Article
Biology
Eun Ju Shin, Yunsil Jang, Soyoun Kim, Hoseok Kim, Xinying Cai, Hyunjung Lee, Jung Hoon Sul, Sung-Hyun Lee, Yeonseung Chung, Daeyeol Lee, Min Whan Jung
Summary: Studies in rats, monkeys, and humans have found action-value signals encoded in various brain regions, which bias choices towards higher expected rewards. Statistical tests on neural activity in the striatum, frontal cortex, and hippocampus show that previously identified action-value signals cannot be solely explained by serial correlations or activity related to other decision variables. Additionally, it was found that neural activity related to action value is intertwined with signals related to other decision variables.
Article
Neurosciences
Heather J. Pribut, Daniela Vazquez, Alice D. Wei, Stephen S. Tennyson, Ian R. Davis, Matthew R. Roesch, Xuan Li
Summary: This study found that overexpression of HDAC5 in the dorsal striatum of rats leads to faster response and more frequent selection of high-value rewards in the first set of trials, but less flexibility in reversing these contingencies in the second set. At the neural level, HDAC5 overexpression in the dorsal striatum increases and decreases the number of cells in the dorsolateral striatum that respond to stimuli and rewards, respectively, and shifts encoding towards cues predicting more immediate rewards.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Hiroshi Makino
Summary: This study reveals that the brain is capable of composing a novel behavior by additively combining preacquired action-value representations with stochastic policies using a simple arithmetic operation. Empirical testing on mice demonstrates that subtask pretraining enhances learning of composite tasks.
NATURE NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence
Hao Lu, Liang Liu, Hu Wang, Zhiguo Cao
Summary: This paper introduces a method to address crowd counting as a sequential decision-making problem. By interpreting counting as a physical process of scale weighing, a novel counting model called LibraNet is proposed, which outperforms state-of-the-art approaches and demonstrates remarkable cross-dataset generalization in crowd counting tasks.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON NEURAL NETWORKS AND LEARNING SYSTEMS
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
F. Munoz, A. Meaney, A. Gross, K. Liu, A. N. Pouliopoulos, D. Liu, E. E. Konofagou, V. P. Ferrera
Summary: The study shows that applying transcranial focused ultrasound (FUS) to the dorsal striatum can have positive effects on motivation and decision accuracy in nonhuman primates. This suggests the therapeutic potential of FUS in treating various human neural diseases, making it a promising technique for non-invasive deep brain stimulation.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
S. Shushruth, Ariel Zylberberg, Michael N. Shadlen
Summary: The study of perceptual decision-making in monkeys has provided insights into how sensory evidence is integrated for decision-making. When monkeys are aware of the motor actions related to their decisions, the integration of evidence is carried out by neurons involved in the selection of these actions. However, it is unclear how monkeys make decisions when they are unaware of the required actions, which is referred to as abstract decisions. This study trained monkeys to associate the direction of motion with the color of two targets and found that monkeys postponed decision formation until the targets were revealed. Neurons in the parietal association area represented the integration of evidence leading to a choice, but the samples of evidence must have been retrieved from short-term memory since the stimulus was no longer visible.
Article
Biology
Yukiko Hori, Koki Mimura, Yuji Nagai, Atsushi Fujimoto, Kei Oyama, Erika Kikuchi, Ken-ichi Inoue, Masahiko Takada, Tetsuya Suhara, Barry J. Richmond, Takafumi Minamimoto
Summary: The study reveals that neuronal activity in the dorsal part of the primate caudate head (dCDh) signals the temporally discounted value needed to calculate motivation for delayed rewards, and inactivation of dCDh distorts task performance based on reward size and delay integration, but not for different reward sizes without delay.
