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Girotti M, Bulin SE, Carreno FR. Effects of chronic stress on cognitive function - From neurobiology to intervention. Neurobiol Stress 2024; 33:100670. [PMID: 39295772 PMCID: PMC11407068 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2024.100670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2024] [Revised: 08/30/2024] [Accepted: 09/01/2024] [Indexed: 09/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Exposure to chronic stress contributes considerably to the development of cognitive impairments in psychiatric disorders such as depression, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and addictive behavior. Unfortunately, unlike mood-related symptoms, cognitive impairments are not effectively treated by available therapies, a situation in part resulting from a still incomplete knowledge of the neurobiological substrates that underly cognitive domains and the difficulty in generating interventions that are both efficacious and safe. In this review, we will present an overview of the cognitive domains affected by stress with a specific focus on cognitive flexibility, behavioral inhibition, and working memory. We will then consider the effects of stress on neuronal correlates of cognitive function and the factors which may modulate the interaction of stress and cognition. Finally, we will discuss intervention strategies for treatment of stress-related disorders and gaps in knowledge with emerging new treatments under development. Understanding how cognitive impairment occurs during exposure to chronic stress is crucial to make progress towards the development of new and effective therapeutic approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milena Girotti
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr., San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | - Sarah E Bulin
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr., San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | - Flavia R Carreno
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr., San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
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2
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Woo JH, Costa VD, Taswell CA, Rothenhoefer KM, Averbeck BB, Soltani A. Contribution of amygdala to dynamic model arbitration under uncertainty. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.09.13.612869. [PMID: 39314420 PMCID: PMC11419134 DOI: 10.1101/2024.09.13.612869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/25/2024]
Abstract
Intrinsic uncertainty in the reward environment requires the brain to run multiple models simultaneously to predict outcomes based on preceding cues or actions, commonly referred to as stimulus- and action-based learning. Ultimately, the brain also must adopt appropriate choice behavior using reliability of these models. Here, we combined multiple experimental and computational approaches to quantify concurrent learning in monkeys performing tasks with different levels of uncertainty about the model of the environment. By comparing behavior in control monkeys and monkeys with bilateral lesions to the amygdala or ventral striatum, we found evidence for dynamic, competitive interaction between stimulus-based and action-based learning, and for a distinct role of the amygdala. Specifically, we demonstrate that the amygdala adjusts the initial balance between the two learning systems, thereby altering the interaction between arbitration and learning that shapes the time course of both learning and choice behaviors. This novel role of the amygdala can account for existing contradictory observations and provides testable predictions for future studies into circuit-level mechanisms of flexible learning and choice under uncertainty.
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3
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Rojas AKP, Linley SB, Vertes RP. Chemogenetic inactivation of the nucleus reuniens and its projections to the orbital cortex produce deficits on discrete measures of behavioral flexibility in the attentional set-shifting task. Behav Brain Res 2024; 470:115066. [PMID: 38801950 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2024.115066] [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] [Received: 03/08/2024] [Revised: 05/09/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
The nucleus reuniens (RE) of the ventral midline thalamus is a critical node in the communication between the orbitomedial prefrontal cortex (OFC) and the hippocampus (HF). While RE has been shown to directly participate in memory-associated functions through its connections with the medial prefrontal cortex and HF, less is known regarding the role of RE in executive functioning. Here, we examined the involvement of RE and its projections to the orbital cortex (ORB) in attention and behavioral flexibility in male rats using the attentional set shifting task (AST). Rats expressing the hM4Di DREADD receptor in RE were implanted with indwelling cannulas in either RE or the ventromedial ORB to pharmacologically inhibit RE or its projections to the ORB with intracranial infusions of clozapine-N-oxide hydrochloride (CNO). Chemogenetic-induced suppression of RE resulted in impairments in reversal learning and set-shifting. This supports a vital role for RE in behavioral flexibility - or the ability to adapt behavior to changing reward or rule contingencies. Interestingly, CNO suppression of RE projections to the ventromedial ORB produced impairments in rule abstraction - or dissociable effects elicited with direct RE suppression. In summary, the present findings indicate that RE, mediated in part by actions on the ORB, serves a critical role in the flexible use of rules to drive goal directed behavior. The cognitive deficits of various neurological disorders with impaired communication between the HF and OFC, may be partly attributed to alterations of RE -- as an established intermediary between these cortical structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda K P Rojas
- Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA
| | - Stephanie B Linley
- Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA; Department of Psychology, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA
| | - Robert P Vertes
- Center for Complex Systems and Brain Sciences, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA; Department of Psychology, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA.
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4
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Aguirre CG, Woo JH, Romero-Sosa JL, Rivera ZM, Tejada AN, Munier JJ, Perez J, Goldfarb M, Das K, Gomez M, Ye T, Pannu J, Evans K, O'Neill PR, Spigelman I, Soltani A, Izquierdo A. Dissociable Contributions of Basolateral Amygdala and Ventrolateral Orbitofrontal Cortex to Flexible Learning Under Uncertainty. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e0622232023. [PMID: 37968116 PMCID: PMC10860573 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0622-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2023] [Revised: 10/16/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Reversal learning measures the ability to form flexible associations between choice outcomes with stimuli and actions that precede them. This type of learning is thought to rely on several cortical and subcortical areas, including the highly interconnected orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and basolateral amygdala (BLA), and is often impaired in various neuropsychiatric and substance use disorders. However, the unique contributions of these regions to stimulus- and action-based reversal learning have not been systematically compared using a chemogenetic approach particularly before and after the first reversal that introduces new uncertainty. Here, we examined the roles of ventrolateral OFC (vlOFC) and BLA during reversal learning. Male and female rats were prepared with inhibitory designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs targeting projection neurons in these regions and tested on a series of deterministic and probabilistic reversals during which they learned about stimulus identity or side (left or right) associated with different reward probabilities. Using a counterbalanced within-subject design, we inhibited these regions prior to reversal sessions. We assessed initial and pre-/post-reversal changes in performance to measure learning and adjustments to reversals, respectively. We found that inhibition of the ventrolateral orbitofrontal cortex (vlOFC), but not BLA, eliminated adjustments to stimulus-based reversals. Inhibition of BLA, but not vlOFC, selectively impaired action-based probabilistic reversal learning, leaving deterministic reversal learning intact. vlOFC exhibited a sex-dependent role in early adjustment to action-based reversals, but not in overall learning. These results reveal dissociable roles for BLA and vlOFC in flexible learning and highlight a more crucial role for BLA in learning meaningful changes in the reward environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- C G Aguirre
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - J H Woo
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - J L Romero-Sosa
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - Z M Rivera
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - A N Tejada
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - J J Munier
- Section of Biosystems and Function, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - J Perez
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - M Goldfarb
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - K Das
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - M Gomez
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - T Ye
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - J Pannu
- Section of Biosystems and Function, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - K Evans
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - P R O'Neill
- Shirley and Stefan Hatos Center for Neuropharmacology, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - I Spigelman
- Section of Biosystems and Function, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
| | - A Soltani
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire 03755
| | - A Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095
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Levitin MO, Rawlins LE, Sanchez-Andrade G, Arshad OA, Collins SC, Sawiak SJ, Iffland PH, Andersson MHL, Bupp C, Cambridge EL, Coomber EL, Ellis I, Herkert JC, Ironfield H, Jory L, Kretz PF, Kant SG, Neaverson A, Nibbeling E, Rowley C, Relton E, Sanderson M, Scott EM, Stewart H, Shuen AY, Schreiber J, Tuck L, Tonks J, Terkelsen T, van Ravenswaaij-Arts C, Vasudevan P, Wenger O, Wright M, Day A, Hunter A, Patel M, Lelliott CJ, Crino PB, Yalcin B, Crosby AH, Baple EL, Logan DW, Hurles ME, Gerety SS. Models of KPTN-related disorder implicate mTOR signalling in cognitive and overgrowth phenotypes. Brain 2023; 146:4766-4783. [PMID: 37437211 PMCID: PMC10629792 DOI: 10.1093/brain/awad231] [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] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 06/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/14/2023] Open
Abstract
KPTN-related disorder is an autosomal recessive disorder associated with germline variants in KPTN (previously known as kaptin), a component of the mTOR regulatory complex KICSTOR. To gain further insights into the pathogenesis of KPTN-related disorder, we analysed mouse knockout and human stem cell KPTN loss-of-function models. Kptn -/- mice display many of the key KPTN-related disorder phenotypes, including brain overgrowth, behavioural abnormalities, and cognitive deficits. By assessment of affected individuals, we have identified widespread cognitive deficits (n = 6) and postnatal onset of brain overgrowth (n = 19). By analysing head size data from their parents (n = 24), we have identified a previously unrecognized KPTN dosage-sensitivity, resulting in increased head circumference in heterozygous carriers of pathogenic KPTN variants. Molecular and structural analysis of Kptn-/- mice revealed pathological changes, including differences in brain size, shape and cell numbers primarily due to abnormal postnatal brain development. Both the mouse and differentiated induced pluripotent stem cell models of the disorder display transcriptional and biochemical evidence for altered mTOR pathway signalling, supporting the role of KPTN in regulating mTORC1. By treatment in our KPTN mouse model, we found that the increased mTOR signalling downstream of KPTN is rapamycin sensitive, highlighting possible therapeutic avenues with currently available mTOR inhibitors. These findings place KPTN-related disorder in the broader group of mTORC1-related disorders affecting brain structure, cognitive function and network integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria O Levitin
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Evox Therapeutics Limited, Oxford OX4 4HG, UK
| | - Lettie E Rawlins
- RILD Wellcome Wolfson Medical Research Centre, University of Exeter, Exeter EX2 5DW, UK
- Peninsula Clinical Genetics Service, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter EX1 2ED, UK
| | | | - Osama A Arshad
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Stephan C Collins
- INSERM Unit 1231, Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Dijon 21078, France
| | - Stephen J Sawiak
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
- Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Phillip H Iffland
- Department of Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Malin H L Andersson
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Caleb Bupp
- Spectrum Health, Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital, Grand Rapids, MI 49503, USA
| | - Emma L Cambridge
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Eve L Coomber
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Ian Ellis
