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What stays the same in orbitofrontal cortex

Nature Neuroscience volume 19, pages 768–770 (2016)Cite this article

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Researchers show that orbitofrontal neurons perform the same value-related computations across different decisions. Value computations are therefore a critical feature around which orbitofrontal representations are organized.

How do we make an infinite number of decisions with a finite number of neurons? Neurons in prefrontal cortex are characterized by a remarkable degree of diversity in their response properties and are seemingly capable of encoding any arbitrary relationship that might be behaviorally relevant1. But this flexibility must be balanced against a stable organization to efficiently exchange information with other brain areas. Revealing the structure guiding responses of prefrontal neurons has been a challenge. In this issue of Nature Neuroscience, Xie and Padoa-Schioppa2 investigate neuron responses in orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a prefrontal region critical for value-based decision-making3,4,5. They show that, like other prefrontal neurons, OFC neurons exhibit a great deal of heterogeneity. However, their responses are organized in a consistent manner with respect to the encoding of economic decision variables.

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Figure 1: Monkeys were trained to make choices between different offers of juice reward.

Marina Corral Spence/Nature Publishing Group

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Erin L. Rich and Jonathan D. Wallis are in the Department of Psychology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA.,

    Erin L Rich & Jonathan D Wallis

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  1. Erin L Rich
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  2. Jonathan D Wallis
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Correspondence to Jonathan D Wallis.

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Rich, E., Wallis, J. What stays the same in orbitofrontal cortex. Nat Neurosci 19, 768–770 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.4305

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