Experiments are the first to isolate the
role of dopamine in sensory-motor learning
Date: March 15, 2016
Source: Emory Health Sciences
New research found that a reduction in
dopamine levels in a small region of the basal ganglia in the finches' brains
caused a reduction in their ability to correct vocal errors, while having no
detectable effect on their ability to sing.
The neurotransmitter dopamine is
essential to correcting vocal mistakes, suggests a study on Bengalese finches.
The Journal of Neuroscience published the research, led by Emory
biologist Samuel Sober, who uses Bengalese finches as a model to understand how
the brain learns.
"Our experiments are the first to
isolate the role of dopamine in sensory-motor learning, as distinct from the
other functions that dopamine performs in the brain," Sober says.
"Bengalese finches are songbirds that have extremely precise singing
behavior and can also refine their songs in response to auditory feedback. This
provides a way for us to understand similar patterns of learning in humans. The
ability to use auditory feedback to fix errors in behavior underlies everything
from learning to speak, to sing and to play an instrument."
The research found that a reduction in
dopamine levels in a small region of the basal ganglia in the finches' brains
caused a reduction in their ability to correct vocal errors, while having no
detectable effect on their ability to sing. The basal ganglia is situated at
the base of the forebrain and is associated with a variety of functions,
including voluntary motor movements and procedural learning.
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