scholarly journals Neuroscience: Reevaluating the Role of Orbitofrontal Cortex

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (24) ◽  
pp. R1314-R1316
Author(s):  
Brianna J. Sleezer ◽  
Benjamin Yost Hayden
Keyword(s):  
Orbitofrontal Cortex

scholarly journals Interacting roles of lateral and medial Orbitofrontal cortex in decision-making and learning : A system-level computational model

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhargav Teja Nallapu ◽  
Frédéric Alexandre
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Computational Model ◽  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
System Level ◽  
Interacting Networks ◽  
Cortical Regions ◽  
Experimental Findings

AbstractIn the context of flexible and adaptive animal behavior, the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is found to be one of the crucial regions in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) influencing the downstream processes of decision-making and learning in the sub-cortical regions. Although OFC has been implicated to be important in a variety of related behavioral processes, the exact mechanisms are unclear, through which the OFC encodes or processes information related to decision-making and learning. Here, we propose a systems-level view of the OFC, positioning it at the nexus of sub-cortical systems and other prefrontal regions. Particularly we focus on one of the most recent implications of neuroscientific evidences regarding the OFC - possible functional dissociation between two of its sub-regions : lateral and medial. We present a system-level computational model of decision-making and learning involving the two sub-regions taking into account their individual roles as commonly implicated in neuroscientific studies. We emphasize on the role of the interactions between the sub-regions within the OFC as well as the role of other sub-cortical structures which form a network with them. We leverage well-known computational architecture of thalamo-cortical basal ganglia loops, accounting for recent experimental findings on monkeys with lateral and medial OFC lesions, performing a 3-arm bandit task. First we replicate the seemingly dissociate effects of lesions to lateral and medial OFC during decision-making as a function of value-difference of the presented options. Further we demonstrate and argue that such an effect is not necessarily due to the dissociate roles of both the subregions, but rather a result of complex temporal dynamics between the interacting networks in which they are involved.Author summaryWe first highlight the role of the Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC) in value-based decision making and goal-directed behavior in primates. We establish the position of OFC at the intersection of cortical mechanisms and thalamo-basal ganglial circuits. In order to understand possible mechanisms through which the OFC exerts emotional control over behavior, among several other possibilities, we consider the case of dissociate roles of two of its topographical subregions - lateral and medial parts of OFC. We gather predominant roles of each of these sub-regions as suggested by numerous experimental evidences in the form of a system-level computational model that is based on existing neuronal architectures. We argue that besides possible dissociation, there could be possible interaction of these sub-regions within themselves and through other sub-cortical structures, in distinct mechanisms of choice and learning. The computational framework described accounts for experimental data and can be extended to more comprehensive detail of representations required to understand the processes of decision-making, learning and the role of OFC and subsequently the regions of prefrontal cortex in general.

scholarly journals Dissociable oscillatory networks support gain and loss processing in human orbitofrontal cortex

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ignacio Saez ◽  
Jack Lin ◽  
Edward Chang ◽  
Josef Parvizi ◽  
Robert T. Knight ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Activity ◽  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Reward Processing ◽  
Neural Oscillations ◽  
Beta Band ◽  
Neuronal Ensembles ◽  
Gain And Loss

AbstractHuman neuroimaging and animal studies have linked neural activity in orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) to valuation of positive and negative outcomes. Additional evidence shows that neural oscillations, representing the coordinated activity of neuronal ensembles, support information processing in both animal and human prefrontal regions. However, the role of OFC neural oscillations in reward-processing in humans remains unknown, partly due to the difficulty of recording oscillatory neural activity from deep brain regions. Here, we examined the role of OFC neural oscillations (<30Hz) in reward processing by combining intracranial OFC recordings with a gambling task in which patients made economic decisions under uncertainty. Our results show that power in different oscillatory bands are associated with distinct components of reward evaluation. Specifically, we observed a double dissociation, with a selective theta band oscillation increase in response to monetary gains and a beta band increase in response to losses. These effects were interleaved across OFC in overlapping networks and were accompanied by increases in oscillatory coherence between OFC electrode sites in theta and beta band during gain and loss processing, respectively. These results provide evidence that gain and loss processing in human OFC are supported by distinct low-frequency oscillations in networks, and provide evidence that participating neuronal ensembles are organized functionally through oscillatory coherence, rather than local anatomical segregation.

scholarly journals c- fos mRNA Induction in Acute and Chronic Audiogenic Stress: Possible Role of the Orbitofrontal Cortex in Habituation

Stress ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serge Campeau ◽  
David Dolan ◽  
Huda Akil ◽  
Stanley J. Watson
Keyword(s):  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Mrna Induction ◽  
Audiogenic Stress

