The role of theta oscillations in the orbitofrontal cortex during reward-guided behaviour is unknown. Here, Knudsen and Wallis used closed-loop control to record these oscillations to enable disruptive microstimulation of the oscillations in two macaques trained in a two-alternative forced-choice task in which reward contingencies were gradually changed over a number of trials. The phase alignment of theta oscillations between trials increased during value-updating trials, particularly during the fixation epoch. Disruption of theta during this epoch impaired the animals’ ability to update their choices, implicating these oscillations in value updating.
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Knudsen, E. B. & Wallis, J. D. Closed-loop theta stimulation in the orbitofrontal cortex prevents reward-based learning. Neuron https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2020.02.003 (2020)
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Bray, N. Ride the wave for reward. Nat Rev Neurosci 21, 245 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-020-0300-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-020-0300-8