Topography of Emotions in Cerebellum as Appraised by Functional Imaging

Emotions induce complex patterns of cerebellar activity likely reflecting specific cerebellar modulation and multidimensional integration of the emotional experience, based on context-specific dynamic recruitment of limbic, cognitive, mnesic, and sensorimotor cortico-cerebellar loops. Meta-analyses have reported constant recruitment of lobules VI-VII during basic emotions. Activation of rostral lobules II-VI and lobule VIII may be preferentially in relation to motor responses, whereas rostral and caudal vermal activation may be linked to autonomic regulation and associative learning in conjunction with amygdala. Cognitive integration of emotion may rely, at least, on activation of limbic salience network (automatic bottom-up detection of salient stimulus), default-mode network (memory- and knowledge-based categorization), and central executive network (response selection and emotion regulation). As lobules VI-VII straddle all these intrinsically networks, it could be hypothesized that this part of the neocerebellum constitutes an integrator/modulator hub of the emotion-related limbic and cognitive system.