Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a prevalent, debilitating and sometimes deadly
consequence of exposure to severe psychological trauma. Although effective treatments …

When rats come to a decision point, they sometimes pause and look back and forth as if
deliberating over the choice; at other times, they proceed as if they have already made their …

Survival in threatening situations depends on the selection and rapid execution of an
appropriate active or passive defensive response, yet the underlying brain circuitry is not …

Midbrain dopamine neurons are well known for their role in reward-based reinforcement
learning. We found that the activity of dopamine axons in the posterior tail of the striatum …

Since the 19th century, there has been disagreement over the fundamental question of
whether" emotions" are cause or consequence of their associated behaviors. This question …

Avoidance is a key characteristic of adaptive and maladaptive fear. Here, we review past
and contemporary theories of avoidance learning. Based on the theories, experimental …

Orchestrating appropriate behavioral responses in the face of competing signals that predict
either rewards or threats in the environment is crucial for survival. The basolateral nucleus of …

All animals evaluate the salience of external stimuli and integrate them with internal
physiological information into adaptive behavior. Natural and sexual selection im**e on …

Threat-anticipatory defensive responses have evolved to promote survival in a dynamic
world. While inherently adaptive, aberrant expression of defensive responses to potential …

Fear motivates different types of defensive behaviors. These behaviors are, however, not
mere byproducts of fear. In this review, we highlight a bi-directional relationship between …