A new study from the Shackman lab in the Journal of Neuroscience has been featured in several recent stories in the media. Building on other work by our group over the past decade (for example, this theoretical review), the new brain imaging study provides evidence that uncertain and certain threat are processed by a common core threat anticipation network. These results run counter to the popular idea that waiting for certain (“fear”) and uncertain threat (“anxiety”) reflect strictly segregated, non-overlapping brain circuits.

The study, which was first selected for special promotion by the Society for Neuroscience and UMD Brain & Behavior Institute, has since been the focus of articles in Axios, The Scientist, Medical Xpress, SciTech Daily, Theravive, Maryland Today, and the Italian-language Le Scienze.

The study was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health, and spearheaded by our former postdoc, Dr. Juyoen Hur (now an Assistant Professor at Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea).

Interested in learning more? The paper is freely available here.