We also investigated the hypothesis that the

proximity signal contributes in some integral way to the computation of the movement trajectory. To do so, we asked whether the faithful encoding of proximity selleck compound in single neurons was associated with shorter path lengths or more efficient locomotor behavior on a trial-by-trial basis. As detailed in the Supplemental Information, no such association was found, suggesting that NAc cue-evoked excitations contribute little to the actual navigational computations necessary to carry out flexible approach. Stimuli that predict the availability of reward can elicit vigorous reward-seeking behavior. This sensory-motor transformation requires that reward-predictive

cues activate neurons that promote reward seeking and encode the Navitoclax order features of the upcoming movement. Our results identify just such a neural mechanism in the NAc: a large fraction of neurons (46%) were excited by a reward-predictive tone, and these neurons encoded the vigor of the subsequent approach to a locomotor target. They showed greater firing in response to the tone that predicted reward compared to a nonpredictive tone, the firing preceded the initiation of locomotion, and the firing was greater on trials in which the locomotion began at shorter latency and occurred at faster speed. Moreover, cue-evoked firing was greater when the animal was closer to the lever at cue onset, and this proximity signal appeared to mediate the tendency of the subjects

to initiate locomotion sooner when closer to the lever. These results strongly suggest that the NAc’s role in invigoration of cued reward seeking (Cardinal et al., 2002) is due to cue-evoked, premotor firing that promotes the initiation of a short-latency approach response. Previous behavioral the studies lend strong support to this conclusion. Disruption of dopamine transmission in the NAc profoundly impairs performance on this task, a deficit that is directly attributable to a slowed latency to initiate locomotion toward the goal (Nicola, 2010). Furthermore, inactivation of the VTA (which innervates the NAc with dopamine-containing axons) selectively eliminates the cue-evoked firing of NAc neurons in similar tasks (Cacciapaglia et al., 2011; Yun et al., 2004). It is therefore apparent that the NAc neuronal activity that requires dopamine (cue-evoked excitation) robustly encodes the feature of locomotion (latency to initiate) that is most severely impaired when NAc dopamine function is disrupted. The most parsimonious interpretation is that the neural correlates of locomotor invigoration we observed in this study are not mere correlations but directly promote vigorous reward seeking.