The current conceptualization of threat processing in anxiety emphasizes emotional hyper-reactivity, which mediates various debilitating symptoms and derangements in anxiety disorders. Here, we investigated olfactory sensory perception of threat as an alternative causal mechanism of anxiety. Combining an event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging paradigm with an olfactory discrimination task, we examined how anxiety modulates basic perception of olfactory threats at behavioral and neural levels. In spite of subthreshold presentation of negative and neutral odors, a positive systematic association emerged between negative odor discrimination accuracy and anxiety levels. In parallel, the right olfactory primary (piriform) cortex indicated augmented response to subthreshold negative (vs. neutral) odors as a function of individual differences in anxiety. Using a psychophysiological interaction analysis, we further demonstrated amplified functional connectivity between the piriform cortex and emotion-related regions (amygdala and hippocampus) in response to negative odor, particularly in anxiety. Finally, anxiety also intensified skin conductance response to negative (vs. neutral) odor, indicative of potentiated emotional arousal to subliminal olfactory threat in anxiety. Together, these findings elucidate exaggerated processing of olfactory threat in anxiety across behavioral, autonomic physiological, and neural domains. Critically, our data emphasized anxiety-related hyper-sensitivity of the primary olfactory cortex and basic olfactory perception in response to threat, highlighting neurosensory mechanisms that may underlie the deleterious symptoms of anxiety.

中文翻译：

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增强对焦虑威胁的嗅觉感官知觉：一项与事件相关的 fMRI 研究。

当前焦虑中威胁处理的概念强调情绪过度反应，它介导了焦虑症中的各种虚弱症状和精神错乱。在这里，我们调查了威胁的嗅觉感知作为焦虑的另一种因果机制。将事件相关的功能磁共振成像范式与嗅觉辨别任务相结合，我们研究了焦虑如何在行为和神经层面调节嗅觉威胁的基本感知。尽管负面和中性气味的亚阈值呈现，负面气味辨别准确性和焦虑水平之间出现了积极的系统关联。同时，右侧嗅觉初级（梨状）皮层表明对阈下负值的反应增强（与 中性）气味作为焦虑个体差异的函数。使用心理生理学相互作用分析，我们进一步证明了梨状皮层和情绪相关区域（杏仁核和海马体）之间的放大功能连接，以响应负面气味，尤其是在焦虑中。最后，焦虑还加强了皮肤对负面（相对于中性）气味的电导反应，表明焦虑中对潜意识嗅觉威胁的情绪唤醒增强。总之，这些发现阐明了在行为、自主生理和神经领域的焦虑中嗅觉威胁的夸大处理。至关重要的是，我们的数据强调了初级嗅觉皮层的焦虑相关超敏反应和对威胁的基本嗅觉感知，