scholarly journals Common Neural Substrates for Response Selection across Modalities and Mapping Paradigms

2003 ◽  
Vol 15 (8) ◽  
pp. 1080-1094 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuhong Jiang ◽  
Nancy Kanwisher
Keyword(s):  
Response Selection ◽  
Target Position ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Human Information Processing ◽  
Central Process ◽  
Response Mapping ◽  
Manual Task ◽  
Central Processing ◽  
Auditory Tasks

In many situations, people can only compute one stimulus-to-response mapping at a time, suggesting that response selection constitutes a “central processing bottleneck” in human information processing. Using fMRI, we tested whether common or distinct brain regions were involved in response selection across visual and auditory inputs, and across spatial and nonspatial mapping rules. We isolated brain regions involved in response selection by comparing two conditions that were identical in perceptual input and motor output, but differed in the complexity of the mapping rule. In the visual—manual task of Experiment 1, four vertical lines were positioned from left to right, and subjects pressed one of four keys to report which line was unique in length. In the auditory—manual task of Experiment 2, four tones were presented in succession, and subjects pressed one of four keys to report which tone was unique in duration. For both visual and auditory tasks, the mapping between target position and key position was either spatially compatible or incompatible. In the verbal task of Experiment 3, subjects used nonspatial mappings that were either compatible (“same” if colors matched; “different” if they mismatched) or incompatible (the opposite). Extensive activation overlap was observed across all three experiments for incompatible versus compatible mapping in bilateral parietal and frontal regions. Our results indicate that common neural substrates are involved in response selection across input modalities and across spatial and nonspatial domains of stimulus-to-response mapping, consistent with behavioral evidence that response selection is a central process.

Neuroplasticity

2019 ◽  
pp. 230-260
Author(s):  
Judy S. Reilly ◽  
Lara R. Polse
Keyword(s):  
Neural Plasticity ◽  
Late Onset ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Developing Brain ◽  
Perinatal Stroke ◽  
Alternative Pathways ◽  
Affective Expression ◽  
Unilateral Brain ◽  
Irreparable Damage

With respect to language, it has long been observed that children who experience early unilateral brain injury do not show the same irreparable damage as do adults with homologous late-onset strokes. Neural plasticity has been proposed as the explanation for such differential linguistic profiles; that is, the plasticity of the young, developing brain allows the possibility for extensive adaptation and organization following a neural insult. Recent research, however, suggests that there are limits to this ability to adapt and organize. Results from a another communicative system, affect, suggest that children with unilateral pre- or perinatal stroke show similar (albeit subtler) effects to adults with homologous late-onset injuries. This chapter presents findings on language development in children who sustained a pre- or perinatal unilateral stroke, and complements these studies with a discussion of affective expression in these same children. These prospective studies of children with perinatal stroke provide a unique window into the development of the neural substrates for language and affect. Specifically, they afford a context to investigate the degree to which particular brain regions may be privileged for specific behavioral functions, as well as how the developing brain adapts to organize alternative pathways in the wake of an early insult.

scholarly journals Neural substrates of propranolol-induced impairments in the reconsolidation of nicotine-associated memories in smokers

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Lin ◽  
Jiahui Deng ◽  
Kai Yuan ◽  
Qiandong Wang ◽  
Lin Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Neural Activity ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Reward Processing ◽  
Memory Reconsolidation ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Postcentral Gyrus ◽  
Propranolol Group ◽  
Propranolol Administration

