Investigation of Biases and Compensatory Strategies Using a Probabilistic Variant of the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test.

The Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) evaluates a subject's ability to shift to a new pattern of behavior in response to the presentation of unexpected negative feedback. The present study introduces a novel version of the traditional WCST by integrating a probabilistic component into its traditional rule shifting to add uncertainty to the task, as well as the option to forage for information during any particular trial. These changes transformed a task that is trivial for neurotypical individuals into a challenging environment useful for evaluating biases and compensatory strategizing.

Allen Brain Atlas-Driven Visualizations: a web-based gene expression energy visualization tool.

The Allen Brain Atlas-Driven Visualizations (ABADV) is a publicly accessible web-based tool created to retrieve and visualize expression energy data from the Allen Brain Atlas (ABA) across multiple genes and brain structures. Though the ABA offers their own search engine and software for researchers to view their growing collection of online public data sets, including extensive gene expression and neuroanatomical data from human and mouse brain, many of their tools limit the amount of genes and brain structures researchers can view at once. To complement their work, ABADV generates multiple pie charts, bar charts and heat maps of expression energy values for any given set of genes and brain structures.

A dynamic, embodied paradigm to investigate the role of serotonin in decision-making.

Serotonin (5-HT) is a neuromodulator that has been attributed to cost assessment and harm aversion. In this review, we look at the role 5-HT plays in making decisions when subjects are faced with potential harmful or costly outcomes. We review approaches for examining the serotonergic system in decision-making.

Interactions between the neuromodulatory systems and the amygdala: exploratory survey using the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas.

Neuromodulatory systems originate in nuclei localized in the subcortical region of the brain and control fundamental behaviors by interacting with many areas of the central nervous system. An exploratory survey of the cholinergic, dopaminergic, noradrenergic, and serotonergic receptor expression energy in the amygdala, and in the neuromodulatory areas themselves was undertaken using the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas. The amygdala was chosen because of its importance in cognitive behavior and its bidirectional interaction with the neuromodulatory systems.