[Functional Roles of Prefrontal-Subcortical Circuits in Primate Adaptive Behavior: Neural Basis of Experience and Inference Revealed by Pathway-Selective Manipulation].

Authors

Kei Oyama

Published in

Brain and nerve = Shinkei kenkyu no shinpo. Volume 78. Issue 7. Pages 793-798.

Abstract

Adaptive behavior in primates relies on the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and its extensive interactions with subcortical structures. This review summarizes recent findings on the functionally distinct roles of prefronto-subcortical pathways, as revealed by an imaging-guided, pathway-selective chemogenetic manipulation in macaque monkeys. Specifically, we focus on the parallel output pathways from the PFC to the striatum and the mediodorsal thalamus (MD). While the prefronto-striatal pathways are primarily involved in direct value updating based on "experience" and action biasing, the prefronto-thalamic pathways are crucial for working memory and updating values through "inference" based on internal models. These results challenge the classical view of the thalamus as a simple relay, highlighting the neural pathways connecting the PFC and MD as an active "cognitive switch" that maintains and manipulates neural representations according to the current context. Understanding these pathway-specific functions provides essential insights into potential circuit-based therapeutic interventions for psychiatric disorders.

PMID:
42419762
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 09 Jul 2026.

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