Investigating Brain Stimulation Reward (BSR) and The Matching Law
Mentor 1
Dr. Matthew Andrzejewski
Location
Union Wisconsin Room
Start Date
24-4-2015 10:30 AM
End Date
24-4-2015 11:45 AM
Description
Herrnstein’s matching law is a theory of choice that states that allocation of time, effort, or other behavioral resources across alternative courses of action will be equivalent to, or match, the relative amount gained from those options. According to the matching law a choice is neither an internal decision nor an isolated output of internal decision process; a choice is behavior over time. The study of Brain Stimulation Reward has helped neuroscientists uncover the neural instantiation of the law of effect (the “effects” or consequences of your behavior are critical in selecting and maintaining that behavior). In the BSR paradigm, rats respond on a lever to produce electrical stimulation to an area of their brain, most commonly the medial forebrain bundle or associated structures. The electrical stimulation varies systematically, both in terms of its current (mA) and frequency (Hz). Using data already collected, we hypothesized that responding on a single lever for BSR would conform to a version of the matching law, known as Herrnstein’s hyperbola. That is, response rate would be a hyperbolic function of a combination of current and frequency (called “charge”). Further, the extant data came from a study using drug manipulations in specific brain areas. The implication of our research is that the matching law may inform our understanding on the change in behavior observed as a function of change in charge. Indeed, the results of our analysis are consistent with the matching law. Responding for BSR matches the relative electrical stimulation. In addition, drug injections that produce dopamine D1 and D2 receptor modulation, such as contra-lateral 23390 in the nucleus accumbens shell (NAS), contra-lateral injections of 38393, and ipsi-lateral injections of NBQX + 23390 in the sublenticular central extended amygdala (SLEAC), alter quantitative parameters of the Matching Law. These data suggest that the Matching Law has some utility in single-lever BSR experiments using a novel combinatorial function of current and frequency, and may help elucidate the roles of particular brain structures and neurotransmitters in reward-related behavior.
Investigating Brain Stimulation Reward (BSR) and The Matching Law
Union Wisconsin Room
Herrnstein’s matching law is a theory of choice that states that allocation of time, effort, or other behavioral resources across alternative courses of action will be equivalent to, or match, the relative amount gained from those options. According to the matching law a choice is neither an internal decision nor an isolated output of internal decision process; a choice is behavior over time. The study of Brain Stimulation Reward has helped neuroscientists uncover the neural instantiation of the law of effect (the “effects” or consequences of your behavior are critical in selecting and maintaining that behavior). In the BSR paradigm, rats respond on a lever to produce electrical stimulation to an area of their brain, most commonly the medial forebrain bundle or associated structures. The electrical stimulation varies systematically, both in terms of its current (mA) and frequency (Hz). Using data already collected, we hypothesized that responding on a single lever for BSR would conform to a version of the matching law, known as Herrnstein’s hyperbola. That is, response rate would be a hyperbolic function of a combination of current and frequency (called “charge”). Further, the extant data came from a study using drug manipulations in specific brain areas. The implication of our research is that the matching law may inform our understanding on the change in behavior observed as a function of change in charge. Indeed, the results of our analysis are consistent with the matching law. Responding for BSR matches the relative electrical stimulation. In addition, drug injections that produce dopamine D1 and D2 receptor modulation, such as contra-lateral 23390 in the nucleus accumbens shell (NAS), contra-lateral injections of 38393, and ipsi-lateral injections of NBQX + 23390 in the sublenticular central extended amygdala (SLEAC), alter quantitative parameters of the Matching Law. These data suggest that the Matching Law has some utility in single-lever BSR experiments using a novel combinatorial function of current and frequency, and may help elucidate the roles of particular brain structures and neurotransmitters in reward-related behavior.