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, Liverpool L14 5AB, UK
| | - Johanna C Herkert
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen 9713 GZ, The Netherlands
| | - Holly Ironfield
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Logan Jory
- Haven Clinical Psychology Practice Ltd, Bude, Cornwall EX23 9HP, UK
| | | | - Sarina G Kant
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, Rotterdam 3015 GD, The Netherlands
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden 2300 RC, The Netherlands
| | - Alexandra Neaverson
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Open Targets, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EH, UK
| | - Esther Nibbeling
- Laboratory for Diagnostic Genome Analysis, Department of Clinical Genetics, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden 3015 GD, The Netherlands
| | - Christine Rowley
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Institute of Metabolic Science, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Emily Relton
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Faculty of Health and Medical Science, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7YH, UK
| | - Mark Sanderson
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Ethan M Scott
- New Leaf Center, Clinic for Special Children, Mount Eaton, OH 44659, USA
| | - Helen Stewart
- Oxford Centre for Genomic Medicine, Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, Oxford OX3 7HE, UK
| | - Andrew Y Shuen
- London Health Sciences Centre, London, ON N6A 5W9, Canada
- Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON N6A 5W9, Canada
| | - John Schreiber
- Department of Neurology, Children’s National Medical Center, Washington DC 20007, USA
| | - Liz Tuck
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - James Tonks
- Haven Clinical Psychology Practice Ltd, Bude, Cornwall EX23 9HP, UK
| | - Thorkild Terkelsen
- Department of Clinical Genetics, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus DK-8200, Denmark
| | - Conny van Ravenswaaij-Arts
- Department of Genetics, University Medical Centre, University of Groningen, Groningen 9713 GZ, The Netherlands
| | - Pradeep Vasudevan
- Department of Clinical Genetics, University Hospitals of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK
| | - Olivia Wenger
- New Leaf Center, Clinic for Special Children, Mount Eaton, OH 44659, USA
| | - Michael Wright
- Institute of Human Genetics, International Centre for Life, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU, UK
| | - Andrew Day
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Qkine Ltd., Cambridge CB5 8HW, UK
| | - Adam Hunter
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Minal Patel
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Christopher J Lelliott
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Institute of Metabolic Science, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Peter B Crino
- Department of Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Binnaz Yalcin
- INSERM Unit 1231, Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Dijon 21078, France
| | - Andrew H Crosby
- RILD Wellcome Wolfson Medical Research Centre, University of Exeter, Exeter EX2 5DW, UK
| | - Emma L Baple
- RILD Wellcome Wolfson Medical Research Centre, University of Exeter, Exeter EX2 5DW, UK
- Peninsula Clinical Genetics Service, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Exeter EX1 2ED, UK
| | - Darren W Logan
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Waltham Petcare Science Institute, Waltham on the Wolds LE14 4RT, UK
| | - Matthew E Hurles
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Open Targets, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
| | - Sebastian S Gerety
- Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
- Open Targets, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge CB10 1SA, UK
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6
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Aguirre CG, Woo JH, Romero-Sosa JL, Rivera ZM, Tejada AN, Munier JJ, Perez J, Goldfarb M, Das K, Gomez M, Ye T, Pannu J, Evans K, O'Neill PR, Spigelman I, Soltani A, Izquierdo A. Dissociable contributions of basolateral amygdala and ventrolateral orbitofrontal cortex to flexible learning under uncertainty. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.03.535471. [PMID: 37066321 PMCID: PMC10104064 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.03.535471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Reversal learning measures the ability to form flexible associations between choice outcomes with stimuli and actions that precede them. This type of learning is thought to rely on several cortical and subcortical areas, including highly interconnected orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and basolateral amygdala (BLA), and is often impaired in various neuropsychiatric and substance use disorders. However, unique contributions of these regions to stimulus- and action-based reversal learning have not been systematically compared using a chemogenetic approach and particularly before and after the first reversal that introduces new uncertainty. Here, we examined the roles of ventrolateral OFC (vlOFC) and BLA during reversal learning. Male and female rats were prepared with inhibitory DREADDs targeting projection neurons in these regions and tested on a series of deterministic and probabilistic reversals during which they learned about stimulus identity or side (left or right) associated with different reward probabilities. Using a counterbalanced within-subject design, we inhibited these regions prior to reversal sessions. We assessed initial and pre-post reversal changes in performance to measure learning and adjustments to reversals, respectively. We found that inhibition of vlOFC, but not BLA, eliminated adjustments to stimulus-based reversals. Inhibition of BLA, but not vlOFC, selectively impaired action-based probabilistic reversal learning, leaving deterministic reversal learning intact. vlOFC exhibited a sex-dependent role in early adjustment to action-based reversals, but not in overall learning. These results reveal dissociable roles for BLA and vlOFC in flexible learning and highlight a more crucial role for BLA in learning meaningful changes in the reward environment.
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7
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Ye T, Romero-Sosa JL, Rickard A, Aguirre CG, Wikenheiser AM, Blair HT, Izquierdo A. Theta oscillations in anterior cingulate cortex and orbitofrontal cortex differentially modulate accuracy and speed in flexible reward learning. OXFORD OPEN NEUROSCIENCE 2023; 2:kvad005. [PMID: 37456140 PMCID: PMC10348740 DOI: 10.1093/oons/kvad005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2022] [Revised: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2023] [Indexed: 07/18/2023]
Abstract
Flexible reward learning relies on frontal cortex, with substantial evidence indicating that anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) subregions play important roles. Recent studies in both rat and macaque suggest theta oscillations (5-10 Hz) may be a spectral signature that coordinates this learning. However, network-level interactions between ACC and OFC in flexible learning remain unclear. We investigated the learning of stimulus-reward associations using a combination of simultaneous in vivo electrophysiology in dorsal ACC and ventral OFC, partnered with bilateral inhibitory DREADDs in ACC. In freely behaving male and female rats and using a within-subject design, we examined accuracy and speed of response across distinct and precisely defined trial epochs during initial visual discrimination learning and subsequent reversal of stimulus-reward contingencies. Following ACC inhibition, there was a propensity for random responding in early reversal learning, with correct vs. incorrect trials distinguished only from OFC, not ACC, theta power differences in the reversal phase. ACC inhibition also hastened incorrect choices during reversal. This same pattern of change in accuracy and speed was not observed in viral control animals. Thus, characteristics of impaired reversal learning following ACC inhibition are poor deliberation and weak theta signaling of accuracy in this region. The present results also point to OFC theta oscillations as a prominent feature of reversal learning, unperturbed by ACC inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tony Ye
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | | | - Anne Rickard
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | | | - Andrew M Wikenheiser
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- The Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Addictions, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Hugh T Blair
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- The Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Alicia Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- The Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Addictions, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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8
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Jenni NL, Symonds N, Floresco SB. Medial orbitofrontal cortical regulation of different aspects of Pavlovian and instrumental reward seeking. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2023; 240:441-459. [PMID: 36322185 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06265-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE The medial subregion of the orbitofrontal cortex (mOFC) is thought to play an important role representing the expected outcome of a given course of action, as lesioning or inactivating this cortical region results in the adoption of choice strategies based more on observable (rather than previously learned) information. Despite this, its role in mediating basic associative learning remains to be fully clarified. OBJECTIVE The present series of experiments examined the role of the mOFC in (1) Pavlovian conditioned approach, (2) conditioned reinforcement, (3) extinction, and (4) cue-induced reinstatement of food-seeking behavior. METHODS Separate cohorts of rats went through Pavlovian or instrumental training. Intra-mOFC infusions of either saline or GABA agonists (to temporarily inactivate neural activity) were given prior to Pavlovian approach, conditioned reinforcement, first or second day of instrumental extinction training, or cue-induced reinstatement test days. RESULTS mOFC inactivation increased lever-CS contacts in Pavlovian conditioned approach and (2) had no effect on conditioned reinforcement. These manipulations (3) accelerated within-session instrumental extinction during the initial extinction session, but impaired subsequent extinction learning on drug-free days. (4) mOFC inactivation induced differential effects on reinstatement that depended on baseline performance. mOFC inactivation abolished reinstatement in "Reinstater" rats (who displayed robust responding under control conditions) and robustly increased reinstatement in "Non-Reinstater" rats (who showed little reinstatement under control conditions) suggesting that individual differences in reinstatement may be supported by differences in mOFC mediated representations of expected outcomes. CONCLUSIONS These findings have important implications for understanding how the mOFC uses stimulus-outcome and action-outcome expectancies to guide behavior, and how dysfunction within this region may contribute to pathological patterns of reward seeking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole L Jenni
- Department of Psychology and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, B.C, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Nicola Symonds
- Department of Psychology and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, B.C, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Stan B Floresco
- Department of Psychology and Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver, B.C, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
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9
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Latuske P, von Heimendahl M, Deiana S, Wotjak CT, du Hoffmann J. Sustained MK-801 induced deficit in a novel probabilistic reversal learning task. Front Pharmacol 2022; 13:898548. [PMID: 36313373 PMCID: PMC9614101 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.898548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Cognitive flexibility, the ability to adapt to unexpected changes, is critical for healthy environmental and social interactions, and thus to everyday functioning. In neuropsychiatric diseases, cognitive flexibility is often impaired and treatment options are lacking. Probabilistic reversal learning (PRL) is commonly used to measure cognitive flexibility in rodents and humans. In PRL tasks, subjects must sample choice options and, from probabilistic feedback, find the current best choice which then changes without warning. However, in rodents, pharmacological models of human cognitive impairment tend to disrupt only the first (or few) of several contingency reversals, making quantitative assessment of behavioral effects difficult. To address this limitation, we developed a novel rat PRL where reversals occur at relatively long intervals in time that demonstrates increased sensitivity to the non-competitive NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801. Here, we quantitively compare behavior in time-based PRL with a widely used task where reversals occur based on choice behavior. In time-based PRL, MK-801 induced sustained reversal learning deficits both in time and across reversal blocks but, at the same dose, only transient weak effects in performance-based PRL. Moreover, time-based PRL yielded better estimates of behavior and reinforcement learning model parameters, which opens meaningful pharmacological windows to efficiently test and develop novel drugs preclinically with the goal of improving cognitive impairment in human patients.
