Lesions to the mediodorsal thalamus, but not orbitofrontal cortex, enhance volatility beliefs linked to paranoia.

ABSTRACT: Beliefs-attitudes toward some state of the environment-guide action selection and should be robust to variability but sensitive to meaningful change. Beliefs about volatility (expectation of change) are associated with paranoia in humans, but the brain regions responsible for volatility beliefs remain unknown. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is central to adaptive behavior, whereas the magnocellular mediodorsal thalamus (MDmc) is essential for arbitrating between perceptions and action policies. We assessed belief updating in a three-choice probabilistic reversal learning task following excitotoxic lesions of the MDmc (n = 3) or OFC (n = 3) and compared performance with that of unoperated monkeys (n = 14). Computational analyses indicated a double dissociation: MDmc, but not OFC, lesions we

SUBMITTER: Suthaharan P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11231991 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature