Brain Awareness Week
Published on February 22, 2010
Brain Awareness Week from March 15th to March 21st...
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| Teams |
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Neurobiology of executive functions |
| The mechanisms by which neural networks compute and transfer information is a core issue in neurosciences. Rate, synchronization and oscillations are key mechanisms by which the brain can reliably represent distributed information, as in perceptual binding. How these mechanisms apply to higher cognitive functions is debated. Higher cognitive functions (executive functions) require the appropriate interactions of prefrontal areas, striatum and the dopaminergic system. These structures participate in working memory and performance monitoring. Brain imaging shows that dorsolateral prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices (DLPF & ACC) are co-activated during cognitive tasks, each area forming fronto-striatal loops that are influenced by dopaminergic inputs. Much of our previous research focused on the neurophysiological correlates of cognitive processing in prefrontal areas. Using single-unit recordings we have shown that the neural coding of intended actions and outcomes are modulated during learning, particular in ACC and DLPF. The dynamics and timing of these modulations is comparable in both areas, although the basic information processed in each is very different. Moreover, the modulation of activity patterns is evocative of those observed in mesencephalic structures that play a key role in learning. However, the real-time interactions between these structures as well as their modulation by dopaminergic afferents remain essentially unknown. Our current projects aim at exploring how cognitive processes are specified by the activity in each area, by the dynamical interactions between prefrontal cortical areas, and how these interactions are controlled by inputs from the monoaminergic modulatory systems.Our core project is to use multiple techniques (anatomy of connectivity, multi-microelectrodes, EEG, fMRI) to describe the anatomy and function of the networks involved in higher cognitive functions in primates. This project consists in developing a multi-level approach to studying cognitive processes. It involves improving methods and techniques established in U846, as well as developing new technological approaches | |
| Emmanuel Procyk | What are the neural mechanisms behind higher cognitive functions, and in particular those allowing flexible and voluntary behaviours? This is the main theme of my research. It adresses action and outcome valuation, cognitive control / working memory and sequential planning, and how these processes participate to learning and rapid adaptations of behaviour.Understanding these mechanisms requires investigating brain functions from behavioural to basic neurophysiological and neurochemical levels. ... |
| Kwamivi Dzahini PHD Student | The objectives concern the detection of chemical alterations in the brain and behavioral deficits during early phases of progressive dopaminergic lesion simulating Parkinson’s disease. This in view to ameliorate the diagnostic ability, and to propose new therapeutic processes. This is based on longitudinal approaches using experimental models with 6-OHDA and MPTP, toxic substances of the dopaminergic central neurons.First, Parkinson’s disease etiology is approached. We investigate ... |
| Vincent Leviel | The objectives concern the detection of chemical alterations in the brain and behavioral deficits during early phases of progressive dopaminergic lesion simulating Parkinson’s disease. This in view to ameliorate the diagnostic ability, and to propose new therapeutic processes. This is based on longitudinal approaches using experimental models with 6-OHDA and MPTP, toxic substances of the dopaminergic central neurons.First, Parkinson’s disease ... |
| René Quilodran PHD Student | My main research interests are the prefrontal and cingulate regions of the brain and the role that they play in making decisions and behavioral adaptation. My project focuses on the prefrontal correlates of the executive functions, in particular control of action, planning, and performance monitoring, by mean of electrophysiological recordings of multi-unit activities and local field potential (LFP) oscillations in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) and the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) ... |
| Marie Rothe PHD Student | I’m interested in understanding how decision making is completed, i.e. how value is computed depending on different reward parameters (probability, cost, quantity, quality, etc.), where different information are stored and analysed to be used and how the different brain regions involved in this process interact. My researches focus on two prefrontal areas (dlPFC and ACC) and consist in studying their activities and interactions during decision making. To understand the mechanisms underlying ... |
| Julien Vezoli | My research interests lie in the intersection of three fields of neuroscience; from neuroanatomy and neurophysiology to preclinical investigation of cell therapy applied to the progressive model of Parkinson's disease (low-dose mptp).My studies in neuroanatomy are concerned with inter-areal connectivity and brain networks' basic characteristics comprehension. I use the chronic-EEG technique to seek for neurophysiological correlates of cognitive integration ... |
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Selected Publications of Team members :
Vezoli J, Procyk E (2009) Frontal Feedback-Related Potentials in Nonhuman Primates: Modulation during Learning and under Haloperidol J Neurosci 29 (50): 15675-15683
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Quilodran R, Rothé M, Procyk E (2008) Behavioral shifts and action valuation in the anterior cingulate cortex. Neuron
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Sallet J, Quilodran R, Rothé M, Vezoli J, Joseph JP, Procyk E. (2007) Expectations, gains and losses in the anterior cingulate cortex. Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci 7(4), 327-36.
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Procyk E, Goldman-Rakic PS (2006) Modulation of dorsolateral prefrontal delay activity during self-organized behavior. J Neurosci 26(44):11313-23.
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Amiez C, Joseph JP, Procyk E (2006) Reward Encoding in the Monkey Anterior Cingulate Cortex. Cereb Cortex 16(7):1040-55
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Amiez C, Joseph JP, Procyk E (2005) Anterior cingulate error-related activity is modulated by predicted reward. Eur J Neurosci 21(12):3447-52
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Leviel V (2001) The reverse transport of DA, what physiological significance? Neurochem Int 38(2):83-106
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Procyk E, Joseph JP (2001) Characterization of serial order encoding in the monkey anterior cingulate sulcus Eur J Neurosci 14:1041-6.
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