scholarly journals Modeling Uncertainty-Seeking Behavior Mediated by Cholinergic Influence on Dopamine

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marwen Belkaid ◽  
Jeffrey L. Krichmar
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Dopaminergic Neurons ◽  
Cholinergic System ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Dopaminergic Activity ◽  
Integrate And Fire ◽  
Major Implication ◽  
Seeking Behavior

AbstractRecent findings suggest that acetylcholine mediates uncertainty-seeking behaviors through its projection to dopamine neurons – another neuromodulatory system known for its major implication in reinforcement learning and decision-making. In this paper, we propose a leaky-integrate-and-fire model of this mechanism. It implements a softmax-like selection with an uncertainty bonus by a cholinergic drive to dopaminergic neurons, which in turn influence synaptic currents of downstream neurons. The model is able to reproduce experimental data in two decision-making tasks. It also predicts that i) in the absence of cholinergic input, dopaminergic activity would not correlate with uncertainty, and that ii) the adaptive advantage brought by the implemented uncertainty-seeking mechanism is most useful when sources of reward are not highly uncertain. Moreover, this modeling work allows us to propose novel experiments which might shed new light on the role of acetylcholine in both random and directed exploration. Overall, this study thus contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the roles of the cholinergic system and its involvement in decision-making in particular.

scholarly journals Ibogaine Modifies GDNF, BDNF and NGF Expression in Brain Regions Involved in Mesocorticolimbic and Nigral Dopaminergic Circuits

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soledad Marton ◽  
Bruno González ◽  
Sebastián Rodríguez ◽  
Ernesto Miquel ◽  
Laura Martínez Palma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neurotrophic Factor ◽  
Dopaminergic Neurons ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Acute Administration ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Self Administration ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
A Site ◽  
Dose Dependent

<p>Ibogaine is a psychedelic alkaloid which has been subject of intense scientific research due to its reported ability to attenuate drug-seeking behavior. Recent work suggested that ibogaine effects on alcohol self-administration in rats was related to the release of Glial Cell Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) in the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA), a mesencephalic region which hosts soma of dopamine neurons. It is well known that neurotrophic factors (NFs) mediate the neuroadaptations induced in the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system by repeated exposure to drugs. Although previous reports have shown ibogaine´s ability to induce GDNF expression in rat midbrain, there are no studies addressing its effect on the expression of GDNF, Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) or Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) in distinct regions containing dopaminergic neurons. In this work, we examined the effect of ibogaine acute administration on the expression of these NFs in the VTA, Prefrontal Cortex (PFC), Nucleus Accumbens (NAcc) and the Substantia Nigra (SN). Thus, rats were i.p. treated with ibogaine 20 mg/kg (I<sub>20</sub>), 40 mg/kg (I<sub>40</sub>) or vehicle, and NFs expression was analyzed after 3 and 24 hours. Only at 24 h an increase of the expression for the three NFs were observed in a site and dose dependent manner. Results for GDNF showed that only I<sub>40</sub> selectively upregulated its expression in the VTA and SN. Both doses of ibogaine elicited a large increase in the expression of BDNF in the NAcc, SN and PFC, while a significant effect was found in the VTA only for I<sub>40</sub>. Finally, NGF was found to be upregulated in all regions after I<sub>40</sub>, while a selective upregulation was found in PFC and VTA for the I<sub>20</sub> treatment. An increase in the content of mature GDNF was observed in the VTA but no significant increase in the mature BDNF protein content was found in all the studied areas. Interestingly, an increase in the content of proBDNF was detected in the NAcc for both treatments. Further research is needed to understand the neurochemical bases of these changes, and to confirm their contribution to the anti-addictive properties of ibogaine. </p>

