Inverted activity patterns in ventromedial prefrontal cortex during value-guided decision-making in a less-is-more
Georgios K Papageorgiou1,2, Jerome Sallet3, Marco K Wittmann3
1Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging (WIN), Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, Oxford, UK. georgios.k.papageorgiou@gmail.com.
Nature Communications
|December 2, 2017
Summary
Researchers found that ventromedial prefrontal cortex activity in macaques during decision-making is opposite to humans. Lesioning this area disrupted subjective choice evaluation, highlighting its importance in decision processes.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Primate Brain Research
Background:
- The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is crucial for human decision-making and value evaluation.
- The homologous region in macaques is poorly understood, limiting comparative studies.
- Understanding vmPFC function in non-human primates is key to deciphering its role in choice behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of the macaque ventromedial prefrontal cortex in value-guided decision-making.
- To compare vmPFC activity during decision-making tasks in macaques and humans.
- To determine if vmPFC activity is essential for subjective choice evaluation.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to record brain activity in macaques during two decision-making tasks.
- Macaques performed value-guided choice tasks assessing subjective value.
- Lesion experiments were conducted on the vmPFC region to assess its necessity for decision-making.
Main Results:
- vmPFC activity in macaques reflected subjective choice values during decision-making, similar to humans.
- The relationship between the blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signal and choice value was inverted compared to human studies.
- Lesions encompassing the vmPFC impaired normal subjective evaluation of choices during decision-making.
Conclusions:
- Macaque vmPFC plays a critical role in subjective choice evaluation during decision-making.
- Despite an inverted BOLD signal relationship compared to humans, the functional role appears conserved.
- vmPFC is essential for integrating subjective value into decision processes in primates.
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