The Regulatory Role of the Human Mediodorsal Thalamus

Overview

Journal Trends Cogn Sci

Date 2018 Sep 22

PMID 30236489

Citations 83

Authors

Giulio Pergola

Lola Danet

Anne-Lise Pitel

Giovanni A Carlesimo

Shailendra Segobin

Jeremie Pariente

Boris Suchan

Anna S Mitchell

Emmanuel J Barbeau

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

The function of the human mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD) has so far eluded a clear definition in terms of specific cognitive processes and tasks. Although it was at first proposed to play a role in long-term memory, a set of recent studies in animals and humans has revealed a more complex, and broader, role in several cognitive functions. The MD seems to play a multifaceted role in higher cognitive functions together with the prefrontal cortex and other cortical and subcortical brain areas. Specifically, we propose that the MD is involved in the regulation of cortical networks especially when the maintenance and temporal extension of persistent activity patterns in the frontal lobe areas are required.

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