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Updated: Jul 10, 2026

An Automated T-maze Based Apparatus and Protocol for Analyzing Delay- and Effort-based Decision Making in Free Moving Rodents
Published on: August 2, 2018
[Role of Thalamocortical Circuits in Action Decision-Making]
1Department of Physiology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo.
Abstract:
Animals constantly decide whether to act or remain inactive. In mice, motor thalamus inputs to the secondary motor cortex (M2) are crucial for this process. The motor thalamus represents the relative action value, irrespective of whether the animal acts, and is transmitted to M2 before action initiation. Furthermore, this value signal is transformed into M2 activity associated with motor initiation, leading to action execution. This study elucidates the circuit mechanism through which values are transformed into actions.
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