2026年10月21日，美国斯坦福大学Josef Parvizi等科学家在《自然》发表研究，揭示了人类岛叶的功能架构。

岛叶皮层在疼痛、内感受和感受中具有核心作用，但其功能架构以及其亚区之间的因果电生理关系仍知之甚少。在此，研究人员在87名植入颅内电极的参与者中，将颅内电刺激和任务态脑电记录与人类岛叶细胞构筑图谱内的连接映射相结合，识别出一种由四个不同区域组成的四分功能架构：（1）一个背侧-后部区域，编码躯体定位组织的伤害性/温度觉和躯体感觉信号；（2）一个腹侧-后部区域，可获取多个身体部位的躯体信息；（3）一个中前部区域，与内脏感觉和焦虑状态相关；（4）一个前极区域，对直接刺激基本沉默，但在显著性检测和行动模式改变时表现出强烈激活。关键的是，这个前部区域与包括前扣带皮层在内的前额叶皮层有强连接，对其他岛叶区域施加强烈而直接的影响，而从中接受的间接输入较弱，揭示了一条认知调节疼痛和身体感知的电生理通路。总之，这些发现定义了人类岛叶的功能架构，将细胞构筑与有方向且不对称的电生理相互作用联系起来，对疼痛和内感受体验的认知调节具有机制意义。

附：英文原文

Title: Functional architecture of the human insula

Author: Quabs, Julian, Pantis, Sofia, Chen, Guanpeng, Huang, Weichen, Ma, Eileen, del Vecchio, Maria, Lyu, Dian, Wang, Chloe, Avanzini, Pietro, Buch, Vivek, Ramayya, Ashwin G., Caspers, Svenja, Vogel, Hannes, Parvizi, Josef

Issue&Volume: 2026-10-21

Abstract: The insular cortex has a central role in pain1,2, interoception3,4 and feelings5,6, yet its functional architecture and causal electrophysiological relationships among its subregions remain poorly understood. Here we combine intracranial electrical stimulation and task-based electroencephalography recordings with connectivity mapping within a cytoarchitectonic atlas of the human insula7,8,9,10 in 87 participants implanted with intracranial electrodes, and identify a quadripartite functional architecture comprising four distinct regions: (1) a dorsal–posterior region encoding somatotopically organized nociceptive/thermoceptive and somatosensory signals; (2) a ventral–posterior region with access to somatic information across multiple body parts; (3) a mid-anterior region associated with visceral sensations and anxiety states; and (4) an anterior–polar region, largely silent to direct stimulation, yet showing robust activation during salience detection and change of action mode. Critically, this anterior region, with its strong connections with the prefrontal cortex, including the anterior cingulate cortex, exerts strong and direct influence over other insular regions, while receiving less-strong indirect inputs from them, revealing an electrophysiological pathway for cognitive modulation of pain and bodily perception. Together, these findings define a functional architecture of the human insula that links cytoarchitecture to directed and asymmetric electrophysiological interactions, with mechanistic implications for cognitive modulation of pain and interoceptive experience.

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-026-11175-2

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-11175-2