AbstractThe majority of smokers relapse even after successfully quitting because of the craving to smoking after unexpectedly re-exposed to smoking-related cues. This conditioned craving is mediated by reward memories that are frequently experienced and stubbornly resistant to treatment. Reconsolidation theory posits that well-consolidated memories are destabilized after retrieval, and this process renders memories labile and vulnerable to amnestic intervention. This study tests the retrieval reconsolidation procedure to decrease nicotine craving among people who smoke. In this study, 52 male smokers received a single dose of propranolol (n = 27) or placebo (n = 25) before the reactivation of nicotine-associated memories to impair the reconsolidation process. Craving for smoking and neural activity in response to smoking-related cues served as primary outcomes. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was performed during the memory reconsolidation process. The disruption of reconsolidation by propranolol decreased craving for smoking. Reactivity of the postcentral gyrus in response to smoking-related cues also decreased in the propranolol group after the reconsolidation manipulation. Functional connectivity between the hippocampus and striatum was higher during memory reconsolidation in the propranolol group. Furthermore, the increase in coupling between the hippocampus and striatum positively correlated with the decrease in craving after the reconsolidation manipulation in the propranolol group. Propranolol administration before memory reactivation disrupted the reconsolidation of smoking-related memories in smokers by mediating brain regions that are involved in memory and reward processing. These findings demonstrate the noradrenergic regulation of memory reconsolidation in humans and suggest that adjunct propranolol administration can facilitate the treatment of nicotine dependence. The present study was pre-registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (registration no. ChiCTR1900024412).

scholarly journals Cannabinoids, reward processing, and psychosis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brandon Gunasekera ◽  
Kelly Diederen ◽  
Sagnik Bhattacharyya
Keyword(s):  
Psychotic Disorders ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Reward Processing ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Psychotic Symptoms ◽  
Dopamine Synthesis ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Drug Challenge ◽  
Psychotomimetic Effects

Abstract Background Evidence suggests that an overlap exists between the neurobiology of psychotic disorders and the effects of cannabinoids on neurocognitive and neurochemical substrates involved in reward processing. Aims We investigate whether the psychotomimetic effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and the antipsychotic potential of cannabidiol (CBD) are underpinned by their effects on the reward system and dopamine. Methods This narrative review focuses on the overlap between altered dopamine signalling and reward processing induced by cannabinoids, pre-clinically and in humans. A systematic search was conducted of acute cannabinoid drug-challenge studies using neuroimaging in healthy subjects and those with psychosis Results There is evidence of increased striatal presynaptic dopamine synthesis and release in psychosis, as well as abnormal engagement of the striatum during reward processing. Although, acute THC challenges have elicited a modest effect on striatal dopamine, cannabis users generally indicate impaired presynaptic dopaminergic function. Functional MRI studies have identified that a single dose of THC may modulate regions involved in reward and salience processing such as the striatum, midbrain, insular, and anterior cingulate, with some effects correlating with the severity of THC-induced psychotic symptoms. CBD may modulate brain regions involved in reward/salience processing in an opposite direction to that of THC. Conclusions There is evidence to suggest modulation of reward processing and its neural substrates by THC and CBD. Whether such effects underlie the psychotomimetic/antipsychotic effects of these cannabinoids remains unclear. Future research should address these unanswered questions to understand the relationship between endocannabinoid dysfunction, reward processing abnormalities, and psychosis.

scholarly journals Reported Hearing Loss in Alzheimer’s Disease Is Associated With Loss of Brainstem and Cerebellar Volume

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Llano ◽  
Susanna S. Kwok ◽  
Viswanath Devanarayan ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Alzheimer’S Disease ◽  
Alzheimer's Disease ◽  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Normal Subjects ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Pathological State ◽  
Brain Volumes ◽  
The Relationship

Multiple epidemiological studies have revealed an association between presbycusis and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Unfortunately, the neurobiological underpinnings of this relationship are not clear. It is possible that the two disorders share a common, as yet unidentified, risk factor, or that hearing loss may independently accelerate AD pathology. Here, we examined the relationship between reported hearing loss and brain volumes in normal, mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD subjects using a publicly available database. We found that among subjects with AD, individuals that reported hearing loss had smaller brainstem and cerebellar volumes in both hemispheres than individuals without hearing loss. In addition, we found that these brain volumes diminish in size more rapidly among normal subjects with reported hearing loss and that there was a significant interaction between cognitive diagnosis and the relationship between reported hearing loss and these brain volumes. These data suggest that hearing loss is linked to brainstem and cerebellar pathology, but only in the context of the pathological state of AD. We hypothesize that the presence of AD-related pathology in both the brainstem and cerebellum creates vulnerabilities in these brain regions to auditory deafferentation-related atrophy. These data have implications for our understanding of the potential neural substrates for interactions between hearing loss and AD.