Strategic decision-making

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satyanarayana Parayitam ◽  
Chris Papenhausen
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Conflict Management ◽  
Strategic Decision ◽  
Strategic Decision Making ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Decision Outcomes ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the effect of cooperative conflict management on agreement-seeking behavior, agreement-seeking behavior on decision outcomes, moderating role of competence-based trust on the relationship between agreement-seeking behavior and decision outcomes, and mediating role of agreement-seeking behavior between cooperative conflict management and decision outcomes. Design/methodology/approach Using a structured survey instrument, this paper gathered data from 348 students enrolled in a strategic management capstone course that features strategic decision-making in a simulated business strategy game. The data from 94 teams were collected from the student population using a carefully administered instrument. The data were aggregated after running the inter-rater agreement test and the analyzed to test the hypotheses. Findings The results from the hierarchical regression of the complex moderated mediation model reveal that cooperative conflict management is positively related to agreement-seeking behavior, and agreement-seeking behavior mediates the relationship between cooperative conflict management and decision outcomes. The results also suggest that competence-based trust acts as a moderator in the relationship between agreement-seeking behavior and decision quality; agreement-seeking behavior and team effectiveness, and agreement-seeking behavior and decision commitment. Results also support mediation of agreement-seeking behavior between cooperative conflict management and decision outcomes. Research limitations/implications The present research is based on self-report measures, and hence, the limitations of social desirability bias and common method bias are inherent. However, adequate care is taken to minimize these limitations. The research has implications for the strategic decision-making process literature. Practical implications In addition to the strategic management literature, this study contributes to practicing managers. The study suggests that competence-based trust plays a vital role in decision effectiveness. Administrators need to select the members in the decision-making process who have competence-based trust on one another and engage in agreement-seeking behavior. Social implications The findings from the study help in creating a fruitful social environment in organizations. Originality/value This study provides new insights about the previously unknown effects of cooperative conflict management and agreement-seeking behavior in strategic decision-making process.

A pair of dopamine neurons mediate chronic stress signals to induce learning deficit in Drosophila melanogaster

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (42) ◽  
pp. e2023674118
Author(s):  
Jia Jia ◽  
Lei He ◽  
Junfei Yang ◽  
Yichun Shuai ◽  
Jingjing Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Chronic Stress ◽  
Dopaminergic Neurons ◽  
Mushroom Body ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Learning Deficit ◽  
Dopaminergic Activity ◽  
Output Neurons ◽  
Stress Signals ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms

Chronic stress could induce severe cognitive impairments. Despite extensive investigations in mammalian models, the underlying mechanisms remain obscure. Here, we show that chronic stress could induce dramatic learning and memory deficits in Drosophila melanogaster. The chronic stress–induced learning deficit (CSLD) is long lasting and associated with other depression-like behaviors. We demonstrated that excessive dopaminergic activity provokes susceptibility to CSLD. Remarkably, a pair of PPL1-γ1pedc dopaminergic neurons that project to the mushroom body (MB) γ1pedc compartment play a key role in regulating susceptibility to CSLD so that stress-induced PPL1-γ1pedc hyperactivity facilitates the development of CSLD. Consistently, the mushroom body output neurons (MBON) of the γ1pedc compartment, MBON-γ1pedc>α/β neurons, are important for modulating susceptibility to CSLD. Imaging studies showed that dopaminergic activity is necessary to provoke the development of chronic stress–induced maladaptations in the MB network. Together, our data support that PPL1-γ1pedc mediates chronic stress signals to drive allostatic maladaptations in the MB network that lead to CSLD.

Stimulating Employees' Feedback-seeking Behavior: The Role of Participative Decision Making

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoyan Li ◽  
Jing Qian
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Psychological Ownership ◽  
Feedback Seeking ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
The Relationship

Drawing upon psychological ownership theory, we examined the link between participative decision making and employees' feedback seeking from supervisors, by focusing on the mediating role of job-based psychological ownership. Analysis of data from 248 subordinatesupervisor dyads employed at 2 hotels in China showed that participative decision making was positively associated with employees seeking feedback from supervisors, and the relationship was mediated by job-based psychological ownership. In sum, our results suggest that participative decision making can serve as a managerial tool to stimulate, encourage, and foster employees' feedback-seeking behavior, and that the development of job-based psychological ownership can help with this process.

scholarly journals GENERIC STRUCTURE POTENTIAL OF COURSE DESCRIPTION

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 83
Author(s):  
Ho Tuong Thanh ◽  
Nguyen Thi Minh Tam
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Purchase Decision ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Comprehensive Understanding ◽  
Generic Structure ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Major Emphasis

