and aIns integrate salient external stimuli of all types with internal states [23]. A similar argument has been made for somatosensory regions [58].…”

Representational geometry: integrating cognition, computation, and the brain

“…Global patterns were estimated meta-analytically. Reproduced, with permission, from [113]. (G) RDMs based on spatial patterns of human event-related-potential amplitudes evoked by natural Images 101 ms after stimulus onset (top) and a model based on parameters of a Weibull fit to the spatially pooled distribution of local contrast measurements (bottom).…”

“…(F) RDM of whole-brain activity patterns during pain perception and other mental states. The RDM reveals the similarity in terms of global brain activity of eight mental states, suggesting shared recruitment of specialized brain regions in pain, emotion, interoception, and reward [113]. Yarkoni et al have presented a comprehensive meta-analytical framework for analyzing the discriminability of mental states from whole-brain activity patterns [114].…”

Intrinsic Brain Network Abnormalities in Migraines without Aura Revealed in Resting-State fMRI

“…In addition, the ACC and insula, core regions of the SN, are always activated in respond to painful stimuli in migraine patients [27], [28]. One recent study has indicated that these areas are the most common brain regions that are active across a group of task-generated networks (including the network devoted to the processing of painful stimuli) [29], suggesting their importance in the detection and processing of salience information. Because of their noxious nature, nociceptive stimuli have intrinsically high saliency content [30].…”