RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Cortico-brainstem mechanisms of biased perceptual decision-making in the context of pain
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 449652
DO 10.1101/449652
A1 K. Wiech
A1 F. Eippert
A1 J. Vandekerckhove
A1 J. Zaman
A1 K. Placek
A1 F. Tuerlinckx
A1 J.W.S. Vlaeyen
A1 I. Tracey
YR 2018
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/10/22/449652.abstract
AB Perceptual decision-making is commonly studied using stimuli with different physical properties but of comparable affective value. Here, we investigate neural processes underlying human perceptual decisions in the affectively rich domain of pain using a drift-diffusion model in combination with a probabilistic cueing paradigm. This allowed us to characterize a novel role for the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), whose anticipatory responses reflecting a decision bias were dependent on the affective value of the stimulus. During intense noxious stimulation, these model-based anticipatory DLPFC responses were linked to an engagement of the periaqueductal gray (PAG), a midbrain region implicated in defensive responses including analgesia. Complementing these findings on biased decision-making, the model parameter reflecting sensory processing predicted subcortical responses (in amygdala and PAG) when expectations were violated. Our findings highlight the importance of taking a broader perspective on perceptual decisions and link decisions about pain with subcortical circuitry implicated in endogenous pain modulation.