Healthy and successful living involves carefully navigating rewarding and threatening situations by balancing approach and avoidance behaviours. Excessive avoidance to evade potential threats often leads to forfeiting potential rewards. However, little is known about how reward and threat information is integrated neurally to inform either approach or avoidance decisions. In this preregistered study, participants (N=31, 17F) made approach-avoidance decisions under varying reward (monetary gains) and threat (electrical stimulations) prospects during functional MRI scanning. In contrast to theorized parallel subcortical processing of reward and threat information before cortical integration, Bayesian Multivariate Multilevel analyses revealed subcortical reward and threat integration prior to indicating approach-avoidance decisions. This integration occurred in the ventral striatum, thalamus, and bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST). When reward was low, avoidance decisions dominated, reflected in stronger reactivity to threat prior to indicating avoidance decisions across these regions. In addition, the amygdala exhibited dual sensitivity to reward and threat. While anticipating the outcome of approach decisions, characterized by elevated risk of electrical stimulation, increased threat-related activity within the salience network (dorsal anterior cingulate cortex, thalamus, periaqueductal gray, BNST) was observed. Conversely, anticipating the outcome of avoidance decisions, marked by reduced reward potential, was associated with suppression of reward-related activity in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex and ventral striatum. These findings shed light on the temporal dynamics of approach-avoidance decision-making. Importantly, they demonstrate the role of subcortical integration of reward and threat information in balancing approach and avoidance, challenging theories positing predominantly separate subcortical processing before cortical integration.

中文翻译：

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奖励和威胁的分布式皮层下整合如何为接近决策提供信息

健康和成功的生活包括通过平衡接近和回避行为来仔细应对奖励和威胁的情况。为了逃避潜在威胁而过度回避往往会导致失去潜在的回报。然而，人们对奖励和威胁信息如何通过神经整合来告知接近或回避决策知之甚少。在这项预先注册的研究中，参与者 (N=31, 17F) 在功能性 MRI 扫描期间根据不同的奖励（金钱收益）和威胁（电刺激）前景做出接近-回避决策。与皮层整合之前奖励和威胁信息的理论并行皮层下处理相反，贝叶斯多元多级分析揭示了皮层下奖励和威胁整合先于指示回避决策。这种整合发生在腹侧纹状体、丘脑和终纹床核 (BNST)。当奖励较低时，回避决策占主导地位，这反映在这些区域在表明回避决策之前对威胁的反应更强。此外，杏仁核表现出对奖励和威胁的双重敏感性。在预测以电刺激风险升高为特征的接近决策结果时，观察到显着网络（背侧前扣带皮层、丘脑、导水管周围灰质、BNST）内与威胁相关的活动增加。相反，预期回避决策的结果（以奖励潜力减少为标志）与腹内侧前额叶皮层和腹侧纹状体中奖励相关活动的抑制有关。这些发现揭示了回避决策的时间动态。重要的是，他们证明了奖励和威胁信息的皮质下整合在平衡接近和回避方面的作用，挑战了在皮质整合之前主要进行独立皮质下处理的理论。