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Mahmud M, Bekele M, Behera N. A computational investigation of cis-gene regulation in evolution. Theory Biosci 2023; 142:151-165. [PMID: 37041403 DOI: 10.1007/s12064-023-00391-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/13/2023]
Abstract
In biological processes involving gene networks, genes regulate other genes that determine the phenotypic traits. Gene regulation plays an important role in evolutionary dynamics. In a genetic algorithm, a trans-gene regulatory mechanism was shown to speed up adaptation and evolution. Here, we examine the effect of cis-gene regulation on an adaptive system. The model is haploid. A chromosome is partitioned into regulatory loci and structural loci. The regulatory genes regulate the expression and functioning of structural genes via the cis-elements in a probabilistic manner. In the simulation, the change in the allele frequency, the mean population fitness and the efficiency of phenotypic selection are monitored. Cis-gene regulation increases adaption and accelerates the evolutionary process in comparison with the case involving absence of gene regulation. Some special features of the simulation results are as follows. A low ratio of regulatory loci and structural loci gives higher adaptation for fixed total number of loci. Plasticity is advantageous beyond a threshold value. Adaptation is better for large number of total loci when the ratio of regulatory loci to structural loci is one. However, it reaches a saturation beyond which the increase in the total loci is not advantageous. Efficiency of the phenotypic selection is higher for larger value of the initial plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammed Mahmud
- Department of Physics, Addis Ababa University, P.O.Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Mulugeta Bekele
- Department of Physics, Addis Ababa University, P.O.Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
| | - Narayan Behera
- Department of Applied Physics, Adama Science and Technology University, P. O. Box 1888, Adama, Ethiopia.
- Division of Physical Science, SVYASA University, Eknath Bhavan, Kempegowda Nagar, Bengaluru, 560019, India.
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2
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Frank GKW, Shott ME, Pryor T, Swindle S, Stoddard J. Brain reward response in adolescents and young adults with anorexia nervosa is moderated by changes in body weight and sweetness perception. Int J Eat Disord 2022; 55:1799-1810. [PMID: 36135728 DOI: 10.1002/eat.23814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Revised: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a severe psychiatric illness with complex etiology. Recently, we found elevated striatal brain response to sweet taste stimuli in adolescents and young adults with AN. Here, we tested the hypothesis that nutritional rehabilitation normalizes prediction error activation, a measure for dopamine-related reward circuit response, to salient caloric taste stimuli in AN. METHODS A total of 28 individuals with AN (age = 16 ± 2 years; body mass index [BMI] = 16 ± 1) who previously underwent brain imaging while performing a taste prediction error task using sucrose as salient caloric stimulus, participated in a second brain imaging scan (BMI = 18 ± 1) after intensive specialized eating disorder treatment (41 ± 15 days). A total of 31 healthy controls (age = 16 ± 3 years; BMI = 21 ± 2) were also studied on two occasions. RESULTS At baseline, individuals with AN demonstrated an elevated salience response in bilateral caudate head and nucleus accumbens, and right ventral striatum. At the second scan, elevated response was only found in the right nucleus accumbens. A moderator analysis indicated that greater increase in BMI and greater decrease in sweetness perception predicted lesser prediction error response at the second scan in AN. CONCLUSION Consistent with the previously reported monetary stimulus-response, elevated taste prediction error response in AN was largely absent after weight restoration. This study indicates that changes in BMI and sweet taste perception are independent moderators of change of brain salience response in adolescents and young adults with AN. The study points toward dynamic changes in the brain reward circuitry in AN and highlights the importance of nutrition and weight restoration in that process. PUBLIC SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT AN is a severe psychiatric illness. Biological factors that integrate neurobiology and behavior could become important targets to improve treatment outcome. This study highlights the importance of weight normalization and taste perception the normalization of brain function, and food type or taste-specific interventions could help in the recovery process. Furthermore, the study suggests that food-related and nonfood-related reward processing adapts to illness state in AN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guido K W Frank
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA.,Rady Children's Hospital San Diego, Medical Behavior Unit, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Megan E Shott
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
| | | | - Skylar Swindle
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Joel Stoddard
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, Colorado, USA
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3
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Colas JT, Dundon NM, Gerraty RT, Saragosa‐Harris NM, Szymula KP, Tanwisuth K, Tyszka JM, van Geen C, Ju H, Toga AW, Gold JI, Bassett DS, Hartley CA, Shohamy D, Grafton ST, O'Doherty JP. Reinforcement learning with associative or discriminative generalization across states and actions: fMRI at 3 T and 7 T. Hum Brain Mapp 2022; 43:4750-4790. [PMID: 35860954 PMCID: PMC9491297 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2022] [Revised: 05/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The model-free algorithms of "reinforcement learning" (RL) have gained clout across disciplines, but so too have model-based alternatives. The present study emphasizes other dimensions of this model space in consideration of associative or discriminative generalization across states and actions. This "generalized reinforcement learning" (GRL) model, a frugal extension of RL, parsimoniously retains the single reward-prediction error (RPE), but the scope of learning goes beyond the experienced state and action. Instead, the generalized RPE is efficiently relayed for bidirectional counterfactual updating of value estimates for other representations. Aided by structural information but as an implicit rather than explicit cognitive map, GRL provided the most precise account of human behavior and individual differences in a reversal-learning task with hierarchical structure that encouraged inverse generalization across both states and actions. Reflecting inference that could be true, false (i.e., overgeneralization), or absent (i.e., undergeneralization), state generalization distinguished those who learned well more so than action generalization. With high-resolution high-field fMRI targeting the dopaminergic midbrain, the GRL model's RPE signals (alongside value and decision signals) were localized within not only the striatum but also the substantia nigra and the ventral tegmental area, including specific effects of generalization that also extend to the hippocampus. Factoring in generalization as a multidimensional process in value-based learning, these findings shed light on complexities that, while challenging classic RL, can still be resolved within the bounds of its core computations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaron T. Colas
