Experiments for Prefrontal Cortex

Question 1

Wisconsin Card-Sorting (humans)

Answer 1

Calculate nb of error: efficient, random, or preservative.

People with PFC damage dont have problem getting the first rule, just when it changes

No changes with age in controls. Control dosen’t make preservative error.

Lesion group make less efficient mistakes, more random, and make preservative.

Question 2

Attention switching task (non humans primates)

Answer 2

Intra-dimensional shift / extra-dimensional / reversal

Different regions of PFC cortex associated with different cognitive demands

lesion of lateral frontal= more extra dimensional errors

Lesion of orbital= more reversal errors

Question 3

Delay activity (non-h primates)

Answer 3

Show object, have to remember what, and then where

One neurons was active during recollection of What and another for Where.

Question 4

T maze (rodents)

Answer 4

T-maze task with 2 strategies: spatial or olfactory.

Lesion of medial PFC= more mistake in spatial but not in olfacory

Lesion of the orbital= more mistake in olfacotry but not in spatial

Might be due to connections

Question 5

5 choices serial reaction time task (rodents)

Answer 5

9 holes but 4 of them blocked

Medial frontal lesion lesion = lowest rate of correct answers

If you make waiting time longer:

male rat=no more impulse control and start poking its nose in hole

female rat= miss the light= distracted