RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Independent contributions of noradrenaline to behavioural flexibility and motivation
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 147512
DO 10.1101/147512
A1 Caroline Jahn
A1 Sophie Gilardeau
A1 Chiara Varazzani
A1 Bastien Blain
A1 Jerome Sallet
A1 Mark Walton
A1 Sebastien Bouret
YR 2017
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/06/08/147512.abstract
AB Among neuromodulatory systems, the noradrenergic system remains one of the least understood. Several theories have pointed out its implication in behavioural flexibility and more recently in motivation, with a strong role in effort processing. Here, we designed a sequential cost/benefit decision task to test the causal role of noradrenaline in these two functions. We manipulated noradrenaline using clonidine, an alpha-2 noradrenergic receptor agonist, which reduces central noradrenaline levels. Clonidine had two distinct effects: it decreased choice volatility (without affecting the cost/benefit trade off) and reduced force production. Because the effects were independent, they cannot be accounted for by a non-specific effect on arousal. Altogether, these results support the global implication of noradrenaline in facing challenging situations in two complementary ways: by modulating behavioural volatility, which would facilitate adaptation depending on the lability of the environment, and by modulating the mobilization of resources to face immediate challenges.