- Department of Psychological and Brain SciencesUniversity of CaliforniaSanta BarbaraCaliforniaUSA
- Division of the Humanities and Social SciencesCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCaliforniaUSA
- Computation and Neural Systems Program, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCaliforniaUSA
| | - Neil M. Dundon
- Department of Psychological and Brain SciencesUniversity of CaliforniaSanta BarbaraCaliforniaUSA
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and PsychosomaticsUniversity of FreiburgFreiburg im BreisgauGermany
| | - Raphael T. Gerraty
- Department of PsychologyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Center for Science and SocietyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Natalie M. Saragosa‐Harris
- Department of PsychologyNew York UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of CaliforniaLos AngelesCaliforniaUSA
| | - Karol P. Szymula
- Department of BioengineeringUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Koranis Tanwisuth
- Division of the Humanities and Social SciencesCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCaliforniaUSA
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of CaliforniaBerkeleyCaliforniaUSA
| | - J. Michael Tyszka
- Division of the Humanities and Social SciencesCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCaliforniaUSA
| | - Camilla van Geen
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Harang Ju
- Neuroscience Graduate GroupUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Arthur W. Toga
- Laboratory of Neuro ImagingUSC Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute, Keck School of Medicine of USC, University of Southern CaliforniaLos AngelesCaliforniaUSA
| | - Joshua I. Gold
- Department of NeuroscienceUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
| | - Dani S. Bassett
- Department of BioengineeringUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
- Department of Electrical and Systems EngineeringUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
- Department of NeurologyUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
- Department of PsychiatryUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
- Department of Physics and AstronomyUniversity of PennsylvaniaPhiladelphiaPennsylvaniaUSA
- Santa Fe InstituteSanta FeNew MexicoUSA
| | - Catherine A. Hartley
- Department of PsychologyNew York UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Center for Neural ScienceNew York UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Daphna Shohamy
- Department of PsychologyColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Kavli Institute for Brain ScienceColumbia UniversityNew YorkNew YorkUSA
| | - Scott T. Grafton
- Department of Psychological and Brain SciencesUniversity of CaliforniaSanta BarbaraCaliforniaUSA
| | - John P. O'Doherty
- Division of the Humanities and Social SciencesCalifornia Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCaliforniaUSA
- Computation and Neural Systems Program, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaCaliforniaUSA
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4
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Frank GKW, Shott ME, Stoddard J, Swindle S, Pryor TL. Association of Brain Reward Response With Body Mass Index and Ventral Striatal-Hypothalamic Circuitry Among Young Women With Eating Disorders. JAMA Psychiatry 2021; 78:1123-1133. [PMID: 34190963 PMCID: PMC8246338 DOI: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.1580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Eating disorders are severe psychiatric disorders; however, disease models that cross subtypes and integrate behavior and neurobiologic factors are lacking. OBJECTIVE To assess brain response during unexpected receipt or omission of a salient sweet stimulus across a large sample of individuals with eating disorders and healthy controls and test for evidence of whether this brain response is associated with the ventral striatal-hypothalamic circuitry, which has been associated with food intake control, and whether salient stimulus response and eating disorder related behaviors are associated. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS In this cross-sectional functional brain imaging study, young adults across the eating disorder spectrum were matched with healthy controls at a university brain imaging facility and eating disorder treatment program. During a sucrose taste classic conditioning paradigm, violations of learned associations between conditioned visual and unconditioned taste stimuli evoked the dopamine-related prediction error. Dynamic effective connectivity during expected sweet taste receipt was studied to investigate hierarchical brain activation between food intake relevant brain regions. The study was conducted from June 2014 to November 2019. Data were analyzed from December 2019 to February 2020. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Prediction error brain reward response across insula and striatum; dynamic effective connectivity between hypothalamus and ventral striatum; and demographic and behavior variables and their correlations with prediction error brain response and connectivity edge coefficients. RESULTS Of 317 female participants (197 with eating disorders and 120 healthy controls), the mean (SD) age was 23.8 (5.6) years and mean (SD) body mass index was 20.8 (5.4). Prediction error response was elevated in participants with anorexia nervosa (Wilks λ, 0.843; P = .001) and in participants with eating disorders inversely correlated with body mass index (left nucleus accumbens: r = -0.291; 95% CI, -0.413 to -0.167; P < .001; right dorsal anterior insula: r = -0.228; 95% CI, -0.366 to -0.089; P = .001), eating disorder inventory-3 binge eating tendency (left nucleus accumbens: r = -0.207; 95% CI, -0.333 to -0.073; P = .004; right dorsal anterior insula: r = -0.220; 95% CI, -0.354 to -0.073; P = .002), and trait anxiety (left nucleus accumbens: r = -0.148; 95% CI, -0.288 to -0.003; P = .04; right dorsal anterior insula: r = -0.221; 95% CI, -0.357 to -0.076; P = .002). Ventral striatal to hypothalamus directed connectivity was positively correlated with ventral striatal prediction error in eating disorders (r = 0.189; 95% CI, 0.045-0.324; P = .01) and negatively correlated with feeling out of control after eating (right side: r = -0.328; 95% CI, -0.480 to -0.164; P < .001; left side: r = -0.297; 95% CI, -0.439 to -0.142; P = .001). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE The results of this cross-sectional imaging study support that body mass index modulates prediction error and food intake control circuitry in the brain. Once altered, this circuitry may reinforce eating disorder behaviors when paired with behavioral traits associated with overeating or undereating.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guido K. W. Frank
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego, San Diego
| | - Megan E. Shott
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego, San Diego
| | - Joel Stoddard
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora
| | - Skylar Swindle
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego, San Diego
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5
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From Desire to Dread-A Neurocircuitry Based Model for Food Avoidance in Anorexia Nervosa. J Clin Med 2021; 10:jcm10112228. [PMID: 34063884 PMCID: PMC8196668 DOI: 10.3390/jcm10112228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2021] [Revised: 05/18/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Anorexia nervosa is a severe psychiatric illness associated with food avoidance. Animal models from Berridge et al. over the past decade showed that environmental ambience, pleasant or fear inducing, can trigger either appetitive (desire) or avoidance (dread) behaviors in animals via frontal cortex, nucleus accumbens dopamine D1 and D2 receptors, and hypothalamus. Those mechanisms could be relevant for understanding anorexia nervosa. However, models that translate animal research to explain the psychopathology of anorexia nervosa are sparse. This article reviews animal and human research to find evidence for whether this model can explain food avoidance behaviors in anorexia nervosa. Research on anorexia nervosa suggests fear conditioning to food, activation of the corticostriatal brain circuitry, sensitization of ventral striatal dopamine response, and alterations in hypothalamic function. The results support the applicability of the animal neurocircuitry derived model and provide directions to further study the pathophysiology that underlies anorexia nervosa.
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6
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Tolomeo S, Yaple ZA, Yu R. Neural representation of prediction error signals in substance users. Addict Biol 2021; 26:e12976. [PMID: 33236447 DOI: 10.1111/adb.12976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Revised: 07/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Abnormal decision making can result in detrimental outcomes of clinical importance, and decision making is strongly linked to neural prediction error signalling. Activation likelihood estimation (ALE) meta-analyses were used to examine the neural correlates of prediction error signals of individuals taking different types of substances and healthy controls with contrast and conjunction analyses. Twenty-eight studies were included in the meta-analysis, representing 424 substance users' individuals and 834 healthy control individuals. Robust brain activity associated with prediction error signals in substance users was found for the bilateral striatum and insula. Healthy control subjects also activated bilateral striatum, midbrain, right insula and right medial-inferior frontal gyrus. Compared with healthy controls, substance users showed blunted activity in the bilateral putamen, right medial-inferior frontal gyrus and insula. The current meta-analysis of cross-sectional findings investigated neural prediction error signals in substance users. PE abnormalities in substance users might be related to poor decision making. In conclusion, the present study helps identify the pathophysiological underpinnings of maladaptive decision making in substance users.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zachary A. Yaple
- Department of Psychology National University of Singapore Singapore
| | - Rongjun Yu
- Department of Psychology National University of Singapore Singapore
- NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering National University of Singapore Singapore
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7
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Limbrick-Oldfield EH, Leech R, Wise RJS, Ungless MA. Financial gain- and loss-related BOLD signals in the human ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra pars compacta. Eur J Neurosci 2018; 49:1196-1209. [PMID: 30471149 PMCID: PMC6618000 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2018] [Revised: 11/09/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNC) play central roles in reward-related behaviours. Nonhuman animal studies suggest that these neurons also process aversive events. However, our understanding of how the human VTA and SNC responds to such events is limited and has been hindered by the technical challenge of using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate a small structure where the signal is particularly vulnerable to physiological noise. Here we show, using methods optimized specifically for the midbrain (including high-resolution imaging, a novel registration protocol, and physiological noise modelling), a BOLD (blood-oxygen-level dependent) signal to both financial gain and loss in the VTA and SNC, along with a response to nil outcomes that are better or worse than expected in the VTA. Taken together, these findings suggest that the human VTA and SNC are involved in the processing of both appetitive and aversive financial outcomes in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eve H Limbrick-Oldfield
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMS), London, UK.,Institute of Clinical Sciences (ICS), Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Robert Leech
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, London, UK
| | - Richard J S Wise
- Division of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Hospital, London, UK
| | - Mark A Ungless
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMS), London, UK.,Institute of Clinical Sciences (ICS), Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK
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8
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Hétu S, Luo Y, D'Ardenne K, Lohrenz T, Montague PR. Human substantia nigra and ventral tegmental area involvement in computing social error signals during the ultimatum game. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2018; 12:1972-1982. [PMID: 28981876 PMCID: PMC5716153 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsx097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2016] [Accepted: 08/07/2017] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
As models of shared expectations, social norms play an essential role in our societies. Since our social environment is changing constantly, our internal models of it also need to change. In humans, there is mounting evidence that neural structures such as the insula and the ventral striatum are involved in detecting norm violation and updating internal models. However, because of methodological challenges, little is known about the possible involvement of midbrain structures in detecting norm violation and updating internal models of our norms. Here, we used high-resolution cardiac-gated functional magnetic resonance imaging and a norm adaptation paradigm in healthy adults to investigate the role of the substantia nigra/ventral tegmental area (SN/VTA) complex in tracking signals related to norm violation that can be used to update internal norms. We show that the SN/VTA codes for the norm’s variance prediction error (PE) and norm PE with spatially distinct regions coding for negative and positive norm PE. These results point to a common role played by the SN/VTA complex in supporting both simple reward-based and social decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sébastien Hétu
- Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, 2 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA
| | - Yi Luo
- Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, 2 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA
| | - Kimberlee D'Ardenne
- Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, 2 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA
| | - Terry Lohrenz
- Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, 2 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA
| | - P Read Montague
- Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, 2 Riverside Circle, Roanoke, VA 24016, USA.,Welcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, 12 Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
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9
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Nebe S, Kroemer NB, Schad DJ, Bernhardt N, Sebold M, Müller DK, Scholl L, Kuitunen-Paul S, Heinz A, Rapp MA, Huys QJ, Smolka MN. No association of goal-directed and habitual control with alcohol consumption in young adults. Addict Biol 2018; 23:379-393. [PMID: 28111829 DOI: 10.1111/adb.12490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2016] [Revised: 12/02/2016] [Accepted: 12/06/2016] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Alcohol dependence is a mental disorder that has been associated with an imbalance in behavioral control favoring model-free habitual over model-based goal-directed strategies. It is as yet unknown, however, whether such an imbalance reflects a predisposing vulnerability or results as a consequence of repeated and/or excessive alcohol exposure. We, therefore, examined the association of alcohol consumption with model-based goal-directed and model-free habitual control in 188 18-year-old social drinkers in a two-step sequential decision-making task while undergoing functional magnetic resonance imaging before prolonged alcohol misuse could have led to severe neurobiological adaptations. Behaviorally, participants showed a mixture of model-free and model-based decision-making as observed previously. Measures of impulsivity were positively related to alcohol consumption. In contrast, neither model-free nor model-based decision weights nor the trade-off between them were associated with alcohol consumption. There were also no significant associations between alcohol consumption and neural correlates of model-free or model-based decision quantities in either ventral striatum or ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Exploratory whole-brain functional magnetic resonance imaging analyses with a lenient threshold revealed early onset of drinking to be associated with an enhanced representation of model-free reward prediction errors in the posterior putamen. These results suggest that an imbalance between model-based goal-directed and model-free habitual control might rather not be a trait marker of alcohol intake per se.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephan Nebe
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
- Neuroimaging Center; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
| | - Nils B. Kroemer
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
- Neuroimaging Center; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
| | - Daniel J. Schad
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Germany
- Social and Preventive Medicine, Area of Excellence Cognitive Sciences; University of Potsdam; Germany
| | - Nadine Bernhardt
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
| | - Miriam Sebold
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Germany
| | - Dirk K. Müller
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
- Neuroimaging Center; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
| | - Lucie Scholl
- Institute of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
| | - Sören Kuitunen-Paul
- Institute of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
| | - Andreas Heinz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Germany
| | - Michael A. Rapp
- Social and Preventive Medicine, Area of Excellence Cognitive Sciences; University of Potsdam; Germany
| | - Quentin J.M. Huys
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit, Department of Biomedical Engineering; University of Zürich, and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zürich; Switzerland
- Centre for Addictive Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Hospital of Psychiatry; University of Zürich; Switzerland
| | - Michael N. Smolka
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
- Neuroimaging Center; Technische Universität Dresden; Germany
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10
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Colas JT, Pauli WM, Larsen T, Tyszka JM, O’Doherty JP. Distinct prediction errors in mesostriatal circuits of the human brain mediate learning about the values of both states and actions: evidence from high-resolution fMRI. PLoS Comput Biol 2017; 13:e1005810. [PMID: 29049406 PMCID: PMC5673235 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1005810] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Revised: 11/06/2017] [Accepted: 10/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Prediction-error signals consistent with formal models of "reinforcement learning" (RL) have repeatedly been found within dopaminergic nuclei of the midbrain and dopaminoceptive areas of the striatum. However, the precise form of the RL algorithms implemented in the human brain is not yet well determined. Here, we created a novel paradigm optimized to dissociate the subtypes of reward-prediction errors that function as the key computational signatures of two distinct classes of RL models-namely, "actor/critic" models and action-value-learning models (e.g., the Q-learning model). The state-value-prediction error (SVPE), which is independent of actions, is a hallmark of the actor/critic architecture, whereas the action-value-prediction error (AVPE) is the distinguishing feature of action-value-learning algorithms. To test for the presence of these prediction-error signals in the brain, we scanned human participants with a high-resolution functional magnetic-resonance imaging (fMRI) protocol optimized to enable measurement of neural activity in the dopaminergic midbrain as well as the striatal areas to which it projects. In keeping with the actor/critic model, the SVPE signal was detected in the substantia nigra. The SVPE was also clearly present in both the ventral striatum and the dorsal striatum. However, alongside these purely state-value-based computations we also found evidence for AVPE signals throughout the striatum. These high-resolution fMRI findings suggest that model-free aspects of reward learning in humans can be explained algorithmically with RL in terms of an actor/critic mechanism operating in parallel with a system for more direct action-value learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaron T. Colas
