RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 A proxy measure of striatal dopamine predicts individual differences in temporal precision
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2022.01.21.477273
DO 10.1101/2022.01.21.477273
A1 Sadibolova, Renata
A1 Monaldi, Luna
A1 Terhune, Devin B.
YR 2022
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2022/01/21/2022.01.21.477273.abstract
AB The perception of time is characterized by pronounced variability across individuals, with implications for a diverse array of psychological functions. The neurocognitive sources of this variability are poorly understood but accumulating evidence suggests a role for inter-individual differences in striatal dopamine levels. Here we present a pre-registered study that tested the predictions that spontaneous eye blink rates, which provide a proxy measure of striatal dopamine availability, would be associated with aberrant interval timing (lower temporal precision or overestimation bias). Neurotypical adults (N=69) underwent resting state eye tracking and completed visual psychophysical interval timing and control tasks. Elevated spontaneous eye blink rates were associated with poorer temporal precision but not with inter-individual differences in perceived duration or performance on the control task. These results signify a role for striatal dopamine in variability in human time perception and can help explain deficient temporal precision in psychiatric populations characterized by elevated dopamine levels.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.