Differential coding of goals and actions in ventral and dorsal corticostriatal circuits during goal-directed behavior

Goal-directed behavior requires identifying objects in the environment that can satisfy internal needs and executing actions to obtain those objects. The current study examines ventral and dorsal corticostriatal circuits that support complementary aspects of goal-directed behavior. We analyze activity from the amygdala, ventral striatum, orbitofrontal cortex, and lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) while monkeys perform a three-armed bandit task. Information about chosen stimuli and their value is primarily encoded in the amygdala, ventral striatum, and orbitofrontal cortex, while the spatial information is primarily encoded in the LPFC. Before the options are presented, information about the to-be-chosen stimulus is represented in the amygdala, ventral striatum, and orbitofrontal cortex; at the time of choice, the information is passed to the LPFC to direct a saccade. Thus, learned value information specifying behavioral goals is maintained throughout the ventral corticostriatal circuit, and it is routed through the dorsal circuit at the time actions are selected.