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10
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Wassum KM. Amygdala-cortical collaboration in reward learning and decision making. eLife 2022; 11:e80926. [PMID: 36062909 PMCID: PMC9444241 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive reward-related decision making requires accurate prospective consideration of the specific outcome of each option and its current desirability. These mental simulations are informed by stored memories of the associative relationships that exist within an environment. In this review, I discuss recent investigations of the function of circuitry between the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and lateral (lOFC) and medial (mOFC) orbitofrontal cortex in the learning and use of associative reward memories. I draw conclusions from data collected using sophisticated behavioral approaches to diagnose the content of appetitive memory in combination with modern circuit dissection tools. I propose that, via their direct bidirectional connections, the BLA and OFC collaborate to help us encode detailed, outcome-specific, state-dependent reward memories and to use those memories to enable the predictions and inferences that support adaptive decision making. Whereas lOFC→BLA projections mediate the encoding of outcome-specific reward memories, mOFC→BLA projections regulate the ability to use these memories to inform reward pursuit decisions. BLA projections to lOFC and mOFC both contribute to using reward memories to guide decision making. The BLA→lOFC pathway mediates the ability to represent the identity of a specific predicted reward and the BLA→mOFC pathway facilitates understanding of the value of predicted events. Thus, I outline a neuronal circuit architecture for reward learning and decision making and provide new testable hypotheses as well as implications for both adaptive and maladaptive decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate M Wassum
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Addictive Disorders, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
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11
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Groman SM, Thompson SL, Lee D, Taylor JR. Reinforcement learning detuned in addiction: integrative and translational approaches. Trends Neurosci 2022; 45:96-105. [PMID: 34920884 PMCID: PMC8770604 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2021.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Revised: 11/04/2021] [Accepted: 11/19/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Suboptimal decision-making strategies have been proposed to contribute to the pathophysiology of addiction. Decision-making, however, arises from a collection of computational components that can independently influence behavior. Disruptions in these different components can lead to decision-making deficits that appear similar behaviorally, but differ at the computational, and likely the neurobiological, level. Here, we discuss recent studies that have used computational approaches to investigate the decision-making processes underlying addiction. Studies in animal models have found that value updating following positive, but not negative, outcomes is predictive of drug use, whereas value updating following negative, but not positive, outcomes is disrupted following drug self-administration. We contextualize these findings with studies on the circuit and biological mechanisms of decision-making to develop a framework for revealing the biobehavioral mechanisms of addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie M. Groman
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota,Department of Psychiatry, Yale University,Correspondence to be directed to: Stephanie Groman, 321 Church Street SE, 4-125 Jackson Hall Minneapolis MN 55455,
| | | | - Daeyeol Lee
- The Zanvyl Krieger Mind/Brain Institute, The Solomon H Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University
| | - Jane R. Taylor
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University,Department of Neuroscience, Yale University,Department of Psychology, Yale University
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12
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Rudebeck PH, Izquierdo A. Foraging with the frontal cortex: A cross-species evaluation of reward-guided behavior. Neuropsychopharmacology 2022; 47:134-146. [PMID: 34408279 PMCID: PMC8617092 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-021-01140-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2021] [Revised: 07/30/2021] [Accepted: 07/30/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Efficient foraging is essential to survival and depends on frontal cortex in mammals. Because of its role in psychiatric disorders, frontal cortex and its contributions to reward procurement have been studied extensively in both rodents and non-human primates. How frontal cortex of these animal models compares is a source of intense debate. Here we argue that translating findings from rodents to non-human primates requires an appreciation of both the niche in which each animal forages as well as the similarities in frontal cortex anatomy and function. Consequently, we highlight similarities and differences in behavior and anatomy, before focusing on points of convergence in how parts of frontal cortex contribute to distinct aspects of foraging in rats and macaques, more specifically. In doing so, our aim is to emphasize where translation of frontal cortex function between species is clearer, where there is divergence, and where future work should focus. We finish by highlighting aspects of foraging for which have received less attention but we believe are critical to uncovering how frontal cortex promotes survival in each species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alicia Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
- The Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
- Integrative Center for Addictions, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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13
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Hatakama H, Asaoka N, Nagayasu K, Shirakawa H, Kaneko S. A selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor ameliorates obsessive-compulsive disorder-like perseverative behavior by attenuating 5-HT 2C receptor signaling in the orbitofrontal cortex. Neuropharmacology 2021; 206:108926. [PMID: 34921828 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2021.108926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2021] [Revised: 11/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Perseveration is a characteristic of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Clinically, neuronal activity in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is increased in OCD patients. Successful treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) reduces activity in the lateral OFC of OCD patients, but the precise mechanisms underlying this effect are unclear. Previously, we reported that repeated injection of the dopamine D2 receptor agonist quinpirole (QNP) resulted in OCD-like deficits, including perseveration in a reversal learning task. QNP-treated mice showed hyperactivity in lateral OFC pyramidal neurons. The present study demonstrated that 4-week administration of an SSRI increased the rate of correct choice in a reversal learning task. Using the electrophysiological approach, we revealed that an SSRI decreased the activity of lateral OFC pyramidal neurons in QNP-treated mice by potentiating inhibitory inputs. The 4-week administration of an SSRI inhibited the potentiation of neuronal activity induced by a 5-HT2C receptor agonist. Additionally, both 4-week administration of SSRI and acute application of 5-HT2C receptor antagonist prevented the QNP-induced potentiation of inhibitory inputs to fast-spiking interneurons in the lateral OFC. Administration of a 5-HT2C receptor antagonist to mice for 4 days increased the rate of correct choice in a reversal learning task. Collectively, these results indicate that chronic SSRI ameliorated perseverative behavior in QNP-treated mice by modulating inhibitory inputs in the lateral OFC. Short-term 5-HT2C receptor blockade also ameliorated QNP-induced behavioral and neurological abnormalities by, at least in part, a common mechanism with chronic SSRI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hikari Hatakama
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University, 46-29 Yoshida-Shimoadachi-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan
| | - Nozomi Asaoka
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University, 46-29 Yoshida-Shimoadachi-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan; Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Konoe-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
| | - Kazuki Nagayasu
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University, 46-29 Yoshida-Shimoadachi-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan
| | - Hisashi Shirakawa
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University, 46-29 Yoshida-Shimoadachi-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan
| | - Shuji Kaneko
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kyoto University, 46-29 Yoshida-Shimoadachi-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8501, Japan.
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14
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Impact of specific serotonin receptor modulation on behavioral flexibility. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2021; 209:173243. [PMID: 34314738 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2021.173243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 07/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Serotonin (5-HT) is known to play a critical role in regulation of essential neural processes, whereas more recent research highlights serotonin's modulatory effects on cognition and executive functioning. Current examinations have identified specific serotonin receptors for their direct impact on behavioral flexibility. Providing definitive evidence for the impact of specific receptor targets on behavioral flexibility is difficult, due to the range of behavioral tests used. Due to limited studies and the sheer amount of different serotonin receptor targets, beginning to bring these studies together is important for the field. Our current review of the literature aims to differentiate how modulation of specific 5-HT receptors affects behavioral flexibility. Although more studies have examined 5-HT2A, 5-HT2C, and 5-HT6 receptors, it is unclear why this is the case. Above all, there are some paradoxical results pertaining to these receptor targets. There is a clear distinction between 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C, which conveys that these two receptor subtypes have inverse effects when compared to each other. In addition, some findings support one another, such as upregulation of 5-HT6 receptors impairs flexibility, while blockade alleviates this impairment in both drug-induced and disease model rodent studies. Further understanding how modulatory effects of specific 5-HT receptors impact behavioral flexibility is imperative to advance the development of new therapeutics for neuropsychiatric disorders afflicted by behavioral inflexibility.
