Collothalamic projections to the human amygdala: hemispheric asymmetry modulates trait anxiety

Three components of a white matter bundle, auditory and visual collothalamic projections to the amygdala and the stria terminalis, traverse above the temporal horn of the lateral ventricle. This bundle constitutes a “low road” pathway that transmits threat signals to the amygdala, via the posterior thalamus, and that biases spatial orienting toward visual threat. Hemispheric asymmetry of the microstructure of the visual pathway predicts individual differences in trait anxiety.