Type
Text
Type
Thesis
Advisor
Kepecs, Adam | Albeanu, Dinu.
Date
2014-12-01
Keywords
Neurosciences
Department
Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology.
Language
en_US
Source
This work is sponsored by the Stony Brook University Graduate School in compliance with the requirements for completion of degree.
Identifier
http://hdl.handle.net/11401/76934
Publisher
The Graduate School, Stony Brook University: Stony Brook, NY.
Format
application/pdf
Abstract
Orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is situated at the ventral floor of the prefrontal cortex region. OFC and some of its related structure (ventral striatum, ventral tegmental area, basolateral amygdala) are considered to be part of the valuation system that is essential to the decision-making process. In order to understand the exact role OFC plays in the decision-making process, we sought to find out how decision variables are represented in different OFC projections, and what will happen if OFC projections were disrupted. The first specific aim of this project is to find out whether projections to OFC related structures are originated from non-overlapping population of neurons within OFC; our double labeling experiments did support this argument, which further implied the possibility that different decision variables are represented in different OFC projections. The second specific aim is to utilize morphine to induce structural changes in the OFC region, and assess how the changes affect the decision-making process; high dosage of morphine was injected in rats for 8 days, and their performance in 2AFC tasks were compared between session data collected before and after the injection. It was shown that rats were more impulsive, and no longer able to optimally integrate information. | 42 pages
Recommended Citation
Wu, Youran, "Orbitofrontal Cortex and the Decision-Making Process" (2014). Stony Brook Theses and Dissertations Collection, 2006-2020 (closed to submissions). 2807.
https://commons.library.stonybrook.edu/stony-brook-theses-and-dissertations-collection/2807