Roles of Multiple Globus Pallidus Territories of Monkeys and Humans in Motivation, Cognition and Action: An Anatomical, Physiological and Pathophysiological Review

Abstract

The globus pallidus (GP) communicates with widespread cortical areas that support various functions, including motivation, cognition and action. Anatomical tract-tracing studies revealed that the anteroventral GP communicates with the medial prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortices, which are involved in motivational control; the anterodorsal GP communicates with the lateral prefrontal cortex, which is involved in cognitive control; and the posterior GP communicates with the frontal motor cortex, which is involved in action control. This organization suggests that distinct subdivisions within the GP play specific roles. Neurophysiological studies examining GP neurons in monkeys during behavior revealed that the types of information coding performed within these subdivisions differ greatly. The anteroventral GP is characterized by activities related to motivation, such as reward seeking and aversive avoidance; the anterodorsal GP is characterized by activity that reflects cognition, such as goal decision and action selection; and the posterior GP is characterized by activity associated with action preparation and execution. Pathophysiological studies have shown that GABA-related substances or GP lesions result in abnormal activity in the GP, which causes site-specific behavioral and motor symptoms. The present review article discusses the anatomical organization, physiology and pathophysiology of the three major GP territories in nonhuman primates and humans.

Structural connectivity‐based topography of the human globus pallidus: Implications for therapeutic targeting in movement disorders

“…11 Taken together, these results suggest the presence of three topographically segregated territories in both the GP divisions: a posterior motor territory, an antero-dorsal associative territory, and an antero-ventral limbic territory. 11 Moving from the Nambu's description of a "hyperdirect" cortico-STN pathway, 12 a growing interest to noncanonical connections of the basal ganglia circuitry has arisen. Direct projections from cerebral cortex to both segments of theGP has been already described in different animal species.…”

“…Moreover, limbic cortical and subcortical regions are thought to communicate with the antero‐ventral part of the GPi through the ventral striatum, whereas connections between limbic areas and GPe are still a matter of debate . Taken together, these results suggest the presence of three topographically segregated territories in both the GP divisions: a posterior motor territory, an antero‐dorsal associative territory, and an antero‐ventral limbic territory …”

The effect of chronic neuroglycopenia on resting state networks in GLUT1 syndrome across the lifespan

“…This pattern is particularly evident in the affected children subpopulation. The globus pallidus seeds predicted activity in premotor regions (i.e., supplementary motor area) consistently with its known involvement in movement (Postuma & Dagher, 2006; Saga, Hoshi, & Tremblay, ). Putamen seeds positively correlate with associative frontal regions implicated in executive function control reproducing the FC of the rostral putamen division observed in controls (Di Martino et al, ).…”

“…This pattern is particularly evident in the affected children subpopulation. The globus pallidus seeds predicted activity in premotor regions (i.e., supplementary motor area) consistently with its known involvement in movement (Postuma & Dagher, 2006;Saga, Hoshi, & Tremblay, 2017).…”

Value Encoding in the Globus Pallidus: fMRI reveals an interaction effect between reward and dopamine drive

“…Finally, the role played by the GPe in the indirect pathway has been revisited , disputing an assumption that this nucleus functions as a relay between D2-striatum and STN. In fact, the GPe is now seen as composed of heterogeneous neural populations (Abdi et al, 2015;Mallet et al, 2012;Mastro et al, 2014;Mastro and Gittis, 2015;Saga et al, 2017) that express complex patterns of activity (Bevan et al, 2002;Brown, 2007;Chiken and Nambu, 2016;Mallet et al, 2008a;Mallet et al, 2008b), suggesting its computational role in the BG also needs to be revisited. Using a neural model, we have recently proposed a different perspective on BG function and neural dynamics, with particular attention on the role played by the GPe and the indirect pathway.…”