By Ruud van den Brink & Tobias Donner. A class of neurotransmitters known as catecholamines (norepinephrine and dopamine) play an important modulatory role in brain function. These catecholamines are synthesised by neurons clustered in small nuclei of the brainstem, which
New paper published in PLoS Biology: Catecholamines alter the intrinsic variability of cortical population activity and perception
By Thomas Pfeffer and Tobias Donner. The catecholaminergic neurotransmitters noradrenaline and dopamine are important regulators of brain state, and their function is impaired in several psychiatric disorders. An influential account posits that noradrenaline renders inference and decision-making more variable (exploratory)