- Computation and Neural Systems Program, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
| | - Wolfgang M. Pauli
- Computation and Neural Systems Program, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
- Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
| | - Tobias Larsen
- Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - J. Michael Tyszka
- Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
| | - John P. O’Doherty
- Computation and Neural Systems Program, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
- Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, United States of America
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11
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Separate mesocortical and mesolimbic pathways encode effort and reward learning signals. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:E7395-E7404. [PMID: 28808037 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1705643114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Optimal decision making mandates organisms learn the relevant features of choice options. Likewise, knowing how much effort we should expend can assume paramount importance. A mesolimbic network supports reward learning, but it is unclear whether other choice features, such as effort learning, rely on this same network. Using computational fMRI, we show parallel encoding of effort and reward prediction errors (PEs) within distinct brain regions, with effort PEs expressed in dorsomedial prefrontal cortex and reward PEs in ventral striatum. We show a common mesencephalic origin for these signals evident in overlapping, but spatially dissociable, dopaminergic midbrain regions expressing both types of PE. During action anticipation, reward and effort expectations were integrated in ventral striatum, consistent with a computation of an overall net benefit of a stimulus. Thus, we show that motivationally relevant stimulus features are learned in parallel dopaminergic pathways, with formation of an integrated utility signal at choice.
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12
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Peterson AC, Zhang S, Hu S, Chao HH, Li CSR. The Effects of Age, from Young to Middle Adulthood, and Gender on Resting State Functional Connectivity of the Dopaminergic Midbrain. Front Hum Neurosci 2017; 11:52. [PMID: 28223929 PMCID: PMC5293810 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2017.00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2016] [Accepted: 01/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Dysfunction of the dopaminergic ventral tegmental area (VTA) and substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) is implicated in psychiatric disorders including attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), addiction, schizophrenia and movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease (PD). Although the prevalence of these disorders varies by age and sex, the underlying neural mechanism is not well understood. The objective of this study was to delineate the distinct resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the VTA and SNc and examine the effects of age, from young to middle-adulthood, and sex on the rsFC of these two dopaminergic structures in a data set of 250 healthy adults (18-49 years of age, 104 men). Using blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signals, we correlated the time course of the VTA and SNc to the time courses of all other brain voxels. At a corrected threshold, paired t-test showed stronger VTA connectivity to bilateral angular gyrus and superior/middle and orbital frontal regions and stronger SNc connectivity to the insula, thalamus, parahippocampal gyrus (PHG) and amygdala. Compared to women, men showed a stronger VTA/SNc connectivity to the left posterior orbital gyrus. In linear regressions, men but not women showed age-related changes in VTA/SNc connectivity to a number of cortical and cerebellar regions. Supporting shared but also distinct cerebral rsFC of the VTA and SNc and gender differences in age-related changes from young and middle adulthood in VTA/SNc connectivity, these new findings help advance our understanding of the neural bases of many neuropsychiatric illnesses that implicate the dopaminergic systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew C Peterson
- Frank H. Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University North Haven, CT, USA
| | - Sheng Zhang
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Sien Hu
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Herta H Chao
- Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of MedicineNew Haven, CT, USA; Veterans Administration Medical CenterWest Haven, CT, USA
| | - Chiang-Shan R Li
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of MedicineNew Haven, CT, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University School of MedicineNew Haven, CT, USA; Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University School of MedicineNew Haven, CT, USA
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13
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Ekhtiari H, Victor TA, Paulus MP. Aberrant decision-making and drug addiction — how strong is the evidence? Curr Opin Behav Sci 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2016.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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14
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Abstract
Cognitive control is subjectively costly, suggesting that engagement is modulated in relationship to incentive state. Dopamine appears to play key roles. In particular, dopamine may mediate cognitive effort by two broad classes of functions: (1) modulating the functional parameters of working memory circuits subserving effortful cognition, and (2) mediating value-learning and decision-making about effortful cognitive action. Here, we tie together these two lines of research, proposing how dopamine serves "double duty", translating incentive information into cognitive motivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Westbrook
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA.
