Anterior insular cortex activity predicts how well we attend to our bodily signals, while lesions to this brain region disrupt this ability.

Engagement of anterior insular cortex projections to the dorsolateral striatum underpins sex-differences in binge alcohol consumption behaviors.

A novel brain circuit that determines how much alcohol a mouse binge drinks by complex control of drinking behavior mechanics is surveyed.

In vivo quantitative analysis of multi-shell diffusion MRI reveals novel insights into microstructure of human insular cortex and its functional circuits associated with the salience network and cognitive control.

Seeing others genuinely experiencing pain vs. pretending to be in pain is distinctively tracked by neural processes related to affect sharing and self-other distinction, enabling individuals to precisely respond to others’ actual emotions and needs.

Behavioral electrophysiology and optogenetics studies reveal that projections from the anterior insula to the medial thalamus mitigate fear, while projections to the amygdala promote fear.

The anterior insula cortex is a critical neural substrate of context-induced relapse of nicotine-seeking.

The most comprehensive neuroanatomical atlas on the expression of three glycoprotein hormone receptors, namely, TSHRs, LHCGRs, and FSHRs, was mapped using RNAscope, a technology that allows the detection of mRNA at single-transcript level.

Direct insular recordings in humans reveal that contrary to several prominent models of speech production, it is not engaged in pre-articulatory planning, but in auditory and somatosensory components of speech.

Functional neuroimaging in the human brain reveals the neurocognitive mechanisms that underpin the experience of mind-wandering during reading, explaining why comprehension is impaired.