Beyond Sharing Unpleasant Affect—Evidence for Pain-Specific Opioidergic Modulation of Empathy for Pain

Markus Rütgen (Corresponding author), Eva-Maria Wirth, Igor Riecansky, Allan Hummer, Christian Windischberger, Predrag Petrovic, Giorgia Silani, Claus Lamm (Corresponding author)

Publications: Contribution to journalArticlePeer Reviewed

Abstract

The neural mechanisms underpinning empathy for pain are still a matter of debate. One of the major questions is whether empathy-related pain responses indicate domain-general vs. pain-specific affective responses. Using fMRI and psychopharmacological experiments, we investigated if placebo analgesia reduces first-hand and empathic experiences of affective touch, and compared them to the effects on pain. Placebo analgesia also affected the first-hand and empathic experience of unpleasant touch, implicating domain-general effects. However, and in contrast to pain and pain empathy, administering an opioid antagonist did not block these effects. Moreover, placebo analgesia reduced neural activity related to both modalities in the bilateral insular cortex, while it specifically modulated activity in the anterior midcingulate cortex for pain and pain empathy. These findings provide causal evidence that one of the major neurochemical systems for pain regulation is involved in pain empathy, and crucially substantiate the role of shared representations in empathy.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2773–2786
JournalCerebral Cortex
Volume31
Issue number6
Early online date18 Jan 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2021

Austrian Fields of Science 2012

  • 501011 Cognitive psychology
  • 106025 Neurobiology
  • 501030 Cognitive science

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