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Ventral striatal dopamine reflects behavioral and neural signatures of model-based control during sequential decision making.

ABSTRACT: Dual system theories suggest that behavioral control is parsed between a deliberative "model-based" and a more reflexive "model-free" system. A balance of control exerted by these systems is thought to be related to dopamine neurotransmission. However, in the absence of direct measures of human dopamine, it remains unknown whether this reflects a quantitative relation with dopamine either in the striatum or other brain areas. Using a sequential decision task performed during functional magnetic resonance imaging, combined with striatal measures of dopamine using [(18)F]DOPA positron emission tomography, we show that higher presynaptic ventral striatal dopamine levels were associated with a behavioral bias toward more model-based control. Higher presynaptic dopamine in ventral striatum was associated with greater coding of model-based signatures in lateral prefrontal cortex and diminished coding of model-free prediction errors in ventral striatum. Thus, interindividual variability in ventral striatal presynaptic dopamine reflects a balance in the behavioral expression and the neural signatures of model-free and model-based control. Our data provide a novel perspective on how alterations in presynaptic dopamine levels might be accompanied by a disruption of behavioral control as observed in aging or neuropsychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia and addiction.

SUBMITTER: Deserno L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4321318 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Ventral striatal dopamine reflects behavioral and neural signatures of model-based control during sequential decision making.

Deserno Lorenz L Huys Quentin J M QJ Boehme Rebecca R Buchert Ralph R Heinze Hans-Jochen HJ Grace Anthony A AA Dolan Raymond J RJ Heinz Andreas A Schlagenhauf Florian F

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20150120 5

Dual system theories suggest that behavioral control is parsed between a deliberative "model-based" and a more reflexive "model-free" system. A balance of control exerted by these systems is thought to be related to dopamine neurotransmission. However, in the absence of direct measures of human dopamine, it remains unknown whether this reflects a quantitative relation with dopamine either in the striatum or other brain areas. Using a sequential decision task performed during functional magnetic ...[more]

PMID: 25605941

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Project description:Recent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have provided compelling evidence that corticolimbic brain regions are integrally involved in human decision-making. Although much less is known about molecular mechanisms, there is growing evidence that the mesolimbic dopamine (DA) neurotransmitter system may be an important neural substrate. Thus far, direct examination of DA signaling in human risk-taking has centered on gambling disorder. Findings from several positron emission tomography (PET) studies suggest that dysfunctions in mesolimbic DA circuits may play an important role in gambling behavior. Nevertheless, interpretation of these findings is currently hampered by a need for better understanding of how individual differences in regional DA function influence normative decision-making in humans. To further our understanding of these processes, we used [(11)C]raclopride PET to examine associations between ventral striatal (VS) DA responses to amphetamine (AMPH) and risky decision-making in a sample of healthy young adults with no history of psychiatric disorder, Forty-five male and female subjects, ages 18-29 years, completed a computerized version of the Iowa Gambling Task. Participants then underwent two 90-minute PET studies with high specific activity [(11)C]raclopride. The first scan was preceded by intravenous saline; the second, by intravenous AMPH (0.3mg/kg). Findings of primary analyses showed that less advantageous decision-making was associated with greater right VS DA release; the relationship did not differ as a function of gender. No associations were observed between risk-taking and left VS DA release or baseline D2/D3 receptor availability in either hemisphere. Overall, the results support notions that variability in striatal DA function may mediate inter-individual differences in risky decision-making in healthy adults, further suggesting that hypersensitive DA circuits may represent a risk pathway in this population.

Dataset Information

Ventral striatal dopamine reflects behavioral and neural signatures of model-based control during sequential decision making.

Publications

Ventral striatal dopamine reflects behavioral and neural signatures of model-based control during sequential decision making.

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