Amygdala

About the Amygdala

The amygdala is a small, almond shaped cluster of nuclei located deep in each temporal lobe, just in front of the hippocampus, and its name comes from the Greek word for almond. As a core part of the limbic system, it evaluates the emotional significance of sensory information, especially potential threats, and helps trigger appropriate physiological and behavioral responses through its connections to the hypothalamus and brainstem. It plays a central role in fear conditioning, the learning of associations between neutral cues and unpleasant events, and it strengthens memories of emotionally charged experiences. It also contributes to processing reward, social signals, and facial expressions. Studies of people with rare bilateral amygdala damage, such as in Urbach Wiethe disease, have shown marked reductions in the experience and recognition of fear. Altered amygdala activity has been studied in anxiety disorders, post traumatic stress disorder, and depression.