This review addresses functional interactions between the primate prefrontal cortex (PFC) and the amygdala, with emphasis on their contributions to behavior and cognition. The interplay between these two telencephalic structures contributes to adaptive behavior and to the evolutionary success of all primate species. In our species, dysfunction in this circuitry creates vulnerabilities to psychopathologies. Here, we describe amygdala–PFC contributions to behaviors that have direct relevance to Darwinian fitness: learned approach and avoidance, foraging, predator defense, and social signaling, which have in common the need for flexibility and sensitivity to specific and rapidly changing contexts. Examples include the prediction of positive outcomes, such as food availability, food desirability, and various social rewards, or of negative outcomes, such as threats of harm from predators or conspecifics. To promote fitness optimally, these stimulus–outcome associations need to be rapidly updated when an associative contingency changes or when the value of a predicted outcome changes. We review evidence from nonhuman primates implicating the PFC, the amygdala, and their functional interactions in these processes, with links to experimental work and clinical findings in humans where possible.

这篇综述讨论了灵长类动物前额皮质 (PFC) 和杏仁核之间的功能相互作用，重点关注它们对行为和认知的贡献。这两种端脑结构之间的相互作用有助于所有灵长类动物的适应性行为和进化成功。在我们人类中，该回路的功能障碍会导致精神病理学的脆弱性。在这里，我们描述了杏仁核-前额叶皮层对与达尔文适应性直接相关的行为的贡献：学习接近和回避、觅食、捕食者防御和社会信号，这些行为的共同点是对特定和快速变化的环境的灵活性和敏感性的需求。例子包括预测积极结果，例如食物供应、食物需求和各种社会奖励，或预测消极结果，例如来自捕食者或同类的伤害威胁。为了以最佳方式促进健康，当关联意外事件发生变化或预测结果的值发生变化时，这些刺激-结果关联需要快速更新。我们回顾了来自非人类灵长类动物的证据，涉及 PFC、杏仁核及其在这些过程中的功能相互作用，并尽可能与人类的实验工作和临床发现联系起来。