The pre-supplementary motor area achieves inhibitory control by modulating response thresholds

Wolpe, Noham, Hezemans, Frank H., Rae, Charlotte L., Zhang, Jiaxiang ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4758-0394 and Rowe, James B. 2022. The pre-supplementary motor area achieves inhibitory control by modulating response thresholds. Cortex 152 , pp. 98-108. 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.03.018

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Abstract

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.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Psychology Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC)
Additional Information:	This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Publisher:	Elsevier
ISSN:	0010-9452
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	30 March 2022
Date of Acceptance:	19 March 2022
Last Modified:	14 May 2023 23:35
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/148970

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