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The Journal of Neuroscience, February 18, 2009, 29(7):1998-2008; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4764-08.2009

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Behavioral/Systems/Cognitive
Role of the Superior Colliculus in Choosing Mixed-Strategy Saccades

Dhushan Thevarajah, Areh Mikulic, and Michael C. Dorris

Department of Physiology, Centre for Neuroscience Studies and Canadian Institutes of Health Research Group in Sensory-Motor Systems, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6

Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Michael C. Dorris, Department of Physiology, Queen's University, Botterell Hall, Room 440, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6. Email: dorrism{at}biomed.queensu.ca

Game theory outlines optimal response strategies during mixed-strategy competitions. The neural processes involved in choosing individual strategic actions, however, remain poorly understood. Here, we tested whether the superior colliculus (SC), a brain region critical for generating sensory-guided saccades, is also involved in choosing saccades under strategic conditions. Monkeys were free to choose either of two saccade targets as they competed against a computer opponent during the mixed-strategy game "matching pennies." The accuracy with which presaccadic SC activity predicted upcoming choice gradually increased in the time leading up to the saccade. Probing the SC with suprathreshold stimulation demonstrated that these evolving signals were functionally involved in preparing strategic saccades. Finally, subthreshold stimulation of the SC increased the likelihood that contralateral saccades were selected. Together, our results suggest that motor regions of the brain play an active role in choosing strategic actions rather than passively executing those prespecified by upstream executive regions.

Key words: decision; macaque; motor intention; saccade; reinforcement; reward; neuroeconomics; game theory; Nash equilibrium

Received Sept. 3, 2008; revised Dec. 2, 2008; accepted Dec. 3, 2008.

Correspondence should be addressed to Dr. Michael C. Dorris, Department of Physiology, Queen's University, Botterell Hall, Room 440, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6. Email: dorrism{at}biomed.queensu.ca




This article has been cited by other articles:


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H. Seo, D. J. Barraclough, and D. Lee
Lateral Intraparietal Cortex and Reinforcement Learning during a Mixed-Strategy Game
J. Neurosci., June 3, 2009; 29(22): 7278 - 7289.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


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