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Ding L. Contributions of the Basal Ganglia to Visual Perceptual Decisions. Annu Rev Vis Sci 2023; 9:385-407. [PMID: 37713277 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-vision-111022-123804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/17/2023]
Abstract
The basal ganglia (BG) make up a prominent nexus between visual and motor-related brain regions. In contrast to the BG's well-established roles in movement control and value-based decision making, their contributions to the transformation of visual input into an action remain unclear, especially in the context of perceptual decisions based on uncertain visual evidence. This article reviews recent progress in our understanding of the BG's contributions to the formation, evaluation, and adjustment of such decisions. From theoretical and experimental perspectives, the review focuses on four key stations in the BG network, namely, the striatum, pallidum, subthalamic nucleus, and midbrain dopamine neurons, which can have different roles and together support the decision process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Long Ding
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA;
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2
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Piszczek L, Constantinescu A, Kargl D, Lazovic J, Pekcec A, Nicholson JR, Haubensak W. Dissociation of impulsive traits by subthalamic metabotropic glutamate receptor 4. eLife 2022; 11:62123. [PMID: 34982027 PMCID: PMC8803315 DOI: 10.7554/elife.62123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2020] [Accepted: 12/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavioral strategies require gating of premature responses to optimize outcomes. Several brain areas control impulsive actions, but the neuronal basis of natural variation in impulsivity between individuals remains largely unknown. Here, by combining a Go/No-Go behavioral assay with resting-state (rs) functional MRI in mice, we identified the subthalamic nucleus (STN), a known gate for motor control in the basal ganglia, as a major hotspot for trait impulsivity. In vivo recorded STN neural activity encoded impulsive action as a separable state from basic motor control, characterized by decoupled STN/substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr) mesoscale networks. Optogenetic modulation of STN activity bidirectionally controlled impulsive behavior. Pharmacological and genetic manipulations showed that these impulsive actions are modulated by metabotropic glutamate receptor 4 (mGlu4) function in STN and its coupling to SNr in a behavioral trait-dependent manner, and independently of general motor function. In conclusion, STN circuitry multiplexes motor control and trait impulsivity, which are molecularly dissociated by mGlu4. This provides a potential mechanism for the genetic modulation of impulsive behavior, a clinically relevant predictor for developing psychiatric disorders associated with impulsivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukasz Piszczek
- The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Department of Neuroscience, Vienna Biocenter, Vienna, Austria
| | - Andreea Constantinescu
- The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Department of Neuroscience, Vienna Biocenter, Vienna, Austria
| | - Dominic Kargl
- The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Department of Neuroscience, Vienna Biocenter, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Neuronal Cell Biology, Center for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Jelena Lazovic
- Preclinical Imaging Facility, Vienna BioCenter Core Facilities (VBCF), Vienna, Austria
| | - Anton Pekcec
- Div Research Germany, Boehringer Ingelheim, Biberach an der Riss, Germany
| | - Janet R Nicholson
- Div Research Germany, Boehringer Ingelheim, Biberach an der Riss, Germany
| | - Wulf Haubensak
- The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Department of Neuroscience, Vienna Biocenter, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Neuronal Cell Biology, Center for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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3
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Wang CA, Munoz DP. Differentiating global luminance, arousal and cognitive signals on pupil size and microsaccades. Eur J Neurosci 2021; 54:7560-7574. [PMID: 34716728 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2021] [Revised: 10/22/2021] [Accepted: 10/23/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Pupil size reflects a proxy for neural activity associated with global luminance, arousal and cognitive processing. Microsaccades are also modulated by arousal and cognitive processing. Are these effects of arousal and cognitive signals on pupil size and microsaccades coordinated? If so, via what neural mechanisms? We hypothesized that if pupil size and microsaccades are coordinately modulated by these processes, pupil size immediately before microsaccade onset, as an index for ongoing cognitive and arousal processing, should correlate with microsaccade responses during tasks alternating these signals. Here, we examined the relationship between pupil size and microsaccade responses in tasks that included variations in global luminance, arousal and inhibitory control. Higher microsaccade peak velocities correlated with larger pre-microsaccade pupil response related to arousal and inhibitory control signals. In contrast, pupil responses evoked by global luminance signals did not correlate with microsaccade responses. Given the central role of the superior colliculus in microsaccade generation, these results suggest the critical involvement of the superior colliculus to coordinate pupil and microsaccade responses for arousal and inhibitory control modulations, but not for the pupil luminance modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chin-An Wang
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health Science and Technology, National Central University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan.,Cognitive Intelligence and Precision Healthcare Research Center, National Central University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
| | - Douglas P Munoz
- Centre for Neuroscience Studies, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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4
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Mosher CP, Mamelak AN, Malekmohammadi M, Pouratian N, Rutishauser U. Distinct roles of dorsal and ventral subthalamic neurons in action selection and cancellation. Neuron 2021; 109:869-881.e6. [PMID: 33482087 PMCID: PMC7933114 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2020.12.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2020] [Revised: 12/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The subthalamic nucleus (STN) supports action selection by inhibiting all motor programs except the desired one. Recent evidence suggests that STN can also cancel an already selected action when goals change, a key aspect of cognitive control. However, there is little neurophysiological evidence for dissociation between selecting and cancelling actions in the human STN. We recorded single neurons in the STN of humans performing a stop-signal task. Movement-related neurons suppressed their activity during successful stopping, whereas stop-signal neurons activated at low-latencies near the stop-signal reaction time. In contrast, STN and motor-cortical beta-bursting occurred only later in the stopping process. Task-related neuronal properties varied by recording location from dorsolateral movement to ventromedial stop-signal tuning. Therefore, action selection and cancellation coexist in STN but are anatomically segregated. These results show that human ventromedial STN neurons carry fast stop-related signals suitable for implementing cognitive control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clayton P Mosher
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Adam N Mamelak
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Mahsa Malekmohammadi
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Nader Pouratian
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Ueli Rutishauser
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA; Department of Neurology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; Center for Neural Science and Medicine, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA.