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15
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Noworyta K, Cieslik A, Rygula R. Reinforcement-based cognitive biases as vulnerability factors in alcohol addiction: From humans to animal models. Br J Pharmacol 2021; 179:4265-4280. [PMID: 34232505 DOI: 10.1111/bph.15613] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2021] [Revised: 06/06/2021] [Accepted: 06/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is one of the most common, but still poorly treated, psychiatric conditions. Developing new treatments requires a better understanding of the aetiology of symptoms and evaluation of novel therapeutic targets in preclinical studies. Recent developments in our understanding of the reinforcement-based cognitive biases (RBCBs) that contribute to the development of AUD and its treatment offer new opportunities for both clinical and preclinical research. In this review, we first briefly describe psychological and cognitive theories that involve various aspects of reinforcement sensitivity in the development, maintenance, and recurrence of alcohol addiction. Furthermore, in separate sections, we describe studies investigating RBCBs and their neural, neurochemical, and pharmacological correlates, and we discuss possible interactions between RBCBs and trajectories of AUD. Finally, we describe how recent translational studies using state-of-the-art animal models can facilitate our understanding of the role of reinforcement sensitivity and RBCBs in various aspects of AUD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karolina Noworyta
- Department of Pharmacology, Affective Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Maj Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
| | - Agata Cieslik
- Department of Pharmacology, Affective Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Maj Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
| | - Rafal Rygula
- Department of Pharmacology, Affective Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Maj Institute of Pharmacology Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland
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16
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Sias AC, Morse AK, Wang S, Greenfield VY, Goodpaster CM, Wrenn TM, Wikenheiser AM, Holley SM, Cepeda C, Levine MS, Wassum KM. A bidirectional corticoamygdala circuit for the encoding and retrieval of detailed reward memories. eLife 2021; 10:e68617. [PMID: 34142660 PMCID: PMC8266390 DOI: 10.7554/elife.68617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive reward-related decision making often requires accurate and detailed representation of potential available rewards. Environmental reward-predictive stimuli can facilitate these representations, allowing one to infer which specific rewards might be available and choose accordingly. This process relies on encoded relationships between the cues and the sensory-specific details of the rewards they predict. Here, we interrogated the function of the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and its interaction with the lateral orbitofrontal cortex (lOFC) in the ability to learn such stimulus-outcome associations and use these memories to guide decision making. Using optical recording and inhibition approaches, Pavlovian cue-reward conditioning, and the outcome-selective Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT) test in male rats, we found that the BLA is robustly activated at the time of stimulus-outcome learning and that this activity is necessary for sensory-specific stimulus-outcome memories to be encoded, so they can subsequently influence reward choices. Direct input from the lOFC was found to support the BLA in this function. Based on prior work, activity in BLA projections back to the lOFC was known to support the use of stimulus-outcome memories to influence decision making. By multiplexing optogenetic and chemogenetic inhibition we performed a serial circuit disconnection and found that the lOFC→BLA and BLA→lOFC pathways form a functional circuit regulating the encoding (lOFC→BLA) and subsequent use (BLA→lOFC) of the stimulus-dependent, sensory-specific reward memories that are critical for adaptive, appetitive decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana C Sias
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Ashleigh K Morse
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Sherry Wang
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Venuz Y Greenfield
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Caitlin M Goodpaster
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Tyler M Wrenn
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Andrew M Wikenheiser
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Sandra M Holley
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Carlos Cepeda
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Michael S Levine
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Kate M Wassum
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Addictive Disorders, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
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17
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Hervig ME, Fiddian L, Piilgaard L, Božič T, Blanco-Pozo M, Knudsen C, Olesen SF, Alsiö J, Robbins TW. Dissociable and Paradoxical Roles of Rat Medial and Lateral Orbitofrontal Cortex in Visual Serial Reversal Learning. Cereb Cortex 2021; 30:1016-1029. [PMID: 31343680 PMCID: PMC7132932 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhz144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2019] [Revised: 05/17/2019] [Accepted: 06/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Much evidence suggests that reversal learning is mediated by cortico-striatal circuitries with the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) playing a prominent role. The OFC is a functionally heterogeneous region, but potential differential roles of lateral (lOFC) and medial (mOFC) portions in visual reversal learning have yet to be determined. We investigated the effects of pharmacological inactivation of mOFC and lOFC on a deterministic serial visual reversal learning task for rats. For reference, we also targeted other areas previously implicated in reversal learning: prelimbic (PrL) and infralimbic (IL) prefrontal cortex, and basolateral amygdala (BLA). Inactivating mOFC and lOFC produced opposite effects; lOFC impairing, and mOFC improving, performance in the early, perseverative phase specifically. Additionally, mOFC inactivation enhanced negative feedback sensitivity, while lOFC inactivation diminished feedback sensitivity in general. mOFC and lOFC inactivation also affected novel visual discrimination learning differently; lOFC inactivation paradoxically improved learning, and mOFC inactivation had no effect. We also observed dissociable roles of the OFC and the IL/PrL. Whereas the OFC inactivation affected only perseveration, IL/PrL inactivation improved learning overall. BLA inactivation did not affect perseveration, but improved the late phase of reversal learning. These results support opponent roles of the rodent mOFC and lOFC in deterministic visual reversal learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- M E Hervig
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark.,Research Laboratory for Stereology and Neuroscience, Copenhagen University Hospital, Bispebjerg, Copenhagen NV, Denmark
| | - L Fiddian
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - L Piilgaard
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - T Božič
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - M Blanco-Pozo
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - C Knudsen
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - S F Olesen
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - J Alsiö
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - T W Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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18
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Barreiros IV, Panayi MC, Walton ME. Organization of Afferents along the Anterior-posterior and Medial-lateral Axes of the Rat Orbitofrontal Cortex. Neuroscience 2021; 460:53-68. [PMID: 33609638 PMCID: PMC8022030 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2021.02.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2020] [Revised: 02/09/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) has been anatomically divided into a number of subregions along its medial-lateral axis, which behavioral research suggests have distinct functions. Recently, evidence has emerged suggesting functional diversity is also present along the anterior-posterior axis of the rodent OFC. However, the patterns of anatomical connections that underlie these differences have not been well characterized. Here, we use the retrograde tracer cholera toxin subunit B (CTB) to simultaneously label the projections into the anterior lateral (ALO), posterior lateral (PLO), and posterior ventral (PVO) portions of the rat OFC. Our methodological approach allowed us to simultaneously compare the density and input patterns into these OFC subdivisions. We observed distinct and topographically organized projection patterns into ALO, PLO, and PVO from the mediodorsal and the submedius nuclei of the thalamus. We also observed different levels of connectivity strength into these OFC subdivisions from the amygdala, motor cortex, sensory cortices and medial prefrontal cortical structures, including medial OFC, infralimbic and prelimbic cortices. Interestingly, while labelling in some of these input regions revealed only a gradient in connectivity strength, other regions seem to project almost exclusively to specific OFC subdivisions. Moreover, differences in input patterns between ALO and PLO were as pronounced as those between PLO and PVO. Together, our results support the existence of distinct anatomical circuits within lateral OFC along its anterior-posterior axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ines V Barreiros
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SR, UK; Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK.
| | - Marios C Panayi
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SR, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK.
| | - Mark E Walton
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SR, UK; Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK.
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19
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Banerjee A, Rikhye RV, Marblestone A. Reinforcement-guided learning in frontal neocortex: emerging computational concepts. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2021.02.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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20
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Keefer SE, Petrovich GD. The basolateral amygdala-medial prefrontal cortex circuitry regulates behavioral flexibility during appetitive reversal learning. Behav Neurosci 2020; 134:34-44. [PMID: 31829643 PMCID: PMC6944768 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Environmental cues can become predictors of food availability through Pavlovian conditioning. Two forebrain regions important in this associative learning are the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Recent work showed the BLA-mPFC pathway is activated when a cue reliably signals food, suggesting the BLA informs the mPFC of the cue's value. The current study tested this hypothesis by altering the value of 2 food cues using reversal learning and illness-induced devaluation paradigms. Rats that received unilateral excitotoxic lesions of the BLA and mPFC contralaterally placed, along with ipsilateral and sham controls, underwent discriminative conditioning, followed by reversal learning and then devaluation. All groups successfully discriminated between 2 auditory stimuli that were followed by food delivery (conditional stimulus [CS] +) or not rewarded (CS-), demonstrating this learning does not require BLA-mPFC communication. When the outcomes of the stimuli were reversed, the rats with disconnected BLA-mPFC (contralateral condition) showed increased responding to the CSs, especially to the rCS + (original CS-) during the first session, suggesting impaired cue memory recall and behavioral inhibition compared to the other groups. For devaluation, all groups successfully learned conditioned taste aversion; however, there was no evidence of cue devaluation or differences between groups. Interestingly, at the end of testing, the nondevalued contralateral group was still responding more to the original CS + (rCS-) compared to the devalued contralateral group. These results suggest a potential role for BLA-mPFC communication in guiding appropriate responding during periods of behavioral flexibility when the outcomes, and thus the values, of learned cues are altered. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara E. Keefer
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 20 Penn Street, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
| | - Gorica D. Petrovich
- Department of Psychology, Boston College, 140 Commomwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467, USA
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21
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Stolyarova A, Rakhshan M, Hart EE, O'Dell TJ, Peters MAK, Lau H, Soltani A, Izquierdo A. Contributions of anterior cingulate cortex and basolateral amygdala to decision confidence and learning under uncertainty. Nat Commun 2019; 10:4704. [PMID: 31624264 PMCID: PMC6797780 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12725-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2019] [Accepted: 09/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The subjective sense of certainty, or confidence, in ambiguous sensory cues can alter the interpretation of reward feedback and facilitate learning. We trained rats to report the orientation of ambiguous visual stimuli according to a spatial stimulus-response rule that must be learned. Following choice, rats could wait a self-timed delay for reward or initiate a new trial. Waiting times increase with discrimination accuracy, demonstrating that this measure can be used as a proxy for confidence. Chemogenetic silencing of BLA shortens waiting times overall whereas ACC inhibition renders waiting times insensitive to confidence-modulating attributes of visual stimuli, suggesting contribution of ACC but not BLA to confidence computations. Subsequent reversal learning is enhanced by confidence. Both ACC and BLA inhibition block this enhancement but via differential adjustments in learning strategies and consistent use of learned rules. Altogether, we demonstrate dissociable roles for ACC and BLA in transmitting confidence and learning under uncertainty.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Stolyarova
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - M Rakhshan
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA
| | - E E Hart
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - T J O'Dell
- Department of Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- The Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
| | - M A K Peters
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
- Interdepartmental Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, 92521, USA
| | - H Lau
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- The Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
- State Key Laboratory for Brain and Cognitive Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam, Hong Kong
| | - A Soltani
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, 03755, USA.
| | - A Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
- The Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
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22
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Groman SM, Keistler C, Keip AJ, Hammarlund E, DiLeone RJ, Pittenger C, Lee D, Taylor JR. Orbitofrontal Circuits Control Multiple Reinforcement-Learning Processes. Neuron 2019; 103:734-746.e3. [PMID: 31253468 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2019.05.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2019] [Revised: 04/18/2019] [Accepted: 05/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Adaptive decision making in dynamic environments requires multiple reinforcement-learning steps that may be implemented by dissociable neural circuits. Here, we used a novel directionally specific viral ablation approach to investigate the function of several anatomically defined orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) circuits during adaptive, flexible decision making in rats trained on a probabilistic reversal learning task. Ablation of OFC neurons projecting to the nucleus accumbens selectively disrupted performance following a reversal, by disrupting the use of negative outcomes to guide subsequent choices. Ablation of amygdala neurons projecting to the OFC also impaired reversal performance, but due to disruptions in the use of positive outcomes to guide subsequent choices. Ablation of OFC neurons projecting to the amygdala, by contrast, enhanced reversal performance by destabilizing action values. Our data are inconsistent with a unitary function of the OFC in decision making. Rather, distinct OFC-amygdala-striatal circuits mediate distinct components of the action-value updating and maintenance necessary for decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Colby Keistler
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA
| | - Alex J Keip
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA
| | - Emma Hammarlund
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA
| | - Ralph J DiLeone
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA
| | - Christopher Pittenger
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA; Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA
| | - Daeyeol Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA; Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA
| | - Jane R Taylor
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA; Department of Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06515, USA.