Role of orbitofrontal cortex in incubation of oxycodone craving in male rats

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel D. Altshuler ◽  
Eddy S. Yang ◽  
Kristine T. Garcia ◽  
Ian R. Davis ◽  
Adedayo Olaniran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Male Rats

scholarly journals Obesity status and obesity-associated gut dysbiosis effects on hypothalamic structural covariance

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Contreras-Rodriguez ◽  
M. Arnoriaga-Rodríguez ◽  
R. Miranda-Olivos ◽  
G. Blasco ◽  
C. Biarnés ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Functional Connectivity ◽  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Executive Dysfunction ◽  
Structural Covariance ◽  
Gut Dysbiosis ◽  
Obesity Status ◽  
Subcortical Nuclei ◽  
Parietal Cortices

Abstract Background Functional connectivity alterations in the lateral and medial hypothalamic networks have been associated with the development and maintenance of obesity, but the possible impact on the structural properties of these networks remains largely unexplored. Also, obesity-related gut dysbiosis may delineate specific hypothalamic alterations within obese conditions. We aim to assess the effects of obesity, and obesity and gut-dysbiosis on the structural covariance differences in hypothalamic networks, executive functioning, and depressive symptoms. Methods Medial (MH) and lateral (LH) hypothalamic structural covariance alterations were identified in 57 subjects with obesity compared to 47 subjects without obesity. Gut dysbiosis in the subjects with obesity was defined by the presence of high (n = 28) and low (n = 29) values in a BMI-associated microbial signature, and posthoc comparisons between these groups were used as a proxy to explore the role of obesity-related gut dysbiosis on the hypothalamic measurements, executive function, and depressive symptoms. Results Structural covariance alterations between the MH and the striatum, lateral prefrontal, cingulate, insula, and temporal cortices are congruent with previously functional connectivity disruptions in obesity conditions. MH structural covariance decreases encompassed postcentral parietal cortices in the subjects with obesity and gut-dysbiosis, but increases with subcortical nuclei involved in the coding food-related hedonic information in the subjects with obesity without gut-dysbiosis. Alterations for the structural covariance of the LH in the subjects with obesity and gut-dysbiosis encompassed increases with frontolimbic networks, but decreases with the lateral orbitofrontal cortex in the subjects with obesity without gut-dysbiosis. Subjects with obesity and gut dysbiosis showed higher executive dysfunction and depressive symptoms. Conclusions Obesity-related gut dysbiosis is linked to specific structural covariance alterations in hypothalamic networks relevant to the integration of somatic-visceral information, and emotion regulation.

Neural Mechanisms of the Testosterone–Aggression Relation: The Role of Orbitofrontal Cortex

2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 2357-2368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pranjal H. Mehta ◽  
Jennifer Beer
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Impulse Control ◽  
Ultimatum Game ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Neural Circuitry ◽  
Neural Mechanisms ◽  
Reduced Activity

Testosterone plays a role in aggressive behavior, but the mechanisms remain unclear. The present study tested the hypothesis that testosterone influences aggression through the OFC, a region implicated in self-regulation and impulse control. In a decision-making paradigm in which people chose between aggression and monetary reward (the ultimatum game), testosterone was associated with increased aggression following social provocation (rejecting unfair offers). The effect of testosterone on aggression was explained by reduced activity in the medial OFC. The findings suggest that testosterone increases the propensity toward aggression because of reduced activation of the neural circuitry of impulse control and self-regulation.

scholarly journals Impulsivity, Compulsivity, and Habit: The Role of Orbitofrontal Cortex Revisited

2008 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 253-255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary M. Torregrossa ◽  
Jennifer J. Quinn ◽  
Jane R. Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Orbitofrontal Cortex

The Neural Substrates of In-Group Bias

2008 ◽  
Vol 19 (11) ◽  
pp. 1131-1139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jay J. Van Bavel ◽  
Dominic J. Packer ◽  
William A. Cunningham
Keyword(s):  
Orbitofrontal Cortex ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Mixed Race ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Intergroup Perception ◽  
Amygdala Activity ◽  
Group Members

Classic minimal-group studies found that people arbitrarily assigned to a novel group quickly display a range of perceptual, affective, and behavioral in-group biases. We randomly assigned participants to a mixed-race team and used functional magnetic resonance imaging to identify brain regions involved in processing novel in-group and out-group members independently of preexisting attitudes, stereotypes, or familiarity. Whereas previous research on intergroup perception found amygdala activity—typically interpreted as negativity—in response to stigmatized social groups, we found greater activity in the amygdala, fusiform gyri, orbitofrontal cortex, and dorsal striatum when participants viewed novel in-group faces than when they viewed novel out-group faces. Moreover, activity in orbitofrontal cortex mediated the in-group bias in self-reported liking for the faces. These in-group biases in neural activity were not moderated by race or by whether participants explicitly attended to team membership or race, a finding suggesting that they may occur automatically. This study helps clarify the role of neural substrates involved in perceptual and affective in-group biases.

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