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Prefrontal cortical mechanisms for goal-directed behavior (Hasselmo 2005)
Accession: 83512
".. a model of prefrontal cortex function emphasizing the influence of goal-related activity on the choice of the next motor output. ... Different neocortical minicolumns represent distinct sensory input states and distinct motor output actions. The dynamics of each minicolumn include separate phases of encoding and retrieval. During encoding, strengthening of excitatory connections forms forward and reverse associations between each state, the following action, and a subsequent state, which may include reward. During retrieval, activity spreads from reward states throughout the network. The interaction of this spreading activity with a specific input state directs selection of the next appropriate action. Simulations demonstrate how these mechanisms can guide performance in a range of goal directed tasks, and provide a functional framework for some of the neuronal responses previously observed in the medial prefrontal cortex during performance of spatial memory tasks in rats."
Reference: Hasselmo ME (2005) A model of prefrontal cortical mechanisms for goal-directed behavior. J Cogn Neurosci 17:1115-29 [PubMed]
Citations  Citation Browser
Model Information (Click on a link to find other models with that property)
Model Type:  Connectionist Network;
Brain Region(s)/Organism:  Prefrontal cortex (PFC);
Cell Type(s):   
Channel(s):   
Gap Junctions:  
Receptor(s):  
Gene(s):  
Transmitter(s):  
Simulation Environment:  MATLAB (web link to model);
Model Concept(s):  Simplified Models; Reinforcement Learning;
Implementer(s):  Hasselmo, Michael E [hasselmo at bu.edu];
Model files (located externally to ModelDB) Help downloading and running models
hasselmo laboratory models

Note from ModelDB administrator: the below web page is a copy of http://people.bu.edu/hasselmo/Modeling.html
The Simplified Prefrontal cortex and Prefrontal cortex model links are the ones relating to this paper.

Hasselmo laboratory

Center for Memory and Brain
Department of Psychology and
Program in Neuroscience
Boston University


Computational modeling in my laboratory addresses the role of hippocampus, prefrontal cortex and theta rhythm oscillations in memory-guided behavior. This page provides links to some of the modeling scripts used in recent publications. These are scripts created with the MATLAB package from Mathworks. You must have MATLAB 6.5 or later installed on your computer in order to run them. They are MATLAB "m" files.

MATLAB scripts for publications:

Simplified Prefrontal cortex
MATLAB script demonstrating a highly simplified version of the model presented in J. Cogn. Neurosci. 2005.

Goal-directed behavior with SARSA
MATLAB script demonstrating the actor-critic and SARSA algorithms from Reinforcement Learning Theory.

Prefrontal cortex model
MATLAB script demonstrating the function of the model presented in:
Hasselmo, M.E. (2005) A model of prefrontal cortical mechanisms for goal directed behavior. J. Cogn. Neurosci. 17:1115-1129.

Hippocampal context-dependent retrieval
MATLAB script demonstrating the function of the model presented in:
Hasselmo, M.E. and Eichenbaum H.B. (2005) Hippocampal mechanisms for the context-dependent retrieval of episodes. Neural Networks, 18(9): 1172-1190.

Fixed point attractor
MATLAB script demonstrating the model of fixed point attractors mediated by excitatory feedback with subtractive inhibition in a continuous firing rate model, as presented in:
Hasselmo, M.E., Schnell, E., Barkai, E. (1995) Dynamics of learning and recall at excitatory recurrent synapses and cholinergic modulation in hippocampal region CA3. J. Neurosci. 15(7): 5249-5262.




Center for Memory and Brain
Department of Psychology,
2 Cummington St., Boston, MA, 02215.
hasselmo@bu.edu, (617) 353-1397, FAX: 358-3296



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