Principles of olfactory reward processing in the human brain

项目总结 中枢神经系统的一个重要功能是使行为偏向于 与生存息息相关。众所周知，气味对动物的行为有很大的影响，因为它们引导 寻找食物，建立母爱关系，选择配偶。即使人类不认为嗅觉是一种 从优势感觉来看，人类同样也会被气味的有益属性所左右。随着最近的发展 在基于模式的功能磁共振成像(FMRI)数据和非侵入性脑分析中 刺激技术，我们现在能够探索嗅觉奖赏的神经机制 人类。在上一个资金周期中，我们对气味奖励是如何在 眼眶额叶皮质(OFC)，以及多巴胺能中脑如何支持这些表示。这个 当前续签申请的目标是利用这些新方法，以解决新的 这些关于人类气味引导行为的神经机制的初步发现引发了问题。 具体地说，我们将使用OFC靶向经颅磁刺激(TMS)和新的行为任务 将食物气味作为奖励，揭示不同的OFC网络对决策的具体贡献。 此外，拟议的研究将结合基于网络的TMS和基于模式的fMRI来阐明 神经机制驱动学习未来气味奖赏的身份。补充性研究将 研究一个人的动机状态如何调节对食物气味的感知和神经反应，从而 它们可以帮助检测环境中与生物相关的奖励。把实验放在一起 这个项目的提出将从根本上扩展我们对嗅觉奖赏加工的理解 人类大脑的功能和机械水平，以及对学习的神经科学研究的影响， 记忆，以及一般的行为。此外，这项工作的发现可以更好地理解 在各种神经精神障碍中描述的行为缺陷，包括精神分裂症、进食 障碍和成瘾，并最终可能为发展新的诊断和治疗提供洞察力 治疗方法。

PROJECT SUMMARY A crucial function of the central nervous system is to bias behavior toward events and outcomes that hold relevance for survival. It is well recognized that odors have a strong effect on animal behavior, as they guide food search, maternal bonding, and mate selection. Even though humans do not consider olfaction to be a dominant sense, humans are similarly swayed by the rewarding properties of odors. With recent developments in the pattern-based analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data and non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, we are now in a position to explore the neural mechanisms of olfactory reward in humans. During the previous funding cycle, we gained key insights into how odor rewards are represented in orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and how the dopaminergic midbrain may support these representations. The objective of the current renewal application is to capitalize on these novel methods in order to address new questions arising from these initial findings about the neural mechanisms of odor-guided behavior in humans. Specifically, we will use OFC-targeted transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and novel behavioral tasks that involve food odors as rewards to reveal the specific contribution of different OFC networks to decision making. Moreover, the proposed studies will combine network-based TMS with pattern-based fMRI to elucidate the neural mechanisms that drive learning about the identity of future odor rewards. Complementary studies will examine how one’s motivational state modulates perceptional and neural responses to food odors, such that they can aid the detection of biologically relevant rewards in the environment. Together the experiments proposed in this project will fundamentally extend our understanding of olfactory reward processing in the human brain at the functional and mechanistic level, with implications for neuroscientific research on learning, memory, and behavior in general. Moreover, the findings from this work can lead to a better understanding of the behavioral deficits described in a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders, including Schizophrenia, eating disorders, and addiction, and may ultimately provide insights into the development of novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.