scholarly journals The effect of sequence learning on sensorimotor adaptation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang Liu ◽  
Hannah J. Block
Keyword(s):  
Force Field ◽  
Sequence Learning ◽  
Target Position ◽  
Random Order ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Sensorimotor Learning ◽  
Sensorimotor Adaptation ◽  
Sequence Information ◽  
Force Field Adaptation

AbstractMotor skill learning involves both sensorimotor adaptation (calibrating the response to task dynamics and kinematics), and sequence learning (executing the task elements in the correct order at the necessary speed). These processes typically occur together in natural behavior and share much in common, such as working memory demands, development, and possibly neural substrates. However, sensorimotor and sequence learning are usually studied in isolation in research settings, for example as force field adaptation or serial reaction time tasks (SRTT), respectively. It is therefore unclear whether having predictive sequence information during sensorimotor adaptation would facilitate performance, perhaps by improving sensorimotor planning, or if it would impair performance, perhaps by occupying neural resources needed for sensorimotor learning. Here we evaluated adaptation to a distance-dependent force field in two different SRTT contexts: In Experiment 1, 28 subjects reached between 4 targets in a sequenced or random order. In Experiment 2, 40 subjects reached to one target, but 3 force field directions were applied in a sequenced or random order. We did not observe any consistent influence of target position sequence on force field adaptation in Experiment 1. However, sequencing of force field directions facilitated sensorimotor adaptation and retention in Experiment 2. This is inconsistent with the idea that sensorimotor and sequence learning share neural resources in any mutually exclusive fashion. These findings indicate that under certain conditions, perhaps especially when the sequence is related to the sensorimotor perturbation itself as in Experiment 2, sequence learning may interact with sensorimotor learning in a facilitatory manner.

scholarly journals Sense of Agency Beyond Sensorimotor Process: Decoding Self-Other Action Attribution in the Human Brain

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (7) ◽  
pp. 4076-4091
Author(s):  
Ryu Ohata ◽  
Tomohisa Asai ◽  
Hiroshi Kadota ◽  
Hiroaki Shigemasu ◽  
Kenji Ogawa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Subjective Experience ◽  
Parietal Lobe ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Sense Of Agency ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
Sensorimotor Information ◽  
The One ◽  
The Right ◽  
Different Levels

Abstract The sense of agency is defined as the subjective experience that “I” am the one who is causing the action. Theoretical studies postulate that this subjective experience is developed through multistep processes extending from the sensorimotor to the cognitive level. However, it remains unclear how the brain processes such different levels of information and constitutes the neural substrates for the sense of agency. To answer this question, we combined two strategies: an experimental paradigm, in which self-agency gradually evolves according to sensorimotor experience, and a multivoxel pattern analysis. The combined strategies revealed that the sensorimotor, posterior parietal, anterior insula, and higher visual cortices contained information on self-other attribution during movement. In addition, we investigated whether the found regions showed a preference for self-other attribution or for sensorimotor information. As a result, the right supramarginal gyrus, a portion of the inferior parietal lobe (IPL), was found to be the most sensitive to self-other attribution among the found regions, while the bilateral precentral gyri and left IPL dominantly reflected sensorimotor information. Our results demonstrate that multiple brain regions are involved in the development of the sense of agency and that these show specific preferences for different levels of information.

scholarly journals Neural Substrates of Social Status Inference: Roles of Medial Prefrontal Cortex and Superior Temporal Sulcus

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 1131-1140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malia Mason ◽  
Joe C. Magee ◽  
Susan T. Fiske
Keyword(s):  
Social Order ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Third Party ◽  
Social Interdependence ◽  
Medial Pfc ◽  
State Inference ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Track Status

