Attention-dependent attribute comparisons underlie multi-attribute decision-making in orbitofrontal cortex.

Economic decisions often require weighing multiple dimensions, or attributes. The orbitofrontal cortex FC) is thought to be important for computing the integrated value of an option from its attributes and comparing lues to make a choice. Although OFC neurons are known to encode integrated values, evidence for value mparison has been limited.

Neural populations in macaque anterior cingulate cortex encode social image identities.

The anterior cingulate cortex gyrus (ACCg) has been implicated in prosocial behaviors and reasoning about social cues. While this indicates that ACCg is involved in social behavior, it remains unclear whether ACCg neurons also encode social information during goal-directed actions without social consequences. To address this, we assessed how social information is processed by ACCg neurons in a reward localization task.

Multiattribute Decision-making in Macaques Relies on Direct Attribute Comparisons.

In value-based decisions, there are frequently multiple attributes, such as cost, quality, or quantity, that contribute to the overall goodness of an option. Because one option may not be better in all attributes at once, the decision process should include a means of weighing relevant attributes. Most decision-making models solve this problem by computing an integrated value, or utility, for each option from a weighted combination of attributes.

Multi-attribute decision-making in macaques relies on direct attribute comparisons.

Unlabelled: In value-based decisions, there are frequently multiple attributes, such as cost, quality, or quantity, that contribute to the overall goodness of an option. Since one option may not be better in all attributes at once, the decision process should include a means of weighing relevant attributes. Most decision-making models solve this problem by computing an integrated value, or utility, for each option from a weighted combination of attributes.

Abstraction of Reward Context Facilitates Relative Reward Coding in Neural Populations of the Macaque Anterior Cingulate Cortex.

The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is believed to be involved in many cognitive processes, including linking goals to actions and tracking decision-relevant contextual information. ACC neurons robustly encode expected outcomes, but how this relates to putative functions of ACC remains unknown. Here, we approach this question from the perspective of population codes by analyzing neural spiking data in the ventral and dorsal banks of the ACC in two male monkeys trained to perform a stimulus-motor mapping task to earn rewards or avoid losses.

Identifying identity and attributing value to attributes: reconsidering mechanisms of preference decisions.

Although the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) robustly encodes value during preference decisions, it also encodes multiple non-value features of choice options. The role of this information, and its relationship to the options' overall value remain open questions. In this opinion, we attempt to disentangle oft-studied categories of option information - identity and attributes - in the context of both classic theories of economic choice and contradicting evidence of choice biases in multi-attribute decisions.

Cognitive strategies shift information from single neurons to populations in prefrontal cortex.

Neurons in primate lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) play a critical role in working memory (WM) and cognitive strategies. Consistent with adaptive coding models, responses of these neurons are not fixed but flexibly adjust on the basis of cognitive demands. However, little is known about how these adjustments affect population codes.

Heterogeneous value coding in orbitofrontal populations.

Value signals in the brain are important for learning, decision-making, and orienting behavior toward relevant goals. Although they can play different roles in behavior and cognition, value representations are often considered to be uniform and static signals. Nonetheless, contextual and mixed representations of value have been widely reported.

From affective to cognitive processing: Functional organization of the medial frontal cortex.

The medial wall of the primate frontal lobe encompasses multiple anatomical subregions. Based on distinct neurophysiological correlates and effects of lesions, individual areas are thought to play unique roles in behavior. Further, evidence suggests that dysfunction localized to specific subregions is commonly found in different neuropsychiatric disorders.

Stable and dynamic representations of value in the prefrontal cortex.

Optimal decision-making requires that stimulus-value associations are kept up to date by constantly comparing the expected value of a stimulus with its experienced outcome. To do this, value information must be held in mind when a stimulus and outcome are separated in time. However, little is known about the neural mechanisms of working memory (WM) for value.

From bed to bench side: Reverse translation to optimize neuromodulation for mood disorders.

The advent of neuroimaging has provided foundational insights into the neural basis of psychiatric conditions, such as major depression. Across countless studies, dysfunction has been localized to distinct parts of the limbic system. Specific knowledge about affected locations has led to the development of circuit modulation therapies to correct dysfunction, notably deep brain stimulation (DBS).

Orbitofrontal cortex.

The orbitofrontal cortex is a large and heterogeneous cortical area on the ventral surface of the frontal lobe and is intimately involved in emotion and executive function. In this Primer, Peter Rudebeck and Erin Rich summarize our understanding of the mechanisms through which orbitofrontal cortex adaptively shapes decision making and affective behavior.

Linking dynamic patterns of neural activity in orbitofrontal cortex with decision making.

Humans and animals demonstrate extraordinary flexibility in choice behavior, particularly when deciding based on subjective preferences. We evaluate options on different scales, deliberate, and often change our minds. Little is known about the neural mechanisms that underlie these dynamic aspects of decision-making, although neural activity in orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) likely plays a central role.

