A chronically stressed amygdala can prime the heart to overreact to acute stress events, a new study shows.

A study in people fails to detect differences in the brain’s response to fear or anxiety, long thought to be controlled by different neural circuits.

People who show low social engagement over long periods of time often show reductions in cognitive function. Studies of the brain may provide clues about this correlation.

An unusual experiment suggests that interrupted REM sleep can interfere with the amygdala’s ability to process emotional memories overnight—in this case, the distressing memories of listening to oneself sing out of tune.

Researchers determine the neurological mechanics underpinning a technique to extinguish fearful memories using goal-directed eye movements.

Researchers map brain activity associated with a person’s anticipation of or direct confrontation with danger.

The brain is activated differently when it’s contemplating, rather than directly facing, a threat.

Meet some of the people featured in the November 2017 issue of The Scientist.

A set of neurons in the brain’s central amygdala plays a key role in forming memories of aversive experiences, scientists find in mice.  

Recording from single neurons of epilepsy patients, neuroscientists show that both the strength and timing of neuronal firing are important to consciously perceive a visual object. 

A new study reveals how the amygdala is involved in controlling predatory behavior in mice.

As people continue to tell tall tales, fMRI data show certain brain regions become less busy.

Analyzing the acoustical qualities of screams and other sounds, researchers pinpoint why people find screams—and emergency vehicle sirens—frightening.

Rodent pups can learn to fear a stimulus through the odor signals given by their mother.

Repeated exposure to fear-associated stimuli during short bouts of sleep made study participants less frightened of related provocations once they awoke.

Researchers deliver bursts of light to specific cells in the mouse hippocampus to implant false memories about a fearful event.

Scientists found a way to cause panic attacks in women with amygdala damage.

The brains of psychopaths have a different structure than healthy brains, perhaps explaining their antisocial and impulsive behaviors.

A year and a half after soldiers have returned from war, impairments in the regulatory circuitry of the amygdala remain.