Damage to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex reduces interpersonal disgust

Abstract

Disgust for contaminating objects (core disgust), immoral behaviors (moral disgust) and unsavory others (interpersonal disgust), have been assumed to be closely related. It is not clear, however, whether different forms of disgust are mediated by overlapping or specific neural substrates. We report that 10 patients with damage to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) avoided behaviors that normally elicit interpersonal disgust (e.g. using the scarf of a busker) less frequently than healthy and brain-damaged controls, whereas they avoided core and moral disgust elicitors at normal rates. These results indicate that different forms of disgust are dissociated neurally. We propose that the vmPFC is causally (and selectively) involved in mediating interpersonal disgust, shaping patterns of social avoidance and approach.

Fig. 1

Location and overlap of brain lesions in the 10 patients with vmPFC damage projected on the same seven axial slices and on the mesial view of the standard Montreal Neurological Institute brain. z-Coordinates of each axial slice are given. The color bar indicates the number of overlapping lesions. Maximal overlap occurs in BAs 10, 11 and 32. In axial slices, the left hemisphere is on the left side.

Fig. 2

Mean acceptance rates by participant group (vmPFC = patients with lesions in the vmPFC; non-FC = patients with lesions outside the frontal lobe; HC = healthy controls) and type of scenario (core disgust, interpersonal disgust, moral disgust, anger). The error bars indicate the standard error of the mean. *P < 0.005, two tailed.

Fig. 3

Scatterplot of the correlation between lesion volume in BA 10 and acceptance rates in interpersonal disgust scenarios.