Caudate Microstimulation Increases Value of Specific Choices.

Value-based decision-making involves an assessment of the value of items available and the actions required to obtain them. The basal ganglia are highly implicated in action selection and goal-directed behavior [1-4], and the striatum in particular plays a critical role in arbitrating between competing choices [5-9]. Previous work has demonstrated that neural activity in the caudate nucleus is modulated by task-relevant action values [6, 8].

Spatiotemporal dynamics of information encoding revealed in orbitofrontal high-gamma.

High-gamma signals mirror the tuning and temporal profiles of neurons near a recording electrode in sensory and motor areas. These frequencies appear to aggregate local neuronal activity, but it is unclear how this relationship affects information encoding in high-gamma activity (HGA) in cortical areas where neurons are heterogeneous in selectivity and temporal responses, and are not functionally clustered. Here we report that populations of neurons and HGA recorded from the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) encode similar information, although there is little correspondence between signals recorded by the same electrode.

Decoding subjective decisions from orbitofrontal cortex.

When making a subjective choice, the brain must compute a value for each option and compare those values to make a decision. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is critically involved in this process, but the neural mechanisms remain obscure, in part due to limitations in our ability to measure and control the internal deliberations that can alter the dynamics of the decision process. Here we tracked these dynamics by recovering temporally precise neural states from multidimensional data in OFC.

Medial-lateral organization of the orbitofrontal cortex.

Emerging evidence suggests that specific cognitive functions localize to different subregions of OFC, but the nature of these functional distinctions remains unclear. One prominent theory, derived from human neuroimaging, proposes that different stimulus valences are processed in separate orbital regions, with medial and lateral OFC processing positive and negative stimuli, respectively. Thus far, neurophysiology data have not supported this theory.

Prefrontal-amygdala interactions underlying value coding.

Dissociating the source and function of value-related signals is a major challenge for understanding the role of reward in neural processing. In this issue of Neuron, Rudebeck et al. (2013) provide insight into the neuroanatomical origins of a subset of these signals.

Striatal activity in borderline personality disorder with comorbid intermittent explosive disorder: sex differences.

Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is associated with behavioral and emotional dysregulation, particularly in social contexts; however, the underlying pathophysiology at the level of brain function is not well understood. Previous studies found abnormalities in frontal cortical and limbic areas suggestive of poor frontal regulation of downstream brain regions. However, the striatum, which is closely connected with the medial frontal cortices and plays an important role in motivated behaviors and processing of rewarding stimuli, has been understudied in BPD.

Challenges of Interpreting Frontal Neurons during Value-Based Decision-Making.

The frontal cortex is crucial to sound decision-making, and the activity of frontal neurons correlates with many aspects of a choice, including the reward value of options and outcomes. However, rewards are of high motivational significance and have widespread effects on neural activity. As such, many neural signals not directly involved in the decision process can correlate with reward value.

Rat prefrontal cortical neurons selectively code strategy switches.

Multiple memory systems are distinguished by different sets of neuronal circuits and operating principles optimized to solve different problems across mammalian species (Tulving and Schacter, 1994). When a rat selects an arm in a plus maze, for example, the choice can be guided by distinct neural systems (White and Wise, 1999) that encode different relationships among perceived stimuli, actions, and reward. Thus, egocentric or stimulus-response associations require striatal circuits, whereas spatial or episodic learning requires hippocampal circuits (Packard et al.

The neurotrophin-inducible gene Vgf regulates hippocampal function and behavior through a brain-derived neurotrophic factor-dependent mechanism.

VGF is a neurotrophin-inducible, activity-regulated gene product that is expressed in CNS and PNS neurons, in which it is processed into peptides and secreted. VGF synthesis is stimulated by BDNF, a critical regulator of hippocampal development and function, and two VGF C-terminal peptides increase synaptic activity in cultured hippocampal neurons. To assess VGF function in the hippocampus, we tested heterozygous and homozygous VGF knock-out mice in two different learning tasks, assessed long-term potentiation (LTP) and depression (LTD) in hippocampal slices from VGF mutant mice, and investigated how VGF C-terminal peptides modulate synaptic plasticity.

Prelimbic/infralimbic inactivation impairs memory for multiple task switches, but not flexible selection of familiar tasks.

Behavioral flexibility, in the form of strategy switching or set shifting, helps animals cope with changing contingencies in familiar environments. The prelimbic (PL) and infralimbic (IL) regions of the rat prefrontal cortex (PFC) contribute to this ability so that rats trained to use one strategy have difficulty learning a new one if the PL/IL is inactivated. Thus, the PL/IL mediates learning new tasks in place of old ones, but it may also be required to switch between familiar tasks.