Topic: multivoxel pattern analysis

The ventral midbrain (VM), which contains dopaminergic neurons, plays a role in motivation and learning. Our recent study showed that VM pre-movement activity is associated with subsequent peak grip force under incentive motivations. On the other hand, electrical stimulation on the VM in anesthetized monkeys induced muscle activity. These findings raise the question of whether the association between VM activity and peak grip force is independent of external rewards. To investigate this question, we measured the VM activity using functional magnetic resonance imaging. Thirty healthy volunteers