Display Settings:

Format

Send to:

Choose Destination
We are sorry, but NCBI web applications do not support your browser and may not function properly. More information
    Neuroscience. 2008 Aug 26;155(3):573-84. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2008.06.037. Epub 2008 Jun 21.

    Contributions of the amygdala and medial prefrontal cortex to incentive cue responding.

    Source

    Ernest Gallo Clinic & Research Center, University of California, San Francisco, 5858 Horton Street, Suite 200, Emeryville, CA 94608, USA. akinori@yamaguchi-u.ac.jp

    Abstract

    Reward-seeking behavior is controlled by neuronal circuits that include the basolateral nucleus of amygdala (BLA), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental area. Using a discriminative stimulus (DS) task in which an intermittently presented cue (DS) directs rats to make an operant response for sucrose, we previously demonstrated that dopamine receptor antagonism in the NAc reduced reinforced cue responding, whereas general inactivation of the NAc increased behavioral responding in the absence of the cue. Because they send major glutamatergic projections to the NAc, the BLA and mPFC may also contribute to reward-seeking behaviors modulated by the NAc. In this study we compare the effects of BLA and mPFC inactivation on rats' performance of a DS task. BLA inactivation by combined GABA(A) and GABA(B) agonists impaired cue responding with minimal effects on operant behavior in the absence of cues. Dorsal medial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) inactivation also inhibited cue-evoked reward-seeking. In contrast, ventral medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) inactivation disinhibited responding to unrewarded cues with less influence on reinforced cue responding. These findings demonstrate that the BLA and dmPFC facilitate cue-evoked reward-seeking, whereas, in the same task the vmPFC exerts inhibitory control over unrewarded behaviors.

    PMID:
    18640246
    [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
    PMCID:
    PMC2900834
    Free PMC Article

    Images from this publication.See all images (8)Free text

    Fig. 2
    Fig. 4
    Fig. 6
    Fig. 8
    Fig. 1
    Fig. 3
    Fig. 5
    Fig. 7

      Supplemental Content

      Icon for Elsevier Science Icon for PubMed Central

      Save items

      Recent activity

      Your browsing activity is empty.

      Activity recording is turned off.

      Turn recording back on

      See more...
      Write to the Help Desk