Adolescents with conduct problems and low callous-unemotional traits are characterised by high levels of reactive aggression. Prior studies suggest that they can have exaggerated neural and behavioural responses to negative emotional stimuli, accompanied by compromised affect regulation and atypical engagement of prefrontal areas during cognitive control. This pattern may in part explain their symptoms. Clarifying how neurocognitive responses to negative emotional stimuli can be modulated in this group has potential translational relevance. We present fMRI data from a cognitive conflict task in which the requirement to visually scan emotional (vs. calm) faces was held constant across low and high levels of cognitive conflict. Participants were 17 adolescent males with conduct problems and low levels of callous-unemotional traits (CP/LCU); 17 adolescents with conduct problems and high levels of callous-unemotional traits (CP/HCU, who typically show blunted reactivity to fear), and 18 typically developing controls (age range 10–16). Control participants showed typical attenuation of amygdala response to fear relative to calm faces under high (relative to low) conflict, replicating previous findings in a healthy adult sample. In contrast, children with CP/LCU showed a reduced (left amygdala) or reversed (right amygdala) attenuation effect under high cognitive conflict conditions. Children with CP/HCU did not differ from controls. Findings suggest atypical modulation of amygdala response as a function of task demands, and raise the possibility that those with CP/LCU are unable to implement typical regulation of amygdala response when cognitive task demands are high.

青少年的品行问题和低调的性情-冲动性格特征是高水平的反应性攻击性。先前的研究表明，他们对负性情绪刺激的神经和行为反应可能过分夸张，同时在认知控制过程中，情感调节和前额叶区域的非典型参与也会受到损害。这种模式可能部分解释了他们的症状。澄清如何在这个群体中调节对负面情绪刺激的神经认知反应具有潜在的翻译意义。我们提出了来自认知冲突任务的功能磁共振成像数据，其中视觉扫描情感（与平静）面孔的要求在认知冲突的低水平和高水平保持不变。参与者为17名青春期男性，他们的行为有问题，且ous性情绪低落特征（CP / LCU）低；17名青少年有行为问题，并且表现出较高的ous性情绪低落特征（CP / HCU，通常表现出对恐惧的反应迟钝），另外18名通常处于控制状态（10-16岁）。对照参与者显示杏仁核对恐惧的反应相对于高（相对于低）冲突下的镇定脸部而言典型地减弱了恐惧，复制了健康成人样本中的先前发现。相反，在高度认知冲突的情况下，患有CP / LCU的儿童表现出减弱的（左杏仁核）或逆转的（右杏仁核）衰减作用。CP / HCU患儿与对照组无差异。研究结果表明，杏仁核反应的非典型调节是任务需求的函数，并增加了认知任务需求较高时，CP / LCU患者无法实施典型杏仁核反应调节的可能性。