The prefrontal cortex is critical for decision-making across species, with its activity linked to choosing between options. Drift diffusion models (DDMs) are commonly employed to understand the neural computations underlying this behavior. Studies exploring the specific roles of regions of the rodent prefrontal cortex in controlling the decision process are limited. This study explored the role of the prelimbic cortex (PLC) in decision-making using a two-alternative forced-choice task. Rats first learned to report the location of a lateralized visual stimulus. The brightness of the stimulus indicated its reward value. Then, the rats learned to make choices between pairs of stimuli. Sex differences in learning were observed, with females responding faster and more selectively to high-value stimuli than males. DDM analysis found that males had decreased decision thresholds during initial learning, whereas females maintained a consistently higher drift rate. Pharmacological manipulations revealed that PLC inactivation reduced the decision threshold for all rats, indicating that less information was needed to make a choice in the absence of normal PLC processing. μ-Opioid receptor stimulation of the PLC had the opposite effect, raising the decision threshold and reducing bias in the decision process toward high-value stimuli. These effects were observed without any impact on the rats’ choice preferences. Our findings suggest that PLC has an inhibitory role in the decision process and regulates the amount of evidence that is required to make a choice. That is, PLC activity controls "when," but not "how," to act.

前额叶皮层对于跨物种的决策至关重要，其活动与选项之间的选择有关。漂移扩散模型 （DDM） 通常用于了解这种行为背后的神经计算。探索啮齿动物前额叶皮层区域在控制决策过程中的具体作用的研究是有限的。本研究探讨了前边缘皮层 （PLC） 使用两种替代强制选择任务在决策中的作用。大鼠首先学会了报告偏侧视觉刺激的位置。刺激的亮度表明其奖励值。然后，大鼠学会了在成对的刺激之间做出选择。观察到学习中的性别差异，女性比男性对高价值刺激的反应更快、更有选择性。DDM 分析发现，男性在初始学习期间的决策阈值降低，而女性保持较高的漂移率。药理学操作显示 PLC 失活降低了所有大鼠的决策阈值，表明在没有正常 PLC 处理的情况下做出选择所需的信息较少。μ-阿片受体刺激 PLC 具有相反的效果，提高了决策阈值并减少决策过程中对高价值刺激的偏差。观察到这些影响对大鼠的选择偏好没有任何影响。我们的研究结果表明，PLC 在决策过程中具有抑制作用，并调节做出选择所需的证据量。也就是说，PLC 活动控制“何时”操作，而不是“如何”操作。