Cognitive control articles from across Nature Portfolio

Neural mechanism underlying behavioural flexibility is not fully understood. Here authors study decision-making of macaques in a reversal task. They identify two complementary cognitive processes. Distinct neural patterns link these processes to the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, thalamus, and hippocampus.

Perception-action integration depends on hierarchical phase-amplitude coupling (PAC). α-β PAC shows stronger directional dependence toward β-γ PAC. Methylphenidate selectively enhances β-γ PAC, linking catecholaminergic activity to response inhibition.

This study presents a unified computational framework of meta-control that explains how people regulate cognitive control across different timescales and contexts, accounting for both rapid, short-lived adjustments and slower, more enduring adaptations.

Social cognition is coordinated by interregional phase-amplitude coupling similar to visual working memory. This coupling could explain potential behavioral differences in social and visual working memory between individuals varying in autistic personality traits.

Sheng et al. characterize features associated with neuroinflammation-related genes and cognitive resilience using a neuroimaging biomarker. The pathological effect of the MST1 gene on cognitive resilience is mediated by the mismatch between metabolic fluctuation coupling in the limbic orbital frontal cortex and amyloid protein deposition.

In this Journal Club, Chenyan Zhang highlights a 2005 study that showed that the amplification of task-relevant information makes a key contribution to cognitive control.

As alcohol and cannabis consumption rise around the world, we call for a global treaty to regulate misuse, inspired by the WHO Tobacco Control Framework.