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Stroke Induces a BDNF-Dependent Improvement in Cognitive Flexibility in Aged Mice. Neural Plast 2019; 2019:1460890. [PMID: 31191635 PMCID: PMC6525942 DOI: 10.1155/2019/1460890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2018] [Revised: 03/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Stroke remains a leading cause of disability worldwide. Recently, we have established an animal model of stroke that results in delayed impairment in spatial memory, allowing us to better investigate cognitive deficits. Young and aged brains show different recovery profiles after stroke; therefore, we assessed aged-related differences in poststroke cognition. As neurotrophic support diminishes with age, we also investigated the involvement of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in these differences. Young (3-6 months old) and aged (16-21 months old) mice were trained in operant touchscreen chambers to complete a visual pairwise discrimination (VD) task. Stroke or sham surgery was induced using the photothrombotic model to induce a bilateral prefrontal cortex stroke. Five days poststroke, an additional cohort of aged stroke animals were treated with intracerebral hydrogels loaded with the BDNF decoy, TrkB-Fc. Following treatment, animals underwent the reversal and rereversal task to identify stroke-induced cognitive deficits at days 17 and 37 poststroke, respectively. Assessment of sham animals using Cox regression and log-rank analyses showed aged mice exhibit an increased impairment on VD reversal and rereversal learning compared to young controls. Stroke to young mice revealed no impairment on either task. In contrast, stroke to aged mice facilitated a significant improvement in reversal learning, which was dampened in the presence of the BDNF decoy, TrkB-Fc. In addition, aged stroke control animals required significantly less consecutive days and correction trials to master the reversal task, relative to aged shams, an effect dampened by TrkB-Fc. Our findings support age-related differences in recovery of cognitive function after stroke. Interestingly, aged stroke animals outperformed their sham counterparts, suggesting reopening of a critical window for recovery that is being mediated by BDNF.
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Hernandez CM, Orsini CA, Labiste CC, Wheeler AR, Ten Eyck TW, Bruner MM, Sahagian TJ, Harden SW, Frazier CJ, Setlow B, Bizon JL. Optogenetic dissection of basolateral amygdala contributions to intertemporal choice in young and aged rats. eLife 2019; 8:46174. [PMID: 31017572 PMCID: PMC6530979 DOI: 10.7554/elife.46174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2019] [Accepted: 04/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Across species, aging is associated with an increased ability to choose delayed over immediate gratification. These experiments used young and aged rats to test the role of the basolateral amygdala (BLA) in intertemporal decision making. An optogenetic approach was used to inactivate the BLA in young and aged rats at discrete time points during choices between levers that yielded a small, immediate vs. a large, delayed food reward. BLA inactivation just prior to decisions attenuated impulsive choice in both young and aged rats. In contrast, inactivation during receipt of the small, immediate reward increased impulsive choice in young rats but had no effect in aged rats. BLA inactivation during the delay or intertrial interval had no effect at either age. These data demonstrate that the BLA plays multiple, temporally distinct roles during intertemporal choice, and show that the contribution of BLA to choice behavior changes across the lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caesar M Hernandez
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Caitlin A Orsini
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Chase C Labiste
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Alexa-Rae Wheeler
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Tyler W Ten Eyck
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Matthew M Bruner
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Todd J Sahagian
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Scott W Harden
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Charles J Frazier
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Barry Setlow
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
| | - Jennifer L Bizon
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Florida, Gainesville, United States
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Girotti M, Adler SM, Bulin SE, Fucich EA, Paredes D, Morilak DA. Prefrontal cortex executive processes affected by stress in health and disease. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2018; 85:161-179. [PMID: 28690203 PMCID: PMC5756532 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2017.07.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2017] [Revised: 07/01/2017] [Accepted: 07/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Prefrontal cortical executive functions comprise a number of cognitive capabilities necessary for goal directed behavior and adaptation to a changing environment. Executive dysfunction that leads to maladaptive behavior and is a symptom of psychiatric pathology can be instigated or exacerbated by stress. In this review we survey research addressing the impact of stress on executive function, with specific focus on working memory, attention, response inhibition, and cognitive flexibility. We then consider the neurochemical pathways underlying these cognitive capabilities and, where known, how stress alters them. Finally, we review work exploring potential pharmacological and non-pharmacological approaches that can ameliorate deficits in executive function. Both preclinical and clinical literature indicates that chronic stress negatively affects executive function. Although some of the circuitry and neurochemical processes underlying executive function have been characterized, a great deal is still unknown regarding how stress affects these processes. Additional work focusing on this question is needed in order to make progress on developing interventions that ameliorate executive dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milena Girotti
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA.
| | - Samantha M Adler
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
| | - Sarah E Bulin
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Fucich
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
| | - Denisse Paredes
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
| | - David A Morilak
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Dr, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA
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Kiehl KA, Anderson NE, Aharoni E, Maurer JM, Harenski KA, Rao V, Claus ED, Harenski C, Koenigs M, Decety J, Kosson D, Wager TD, Calhoun VD, Steele VR. Age of gray matters: Neuroprediction of recidivism. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2018; 19:813-823. [PMID: 30013925 PMCID: PMC6024200 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2018.05.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2017] [Revised: 05/11/2018] [Accepted: 05/29/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Age is one of the best predictors of antisocial behavior. Risk models of recidivism often combine chronological age with demographic, social and psychological features to aid in judicial decision-making. Here we use independent component analyses (ICA) and machine learning techniques to demonstrate the utility of using brain-based measures of cerebral aging to predict recidivism. First, we developed a brain-age model that predicts chronological age based on structural MRI data from incarcerated males (n = 1332). We then test the model's ability to predict recidivism in a new sample of offenders with longitudinal outcome data (n = 93). Consistent with hypotheses, inclusion of brain-age measures of the inferior frontal cortex and anterior-medial temporal lobes (i.e., amygdala) improved prediction models when compared with models using chronological age; and models that combined psychological, behavioral, and neuroimaging measures provided the most robust prediction of recidivism. These results verify the utility of brain measures in predicting future behavior, and suggest that brain-based data may more precisely account for important variation when compared with traditional proxy measures such as chronological age. This work also identifies new brain systems that contribute to recidivism which has clinical implications for treatment development. A brain-age model is developed on a large sample of MRI data collected from incarcerated males (n = 1332). The model is tested in a new sample to predict recidivism using brain vs. chronological age. Brain-age measures outperformed chronological age in prediction of recidivism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kent A Kiehl
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA; University of New Mexico School of Law, Albuquerque, NM, USA.
| | - Nathaniel E Anderson
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Eyal Aharoni
- Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - J Michael Maurer
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Keith A Harenski
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Vikram Rao
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Eric D Claus
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Carla Harenski
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Mike Koenigs
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Jean Decety
- Department of Psychology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - David Kosson
- Department of Psychology, Rosalind Franklin University, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Tor D Wager
- Department of Psychology, University of Colorado-Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Vince D Calhoun
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA; Department of Psychiatry, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - Vaughn R Steele
- The nonprofit Mind Research Network (MRN) & Lovelace Biomedical, Albuquerque, NM, USA
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Functional Heterogeneity within Rat Orbitofrontal Cortex in Reward Learning and Decision Making. J Neurosci 2017; 37:10529-10540. [PMID: 29093055 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1678-17.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 171] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2017] [Revised: 08/31/2017] [Accepted: 09/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Rat orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is located in the dorsal bank of the rhinal sulcus, and is divided into the medial orbital area, ventral orbital area, ventrolateral orbital area, lateral orbital area, dorsolateral orbital area, and agranular insular areas. Over the past 20 years, there has been a marked increase in the number of publications focused on the functions of rat OFC. While collectively this extensive body of work has provided great insight into the functions of OFC, leading to theoretical and computational models of its functions, one issue that has emerged relates to what is defined as OFC because targeting of this region can be quite variable between studies of appetitive behavior, even within the same species. Also apparent is that there is an oversampling and undersampling of certain subregions of rat OFC for study, and this will be demonstrated here. The intent of the Viewpoint is to summarize studies in rat OFC, given the diversity of what groups refer to as "OFC," and to integrate these with the findings of recent anatomical studies. The primary aim is to help discern functions in reward learning and decision-making, clearing the course for future empirical work.
