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Related Concept Videos

Indirect Motor Pathways01:22

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The indirect motor or extrapyramidal pathways originate in the brainstem, the lower portion of the brain that connects it to the spinal cord. They consist of several distinct tracts, each with specialized functions. The four main tracts of the indirect motor pathways are the vestibulospinal tract, the reticulospinal tract, the tectospinal tract, and the rubrospinal tract.
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The direct motor pathways, also known as the pyramidal tracts, are a group of neural pathways that originate in the brain and descend through the spinal cord. They control the voluntary movement of the body. There are two major direct motor pathways: the corticospinal and the corticobulbar tracts.
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Indirect-acting cholinergic agonists work by interacting with an enzyme called acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in the synaptic cleft. They can be reversible or irreversible inhibitors and have different effects on the enzyme.
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Indirect-acting cholinergic agonists, also known as anticholinesterases, exert their pharmacological effects by enhancing cholinergic transmission in various body parts, including the neuromuscular junction, autonomic cholinergic synapses, and the brain.
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Pharmacodynamic models are essential tools in understanding the relationship between drug concentrations and their effects on biological systems. By characterizing the dynamics of drug action, these models guide dose selection, optimize therapeutic efficacy, and inform the development of new drugs. Two major classes of pharmacodynamic models include direct effect and indirect response models.Direct Effect ModelsDirect effect models describe the immediate relationship between drug concentration...
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The z and the Student t distribution estimate the population mean using the sample mean and standard deviation. However, to decide which distribution to use for a calculation, one needs to determine the sample size, the nature of the distribution, and whether the population standard deviation is known. If the population standard deviation is known and the population is normally distributed, or if the sample size is greater than 30, the z distribution is preferred. The Student t distribution is...
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Direct and indirect pathways for choosing objects and actions.

Okihide Hikosaka1, Hyoung F Kim2,3, Hidetoshi Amita1

  • 1Laboratory of Sensorimotor Research, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, 49 Convent Drive, Bldg. 49, Rm. 2A50, Bethesda, MD, 20892-4435, USA.

The European Journal of Neuroscience
|February 24, 2018
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The basal ganglia

Keywords:
caudate tailmonkeyreward valuesaccadesubstantia nigra

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Primate behavior
  • Basal ganglia circuitry

Background:

  • The basal ganglia, particularly the caudate nucleus (CD), substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr), and superior colliculus (SC), are critical for gaze control and action selection.
  • The CD-SNr-SC circuit modulates saccadic eye movements towards objects based on their value.
  • Distinct processing in the caudate head (CDh) and caudate tail (CDt) influences object value representation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of the caudate tail's direct and indirect pathways in object choice.
  • To determine how these pathways contribute to selecting actions based on object value.
  • To explore the broader implications for action selection and behavioral choice.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of the CD-SNr-SC circuit's function in primates.
  • Examination of the direct and indirect pathways originating from the caudate tail.
  • Inactivation studies of the caudate tail to observe effects on object choice.

Main Results:

  • The caudate tail's indirect pathway is crucial for suppressing saccades to undesirable objects, thereby facilitating object choice.
  • Inactivation of the caudate tail impairs object choice due to a failure to suppress saccades to bad objects.
  • The direct pathway facilitates saccades to good objects, while the indirect pathway suppresses saccades to bad objects.

Conclusions:

  • The basal ganglia utilize direct and indirect pathways within circuits like the CD-SNr-SC for sophisticated object and action selection.
  • The indirect pathway plays a vital role in rejecting bad objects, essential for effective decision-making.
  • Complex basal ganglia circuitry, including additional connections, underlies diverse behavioral choices beyond simple saccades.