Modulation of putative mirror neuron activity by both positively and negatively valenced affective stimuli: a TMS study

Research indicates that <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">mirror</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">neurons</span> are important for social cognition, including emotion processing. Emerging evidence, however, also reveals that emotional <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">stimuli</span> might be capable of modulating human <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">mirror</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">neuron</span> system (MNS) <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">activity</span>. <br /><br />The current <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">study</span> used transcranial magnetic stimulation (<span class="ScopusTermHighlight">TMS</span>) to assess <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">putative</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">mirror</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">neuron</span> function following emotionally evocative images in twenty healthy adults. <br /><br />Participants observed videos of either <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">a</span> transitive hand action or <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">a</span> static hand while undergoing <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">TMS</span> of the primary motor cortex. In order to examine the effect of emotion on the MNS, each video was preceded by an image of either <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">a</span> positive, negative or neutral valence. <br /><br />MNS <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">activity</span> was found to be augmented by both the positive and negative (relative to neutral) <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">stimuli</span>, thus providing empirical support for <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">a</span> bi-directional link between emotion and the MNS, whereby both <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">positively</span> and <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">negatively</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">valenced</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">stimuli</span> are capable of facilitating <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">mirror</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">neuron</span> <span class="ScopusTermHighlight">activity</span>. The potential adaptive significance of this finding is discussed.