Motivational states influence effort-based decision making in rats: The role of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens
Motivational states influence effort-based decision making in rats: The role of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens
复制标题
DOI：
10.3758/s13415-011-0068-4
复制
发表时间：
2012-03-01
影响因子：
2.9
通讯作者：
Hauber, Wolfgang
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Mai, Bettina;Sommer, Susanne;Hauber, Wolfgang
决策政策可以通过改变激励状态来调整。然而，到目前为止，人们对连接动机状态和决策的神经化学机制知之甚少。在这里，我们研究了伏隔核核心(ACBC)中的多巴胺(DA)是否调制了动机状态对基于努力的决策的影响。利用成本效益T迷宫任务，我们检验了ACBC DA耗竭对基于努力的决策的影响，特别是对基于努力的决策对从饥饿状态到饱和状态转变的敏感度的影响。结果表明，与假对照组相比，饥饿和饱足状态下ACBC DA耗竭的大鼠对费力但大笔奖励的行动的偏好降低。这一发现进一步支持了ACBC DA规范为奖励投入多少努力的概念。重要的是，我们的研究结果进一步表明，与假控制组一样，受损大鼠基于努力的决策仍然对从饥饿到满足状态的转变很敏感；也就是说，在从限制喂养转变为自由喂养后，它们对努力的大笔奖励行动的偏好变得更低。这些发现表明，ACBC DA不一定参与调节动机状态变化对决策政策的影响。
Decision-making policies are subject to modulation by changing motivational states. However, so far, little is known about the neurochemical mechanisms that bridge motivational states with decision making. Here we examined whether dopamine (DA) in the nucleus accumbens core (AcbC) modulates the effects of motivational states on effort-based decision making. Using a cost-benefit T-maze task in rats, we examined the effects of AcbC DA depletions on effort-based decision making, in particular on the sensitivity of effort-based decision making to a shift from a hungry to a sated state. The results demonstrated that, relative to sham controls, rats with AcbC DA depletion in a hungry as well as in a sated state had a reduced preference for effortful but large-reward action. This finding provides further support for the notion that AcbC DA regulates how much effort to invest for rewards. Importantly, our results further revealed that effort-based decision making in lesioned rats, as in sham controls, was still sensitive to a shift from a hungry to a sated state; that is, their preferences for effortful large-reward actions became lower after a shift from a restricted to a free-feeding regimen. These finding indicate that AcbC DA is not necessarily involved in mediating the effects of a shift in motivational state on decision-making policies.