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Amygdala Contributions to Stimulus-Reward Encoding in the Macaque Medial and Orbital Frontal Cortex during Learning. J Neurosci 2017; 37:2186-2202. [PMID: 28123082 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0933-16.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2016] [Revised: 01/14/2017] [Accepted: 01/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), medial frontal cortex (MFC), and amygdala mediate stimulus-reward learning, but the mechanisms through which they interact are unclear. Here, we investigated how neurons in macaque OFC and MFC signaled rewards and the stimuli that predicted them during learning with and without amygdala input. Macaques performed a task that required them to evaluate two stimuli and then choose one to receive the reward associated with that option. Four main findings emerged. First, amygdala lesions slowed the acquisition and use of stimulus-reward associations. Further analyses indicated that this impairment was due, at least in part, to ineffective use of negative feedback to guide subsequent decisions. Second, the activity of neurons in OFC and MFC rapidly evolved to encode the amount of reward associated with each stimulus. Third, amygdalectomy reduced encoding of stimulus-reward associations during the evaluation of different stimuli. Reward encoding of anticipated and received reward after choices were made was not altered. Fourth, amygdala lesions led to an increase in the proportion of neurons in MFC, but not OFC, that encoded the instrumental response that monkeys made on each trial. These correlated changes in behavior and neural activity after amygdala lesions strongly suggest that the amygdala contributes to the ability to learn stimulus-reward associations rapidly by shaping encoding within OFC and MFC.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Altered functional interactions among orbital frontal cortex (OFC), medial frontal cortex (MFC), and amygdala are thought to underlie several psychiatric conditions, many related to reward learning. Here, we investigated the causal contribution of the amygdala to the development of neuronal activity in macaque OFC and MFC related to rewards and the stimuli that predict them during learning. Without amygdala inputs, neurons in both OFC and MFC showed decreased encoding of stimulus-reward associations. MFC also showed increased encoding of the instrumental responses that monkeys made on each trial. Behaviorally, changes in neural activity were accompanied by slower stimulus-reward learning. The findings suggest that interactions among amygdala, OFC, and MFC contribute to learning about stimuli that predict rewards.
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Perseveration in a spatial-discrimination serial reversal learning task is differentially affected by MAO-A and MAO-B inhibition and associated with reduced anxiety and peripheral serotonin levels. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2017; 234:1557-1571. [PMID: 28251298 PMCID: PMC5420387 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-017-4569-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2016] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Impairments in behavioral flexibility lie at the core of anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders. Few studies, however, have investigated the neural substrates of natural variation in behavioral flexibility and whether inflexible behavior is linked to anxiety and peripheral markers of stress and monoamine function. OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to investigate peripheral and central markers associated with perseverative behavior on a spatial-discrimination serial reversal learning task. METHODS Rats were trained on a reversal learning task prior to blood sampling, anxiety assessment, and the behavioral evaluation of selective monoamine oxidase-A (MAO-A) and MAO-B inhibitors, which block the degradation of serotonin (5-HT), dopamine (DA), and noradrenaline (NA). RESULTS Perseveration correlated positively with 5-HT levels in blood plasma and inversely with trait anxiety, as measured on the elevated plus maze. No significant relationships were found between perseveration and the stress hormone corticosterone or the 5-HT precursor tryptophan. Reversal learning was significantly improved by systemic administration of the MAO-A inhibitor moclobemide but not by the MAO-B inhibitor lazabemide. Moclobemide also increased latencies to initiate a new trial following an incorrect response suggesting a possible role in modulating behavioral inhibition to negative feedback. MAO-A but not MAO-B inhibition resulted in pronounced increases in 5-HT and NA content in the orbitofrontal cortex and dorsal raphé nuclei and increased 5-HT and DA content in the basolateral amygdala and dorsomedial striatum. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that central and peripheral monoaminergic mechanisms underlie inter-individual variation in behavioral flexibility, which overlaps with trait anxiety and depends on functional MAO-A activity.
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Costa VD, Dal Monte O, Lucas DR, Murray EA, Averbeck BB. Amygdala and Ventral Striatum Make Distinct Contributions to Reinforcement Learning. Neuron 2016; 92:505-517. [PMID: 27720488 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2016.09.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2016] [Revised: 07/28/2016] [Accepted: 08/31/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Reinforcement learning (RL) theories posit that dopaminergic signals are integrated within the striatum to associate choices with outcomes. Often overlooked is that the amygdala also receives dopaminergic input and is involved in Pavlovian processes that influence choice behavior. To determine the relative contributions of the ventral striatum (VS) and amygdala to appetitive RL, we tested rhesus macaques with VS or amygdala lesions on deterministic and stochastic versions of a two-arm bandit reversal learning task. When learning was characterized with an RL model relative to controls, amygdala lesions caused general decreases in learning from positive feedback and choice consistency. By comparison, VS lesions only affected learning in the stochastic task. Moreover, the VS lesions hastened the monkeys' choice reaction times, which emphasized a speed-accuracy trade-off that accounted for errors in deterministic learning. These results update standard accounts of RL by emphasizing distinct contributions of the amygdala and VS to RL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vincent D Costa
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA.
| | - Olga Dal Monte
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Daniel R Lucas
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Elisabeth A Murray
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Bruno B Averbeck
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
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Performance in a GO/NOGO perceptual task reflects a balance between impulsive and instrumental components of behaviour. Sci Rep 2016; 6:27389. [PMID: 27272438 PMCID: PMC4895381 DOI: 10.1038/srep27389] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2015] [Accepted: 05/17/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years, simple GO/NOGO behavioural tasks have become popular due to the relative ease with which they can be combined with technologies such as in vivo multiphoton imaging. To date, it has been assumed that behavioural performance can be captured by the average performance across a session, however this neglects the effect of motivation on behaviour within individual sessions. We investigated the effect of motivation on mice performing a GO/NOGO visual discrimination task. Performance within a session tended to follow a stereotypical trajectory on a Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) chart, beginning with an over-motivated state with many false positives, and transitioning through a more or less optimal regime to end with a low hit rate after satiation. Our observations are reproduced by a new model, the Motivated Actor-Critic, introduced here. Our results suggest that standard measures of discriminability, obtained by averaging across a session, may significantly underestimate behavioural performance.
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Sex differences, learning flexibility, and striatal dopamine D1 and D2 following adolescent drug exposure in rats. Behav Brain Res 2016; 308:104-14. [PMID: 27091300 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2016.04.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2016] [Revised: 03/23/2016] [Accepted: 04/14/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Corticostriatal circuitry supports flexible reward learning and emotional behavior from the critical neurodevelopmental stage of adolescence through adulthood. It is still poorly understood how prescription drug exposure in adolescence may impact these outcomes in the long-term. We studied adolescent methylphenidate (MPH) and fluoxetine (FLX) exposure in rats and their impact on learning and emotion in adulthood. In Experiment 1, male and female rats were administered MPH, FLX, or saline (SAL), and compared with methamphetamine (mAMPH) treatment beginning in postnatal day (PND) 37. The rats were then tested on discrimination and reversal learning in adulthood. In Experiment 2, animals were administered MPH or SAL also beginning in PND 37 and later tested in adulthood for anxiety levels. In Experiment 3, we analyzed striatal dopamine D1 and D2 receptor expression in adulthood following either extensive learning (after Experiment 1) or more brief emotional measures (after Experiment 2). We found sex differences in discrimination learning and attenuated reversal learning after MPH and only sex differences in adulthood anxiety. In learners, there was enhanced striatal D1, but not D2, after either adolescent MPH or mAMPH. Lastly, also in learners, there was a sex x treatment group interaction for D2, but not D1, driven by the MPH-pretreated females, who expressed significantly higher D2 levels compared to SAL. These results show enduring effects of adolescent MPH on reversal learning in rats. Developmental psychostimulant exposure may interact with learning to enhance D1 expression in adulthood, and affect D2 expression in a sex-dependent manner.
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Izquierdo A, Brigman JL, Radke AK, Rudebeck PH, Holmes A. The neural basis of reversal learning: An updated perspective. Neuroscience 2016; 345:12-26. [PMID: 26979052 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2016.03.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 365] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2015] [Revised: 02/24/2016] [Accepted: 03/07/2016] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Reversal learning paradigms are among the most widely used tests of cognitive flexibility and have been used as assays, across species, for altered cognitive processes in a host of neuropsychiatric conditions. Based on recent studies in humans, non-human primates, and rodents, the notion that reversal learning tasks primarily measure response inhibition, has been revised. In this review, we describe how cognitive flexibility is measured by reversal learning and discuss new definitions of the construct validity of the task that are serving as a heuristic to guide future research in this field. We also provide an update on the available evidence implicating certain cortical and subcortical brain regions in the mediation of reversal learning, and an overview of the principal neurotransmitter systems involved.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, The Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - J L Brigman
- Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | - A K Radke
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Genomic Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - P H Rudebeck
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10014, USA
| | - A Holmes
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Genomic Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
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Johnson CM, Loucks FA, Peckler H, Thomas AW, Janak PH, Wilbrecht L. Long-range orbitofrontal and amygdala axons show divergent patterns of maturation in the frontal cortex across adolescence. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2016; 18:113-120. [PMID: 26896859 PMCID: PMC5283395 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2016.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2015] [Revised: 01/26/2016] [Accepted: 01/30/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The adolescent transition from juvenile to adult is marked by anatomical and functional remodeling of brain networks. Currently, the cellular and synaptic level changes underlying the adolescent transition are only coarsely understood. Here, we use two-photon imaging to make time-lapse observations of long-range axons that innervate the frontal cortex in the living brain. We labeled cells in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and basolateral amygdala (BLA) and imaged their axonal afferents to the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC). We also imaged the apical dendrites of dmPFC pyramidal neurons. Images were taken daily in separate cohorts of juvenile (P24–P28) and young adult mice (P64–P68), ages where we have previously discovered differences in dmPFC dependent decision-making. Dendritic spines were pruned across this peri-adolescent period, while BLA and OFC afferents followed alternate developmental trajectories. OFC boutons showed no decrease in density, but did show a decrease in daily bouton gain and loss with age. BLA axons showed an increase in both bouton density and daily bouton gain at the later age, suggesting a delayed window of enhanced plasticity. Our findings reveal projection specific maturation of synaptic structures within a single frontal region and suggest that stabilization is a more general characteristic of maturation than pruning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolyn M Johnson
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94158, United States; Psychology Department, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States; Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - F Alexandra Loucks
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94158, United States
| | - Hannah Peckler
- Psychology Department, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - A Wren Thomas
- Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Patricia H Janak
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, United States
| | - Linda Wilbrecht
- Psychology Department, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States; Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States.
