Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans.
How do we choose a particular action among equally valid alternatives? Nonhuman primate findings have shown that decision-making implicates modulations in unit firing rates and local field potentials (LFPs) across frontal and parietal cortices. Yet the electrophysiological brain mechanisms that unde...
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000864 |
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doaj-ced7e4927a8844c4b6f8cf02aebb724b2021-07-02T16:29:04ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Biology1544-91731545-78852020-12-011812e300086410.1371/journal.pbio.3000864Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans.Thomas ThieryAnne-Lise SaiveEtienne CombrissonArthur DehganJulien BastinPhilippe KahaneAlain BerthozJean-Philippe LachauxKarim JerbiHow do we choose a particular action among equally valid alternatives? Nonhuman primate findings have shown that decision-making implicates modulations in unit firing rates and local field potentials (LFPs) across frontal and parietal cortices. Yet the electrophysiological brain mechanisms that underlie free choice in humans remain ill defined. Here, we address this question using rare intracerebral electroencephalography (EEG) recordings in surgical epilepsy patients performing a delayed oculomotor decision task. We find that the temporal dynamics of high-gamma (HG, 60-140 Hz) neural activity in distinct frontal and parietal brain areas robustly discriminate free choice from instructed saccade planning at the level of single trials. Classification analysis was applied to the LFP signals to isolate decision-related activity from sensory and motor planning processes. Compared with instructed saccades, free-choice trials exhibited delayed and longer-lasting HG activity during the delay period. The temporal dynamics of the decision-specific sustained HG activity indexed the unfolding of a deliberation process, rather than memory maintenance. Taken together, these findings provide the first direct electrophysiological evidence in humans for the role of sustained high-frequency neural activation in frontoparietal cortex in mediating the intrinsically driven process of freely choosing among competing behavioral alternatives.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000864 |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Thomas Thiery Anne-Lise Saive Etienne Combrisson Arthur Dehgan Julien Bastin Philippe Kahane Alain Berthoz Jean-Philippe Lachaux Karim Jerbi |
spellingShingle |
Thomas Thiery Anne-Lise Saive Etienne Combrisson Arthur Dehgan Julien Bastin Philippe Kahane Alain Berthoz Jean-Philippe Lachaux Karim Jerbi Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. PLoS Biology |
author_facet |
Thomas Thiery Anne-Lise Saive Etienne Combrisson Arthur Dehgan Julien Bastin Philippe Kahane Alain Berthoz Jean-Philippe Lachaux Karim Jerbi |
author_sort |
Thomas Thiery |
title |
Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. |
title_short |
Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. |
title_full |
Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. |
title_fullStr |
Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. |
title_full_unstemmed |
Decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. |
title_sort |
decoding the neural dynamics of free choice in humans. |
publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
series |
PLoS Biology |
issn |
1544-9173 1545-7885 |
publishDate |
2020-12-01 |
description |
How do we choose a particular action among equally valid alternatives? Nonhuman primate findings have shown that decision-making implicates modulations in unit firing rates and local field potentials (LFPs) across frontal and parietal cortices. Yet the electrophysiological brain mechanisms that underlie free choice in humans remain ill defined. Here, we address this question using rare intracerebral electroencephalography (EEG) recordings in surgical epilepsy patients performing a delayed oculomotor decision task. We find that the temporal dynamics of high-gamma (HG, 60-140 Hz) neural activity in distinct frontal and parietal brain areas robustly discriminate free choice from instructed saccade planning at the level of single trials. Classification analysis was applied to the LFP signals to isolate decision-related activity from sensory and motor planning processes. Compared with instructed saccades, free-choice trials exhibited delayed and longer-lasting HG activity during the delay period. The temporal dynamics of the decision-specific sustained HG activity indexed the unfolding of a deliberation process, rather than memory maintenance. Taken together, these findings provide the first direct electrophysiological evidence in humans for the role of sustained high-frequency neural activation in frontoparietal cortex in mediating the intrinsically driven process of freely choosing among competing behavioral alternatives. |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3000864 |
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