| | - Todd S Braver
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA; Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
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15
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Stephan KE, Schlagenhauf F, Huys QJM, Raman S, Aponte EA, Brodersen KH, Rigoux L, Moran RJ, Daunizeau J, Dolan RJ, Friston KJ, Heinz A. Computational neuroimaging strategies for single patient predictions. Neuroimage 2016; 145:180-199. [PMID: 27346545 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.06.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2015] [Revised: 05/21/2016] [Accepted: 06/20/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuroimaging increasingly exploits machine learning techniques in an attempt to achieve clinically relevant single-subject predictions. An alternative to machine learning, which tries to establish predictive links between features of the observed data and clinical variables, is the deployment of computational models for inferring on the (patho)physiological and cognitive mechanisms that generate behavioural and neuroimaging responses. This paper discusses the rationale behind a computational approach to neuroimaging-based single-subject inference, focusing on its potential for characterising disease mechanisms in individual subjects and mapping these characterisations to clinical predictions. Following an overview of two main approaches - Bayesian model selection and generative embedding - which can link computational models to individual predictions, we review how these methods accommodate heterogeneity in psychiatric and neurological spectrum disorders, help avoid erroneous interpretations of neuroimaging data, and establish a link between a mechanistic, model-based approach and the statistical perspectives afforded by machine learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- K E Stephan
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland; Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, WC1N 3BG, UK; Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - F Schlagenhauf
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Charité Mitte, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany; Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, 04130 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Q J M Huys
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Hospital of Psychiatry, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - S Raman
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - E A Aponte
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - K H Brodersen
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - L Rigoux
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland; Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - R J Moran
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, WC1N 3BG, UK; Virgina Institute of Technology, USA
| | - J Daunizeau
- Translational Neuromodeling Unit (TNU), Institute for Biomedical Engineering, University of Zurich & ETH Zurich, 8032 Zurich, Switzerland; ICM Paris, France
| | - R J Dolan
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, WC1N 3BG, UK; Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, London, UK
| | - K J Friston
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - A Heinz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Charité Mitte, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany; Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Berlin School of Mind and Brain, 10115 Berlin, Germany
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16
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Lloyd K, Dayan P. Safety out of control: dopamine and defence. BEHAVIORAL AND BRAIN FUNCTIONS : BBF 2016; 12:15. [PMID: 27216176 PMCID: PMC4878001 DOI: 10.1186/s12993-016-0099-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2016] [Accepted: 05/13/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
We enjoy a sophisticated understanding of how animals learn to predict appetitive outcomes and direct their behaviour accordingly. This encompasses well-defined learning algorithms and details of how these might be implemented in the brain. Dopamine has played an important part in this unfolding story, appearing to embody a learning signal for predicting rewards and stamping in useful actions, while also being a modulator of behavioural vigour. By contrast, although choosing correct actions and executing them vigorously in the face of adversity is at least as important, our understanding of learning and behaviour in aversive settings is less well developed. We examine aversive processing through the medium of the role of dopamine and targets such as D2 receptors in the striatum. We consider critical factors such as the degree of control that an animal believes it exerts over key aspects of its environment, the distinction between 'better' and 'good' actual or predicted future states, and the potential requirement for a particular form of opponent to dopamine to ensure proper calibration of state values.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Lloyd
- Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit, 25 Howland Street, London, UK
| | - Peter Dayan
- Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit, 25 Howland Street, London, UK
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17
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Distinct Contributions of Ventromedial and Dorsolateral Subregions of the Human Substantia Nigra to Appetitive and Aversive Learning. J Neurosci 2016; 35:14220-33. [PMID: 26490862 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2277-15.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED The role of neurons in the substantia nigra (SN) and ventral tegmental area (VTA) of the midbrain in contributing to the elicitation of reward prediction errors during appetitive learning has been well established. Less is known about the differential contribution of these midbrain regions to appetitive versus aversive learning, especially in humans. Here we scanned human participants with high-resolution fMRI focused on the SN and VTA while they participated in a sequential Pavlovian conditioning paradigm involving an appetitive outcome (a pleasant juice), as well as an aversive outcome (an unpleasant bitter and salty flavor). We found a degree of regional specialization within the SN: Whereas a region of ventromedial SN correlated with a temporal difference reward prediction error during appetitive Pavlovian learning, a dorsolateral area correlated instead with an aversive expected value signal in response to the most distal cue, and to a reward prediction error in response to the most proximal cue to the aversive outcome. Furthermore, participants' affective reactions to both the appetitive and aversive conditioned stimuli more than 1 year after the fMRI experiment was conducted correlated with activation in the ventromedial and dorsolateral SN obtained during the experiment, respectively. These findings suggest that, whereas the human ventromedial SN contributes to long-term learning about rewards, the dorsolateral SN may be particularly important for long-term learning in aversive contexts. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The role of the substantia nigra (SN) and ventral tegmental area (VTA) in appetitive learning is well established, but less is known about their contribution to aversive compared with appetitive learning, especially in humans. We used high-resolution fMRI to measure activity in the SN and VTA while participants underwent higher-order Pavlovian learning. We found a regional specialization within the SN: a ventromedial area was selectively engaged during appetitive learning, and a dorsolateral area during aversive learning. Activity in these areas predicted affective reactions to appetitive and aversive conditioned stimuli over 1 year later. These findings suggest that, whereas the human ventromedial SN contributes to long-term learning about rewards, the dorsolateral SN may be particularly important for long-term learning in aversive contexts.
