Figure 2. Hypothetical circuit model of prefrontal regulation of decision making.

Synthesis of recent studies using optogenetics or electrical stimulation suggests that value-based decision making is mediated by interactions between the prefrontal cortex, midbrain and limbic regions. It should be noted that, although not represented in the schematic, the prelimbic cortex also projects to the basolateral amygdala (which in turn projects to other structures in the diagram). Although some of these circuits have been shown to contribute to value-based decision making (St Onge et al., 2012), it is unknown how it they are involved in temporally distinct phases of the decision process. Red lines represent glutamatergic projections. Blue lines represent GABAergic projections. Green lines represent dopaminergic projections. Solid lines indicate the activation of the projection and dashed lines indicate the inhibition of the projection under normal conditions that require a bias toward safer, less costly options. Ventral tegmental area, (VTA); rostromedial tegmental area, (RMTg); dopamine, (DA).