Recent hypotheses have posited that orbital frontal cortex (OFC) is important for using inferred ... more Recent hypotheses have posited that orbital frontal cortex (OFC) is important for using inferred consequences to guide behavior. Less clear is OFC's contribution to goal-directed or model-based behavior, where the decision to act is controlled by previous experience with the consequence or outcome. Investigating OFC's role in learning about changed outcomes separate from decision-making is not trivial and often the two are confounded. Here we adapted an incentive learning task to mice, where we investigated processes controlling experience-based outcome updating independent from inferred action control. We found chemogenetic OFC attenuation did not alter the ability to perceive motivational state-induced changes in outcome value but did prevent the experience-based updating of this change. Optogenetic inhibition of OFC excitatory neuron activity selectively when experiencing an outcome change disrupted the ability to update, leaving mice unable to infer the appropriate behavior. Our findings support a role for OFC in learning that controls decision-making.
Addiction involves a predominance of habitual control mediated through action selection processes... more Addiction involves a predominance of habitual control mediated through action selection processes in dorsal striatum. Research has largely focused on neural mechanisms mediating a proposed progression from ventral to dorsal lateral striatal control in addiction. However, over reliance on habit striatal processes may also arise from reduced cortical input to striatum, thereby disrupting executive control over action selection. Here, we identify novel mechanisms through which chronic intermittent ethanol exposure and withdrawal (CIE) disrupts top-down control over goal-directed action selection processes to produce habits. We find CIE results in decreased excitability of orbital frontal cortex (OFC) excitatory circuits supporting goal-directed control, and, strikingly, selectively reduces OFC output to the direct output pathway in dorsal medial striatum. Increasing the activity of OFC circuits restores goal-directed control in CIE-exposed mice. Our findings show habitual control in alcohol dependence can arise through disrupted communication between top-down, goal-directed processes onto basal ganglia pathways controlling action selection.
Recent hypotheses have posited that orbital frontal cortex (OFC) is important for using inferred ... more Recent hypotheses have posited that orbital frontal cortex (OFC) is important for using inferred consequences to guide behavior. Less clear is OFC's contribution to goal-directed or model-based behavior, where the decision to act is controlled by previous experience with the consequence or outcome. Investigating OFC's role in learning about changed outcomes separate from decision-making is not trivial and often the two are confounded. Here we adapted an incentive learning task to mice, where we investigated processes controlling experience-based outcome updating independent from inferred action control. We found chemogenetic OFC attenuation did not alter the ability to perceive motivational state-induced changes in outcome value but did prevent the experience-based updating of this change. Optogenetic inhibition of OFC excitatory neuron activity selectively when experiencing an outcome change disrupted the ability to update, leaving mice unable to infer the appropriate behavior. Our findings support a role for OFC in learning that controls decision-making.
Addiction involves a predominance of habitual control mediated through action selection processes... more Addiction involves a predominance of habitual control mediated through action selection processes in dorsal striatum. Research has largely focused on neural mechanisms mediating a proposed progression from ventral to dorsal lateral striatal control in addiction. However, over reliance on habit striatal processes may also arise from reduced cortical input to striatum, thereby disrupting executive control over action selection. Here, we identify novel mechanisms through which chronic intermittent ethanol exposure and withdrawal (CIE) disrupts top-down control over goal-directed action selection processes to produce habits. We find CIE results in decreased excitability of orbital frontal cortex (OFC) excitatory circuits supporting goal-directed control, and, strikingly, selectively reduces OFC output to the direct output pathway in dorsal medial striatum. Increasing the activity of OFC circuits restores goal-directed control in CIE-exposed mice. Our findings show habitual control in alcohol dependence can arise through disrupted communication between top-down, goal-directed processes onto basal ganglia pathways controlling action selection.
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Papers by Emily Baltz