A causal role of anterior prefrontal-putamen circuit for response inhibition revealed by transcranial ultrasound stimulation in humans

Stopping an inappropriate response requires the involvement of the prefrontal-subthalamic hyperdirect pathway. However, how the prefrontal-striatal indirect pathway contributes to stopping is poorly understood. In this study, transcranial ultrasound stimulation is used to perform interventions in a task-related region in the striatum. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reveals activation in the right anterior part of the putamen during response inhibition, and ultrasound stimulation to the anterior putamen, as well as the subthalamic nucleus, results in significant impairments in stopping performance. Diffusion imaging further reveals prominent structural connections between the anterior putamen and the right anterior part of the inferior frontal cortex (IFC), and ultrasound stimulation to the anterior IFC also shows significant impaired stopping performance. These results demonstrate that the right anterior putamen and right anterior IFC causally contribute to stopping and suggest that the anterior IFC-anterior putamen circuit in the indirect pathway serves as an essential route for stopping. [Display omitted] •The human subthalamic nucleus and striatum are stimulated by ultrasound•The right anterior putamen in the striatum shows a causal contribution to stopping•The right anterior IFC is a cortical counterpart of the anterior putamen•The anterior IFC-anterior putamen circuit works as an essential route for stopping Nakajima et al. find that ultrasound stimulation to the right anterior putamen and the right anterior inferior frontal cortex (aIFC), a cortical counterpart of the anterior putamen, elicits impaired stopping performance. The aIFC-anterior putamen circuit in the indirect pathway serves as an essential route for stopping.