NYSCF Innovator Studies Brain Processing During Conflicting Cues
NewsNYSCF – Robertson Neuroscience Investigator Dr. Kay Tye and her team at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology published their latest work dissecting the mechanisms of how behavior is guided by decision making pathways in the brain. The research, published in Nature Neuroscience, investigates how information flows between two areas of the brain – the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala and the prelimbic medial prefrontal cortex – to guide behavior during competing cues which predict rewards or threats. Using a rodent model the scientists found that the cells in the amygdala send signals to the prefrontal cortex, and that this circuit is critical in governing behavior during competing information.
This research helps scientists understand how our brains process complicated environmental signals and guide reactions.