Space and Value in the Primate Amygdala and Basal Forebrain

A stimulus predicting reinforcement can trigger emotional responses, such as arousal, as well as cognitive ones, such as increasing attention towards that stimulus. Neuroscientists have long appreciated that the amygdala mediates spatially non-specific emotional responses, but it remains unclear whether the amygdala links motivational and spatial representations in a way that may be important for the emotional-guidance of attention. To test whether amygdala neurons encode spatial and motivational information, we presented reward-predictive cues in different spatial configurations while assessing whether these cues influenced spatial attention. Cue configuration and predicted reward magnitude modulated amygdala neural activity in a coordinated fashion. Moreover, fluctuations in activity were correlated with trial-to-trial variability in spatial attention. Thus the amygdala integrates spatial and motivational information, which may influence the spatial allocation of cognitive resources. When surveying the environment, animals must be acutely aware of associations between stimuli and aversive outcomes in addition to those resulting in appetitive outcomes. This involves attending to a