The negotiation of social order is intimately connected to the capacity to infer and track status relationships. Despite the foundational role of status in social cognition, we know little about how the brain constructs status from social interactions that display it. Although emerging cognitive neuroscience reveals that status judgments depend on the intraparietal sulcus, a brain region that supports the comparison of targets along a quantitative continuum, we present evidence that status judgments do not necessarily reduce to ranking targets along a quantitative continuum. The process of judging status also fits a social interdependence analysis. Consistent with third-party perceivers judging status by inferring whose goals are dictating the terms of the interaction and who is subordinating their desires to whom, status judgments were associated with increased recruitment of medial pFC and STS, brain regions implicated in mental state inference.

scholarly journals Multiple Neuronal Networks Mediate Sustained Attention

2003 ◽  
Vol 15 (7) ◽  
pp. 1028-1038 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia S. Lawrence ◽  
Thomas J. Ross ◽  
Ray Hoffmann ◽  
Hugh Garavan ◽  
Elliot A. Stein
Keyword(s):  
Task Performance ◽  
Sustained Attention ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Cognitive Strategies ◽  
Vigilance Task ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Parahippocampal Gyrus ◽  
The Neural Networks ◽  
Task Irrelevant

Sustained attention deficits occur in several neuropsychiatric disorders. However, the underlying neurobiological mechanisms are still incompletely understood. To that end, functional MRI was used to investigate the neural substrates of sustained attention (vigilance) using the rapid visual information processing (RVIP) task in 25 healthy volunteers. In order to better understand the neural networks underlying attentional abilities, brain regions where task-induced activation correlated with task performance were identified. Performance of the RVIP task activated a network of frontal, parietal, occipital, thalamic, and cerebellar regions. Deactivation during task performance was seen in the anterior and posterior cingulate, insula, and the left temporal and parahippocampal gyrus. Good task performance, as defined by better detection of target stimuli, was correlated with enhanced activation in predominantly right fronto-parietal regions and with decreased activation in predominantly left temporo-limbic and cingulate areas. Factor analysis revealed that these performance-correlated regions were grouped into two separate networks comprised of positively activated and negatively activated intercorrelated regions. Poor performers failed to significantly activate or deactivate these networks, whereas good performers either activated the positive or deactivated the negative network, or did both. The fact that both increased activation of task-specific areas and increased deactivation of task-irrelevant areas mediate cognitive functions underlying good RVIP task performance suggests two independent circuits, presumably reflecting different cognitive strategies, can be recruited to perform this vigilance task.

scholarly journals Connectional architecture of a mouse hypothalamic circuit node controlling social behavior

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (15) ◽  
pp. 7503-7512 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liching Lo ◽  
Shenqin Yao ◽  
Dong-Wook Kim ◽  
Ali Cetin ◽  
Julie Harris ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ventromedial Hypothalamus ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Feed Forward ◽  
Motor Processing ◽  
Central Processing ◽  
Indirect Feedback ◽  
High Level ◽  
High Degree ◽  
The Brain

Type 1 estrogen receptor-expressing neurons in the ventrolateral subdivision of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMHvlEsr1) play a causal role in the control of social behaviors, including aggression. Here we use six different viral-genetic tracing methods to systematically map the connectional architecture of VMHvlEsr1 neurons. These data reveal a high level of input convergence and output divergence (“fan-in/fan-out”) from and to over 30 distinct brain regions, with a high degree (∼90%) of bidirectionality, including both direct as well as indirect feedback. Unbiased collateralization mapping experiments indicate that VMHvlEsr1 neurons project to multiple targets. However, we identify two anatomically distinct subpopulations with anterior vs. posterior biases in their collateralization targets. Nevertheless, these two subpopulations receive indistinguishable inputs. These studies suggest an overall system architecture in which an anatomically feed-forward sensory-to-motor processing stream is integrated with a dense, highly recurrent central processing circuit. This architecture differs from the “brain-inspired,” hierarchical feed-forward circuits used in certain types of artificial intelligence networks.

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