Methylphenidate has differential effects on blood oxygenation level-dependent signal related to cognitive subprocesses of reversal learning.
Complete understanding of the neural mechanisms by which stimulants such as methylphenidate ameliorate attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is lacking. Theories of catecholamine function predict that the neural effects of stimulant drugs will vary according to task requirements. We used event-related, pharmacological functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the effects of 60 mg of methylphenidate, alone and in combination with 400 mg of sulpiride, on blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) signal in a group of 20 healthy participants during probabilistic reversal learning, in a placebo-controlled design. In a whole-brain analysis, methylphenidate attenuated BOLD signal in the ventral striatum during response switching after negative feedback but modulated activity in the prefrontal cortex when subjects maintained their current response set. The results show that the precise neural site of modulation by methylphenidate depends on the nature of the cognitive subprocess recruited.
Behavioral and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, United Kingdom. cd317@cam.ac.uk
Chris M
CM
Dodds
Ulrich
U
Müller
Luke
L
Clark
Anouk
A
van Loon
Roshan
R
Cools
Trevor W
TW
Robbins
D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008774:Methylphenidate / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood*; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
D008774:Methylphenidate; D010100:Oxygen