Division of Brain Imaging and Behaviour-Systems Neuroscience, Toronto Western Research Institute (TWRI), UHN, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
Neuropsychopharmacology. 2010 Jan;35(1):70-85. doi: 10.1038/npp.2009.88.
In our constantly changing environment, we are frequently faced with altered circumstances requiring generation and monitoring of appropriate strategies, when novel plans of action must be formulated and conducted. The abilities that we call upon to respond accurately to novel situations are referred to as 'executive functions', and are frequently engaged to deal with conditions in which routine activation of behavior would not be sufficient for optimal performance. Here, we summarize important findings that may help us understand executive functions and their underlying neuronal correlates. We focus particularly on observations from imaging technology, such as functional magnetic resonance imaging, position emission tomography, diffusion tensor imaging, and transcranial magnetic stimulation, which in the past few years have provided the bulk of information on the neurobiological underpinnings of the executive functions. Further, emphasis will be placed on recent insights from Parkinson's disease (PD), in which the underlying dopaminergic abnormalities have provided new exciting information into basic molecular mechanisms of executive dysfunction, and which may help to disentangle the cortical/subcortical networks involved in executive processes.
在不断变化的环境中，我们经常面临需要生成和监测适当策略的情况，此时必须制定和执行新的行动计划。我们用来准确应对新情况的能力被称为“执行功能”，通常用于处理常规行为激活不足以实现最佳表现的情况。在这里，我们总结了一些重要的发现，这些发现可能有助于我们理解执行功能及其潜在的神经元相关性。我们特别关注成像技术（如功能磁共振成像、正电子发射断层扫描、弥散张量成像和经颅磁刺激）的观察结果，这些技术在过去几年中提供了大量关于执行功能神经生物学基础的信息。此外，我们将重点介绍帕金森病（PD）的最新研究进展，其中多巴胺能异常为执行功能障碍的基本分子机制提供了新的令人兴奋的信息，这可能有助于理清参与执行过程的皮质/皮质下网络。
