The basal ganglia are critical for movement generation and value-based decisions, but while a contribution to perceptual decisions has been suggested, strong support for this proposal is lacking. Here, Long Ding and Joshua Gold show that stimulation of the caudate nucleus influences both choice and response time when monkeys are performing a visual motion discrimination task. The data suggest that the caudate nucleus may play a causal role in perceptual decisions used to select eye movements that may be distinct from its role in executing those movements.
For more information, see Neuron 75(5).
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