Yu Zhuojun, Verstynen Timothy, Rubin Jonathan E
Department of Psychology & Neuroscience Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America.
Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States of America.
bioRxiv. 2025 Mar 17:2025.03.17.643668. doi: 10.1101/2025.03.17.643668.
Although the cortico-basal ganglia-thalamic (CBGT) network is identified as a central circuit for decision-making, the dynamic interplay of multiple control pathways within this network in shaping decision trajectories remains poorly understood. Here we develop and apply a novel computational framework - CLAW (Circuit Logic Assessed via Walks) - for tracing the instantaneous flow of neural activity as it progresses through CBGT networks engaged in a virtual decision-making task. Our CLAW analysis reveals that the complex dynamics of network activity is functionally dissectible into two critical phases: deliberation and commitment. These two phases are governed by distinct contributions of underlying CBGT pathways, with indirect and pallidostriatal pathways influencing deliberation, while the direct pathway drives action commitment. We translate CBGT dynamics into the evolution of decision-related policies, based on three previously identified control ensembles (responsiveness, pliancy, and choice) that encapsulate the relationship between CBGT activity and the evidence accumulation process. Our results demonstrate two contrasting strategies for decision-making. Fast decisions, with direct pathway dominance, feature an early response in both boundary height and drift rate, leading to a rapid collapse of decision boundaries and a clear directional bias. In contrast, slow decisions, driven by indirect and pallidostriatal pathway dominance, involve delayed changes in both decision policy parameters, allowing for an extended period of deliberation before commitment to an action. These analyses provide important insights into how the CBGT circuitry can be tuned to adopt various decision strategies and how the decision-making process unfolds within each regime.
尽管皮质-基底神经节-丘脑（CBGT）网络被认为是决策的核心回路，但该网络内多个控制通路在塑造决策轨迹方面的动态相互作用仍知之甚少。在这里，我们开发并应用了一种新颖的计算框架——CLAW（通过游走评估电路逻辑）——来追踪神经活动在参与虚拟决策任务的CBGT网络中进展时的瞬时流动。我们的CLAW分析表明，网络活动的复杂动态在功能上可分解为两个关键阶段：审议和承诺。这两个阶段由基础CBGT通路的不同贡献所支配，间接通路和苍白球纹状体通路影响审议，而直接通路驱动行动承诺。我们基于先前确定的三个控制集合（反应性、柔韧性和选择）将CBGT动态转化为与决策相关的策略演变，这些集合概括了CBGT活动与证据积累过程之间的关系。我们的结果展示了两种截然不同的决策策略。以直接通路为主导的快速决策，在边界高度和漂移率上都有早期反应，导致决策边界迅速崩溃并产生明显的方向偏差。相比之下，由间接通路和苍白球纹状体通路主导的缓慢决策，涉及决策策略参数的延迟变化，在做出行动承诺之前允许有更长的审议时间。这些分析为如何调整CBGT电路以采用各种决策策略以及决策过程在每个机制内如何展开提供了重要见解。
