Abstract

Neurobiological Evidences, Functional and Emotional Aspects Associated with the Amygdala: From “ What is it? “ to “What’sto be done?“

Author(s):

Mariana Gongora, Silmar Teixeira, Lilian Martins, Victor Marinho, Bruna Velasques, Luiz Moraes, Eduardo Nicoliche, Victor Hugo Bastos, Monara Kedma Nunes, Consuelo Cartier, Valéria Nascimento, Renan Vicente Luiza Wanick Di Giorgio Silva, Marcele R. de Carvalho, Jessé Di Giacomo, João Junqueira, Flavio Santos, Mauricio Cagy, Thomaz de Oliveira, Daya S. Gupta, Pedro Ribeiro

A growing body of neurobiological and anatomic data continues to provide an increasingly detailed understanding of the role of amygdala in cognitive and motor control. We review evidence from past studies showing that the amygdala, which for many years was considered a black box,plays important roles in many neurobiological processes. The amygdala has key connections with the cortical areas, responsible for information processing that subserve emotion (fear, anxiety),learning, motor control, cognition, decision-making and social interaction. We conducted a review of current literature with 169 studies that met inclusion criteria to synthesize findings on amygdala and their influence on the neurobiological aspects. The findings demonstate converging evidence that the amygdala plays a pivotal role in motor, cognitive and emotional functions.