TY - JOUR TI - Basal ganglia output reflects internally-specified movements AU - Lintz, Mario J AU - Felsen, Gidon A2 - Costa, Rui M VL - 5 PY - 2016 DA - 2016/07/05 SP - e13833 C1 - eLife 2016;5:e13833 DO - 10.7554/eLife.13833 UR - https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.13833 AB - How movements are selected is a fundamental question in systems neuroscience. While many studies have elucidated the sensorimotor transformations underlying stimulus-guided movements, less is known about how internal goals – critical drivers of goal-directed behavior – guide movements. The basal ganglia are known to bias movement selection according to value, one form of internal goal. Here, we examine whether other internal goals, in addition to value, also influence movements via the basal ganglia. We designed a novel task for mice that dissociated equally rewarded internally-specified and stimulus-guided movements, allowing us to test how each engaged the basal ganglia. We found that activity in the substantia nigra pars reticulata, a basal ganglia output, predictably differed preceding internally-specified and stimulus-guided movements. Incorporating these results into a simple model suggests that internally-specified movements may be facilitated relative to stimulus-guided movements by basal ganglia processing. KW - decision making KW - behavior KW - substantia nigra pars reticulata KW - awake behaving electrophysiology JF - eLife SN - 2050-084X PB - eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd ER -