Combined stimulations of the medial prefrontal cortex as well as the anterior cingulum regions may result in BOLD responses in common neuronal network regions. An additive response may occur when a target region receives excitatory (glutamatergic) inputs from two different brain regions.
Researchers in this study stimulated either the hippocampus (the hippocampal CA3, specifically) or the VTA (neurons close to the midline on the midbrain “floor”). They found that this stimulation resulted in significant responses of BOLD in common brain structures, including the left and right hippocampus and the septum. Other BOLD responses were also observed in the striatum and medial prefrontal cortex during VTA stimulation.
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