GRADIENTAL APPROACH TO HUMAN PREFRONTAL CORTEX FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION: BEYOND THE MODULAR HYPOTHESIS

Abstract

Introduction. Humans can generate flexible behaviors, in which the consequence determines the behavior, thanks to anticipatory proaction processes. This behavioral versatility derives from the action of the central nervous system, within the prefrontal cortex (PFC) plays a key role. Development. Neurobiology has attempted to unravel the functional organization of the PFC from two theoretical frameworks. The first speculates that its operational capacity is based on its anatomical-functional architecture formed by regions responsible for different brain processes (the PFC is usually divided into three large specialized functional regions: lateral, medial and orbital). The second considers that it is organized in anatomical-functional axes or gradients (specifically, a rostro-caudal axis, a dorsal-ventral axis and a latero-medial axis). Conclusions. The division of the PFC into anatomical-functional regions imagines this brain structure as a mosaic of specialized areas. In contrast to this static division of the PFC, the axis (or gradient) approach proposes that anatomically adjacent regions are involved in similar computational processes, giving rise to gradual transitions from one process to another in a continuous and gradual trajectory..