Theta oscillations integrate functionally segregated sub-regions of the medial prefrontal cortex

Reinforcement learning requires the dynamic interplay of several specialized networks distributed across the brain. A potential mechanism to establish accurate temporal coordination among these paths is through the synchronization of neuronal activity to a common rhythm of neuronal firing. Previous...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Mas-Herrero, Ernest, Marco Pallarés, Josep
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2016
País:España
Institución:Varias* (Consorci de Biblioteques Universitáries de Catalunya, Centre de Serveis Científics i Acadèmics de Catalunya)
Repositorio:Recercat. Dipósit de la Recerca de Catalunya
OAI Identifier:oai:recercat.cat:2445/181371
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/2445/181371
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Reforç (Psicologia)
Psicologia cognitiva
Escorça frontal
Reinforcement (Psychology)
Cognitive psychology
Prefrontal cortex
Descripción
Sumario:Reinforcement learning requires the dynamic interplay of several specialized networks distributed across the brain. A potential mechanism to establish accurate temporal coordination among these paths is through the synchronization of neuronal activity to a common rhythm of neuronal firing. Previous EEG studies have suggested that theta oscillatory activity might be crucial in the integration of information from motivational and attentional paths that converge into the medial Prefrontal Cortex (mPFC) during reward-guided learning. However, due to the low spatial resolution of EEG, this hypothesis has not been directly tested. Here, by combining EEG and fMRI, we show that theta oscillations serve as common substrate for the engagement of separated sub-regions within the mPFC (the pre-Supplementary Motor Area and the dorsomedial Prefrontal Cortex), underlying different cognitive operations (encoding of outcome valence and unsigned prediction errors) through separate functional paths (the Salience and the Central Executive Networks).