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Hvoslef-Eide M, Nilsson SRO, Saksida LM, Bussey TJ. Cognitive Translation Using the Rodent Touchscreen Testing Approach. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2016; 28:423-447. [PMID: 27305921 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2015_5007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
The development of novel therapeutic avenues for the treatment of cognitive deficits in psychiatric and neurodegenerative disease is of high importance, yet progress in this field has been slow. One reason for this lack of success may lie in discrepancies between how cognitive functions are assessed in experimental animals and humans. In an attempt to bridge this translational gap, the rodent touchscreen testing platform is suggested as a translational tool. Specific examples of successful cross-species translation are discussed focusing on paired associate learning (PAL), the 5-choice serial reaction time task (5-CSRTT), the rodent continuous performance task (rCPT) and reversal learning. With ongoing research assessing the neurocognitive validity of tasks, the touchscreen approach is likely to become increasingly prevalent in translational cognitive research.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Hvoslef-Eide
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - S R O Nilsson
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - L M Saksida
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - T J Bussey
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
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Chau BKH, Sallet J, Papageorgiou GK, Noonan MP, Bell AH, Walton ME, Rushworth MFS. Contrasting Roles for Orbitofrontal Cortex and Amygdala in Credit Assignment and Learning in Macaques. Neuron 2015; 87:1106-18. [PMID: 26335649 PMCID: PMC4562909 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2015.08.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2014] [Revised: 06/26/2015] [Accepted: 08/11/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Recent studies have challenged the view that orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) and amygdala mediate flexible reward-guided behavior. We trained macaques to perform an object discrimination reversal task during fMRI sessions and identified a lateral OFC (lOFC) region in which activity predicted adaptive win-stay/lose-shift behavior. Amygdala and lOFC activity was more strongly coupled on lose-shift trials. However, lOFC-amygdala coupling was also modulated by the relevance of reward information in a manner consistent with a role in establishing how credit for reward should be assigned. Day-to-day fluctuations in signals and signal coupling were correlated with day-to-day fluctuation in performance. A second experiment confirmed the existence of signals for adaptive stay/shift behavior in lOFC and reflecting irrelevant reward in the amygdala in a probabilistic learning task. Our data demonstrate that OFC and amygdala each make unique contributions to flexible behavior and credit assignment. Orbitofrontal cortex determines future behavior on the basis of reward feedback Variation in orbitofrontal cortex activity is correlated with variation in learning Amygdala carries information about irrelevant reward Amygdala-orbitofrontal interactions emphasize relevant not irrelevant reward
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Affiliation(s)
- Bolton K H Chau
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, Oxford, UK; Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong.
| | - Jérôme Sallet
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, Oxford, UK
| | | | - MaryAnn P Noonan
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, Oxford, UK
| | - Andrew H Bell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, Oxford, UK; MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, 15 Chaucer Road, Cambridge, CB2 7EF, UK
| | - Mark E Walton
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, Oxford, UK
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Are the carrot and the stick the two sides of same coin? A neural examination of approach/avoidance motivation during cognitive performance. Behav Brain Res 2015. [PMID: 26213335 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2015.07.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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Marquardt K, Sigdel R, Caldwell K, Brigman JL. Prenatal ethanol exposure impairs executive function in mice into adulthood. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2015; 38:2962-8. [PMID: 25581651 DOI: 10.1111/acer.12577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2014] [Accepted: 09/11/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite evidence that prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) can lead to a wide range of impairments in cognitive, social, and emotional behaviors, drinking during pregnancy remains common. Although there is a general understanding that high levels of drinking during pregnancy are unsafe, conflicting evidence regarding the impact of low intake may account for the persistence of this behavior. METHODS To investigate the effects of PAE on learning and executive control, we utilized a voluntary paradigm where pregnant mice had access to a saccharin-sweetened 10% alcohol solution for 4 hours, during the dark cycle, throughout gestation. Male and female offspring were tested as adults on a touch-screen discrimination and reversal task mediated by corticostriatal circuits. RESULTS Consistent with previous findings, PAE did not lead to gross morphological, motor, or sensory alterations in offspring. Both PAE and saccharin control female mice were slower to acquire the discrimination than males, but PAE did not impair associative learning in either sex. During reversal, PAE led to a specific and significant impairment in the early phase, where cortical control is most required to flexibly alter choice behavior. PAE mice showed a significant increase in maladaptive perseverative responses but showed intact learning of the new association during late reversal. CONCLUSIONS Previously, data from clinical studies have suggested that executive control deficits may underlie cognitive, as well as social, problems seen in adolescents with documented PAE. These data demonstrate that even more moderate alcohol exposure during development can lead to impaired cognitive functioning well into adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristin Marquardt
- Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, New Mexico
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Wassum KM, Izquierdo A. The basolateral amygdala in reward learning and addiction. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2015; 57:271-83. [PMID: 26341938 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2015.08.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 203] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2015] [Revised: 08/27/2015] [Accepted: 08/28/2015] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Sophisticated behavioral paradigms partnered with the emergence of increasingly selective techniques to target the basolateral amygdala (BLA) have resulted in an enhanced understanding of the role of this nucleus in learning and using reward information. Due to the wide variety of behavioral approaches many questions remain on the circumscribed role of BLA in appetitive behavior. In this review, we integrate conclusions of BLA function in reward-related behavior using traditional interference techniques (lesion, pharmacological inactivation) with those using newer methodological approaches in experimental animals that allow in vivo manipulation of cell type-specific populations and neural recordings. Secondly, from a review of appetitive behavioral tasks in rodents and monkeys and recent computational models of reward procurement, we derive evidence for BLA as a neural integrator of reward value, history, and cost parameters. Taken together, BLA codes specific and temporally dynamic outcome representations in a distributed network to orchestrate adaptive responses. We provide evidence that experiences with opiates and psychostimulants alter these outcome representations in BLA, resulting in long-term modified action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate M Wassum
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Alicia Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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Noradrenergic signaling in the medial prefrontal cortex and amygdala differentially regulates vicarious trial-and-error in a spatial decision-making task. Behav Brain Res 2015; 297:104-11. [PMID: 26341318 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2015.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2015] [Revised: 08/29/2015] [Accepted: 09/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
In uncertain choice situations, we deliberately search and evaluate possible options before taking an action. Once we form a preference regarding the current situation, we take an action more automatically and with less deliberation. In rats, the deliberation process can be seen in vicarious trial-and-error behavior (VTE), which is a head-orienting behavior toward options at a choice point. Recent neurophysiological findings suggest that VTE reflects the rat's thinking about future options as deliberation, expectation, and planning when rats feel conflict. VTE occurs depending on the demand: an increase occurs during initial learning, and a decrease occurs with progression in learning. However, the brain circuit underlying the regulation of VTE has not been thoroughly examined. In situations in which VTE often appears, the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and the amygdala (AMY) are crucial for learning and decision making. Our previous study reported that noradrenaline regulates VTE. Here, to investigate whether the mPFC and AMY are involved in regulation of VTE, we examined the effects of local injection of clonidine, an alpha2 adrenergic autoreceptor agonist, into either region in rats during VTE and choice behavior during a T-maze choice task. Injection of clonidine into either region impaired selection of the advantageous choice in the task. Furthermore, clonidine injection into the mPFC suppressed occurrence of VTE in the early phase of the task, whereas injection into the AMY inhibited the decrease in VTE in the later phase and thus maintained a high level of VTE throughout the task. These results suggest that the mPFC and AMY play a role in the increase and decrease in VTE, respectively, and that noradrenergic mechanisms mediate the dynamic regulation of VTE over experiences.
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Alm KH, Rolheiser T, Mohamed FB, Olson IR. Fronto-temporal white matter connectivity predicts reversal learning errors. Front Hum Neurosci 2015; 9:343. [PMID: 26150776 PMCID: PMC4471733 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00343] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2015] [Accepted: 05/29/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Each day, we make hundreds of decisions. In some instances, these decisions are guided by our innate needs; in other instances they are guided by memory. Probabilistic reversal learning tasks exemplify the close relationship between decision making and memory, as subjects are exposed to repeated pairings of a stimulus choice with a reward or punishment outcome. After stimulus-outcome associations have been learned, the associated reward contingencies are reversed, and participants are not immediately aware of this reversal. Individual differences in the tendency to choose the previously rewarded stimulus reveal differences in the tendency to make poorly considered, inflexible choices. Lesion studies have strongly linked reversal learning performance to the functioning of the orbitofrontal cortex, the hippocampus, and in some instances, the amygdala. Here, we asked whether individual differences in the microstructure of the uncinate fasciculus, a white matter tract that connects anterior and medial temporal lobe regions to the orbitofrontal cortex, predict reversal learning performance. Diffusion tensor imaging and behavioral paradigms were used to examine this relationship in 33 healthy young adults. The results of tractography revealed a significant negative relationship between reversal learning performance and uncinate axial diffusivity, but no such relationship was demonstrated in a control tract, the inferior longitudinal fasciculus. Our findings suggest that the uncinate might serve to integrate associations stored in the anterior and medial temporal lobes with expectations about expected value based on feedback history, computed in the orbitofrontal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kylie H Alm
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Tyler Rolheiser
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Feroze B Mohamed
- Department of Radiology, Temple University School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Ingrid R Olson
- Department of Psychology, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA USA
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Ochoa JG, Stolyarova A, Kaur A, Hart EE, Bugarin A, Izquierdo A. Post-training depletions of basolateral amygdala serotonin fail to disrupt discrimination, retention, or reversal learning. Front Neurosci 2015; 9:155. [PMID: 26029036 PMCID: PMC4426727 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2015.00155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2015] [Accepted: 04/15/2015] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
In goal-directed pursuits, the basolateral amygdala (BLA) is critical in learning about changes in the value of rewards. BLA-lesioned rats show enhanced reversal learning, a task employed to measure the flexibility of response to changes in reward. Similarly, there is a trend for enhanced discrimination learning, suggesting that BLA may modulate formation of stimulus-reward associations. There is a parallel literature on the importance of serotonin (5HT) in new stimulus-reward and reversal learning. Recent postulations implicate 5HT in learning from punishment. Whereas, dopaminergic involvement is critical in behavioral activation and reinforcement, 5HT may be most critical for aversive processing and behavioral inhibition, complementary cognitive processes. Given these findings, a 5HT-mediated mechanism in BLA may mediate the facilitated learning observed previously. The present study investigated the effects of selective 5HT lesions in BLA using 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT) vs. infusions of saline (Sham) on discrimination, retention, and deterministic reversal learning. Rats were required to reach an 85% correct pairwise discrimination and single reversal criterion prior to surgery. Postoperatively, rats were then tested on the (1) retention of the pretreatment discrimination pair, (2) discrimination of a novel pair, and (3) reversal learning performance. We found statistically comparable preoperative learning rates between groups, intact postoperative retention, and unaltered novel discrimination and reversal learning in 5,7-DHT rats. These findings suggest that 5HT in BLA is not required for formation and flexible adjustment of new stimulus-reward associations when the strategy to efficiently solve the task has already been learned. Given the complementary role of orbitofrontal cortex in reward learning and its interconnectivity with BLA, these findings add to the list of dissociable mechanisms for BLA and orbitofrontal cortex in reward learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesus G Ochoa
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Alexandra Stolyarova
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Amandeep Kaur
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Evan E Hart
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Amador Bugarin
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Alicia Izquierdo
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA ; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Rudebeck PH, Murray EA. The orbitofrontal oracle: cortical mechanisms for the prediction and evaluation of specific behavioral outcomes. Neuron 2014; 84:1143-56. [PMID: 25521376 PMCID: PMC4271193 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2014.10.049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 267] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) has long been associated with the flexible control of behavior and concepts such as behavioral inhibition, self-control, and emotional regulation. These ideas emphasize the suppression of behaviors and emotions, but OFC's affirmative functions have remained enigmatic. Here we review recent work that has advanced our understanding of this prefrontal area and how its functions are shaped through interaction with subcortical structures such as the amygdala. Recent findings have overturned theories emphasizing behavioral inhibition as OFC's fundamental function. Instead, new findings indicate that OFC provides predictions about specific outcomes associated with stimuli, choices, and actions, especially their moment-to-moment value based on current internal states. OFC function thereby encompasses a broad representation or model of an individual's sensory milieu and potential actions, along with their relationship to likely behavioral outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter H Rudebeck
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10014, USA.