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18
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Wang KS, Smith DV, Delgado MR. Using fMRI to study reward processing in humans: past, present, and future. J Neurophysiol 2016; 115:1664-78. [PMID: 26740530 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00333.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2015] [Accepted: 01/04/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) is a noninvasive tool used to probe cognitive and affective processes. Although fMRI provides indirect measures of neural activity, the advent of fMRI has allowed for1) the corroboration of significant animal findings in the human brain, and2) the expansion of models to include more common human attributes that inform behavior. In this review, we briefly consider the neural basis of the blood oxygenation level dependent signal to set up a discussion of how fMRI studies have applied it in examining cognitive models in humans and the promise of using fMRI to advance such models. Specifically, we illustrate the contribution that fMRI has made to the study of reward processing, focusing on the role of the striatum in encoding reward-related learning signals that drive anticipatory and consummatory behaviors. For instance, we discuss how fMRI can be used to link neural signals (e.g., striatal responses to rewards) to individual differences in behavior and traits. While this functional segregation approach has been constructive to our understanding of reward-related functions, many fMRI studies have also benefitted from a functional integration approach that takes into account how interconnected regions (e.g., corticostriatal circuits) contribute to reward processing. We contend that future work using fMRI will profit from using a multimodal approach, such as combining fMRI with noninvasive brain stimulation tools (e.g., transcranial electrical stimulation), that can identify causal mechanisms underlying reward processing. Consequently, advancements in implementing fMRI will promise new translational opportunities to inform our understanding of psychopathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kainan S Wang
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey; and
| | - David V Smith
- Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey
| | - Mauricio R Delgado
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey; and Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey
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19
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Van Hoeck N, Watson PD, Barbey AK. Cognitive neuroscience of human counterfactual reasoning. Front Hum Neurosci 2015; 9:420. [PMID: 26257633 PMCID: PMC4511878 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00420] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2015] [Accepted: 07/07/2015] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Counterfactual reasoning is a hallmark of human thought, enabling the capacity to shift from perceiving the immediate environment to an alternative, imagined perspective. Mental representations of counterfactual possibilities (e.g., imagined past events or future outcomes not yet at hand) provide the basis for learning from past experience, enable planning and prediction, support creativity and insight, and give rise to emotions and social attributions (e.g., regret and blame). Yet remarkably little is known about the psychological and neural foundations of counterfactual reasoning. In this review, we survey recent findings from psychology and neuroscience indicating that counterfactual thought depends on an integrative network of systems for affective processing, mental simulation, and cognitive control. We review evidence to elucidate how these mechanisms are systematically altered through psychiatric illness and neurological disease. We propose that counterfactual thinking depends on the coordination of multiple information processing systems that together enable adaptive behavior and goal-directed decision making and make recommendations for the study of counterfactual inference in health, aging, and disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Van Hoeck
- Psychology and Educational Sciences, Vrije Universiteit BrusselBrussels, Belgium
| | - Patrick D. Watson
- Decision Neuroscience Laboratory, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of IllinoisUrbana, IL, USA
| | - Aron K. Barbey
- Decision Neuroscience Laboratory, Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of IllinoisUrbana, IL, USA
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of IllinoisChampaign, IL, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of IllinoisChampaign, IL, USA
- Department of Speech and Hearing Science, University of IllinoisChampaign, IL, USA
- Neuroscience Program, University of IllinoisChampaign, IL, USA
- Carle R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of IllinoisChampaign, IL, USA
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20
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Tian P, Shi W, Liu J, Wang J, Ma C, Qi Q, Cong B, Li Y. Expression of the μ, κ, and δ-opioid receptors and tyrosine hydroxylase in MN9D cells. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL PATHOLOGY 2015; 8:4863-4868. [PMID: 26191179 PMCID: PMC4503051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2015] [Accepted: 04/26/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Dopaminergic neurons are suggested to be a critical physiopathology substrate for addiction disorders. It is not well known whether the clonal mesencephalic dopaminergic cell line MN9D cells can be applied to study morphine addiction. Immunofluorescence staining and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) were used to detect protein and mRNA expression of the μ, κ, and δ-opioid receptors in MN9D cells. Immunofluorescence staining of TH was applied to quantify the number of dopaminergic neurons. The results showed that the μ, κ, and δ-receptors were all expressed in MN9D cells, and the number of TH-positive cells was significantly greater in the MN9D cells than SH-SY5Y cells. The data suggest that MN9D cells can be used as an in vitro models in future studies to explore the mechanisms of morphine addiction related to dopaminergic neurons.
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MESH Headings
- Cell Line
- Humans
- Neurons/metabolism
- Receptors, Opioid, delta/genetics
- Receptors, Opioid, delta/metabolism
- Receptors, Opioid, kappa/genetics
- Receptors, Opioid, kappa/metabolism
- Receptors, Opioid, mu/genetics
- Receptors, Opioid, mu/metabolism
- Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase/metabolism
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Affiliation(s)
- Pengxiang Tian
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Weibo Shi
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Jie Liu
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Jie Wang
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Chunling Ma
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Qian Qi
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Bin Cong
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
| | - Yingmin Li
- Institute of Basic Medicine, Hebei Medical UniversityHebei, China
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21
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Abstract
Emerging evidence implicates the midbrain dopamine system and its interactions with the lateral habenula in processing aversive information and learning to avoid negative outcomes. We examined neural responses to unexpected, aversive events using methods specialized for imaging the midbrain and habenula in humans. Robust activation to aversive relative to neutral events was observed in the habenula and two regions within the ventral midbrain: one located within the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and the other in the substantia nigra (SN). Aversive processing increased functional connectivity between the VTA and the habenula, putamen, and medial prefrontal cortex, whereas the SN exhibited a different pattern of functional connectivity. Our findings provide evidence for a network comprising the VTA and SN, the habenula, and mesocorticolimbic structures that supports processing aversive events in humans.
