Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is widely recognized as involving disruption of core neurocircuitry that underlies processing, regulation, and response to threat. In particular, the prefrontal cortex–hippocampal–amygdala circuit is a major contributor to posttraumatic dysfunction. However, the functioning of core threat neurocircuitry is partially dependent on sensorial inputs, and previous research has demonstrated that dense, reciprocal connections exist between threat circuits and the ventral visual stream. Furthermore, emergent evidence suggests that trauma exposure and resultant PTSD symptoms are associated with altered structure and function of the ventral visual stream. In the current review, we discuss evidence that both threat and visual circuitry together are an integral part of PTSD pathogenesis. An overview of the relevance of visual processing to PTSD is discussed in the context of both basic and translational research, highlighting the impact of stress on affective visual circuitry. This review further synthesizes emergent literature to suggest potential timing-dependent effects of traumatic stress on threat and visual circuits that may contribute to PTSD development. We conclude with recommendations for future research to move the field toward a more complete understanding of PTSD neurobiology.

中文翻译：

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创伤和压力相关疾病中的情感视觉回路功能障碍


创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）被广泛认为涉及处理、调节和应对威胁的核心神经回路的破坏。特别是，前额皮质-海马-杏仁核回路是造成创伤后功能障碍的主要因素。然而，核心威胁神经回路的功能部分依赖于感觉输入，之前的研究表明，威胁回路和腹侧视觉流之间存在密集的相互连接。此外，新出现的证据表明，创伤暴露和由此产生的创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）症状与腹侧视觉流的结构和功能改变有关。在当前的综述中，我们讨论了威胁和视觉回路都是 PTSD 发病机制不可分割的一部分的证据。在基础研究和转化研究的背景下讨论了视觉处理与 PTSD 的相关性，强调了压力对情感视觉回路的影响。本综述进一步综合了新兴文献，提出创伤性应激对威胁和视觉回路的潜在时间依赖性影响，可能导致 PTSD 的发展。最后，我们对未来的研究提出了建议，以推动该领域更全面地了解 PTSD 神经生物学。