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Control of adaptive action selection by secondary motor cortex during flexible visual categorization
Tian-Yi Wang1,2, Jing Liu1,2, Haishan Yao1,3
1Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Elife
|June 25, 2020
Summary
Flexible behavior relies on adaptive action selection. The secondary motor cortex (M2) is crucial for this, as M2 inactivation impairs behavioral adaptation to changing visual stimuli by altering sensory history influence.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Adaptive action selection is key for flexible behavior.
- Understanding the neural mechanisms of adaptive action selection is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural mechanisms of adaptive action selection during stimulus categorization.
- To determine the role of the secondary motor cortex (M2) in flexible behavior.
Main Methods:
- Mice were trained to categorize visual stimuli based on spatial frequency.
- A dynamic decision criterion model was used to analyze behavioral data.
- Bilateral inactivation of M2 was performed.
- Electrophysiological recordings were conducted in M2.
Main Results:
- Sensory history significantly influenced adaptive action selection after boundary switches.
- M2 inactivation impaired adaptive action selection and reduced the influence of sensory history.
- M2 neurons showed enhanced representation of upcoming choice and sensory history during remapping periods.
Conclusions:
- The secondary motor cortex (M2) causally contributes to flexible action selection in stimulus categorization.
- M2 plays a critical role in regulating the representation of choice and sensory history during dynamic task demands.
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