Our new paper shows that the flexible learning of attention sets is facilitated by noradrenergic receptor action. The paper “Noradrenergic alpha-2a receptor stimulation enhances prediction error signaling and updating of attention sets in anterior cingulate cortex and striatum” is published in Nature Communications was led by PhD alumnus Ali Hassani and found that neuronal firing in the anterior cingulate cortex, striatum and lateral prefrontal cortex correlated with prediction error (PE) signals that we estimated with a reinforcement learning model. These PE signals were represented stronger when the selective alpha-2A agonist Guanfacine was given at doses that facilitated the reversal learning of feature-based attention. Guanfacine is a drug used for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder ADHD) amongst others. Our study suggests that there is indeed a dose range for this drug that supports focusing on goal-relevant information and controlling more effectively distracting inputs. 

These findings provides insights how the noradrenergic system supports cognitive flexibility and – given the feature based reversal task used in this study –  speeds up adjusting feature-based attentional priorities. Kudos to Ali Hassani and to our collaborator Paul Tiesinga to have pulled off such an important insights.