Generic Structure Potential (GSP), which is a “range of textual structures available within a genre” (Hasan, 1984, p. 79) was developed based on the need for a “generic structure” of a text to gain a comprehensive understanding of a genre (Halliday, 1978). Despite various research into different types of academic and promotional genres, there has been little attention given to the course description. This research seeks to unveil the GSP of course description and identify differences between formal course descriptions and online ones, analyzed based on a fourteen-element analytical framework. The findings revealed four more elements apart from those available in the original analytical framework. Most importantly, the course description was discovered to play the role of both informing and promotional, yet the former role is dominant. Regarding the difference between conventional and online descriptions, online ones were found to possess a higher number of promotional elements but still focus on informing students and promoting the course at the same time. The sequence of these elements seems to resemble the purchase decision-making process of customers significantly. On the contrary, the traditional description puts major emphasis on the informative purpose and shows negligence to the promotional aspects.

scholarly journals Pain is so close to pleasure: the same dopamine neurons can mediate approach and avoidance in Drosophila

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Rohrsen ◽  
Aida Kumpf ◽  
Kader Semiz ◽  
Ferruh Aydin ◽  
Benjamin deBivort ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dopaminergic Neurons ◽  
Neuronal Population ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Common Currency ◽  
Approach And Avoidance ◽  
Aversive Stimuli ◽  
Appetitive Stimuli ◽  
Self Stimulation ◽  
Transgenic Drosophila

In mammals, dopamine is considered a central neuromodulator involved in all kinds of rewarding experiences ('common currency' hypothesis). In insects, the role of dopaminergic neurons in aversive stimuli was discovered before dopaminergic neurons were found to also be involved in processing appetitive stimuli. Here, we screened about 50 transgenic Drosophila lines, representing different subpopulations of dopaminergic neurons for their ability to sustain approach or avoidance behavior, when activated optogenetically in four different operant self-stimulation paradigms. None of the lines sustain consistent behavioral valence in all experiments. Individual lines sustain approach in one experiment and avoidance in another. One line mediated strong avoidance early in the experiment and weak approach in later stages. The evidence presented here appears to contradict a 'common currency' dopamine function in flies. Instead, different dopaminergic neurons convey valence in a context-dependent and flexible manner, reflecting the genetic heterogeneity of the dopaminergic neuronal population.

scholarly journals Dopamine promotes aggression in mice via ventral tegmental area to lateral septum projections

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Darshini Mahadevia ◽  
Rinki Saha ◽  
Alessia Manganaro ◽  
Nao Chuhma ◽  
Annette Ziolkowski-Blake ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Aggressive Behavior ◽  
Ventral Tegmental Area ◽  
Dopaminergic Neurons ◽  
D2 Receptors ◽  
Gabaergic Neurons ◽  
Lateral Septum ◽  
Dopamine System ◽  
Dopaminergic Activity ◽  
Ventral Tegmental

AbstractSeptal-hypothalamic neuronal activity centrally mediates aggressive behavior and dopamine system hyperactivity is associated with elevated aggression. However, the causal role of dopamine in aggression and its target circuit mechanisms are largely unknown. To address this knowledge gap, we studied the modulatory role of the population- and projection-specific dopamine function in a murine model of aggressive behavior. We find that terminal activity of ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopaminergic neurons selectively projecting to the lateral septum (LS) is sufficient for promoting aggression and necessary for establishing baseline aggression. Within the LS, dopamine acts on D2-receptors to inhibit GABAergic neurons, and septal D2-signaling is necessary for VTA dopaminergic activity to promote aggression. Collectively, our data reveal a powerful modulatory influence of dopaminergic synaptic input on LS function and aggression, effectively linking the clinically pertinent hyper-dopaminergic model of aggression with the classic septal-hypothalamic aggression axis.

scholarly journals Withdrawal From Intermittent Ethanol Exposure Increases Probability of Burst Firing in VTA Neurons In Vitro

2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (4) ◽  
pp. 2297-2310 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Woodward Hopf ◽  
Miquel Martin ◽  
Billy T. Chen ◽  
M. Scott Bowers ◽  
Maysha M. Mohamedi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ethanol Exposure ◽  
Burst Firing ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Calcium Dependent ◽  
Physiological Properties ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Delayed Recovery ◽  
Small Conductance

