BDNF polymorphism-dependent OFC and DLPFC plasticity differentially moderates implicit and explicit bias.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Social Psychology
• Genetics

Background:

• Social biases are complex and influenced by various neural and genetic factors.
• The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) are implicated in social cognition and decision-making.
• Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) affect neural plasticity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role of OFC and DLPFC plasticity in modulating implicit and explicit social biases.
• To examine how lesion size and BDNF gene variants (Met/Val and Val/Val SNPs) interact to influence social bias.
• To determine if specific prefrontal cortex (PFC) regions differentially affect implicit versus explicit social biases.

Main Methods:

• Recruited normal controls and patients with OFC/DLPFC lesions of varying sizes.
• Genotyped participants for BDNF gene SNPs (Met/Val and Val/Val).
• Administered measures of implicit and explicit social bias.

Main Results:

• Implicit bias levels were comparable between patients and controls.
• Patients with Met/Val BDNF SNPs showed reduced implicit bias with smaller OFC lesions.
• Patients with Met/Val BDNF SNPs exhibited reduced explicit bias with smaller DLPFC lesions.

Conclusions:

• Neural plasticity within specific PFC regions, modulated by BDNF genotype and lesion location, significantly impacts social bias.
• OFC plasticity appears more critical for regulating implicit social bias, while DLPFC plasticity is more relevant for explicit social bias.
• These findings highlight the intricate relationship between neurobiology and the expression of social biases.