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5
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Fischer P, Lipski WJ, Neumann WJ, Turner RS, Fries P, Brown P, Richardson RM. Movement-related coupling of human subthalamic nucleus spikes to cortical gamma. eLife 2020; 9:51956. [PMID: 32159515 PMCID: PMC7096181 DOI: 10.7554/elife.51956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2019] [Accepted: 03/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cortico-basal ganglia interactions continuously shape the way we move. Ideas about how this circuit works are based largely on models those consider only firing rate as the mechanism of information transfer. A distinct feature of neural activity accompanying movement, however, is increased motor cortical and basal ganglia gamma synchrony. To investigate the relationship between neuronal firing in the basal ganglia and cortical gamma activity during movement, we analysed human ECoG and subthalamic nucleus (STN) unit activity during hand gripping. We found that fast reaction times were preceded by enhanced STN spike-to-cortical gamma phase coupling, indicating a role in motor preparation. Importantly, increased gamma phase coupling occurred independent of changes in mean STN firing rates, and the relative timing of STN spikes was offset by half a gamma cycle for ipsilateral vs. contralateral movements, indicating that relative spike timing is as relevant as firing rate for understanding cortico-basal ganglia information transfer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petra Fischer
- Medical Research Council Brain Network Dynamics Unit, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.,Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Witold J Lipski
- Neurological Surgery, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, United States
| | - Wolf-Julian Neumann
- Department of Neurology, Campus Mitte, Charite - Universitaetsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Robert S Turner
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States.,Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States
| | - Pascal Fries
- Ernst Strüngmann Institute (ESI) for Neuroscience in Cooperation with Max Planck Society, Frankfurt, Germany.,Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Peter Brown
- Medical Research Council Brain Network Dynamics Unit, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom.,Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, John Radcliffe Hospital, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - R Mark Richardson
- Department of Neurosurgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, United States.,Harvard Medical School, Boston, United States
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Isaacs BR, Forstmann BU, Temel Y, Keuken MC. The Connectivity Fingerprint of the Human Frontal Cortex, Subthalamic Nucleus, and Striatum. Front Neuroanat 2018; 12:60. [PMID: 30072875 PMCID: PMC6060372 DOI: 10.3389/fnana.2018.00060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Within the cortico basal ganglia (BG)-thalamic network, the direct and indirect pathways comprise of projections from the cortex to the striatum (STR), whereas the hyperdirect pathway(s) consist of cortical projections toward the subthalamic nucleus (STN). Each pathway possesses a functionally distinct role for action selection. The current study quantified and compared the structural connectivity between 17 distinct cortical areas with the STN and STR using 7 Tesla diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) and resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) in healthy young subjects. The selection of these cortical areas was based on a literature search focusing on animal tracer studies. The results indicate that, relative to other cortical areas, both the STN and STR showed markedly weaker structural connections to areas assumed to be essential for action inhibition such as the inferior frontal cortex pars opercularis. Additionally, the cortical connectivity fingerprint of the STN and STR indicated relatively strong connections to areas related to voluntary motor initiation such as the cingulate motor area and supplementary motor area. Overall the results indicated that the cortical-STN connections were sparser compared to the STR. There were two notable exceptions, namely for the orbitofrontal cortex and ventral medial prefrontal cortex, where a higher tract strength was found for the STN. These two areas are thought to be involved in reward processing and action bias.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bethany R. Isaacs
- Integrative Model-Based Cognitive Neuroscience Research Unit, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Department of Neurosurgery, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Birte U. Forstmann
- Integrative Model-Based Cognitive Neuroscience Research Unit, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Yasin Temel
- Department of Neurosurgery, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands
- Department of Neuroscience, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Max C. Keuken
- Integrative Model-Based Cognitive Neuroscience Research Unit, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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Pasquereau B, Turner RS. A selective role for ventromedial subthalamic nucleus in inhibitory control. eLife 2017; 6:31627. [PMID: 29199955 PMCID: PMC5730370 DOI: 10.7554/elife.31627] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2017] [Accepted: 12/02/2017] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The subthalamic nucleus (STN) is hypothesized to play a central role in the rapid stopping of movement in reaction to a stop signal. Single-unit recording evidence for such a role is sparse, however, and it remains uncertain how that role relates to the disparate functions described for anatomic subdivisions of the STN. Here we address that gap in knowledge using non-human primates and a task that distinguishes reactive and proactive action inhibition, switching and skeletomotor functions. We found that specific subsets of STN neurons have activity consistent with causal roles in reactive action stopping or switching. Importantly, these neurons were strictly segregated to a ventromedial region of STN. Neurons in other subdivisions encoded task dimensions such as movement per se and proactive control. We propose that the involvement of STN in reactive control is restricted to its ventromedial portion, further implicating this STN subdivision in impulse control disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin Pasquereau
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States.,Institut des Sciences Cognitives Marc Jeannerod, CNRS UMR 5229, Bron, France.,Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States.,Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States
| | - Robert S Turner
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States.,Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States.,Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, United States
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