| | - Elisabeth A Murray
- Section on the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, Building 49, Suite 1B80, 49 Convent Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
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Stolyarova A, O'Dell SJ, Marshall JF, Izquierdo A. Positive and negative feedback learning and associated dopamine and serotonin transporter binding after methamphetamine. Behav Brain Res 2014; 271:195-202. [PMID: 24959862 PMCID: PMC4232208 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2014.06.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2014] [Revised: 05/15/2014] [Accepted: 06/16/2014] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Learning from mistakes and prospectively adjusting behavior in response to reward feedback is an important facet of performance monitoring. Dopamine (DA) pathways play an important role in feedback learning and a growing literature has also emerged on the importance of serotonin (5HT) in reward learning, particularly during punishment or reward omission (negative feedback). Cognitive impairments resulting from psychostimulant exposure may arise from altered patterns in feedback learning, which in turn may be modulated by DA and 5HT transmission. We analyzed long-term, off-drug changes in learning from positive and negative feedback and associated striatal DA transporter (DAT) and frontocortical 5HT transporter (SERT) binding in rats pretreated with methamphetamine (mAMPH). Specifically, we assessed the reversal phase of pairwise visual discrimination learning in rats receiving single dose- (mAMPHsingle) vs. escalating-dose exposure (mAMPHescal). Using fine-grained trial-by-trial analyses, we found increased sensitivity to and reliance on positive feedback in mAMPH-pretreated animals, with the mAMPHsingle group showing more pronounced use of this type of feedback. In contrast, overall negative feedback sensitivity was not altered following any mAMPH treatment. In addition to validating the enduring effects of mAMPH on early reversal learning, we found more consecutive error commissions before the first correct response in mAMPH-pretreated rats. This behavioral rigidity was negatively correlated with subregional frontocortical SERT whereas positive feedback sensitivity negatively correlated with striatal DAT binding. These results provide new evidence for the overlapping, yet dissociable roles of DA and 5HT systems in overcoming perseveration and in learning new reward rules.
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Marquardt K, Saha M, Mishina M, Young JW, Brigman JL. Loss of GluN2A-containing NMDA receptors impairs extra-dimensional set-shifting. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2014; 13:611-7. [PMID: 25059550 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2014] [Revised: 07/08/2014] [Accepted: 07/21/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Glutamate neurotransmission via the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) is thought to mediate the synaptic plasticity underlying learning and memory formation. There is increasing evidence that deficits in NMDAR function are involved in the pathophysiology of cognitive dysfunction seen in neuropsychiatric disorders and addiction. NMDAR subunits confer different physiological properties to the receptor, interact with distinct intracellular postsynaptic scaffolding and signaling molecules, and are differentially expressed during development. Despite these known differences, the relative contribution of individual subunit composition to synaptic plasticity and learning is not fully elucidated. We have previously shown that constitutive deletion of GluN2A subunit in the mouse impairs discrimination and re-learning phase of reversal when exemplars are complex picture stimuli, but spares acquisition and extinction of non-discriminative visually cued instrumental response. To investigate the role of GluN2A containing NMDARs in executive control, we tested GluN2A knockout (GluN2A(KO) ), heterozygous (GluN2A(HET) ) and wild-type (WT) littermates on an attentional set-shifting task using species-specific stimulus dimensions. To further explore the nature of deficits in this model, mice were tested on a visual discrimination reversal paradigm using simplified rotational stimuli. GluN2A(KO) were not impaired on discrimination or reversal problems when tactile or olfactory stimuli were used, or when visual stimuli were sufficiently easy to discriminate. GluN2A(KO) showed a specific and significant impairment in ventromedial prefrontal cortex-mediated set-shifting. Together these results support a role for GluN2A containing NMDAR in modulating executive control that can be masked by overlapping deficits in attentional processes during high task demands.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Marquardt
- Department of Neurosciences, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, Albuquerque, NM, USA
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46
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Ye T, Pozos H, Phillips TJ, Izquierdo A. Long-term effects of exposure to methamphetamine in adolescent rats. Drug Alcohol Depend 2014; 138:17-23. [PMID: 24629630 PMCID: PMC4066881 DOI: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2014.02.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2013] [Revised: 01/31/2014] [Accepted: 02/16/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Flexible cognition is a set of processes mediated by the prefrontal cortex (PFC), an area of the brain that continues to develop during adolescence and into adulthood. Adult rodents exhibit impairments specific to reversal learning across various dosing regimens of methamphetamine (mAMPH). For adolescent rodents, ongoing PFC development can be assessed by discrimination reversal learning, a task dependent on frontostriatal integrity. The task may also index an increased vulnerability for mAMPH sampling in adulthood. METHODS The purpose of the present study was to investigate the long-term effects of escalating, adolescent mAMPH exposure on reversal learning, a PFC-dependent task (Experiment 1) and the likelihood of later sampling of mAMPH in adulthood (Experiment 2). RESULTS Unlike previous research in adult-treated rats, our results show more generalized learning impairments after adolescent mAMPH exposure to include both attenuated visual discrimination as well as reversal learning. Additionally, we found that rats pre-exposed to mAMPH during adolescence consumed significantly more drug in adulthood. Intake of mAMPH was positively correlated with this learning. Taken together, these findings show that even modest exposure to mAMPH during adolescence may induce general learning impairments in adulthood, and an enduring sensitivity to the effects of mAMPH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tony Ye
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Psychology, Los Angeles, CA USA
| | - Hilda Pozos
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Psychology, Los Angeles, CA USA
| | - Tamara J. Phillips
- Oregon Health & Science University, Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Methamphetamine Abuse Research Center, Portland, OR USA
| | - Alicia Izquierdo
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Psychology, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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Mar AC, Horner AE, Nilsson SRO, Alsiö J, Kent BA, Kim CH, Holmes A, Saksida LM, Bussey TJ. The touchscreen operant platform for assessing executive function in rats and mice. Nat Protoc 2013; 8:1985-2005. [PMID: 24051960 PMCID: PMC4131754 DOI: 10.1038/nprot.2013.123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 179] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
This protocol details a subset of assays developed within the touchscreen platform to measure various aspects of executive function in rodents. Three main procedures are included: extinction, measuring the rate and extent of curtailing a response that was previously, but is no longer, associated with reward; reversal learning, measuring the rate and extent of switching a response toward a visual stimulus that was previously not, but has become, associated with reward (and away from a visual stimulus that was previously, but is no longer, rewarded); and the 5-choice serial reaction time (5-CSRT) task, gauging the ability to selectively detect and appropriately respond to briefly presented, spatially unpredictable visual stimuli. These protocols were designed to assess both complementary and overlapping constructs including selective and divided visual attention, inhibitory control, flexibility, impulsivity and compulsivity. The procedures comprise part of a wider touchscreen test battery assessing cognition in rodents with high potential for translation to human studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam C Mar
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
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Pujara M, Koenigs M. Mechanisms of reward circuit dysfunction in psychiatric illness: prefrontal-striatal interactions. Neuroscientist 2013; 20:82-95. [PMID: 23924665 DOI: 10.1177/1073858413499407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The brain's "reward circuit" has been widely implicated in the pathophysiology of mental illness. Although there has been significant progress in identifying the functional characteristics of individual nodes within the circuit and linking dysfunction of these brain areas to various forms of psychopathology, there remains a substantial gap in understanding how the nodes of the circuit interact with one another, and how the growing neurobiological knowledge may be applied to improve psychiatric patient care. In this article, we summarize what is currently known about the functions and interactions of two key nodes of this circuit-the ventral striatum and the ventromedial prefrontal/orbital frontal cortex-in relation to mental illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maia Pujara
- 1Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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