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Peer-reviewedCC BY-NCScience Advances

Dopamine release-associated striatal blood oxygenation and whole-brain dynamics during associative learning

  • Amir Lawen1
  • Isabella K. Succi1
  • Daniela Lichtman1
  • Darcy S. Peterka1,2
  • Ishmail J. Abdus-Saboor1,2,3
  • Itamar Kahn1,2,4,5
5 affiliations
  1. 1Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York City, New York 10027 USA.
  2. 2Kavli Institute for Brain Science, Columbia University, New York City, New York 10027 USA.
  3. 3Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York City, New York 10027 USA.
  4. 4Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York City, New York 10027 USA.
  5. 5Lead contact.
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Abstract

Dopaminergic signaling in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) is central to reward-based learning, but its relationship to brain-wide hemodynamics remains unclear. Using concurrent fMRI and dopamine photometry in awake, behaving mice, we reveal that associative learning induces a gradual temporal shift in NAc blood oxygenation responses that mirrors dopamine release dynamics. This shift emerges with cue-reward learning and extends across a distributed network encompassing the lateral septal complex, as well as prefrontal, insular, and hypothalamic regions. Further, dopamine transients tightly correspond with local blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signals, and variations in reward value modulate delayed BOLD responses in both the NAc and additional subcortical structures. Regressing out the measured dopaminergic signal abolishes this reward-related modulation, suggesting that BOLD signals track dopaminergic reward prediction. These findings reveal a close relationship between dopamine signaling and widespread changes in brain activity during learning.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{lawen2026dopamine,
  title = {{Dopamine release-associated striatal blood oxygenation and whole-brain dynamics during associative learning}},
  author = {Amir Lawen and Isabella K. Succi and Daniela Lichtman and Darcy S. Peterka and Ishmail J. Abdus-Saboor and Itamar Kahn},
  journal = {Science Advances},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1126/sciadv.aed0935},
  url = {https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aed0935},
  note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Dopamine release-associated striatal blood oxygenation and whole-brain dynamics during associative learning
AU  - Amir Lawen
AU  - Isabella K. Succi
AU  - Daniela Lichtman
AU  - Darcy S. Peterka
AU  - Ishmail J. Abdus-Saboor
AU  - Itamar Kahn
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/09
JO  - Science Advances
DO  - 10.1126/sciadv.aed0935
UR  - https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aed0935
AB  - Dopaminergic signaling in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) is central to reward-based learning, but its relationship to brain-wide hemodynamics remains unclear. Using concurrent fMRI and dopamine photometry in awake, behaving mice, we reveal that associative learning induces a gradual temporal shift in NAc blood oxygenation responses that mirrors dopamine release dynamics. This shift emerges with cue-reward learning and extends across a distributed network encompassing the lateral septal complex, as well as prefrontal, insular, and hypothalamic regions. Further, dopamine transients tightly correspond with local blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) signals, and variations in reward value modulate delayed BOLD responses in both the NAc and additional subcortical structures. Regressing out the measured dopaminergic signal abolishes this reward-related modulation, suggesting that BOLD signals track dopaminergic reward prediction. These findings reveal a close relationship between dopamine signaling and widespread changes in brain activity during learning.
SN  - 2375-2548
ER  -