Complexity and competition in appetitive and aversive neural circuits

Autor: Crista L. Barberini, Sara E. Morrison, Alex eSaez, Brian eLau, C. Daniel Salzman
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2012
Předmět:
Zdroj: Frontiers in Neuroscience, Vol 6 (2012)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1662-453X
DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2012.00170
Popis: Decision-making often involves using sensory cues to predict possible rewarding or punishing reinforcement outcomes before selecting a course of action. Recent work has revealed complexity in how the brain learns to predict rewards and punishments. Analysis of neural signaling during and after learning in the amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex, two brain areas that process appetitive and aversive stimuli, reveals a dynamic relationship between appetitive and aversive circuits. Specifically, the relationship between signaling in appetitive and aversive circuits in these areas shifts as a function of learning. Furthermore, although appetitive and aversive circuits may often drive opposite behaviors – approaching or avoiding reinforcement depending upon its valence – these circuits can also drive similar behaviors, such as enhanced arousal or attention; these processes also may influence choice behavior. These data highlight the formidable challenges ahead in dissecting how appetitive and aversive neural circuits interact to produce a complex and nuanced range of behaviors.
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