Changing the activity of ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine neurons from pacemaker to burst firing is hypothesized to increase the salience of stimuli, such as an unexpected reward, and likely contributes to withdrawal-associated drug-seeking behavior. Accordingly, pharmacological, behavioral, and electrophysiological data suggest an important role of the VTA in mediating alcohol-dependent behaviors. However, the effects of repeated ethanol exposure on VTA dopamine neuron ion channel function are poorly understood. Here, we repeatedly exposed rats to ethanol (2 g/kg ethanol, ip, twice per day for 5 days), then examined the firing patterns of VTA dopamine neurons in vitro after 7 days withdrawal. Compared with saline-treated animals, the function of the small conductance calcium-dependent potassium channel (SK) was reduced in ethanol-treated animals. Consistent with a role for SK in regulation of burst firing, NMDA applied during firing facilitated the transition to bursting in ethanol-treated but not saline-treated animals; NMDA consistently induced bursting only in saline-treated animals when SK was inhibited. Also, enhanced bursting in ethanol-treated animals was not a result of differences in NMDA-induced depolarization. Further, Ih was also reduced in ethanol-treated animals, which delayed recovery from hyperpolarization, but did not account for the increased NMDA-induced bursting in ethanol-treated animals. Finally, repeated ethanol exposure and withdrawal also enhanced the acute locomotor-activating effect of cocaine (15 mg/kg, ip). Thus withdrawal after repeated ethanol exposure produced several alterations in the physiological properties of VTA dopamine neurons, which could ultimately increase the ability of VTA neurons to produce burst firing and thus might contribute to addiction-related behaviors.

scholarly journals Ibogaine Modifies GDNF, BDNF and NGF Expression in Brain Regions Involved in Mesocorticolimbic and Nigral Dopaminergic Circuits

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soledad Marton ◽  
Bruno González ◽  
Sebastián Rodríguez ◽  
Ernesto Miquel ◽  
Laura Martínez Palma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neurotrophic Factor ◽  
Dopaminergic Neurons ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Dopamine Neurons ◽  
Acute Administration ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Self Administration ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
A Site ◽  
Dose Dependent

<p>Ibogaine is a psychedelic alkaloid which has been subject of intense scientific research due to its reported ability to attenuate drug-seeking behavior. Recent work suggested that ibogaine effects on alcohol self-administration in rats was related to the release of Glial Cell Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) in the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA), a mesencephalic region which hosts soma of dopamine neurons. It is well known that neurotrophic factors (NFs) mediate the neuroadaptations induced in the mesocorticolimbic dopaminergic system by repeated exposure to drugs. Although previous reports have shown ibogaine´s ability to induce GDNF expression in rat midbrain, there are no studies addressing its effect on the expression of GDNF, Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) or Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) in distinct regions containing dopaminergic neurons. In this work, we examined the effect of ibogaine acute administration on the expression of these NFs in the VTA, Prefrontal Cortex (PFC), Nucleus Accumbens (NAcc) and the Substantia Nigra (SN). Thus, rats were i.p. treated with ibogaine 20 mg/kg (I<sub>20</sub>), 40 mg/kg (I<sub>40</sub>) or vehicle, and NFs expression was analyzed after 3 and 24 hours. Only at 24 h an increase of the expression for the three NFs were observed in a site and dose dependent manner. Results for GDNF showed that only I<sub>40</sub> selectively upregulated its expression in the VTA and SN. Both doses of ibogaine elicited a large increase in the expression of BDNF in the NAcc, SN and PFC, while a significant effect was found in the VTA only for I<sub>40</sub>. Finally, NGF was found to be upregulated in all regions after I<sub>40</sub>, while a selective upregulation was found in PFC and VTA for the I<sub>20</sub> treatment. An increase in the content of mature GDNF was observed in the VTA but no significant increase in the mature BDNF protein content was found in all the studied areas. Interestingly, an increase in the content of proBDNF was detected in the NAcc for both treatments. Further research is needed to understand the neurochemical bases of these changes, and to confirm their contribution to the anti-addictive properties of ibogaine. </p>

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