Journal
CORTEX
Volume 152, Issue -, Pages 98-108Publisher
ELSEVIER MASSON, CORP OFF
DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.03.018
Keywords
Pre-SMA; Inhibitory control; Voluntary action; Bayesian hierarchical modelling; Focal lesion
Funding
- James S. McDonnell Foundation 21st Century Science Initiative
- Wellcome Trust [103838]
- National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), Academic Clinical Fellowship [ACF-2019-14-013]
- Medical Research Council intramural programme [SUAG/051 G101400]
- Cambridge Trust
- Fitzwilliam College Scholarship
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The pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA) plays a central role in the initiation and inhibition of voluntary action. It has been found that the pre-SMA optimizes action selection and inhibition by dynamically adjusting thresholds, but its specific contribution to action inhibition remains unclear.
The pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA) is central for the initiation and inhibition of voluntary action. For the execution of action, the pre-SMA optimises the decision of which action to choose by adjusting the thresholds for the required evidence for each choice. However, it remains unclear how the pre-SMA contributes to action inhibition. Here, we use computational modelling of a stop/no-go task, performed by an adult with a focal lesion in the pre-SMA, and 52 age-matched controls. We show that the patient required more time to successfully inhibit an action (longer stop-signal reaction time) but was faster in terms of go reaction times. Computational modelling revealed that the patient's failure to stop was explained by a significantly lower response threshold for initiating an action, as compared to controls, suggesting that the patient needed less evidence before committing to an action. A similarly specific impairment was also observed for the decision of which action to choose. Together, our results suggest that dynamic threshold modulation may be a general mechanism by which the pre-SMA exerts its control over voluntary action. (c) 2022 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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