Article
Neurosciences
Morgane M. Moss, Peter Zatka-Haas, Kenneth D. Harris, Matteo Carandini, Armin Lak
Summary: Research suggests that dopamine in the striatum plays a critical role in visual decision-making, encoding visual stimuli and rewarded actions in a lateralized fashion. Contrary to previous beliefs, dopamine signals in the DMS respond to contralateral stimuli and rewarded actions, facilitating associations between specific visual stimuli and actions.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Johannes Steffen, Dimitrije Markovic, Franka Gloeckner, Philipp T. Neukam, Stefan J. Kiebel, Shu-Chen Li, Michael N. Smolka
Summary: Forward planning is crucial in complex sequential decision-making, and this study found that age is a factor that affects forward planning. Older adults showed shorter planning depths and used more simplified strategies. These findings are important for understanding changes in decision-making behavior in older adults.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Bernard Bloem, Rafiq Huda, Ken-ichi Amemori, Alex S. Abate, Gayathri Krishna, Anna L. Wilson, Cody W. Carter, Mriganka Sur, Ann M. Graybiel
Summary: The striatal neurons can encode associations between actions and multiple rewarding and aversive outcomes. Striosomal neurons are particularly important in action-outcome learning.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Gurtej Singh Saini, Oney Erge, Pradeepkumar Ashok, Eric Van Oort
Summary: This paper describes the steps to build unbiased purpose-built sequential decision-making systems for well construction operations. It involves representing the operation as a Markov decision process, building a digital twin, and shaping reward functions to measure feedback. The constructed system is used for simulating and quantifying different action sequences and comparing scenarios on real-world oil wells.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Jackson D. Schumacher, Mieke van Holstein, Vaishali Bagrodia, Hannah B. Le Bouder, Stan B. Floresco
Summary: Optimal decision making involving reward uncertainty is crucial for adaptive goal-directed behavior, with different regions of the frontal lobe forming distributed networks with striatal and amygdalar regions to facilitate various types of risk/reward decision making. Inactivation of the DMS with GABA agonists impaired flexible action selection during multiple forms of risk/reward decision making, highlighting a previously uncharacterized role for the DMS in guiding choice biases and adjusting decision-making strategies.
NEUROBIOLOGY OF LEARNING AND MEMORY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Maria Cecilia Martinez, Camila Lidia Zold, Marcos Antonio Coletti, Mario Gustavo Murer, Mariano Andres Belluscio
Summary: The activity of the striatum plays a role in the timing of action sequence initiation and is linked to impulsivity. This modulation is more pronounced in adolescent rats, potentially reflecting age-related differences in reward expectation and temporal discounting.
Article
Neurosciences
Ashley C. Parr, Heidi C. Riek, Brian C. Coe, Giovanna Pari, Mario Masellis, Connie Marras, Douglas P. Munoz
Summary: Genetic variation in dopamine function may affect mixed-strategy decision-making in Parkinson's disease patients. Patients with higher dopamine transmission scores showed better performance, and genetic variation modulated cognitive aspects of performance beyond motor function.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Review
Clinical Neurology
Lisa Goudman, Philippe Rigoard, Maxime Billot, Rui Duarte, Sam Eldabe, Maarten Moens
Summary: Despite the efficacy of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) in managing chronic pain, patient selection for SCS treatment remains challenging. This review provides an overview of the factors that influence patient selection, including disease indication, reimbursement rules, screening criteria, psychological factors, individual goals, preoperative optimizations, prediction models, selection bias, MRI compatibility, ethical beliefs, technological innovations, stimulation paradigms, and feedback systems. Both patients and physicians should consider these factors to make an informed decision about initiating SCS treatment.
JOURNAL OF PAIN RESEARCH
(2022)
Editorial Material
Behavioral Sciences
Siqi Fan, Hannah Weinberg-Wolf, Matthew Piva, Olga Dal Monte, Steve W. C. Chang
TRENDS IN COGNITIVE SCIENCES
(2020)
Article
Neurosciences
Olga Dal Monte, Cheng C. J. Chu, Nicholas A. Fagan, Steve W. C. Chang
NATURE NEUROSCIENCE
(2020)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Igor Iarrobino, Alessandro Bongiardina, Olga Dal Monte, Pietro Sarasso, Irene Ronga, Marco Neppi-Modona, Rossana Actis-Grosso, Adriana Salatino, Raffaella Ricci
Summary: This study utilized cathodal tDCS to investigate the role of right and left inferior frontal operculum in emotional face discrimination in healthy volunteers. The findings revealed a differential causal role of the two regions in discriminating specific high and low arousal emotions.
Article
Microbiology
Beata Zimowska, Andrea Becchimanzi, Ewa Dorota Krol, Agnieszka Furmanczyk, Konstanze Bensch, Rosario Nicoletti
Summary: A series of isolates of Cladosporium spp. were found in normal and galled flowers caused by midges, indicating they may not have a definite relationship. Identification based on DNA sequencing revealed taxonomic heterogeneity among the isolates, belonging to different species complexes. Two new species were characterized within the Cladosporium cladosporioides complex.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Benjamin M. Basile, Jessica A. Joiner, Olga Dal Monte, Nicholas A. Fagan, Chloe L. Karaskiewicz, Daniel R. Lucas, Steve W. C. Chang, Elisabeth A. Murray
Summary: Observing the pupil responses of monkeys in a vicarious reinforcement paradigm revealed a link between pupil size and outcome salience, as well as a connection between prosocial tendencies and outcome valence, with a U-shaped relationship between salience and valence.
BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Review
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Siqi Fan, Olga Dal Monte, Steve W. C. Chang
Summary: Researchers use various social stimuli in the laboratory to understand social behaviors and neural substrates, classifying them into five levels of naturalism with a focus on the trade-off between experimental control and ecological validity. With emerging tools like real-time videos and virtual avatars, researchers can now capture the dynamics and contingency of real-life social interaction at a higher level of naturalism.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Riccardo Tambone, Giulia Poggio, Maria Pyasik, Dalila Burin, Olga Dal Monte, Selene Schintu, Tommaso Ciorli, Laura Luca, Maria Vittoria Semino, Fabrizio Doricchi, Lorenzo Pia
Summary: The study found that participants' perceived body size changed according to the avatar's body size. Owning a slimmer avatar increased avoidance of high-calorie food, while owning a larger avatar did not induce changes.
Article
Psychology, Experimental
Maria Pyasik, Elisabetta Fortunato, Olga Dal Monte, Selene Schintu, Francesca Garbarini, Tommaso Ciorli, Lorenzo Pia
Summary: Research shows that the ability to distinguish between another person's body and one's own body modulates the social softness illusion. In experiments, the touched person's skin was perceived as softer than the own one, and this illusion was more pronounced in an allocentric perspective.
PSYCHOLOGICAL RESEARCH-PSYCHOLOGISCHE FORSCHUNG
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Hannah B. Weinberg-Wolf, Nick Fagan, Olga Dal Monte, Steve W. C. Chang
Summary: The study found that increasing central concentrations of serotonin with the direct precursor 5-HTP impairs the ability of rhesus macaques to flexibly orient and inhibit, particularly inhibiting orienting to face images. The effects of 5-HTP on performance were correlated with physiological changes such as pupil constriction, increased time to initiate trials, and increased reaction time, suggesting a downregulation of arousal and motivational states.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Alessandro Mazza, Olga Dal Monte, Selene Schintu, Samuele Colombo, Nicola Michielli, Pietro Sarasso, Peter Torlind, Marco Cantamessa, Francesca Montagna, Raffaella Ricci
Summary: The compound nature of creativity makes it difficult to attribute it to a single neural signature, as it involves multiple cognitive processes. Divergent thinking paradigms have shown that creativity is related to specific mental operations such as inhibition, loose semantic associations, and mental imagery. Neurophysiological studies have found high alpha rhythm synchronization during creative ideation, along with oculomotor activity and pupil dilation as indicators of mental operations. This study investigated the involvement of other frequency bands, such as beta and gamma, in divergent and convergent thinking, and their association with gaze patterns and pupil response. The findings revealed specific neural dynamics and physiological patterns during idea generation, providing new insights into the physiological signature of creative production.
Article
Computer Science, Information Systems
Edoardo Battegazzorre, Francesco Strada, Lucia De Francesco, Alessandro Mazza, Olga Dal Monte, Andrea Bottino
Summary: This paper presents a virtual reality Stroop test application that incorporates influencer-based elements. The study examines the effects of these elements on performance and stress levels, finding that social presence generally improves performance and reduces stress, except in competitive situations. The research contributes to the development of more engaging and effective virtual Stroop tests.
Review
Neurosciences
Prabaha Gangopadhyay, Megha Chawla, Olga Dal Monte, Steve W. C. Chang
Summary: This article examines the neural bases of social decision-making, focusing on the importance of the medial prefrontal-amygdala pathways. Research efforts are increasingly directed towards investigating the neural bases of social cognition, with evidence from multiple animal species providing a mechanistic understanding of social behaviors at different levels of neurobiology.
NATURE NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Horticulture
Barbara Anna Abramczyk, Ewa Dorota Krol, Ewa Dorota Zalewska, Beata Zimowska
ACTA SCIENTIARUM POLONORUM-HORTORUM CULTUS
(2020)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Beata Zimowska, Sylwia Okon, Andrea Becchimanzi, Ewa Dorota Krol, Rosario Nicoletti
Article
Microbiology
Beata Zimowska, Ewa Dorota Krol
ADVANCEMENTS OF MICROBIOLOGY
(2019)
