Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2023 Sep:152:105306.
doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105306. Epub 2023 Jul 5.

Dissection of neuronal circuits underlying sustained attention with the five-choice serial reaction time task

Qi Fang  1 , Flavio Frohlich  2
Affiliations
Review

Dissection of neuronal circuits underlying sustained attention with the five-choice serial reaction time task

Qi Fang et al. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2023 Sep.

Abstract

Attention deficits are common in psychiatric and neurological disorders. The transdiagnostic nature of impaired attention suggests a common set of underlying neural circuits. Yet, there are no circuit-based treatments such as non-invasive brain stimulation currently available due to the lack of sufficiently delineated network targets. Therefore, to better treat attentional deficits, a comprehensive functional dissection of neural circuits underlying attention is imperative. This can be achieved by taking advantage of preclinical animal models and well-designed behavioral assays of attention. The resulting findings in turn can be translated to the development of novel interventions with the goal of advancing them to clinical practice. Here we show that the five-choice serial reaction time task has greatly facilitated the study of the neural circuits underlying attention in a well-controlled setting. We first introduce the task and then focus on its application in preclinical studies on sustained attention, especially in the context of state-of-the-art neuronal perturbations.

Keywords: Chemogenetics; Five-choice serial reaction time task; Neuronal circuits; Optogenetics; Sustained attention.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Competing Interest F.F. is the lead inventor of IP filed on the topics of noninvasive brain stimulation by UNC and receives royalty payments. F.F. has received consulting honoraria and royalties from the following entities in the last twelve months: EPI, Academic Press, Insel Spital, and University of Michigan. Q.F. declares no competing interests.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Agnoli L, and Carli M. (2012). Dorsal-striatal 5-HT₂A and 5-HT₂C receptors control impulsivity and perseverative responding in the 5-choice serial reaction time task. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 219, 633–645. - PubMed
    1. Agnoli L, Mainolfi P, Invernizzi RW, and Carli M. (2013). Dopamine D1-like and D2-like receptors in the dorsal striatum control different aspects of attentional performance in the five-choice serial reaction time task under a condition of increased activity of corticostriatal inputs. Neuropsychopharmacology 38, 701–714. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ansquer S, Belin-Rauscent A, Dugast E, Duran T, Benatru I, Mar AC, Houeto J-L, and Belin D. (2014). Atomoxetine decreases vulnerability to develop compulsivity in high impulsive rats. Biol. Psychiatry 75, 825–832. - PubMed
    1. Armando M, Ciampoli M, Padula MC, Amminger P, De Crescenzo F, Maeder J, Schneider M, Schaer M, Managò F, Eliez S, et al. (2020). Favorable effects of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in attentional control and conversion rate to psychosis in 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Neuropharmacology 168, 107995. - PubMed
    1. Arnsten AFT (2006). Fundamentals of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: circuits and pathways. J. Clin. Psychiatry 67 Suppl 8, 7–12. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources