Cited research: Neuron 66, 949–962 (2010)

A hair-raising study has revealed a brain signal for acts of courage performed in the face of fear.

Yadin Dudai at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot, Israel, and his team used functional magnetic resonance imaging to scan the brains of volunteers as they decided whether to slide a live snake towards their heads.

In people fearful of snakes, a region called the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC) was activated (pictured) if they mustered up the courage to move the snake closer. Skin conductance — an indication of bodily arousal — dropped as activity in the sgACC rose, even though the volunteers said that they still felt frightened.

The researchers propose that sgACC activation promotes courageous action and that manipulating its activity could help in treating fear disorders. A.A.

Credit: ELSEVIER