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Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)

Prediction about outcomes constitutes a basic mechanism underlying informed economic decision making. A stimulus constitutes a reward predictor when it provides more information about the reward than the environmental background. Reward prediction can be manipulated in two ways, by varying the rewar...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Bermudez, Maria A., Schultz, Wolfram
Formato: Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: American Physiological Society 2010
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2887637/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20032233
http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00933.2009
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author Bermudez, Maria A.
Schultz, Wolfram
author_facet Bermudez, Maria A.
Schultz, Wolfram
author_sort Bermudez, Maria A.
collection PubMed
description Prediction about outcomes constitutes a basic mechanism underlying informed economic decision making. A stimulus constitutes a reward predictor when it provides more information about the reward than the environmental background. Reward prediction can be manipulated in two ways, by varying the reward paired with the stimulus, as done traditionally in neurophysiological studies, and by varying the background reward while holding stimulus-reward pairing constant. Neuronal mechanisms involved in reward prediction should also be sensitive to changes in background reward independently of stimulus-reward pairing. We tested this assumption on a major brain structure involved in reward processing, the central and basolateral amygdala. In a 2 × 2 design, we examined the influence of rewarded and unrewarded backgrounds on neuronal responses to rewarded and unrewarded visual stimuli. Indeed, responses to the unchanged rewarded stimulus depended crucially on background reward in a population of amygdala neurons. Elevating background reward to the level of the rewarded stimulus extinguished these responses, and lowering background reward again reinstated the responses without changes in stimulus-reward pairing. None of these neurons responded specifically to an inhibitory stimulus predicting less reward compared with background (negative contingency). A smaller group of amygdala neurons maintained stimulus responses irrespective of background reward, possibly reflecting stimulus-reward pairing or visual sensory processes without reward prediction. Thus in being sensitive to background reward, the responses of a population of amygdala neurons to phasic stimuli appeared to follow the full criteria for excitatory reward prediction (positive contingency) rather than reflecting simple stimulus-reward pairing (contiguity).
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spelling pubmed-28876372010-06-18 Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity) Bermudez, Maria A. Schultz, Wolfram J Neurophysiol Articles Prediction about outcomes constitutes a basic mechanism underlying informed economic decision making. A stimulus constitutes a reward predictor when it provides more information about the reward than the environmental background. Reward prediction can be manipulated in two ways, by varying the reward paired with the stimulus, as done traditionally in neurophysiological studies, and by varying the background reward while holding stimulus-reward pairing constant. Neuronal mechanisms involved in reward prediction should also be sensitive to changes in background reward independently of stimulus-reward pairing. We tested this assumption on a major brain structure involved in reward processing, the central and basolateral amygdala. In a 2 × 2 design, we examined the influence of rewarded and unrewarded backgrounds on neuronal responses to rewarded and unrewarded visual stimuli. Indeed, responses to the unchanged rewarded stimulus depended crucially on background reward in a population of amygdala neurons. Elevating background reward to the level of the rewarded stimulus extinguished these responses, and lowering background reward again reinstated the responses without changes in stimulus-reward pairing. None of these neurons responded specifically to an inhibitory stimulus predicting less reward compared with background (negative contingency). A smaller group of amygdala neurons maintained stimulus responses irrespective of background reward, possibly reflecting stimulus-reward pairing or visual sensory processes without reward prediction. Thus in being sensitive to background reward, the responses of a population of amygdala neurons to phasic stimuli appeared to follow the full criteria for excitatory reward prediction (positive contingency) rather than reflecting simple stimulus-reward pairing (contiguity). American Physiological Society 2010-03 2009-12-23 /pmc/articles/PMC2887637/ /pubmed/20032233 http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00933.2009 Text en This document may be redistributed and reused, subject to www.the-aps.org/publications/journals/funding_addendum_policy.htm (http://www.the-aps.org/publications/journals/funding_addendum_policy.htm) .
spellingShingle Articles
Bermudez, Maria A.
Schultz, Wolfram
Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)
title Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)
title_full Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)
title_fullStr Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)
title_full_unstemmed Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)
title_short Responses of Amygdala Neurons to Positive Reward-Predicting Stimuli Depend on Background Reward (Contingency) Rather Than Stimulus-Reward Pairing (Contiguity)
title_sort responses of amygdala neurons to positive reward-predicting stimuli depend on background reward (contingency) rather than stimulus-reward pairing (contiguity)
topic Articles
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2887637/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20032233
http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/jn.00933.2009
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