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22
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de Hollander G, Keuken MC, Forstmann BU. The subcortical cocktail problem; mixed signals from the subthalamic nucleus and substantia nigra. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0120572. [PMID: 25793883 PMCID: PMC4368736 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0120572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2014] [Accepted: 02/03/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The subthalamic nucleus and the directly adjacent substantia nigra are small and important structures in the basal ganglia. Functional magnetic resonance imaging studies have shown that the subthalamic nucleus and substantia nigra are selectively involved in response inhibition, conflict processing, and adjusting global and selective response thresholds. However, imaging these nuclei is complex, because they are in such close proximity, they can vary in location, and are very small relative to the resolution of most fMRI sequences. Here, we investigated the consistency in localization of these nuclei in BOLD fMRI studies, comparing reported coordinates with probabilistic atlas maps of young human participants derived from ultra-high resolution 7T MRI scanning. We show that the fMRI signal reported in previous studies is likely not unequivocally arising from the subthalamic nucleus but represents a mixture of subthalamic nucleus, substantia nigra, and surrounding tissue. Using a simulation study, we also tested to what extent spatial smoothing, often used in fMRI preprocessing pipelines, influences the mixture of BOLD signals. We propose concrete steps how to analyze fMRI BOLD data to allow inferences about the functional role of small subcortical nuclei like the subthalamic nucleus and substantia nigra.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gilles de Hollander
- Amsterdam Brain & Cognition Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Max C. Keuken
- Amsterdam Brain & Cognition Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Birte U. Forstmann
- Amsterdam Brain & Cognition Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- * E-mail:
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23
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Mechanisms of motivation-cognition interaction: challenges and opportunities. COGNITIVE AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2015; 14:443-72. [PMID: 24920442 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-014-0300-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 202] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Recent years have seen a rejuvenation of interest in studies of motivation-cognition interactions arising from many different areas of psychology and neuroscience. The present issue of Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience provides a sampling of some of the latest research from a number of these different areas. In this introductory article, we provide an overview of the current state of the field, in terms of key research developments and candidate neural mechanisms receiving focused investigation as potential sources of motivation-cognition interaction. However, our primary goal is conceptual: to highlight the distinct perspectives taken by different research areas, in terms of how motivation is defined, the relevant dimensions and dissociations that are emphasized, and the theoretical questions being targeted. Together, these distinctions present both challenges and opportunities for efforts aiming toward a more unified and cross-disciplinary approach. We identify a set of pressing research questions calling for this sort of cross-disciplinary approach, with the explicit goal of encouraging integrative and collaborative investigations directed toward them.
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24
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Kim KU, Huh N, Jang Y, Lee D, Jung MW. Effects of fictive reward on rat's choice behavior. Sci Rep 2015; 5:8040. [PMID: 25623929 PMCID: PMC4894400 DOI: 10.1038/srep08040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2014] [Accepted: 12/29/2014] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Choices of humans and non-human primates are influenced by both actually experienced and fictive outcomes. To test whether this is also the case in rodents, we examined rat's choice behavior in a binary choice task in which variable magnitudes of actual and fictive rewards were delivered. We found that the animal's choice was significantly influenced by the magnitudes of both actual and fictive rewards in the previous trial. A model-based analysis revealed, however, that the effect of fictive reward was more transient and influenced mostly the choice in the next trial, whereas the effect of actual reward was more sustained, consistent with incremental learning of action values. Our results suggest that the capacity to modify future choices based on fictive outcomes might be shared by many different animal species, but fictive outcomes are less effective than actual outcomes in the incremental value learning system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ko-Un Kim
- 1] Center for Synaptic Brain Dysfunctions, Institute for Basic Science, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Korea [2] Neuroscience Laboratory, Institute for Medical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon 443-721, Korea [3] Neuroscience Graduate Program, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon 443-721, Korea
| | - Namjung Huh
- 1] Center for Synaptic Brain Dysfunctions, Institute for Basic Science, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Korea [2] Neuroscience Laboratory, Institute for Medical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon 443-721, Korea
| | - Yunsil Jang
- 1] Center for Synaptic Brain Dysfunctions, Institute for Basic Science, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Korea [2] Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Korea
| | - Daeyeol Lee
- Department of Neurobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| | - Min Whan Jung
- 1] Center for Synaptic Brain Dysfunctions, Institute for Basic Science, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Korea [2] Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 305-701, Korea [3] Neuroscience Laboratory, Institute for Medical Sciences, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon 443-721, Korea [4] Neuroscience Graduate Program, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon 443-721, Korea
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