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Liu X, Lai J, Han C, Zhong H, Huang K, Liu Y, Zhu X, Wei P, Tan L, Xu F, Wang L. Neural circuit underlying individual differences in visual escape habituation. Neuron 2025:S0896-6273(25)00301-0. [PMID: 40347942 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2025.04.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2024] [Revised: 02/28/2025] [Accepted: 04/18/2025] [Indexed: 05/14/2025]
Abstract
Emotions like fear help organisms respond to threats. Repeated predator exposure leads to adaptive responses with unclear neural mechanisms behind individual variability. We identify two escape behaviors in mice-persistent escape (T1) and rapid habituation (T2)-linked to unique arousal states under repetitive looming stimuli. Combining multichannel recording, circuit mapping, optogenetics, and behavioral analyses, we find parallel pathways from the superior colliculus (SC) to the basolateral amygdala (BLA) via the ventral tegmental area (VTA) for T1 and via the mediodorsal thalamus (MD) for T2. T1 involves heightened arousal, while T2 features rapid habituation. The MD integrates SC and insular cortex inputs to modulate arousal and defensive behaviors. This work reveals neural circuits underpinning adaptive threat responses and individual variability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuemei Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 10049, China; Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, Gudangdong 518055, China; Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
| | - Juan Lai
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Chuanliang Han
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Hao Zhong
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Kang Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Yuanming Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Xutao Zhu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Pengfei Wei
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 10049, China; Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Liming Tan
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 10049, China; Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, Gudangdong 518055, China
| | - Fuqiang Xu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 10049, China
| | - Liping Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen 518055, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 10049, China; Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, Gudangdong 518055, China; Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
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2
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Liu J, Totty MS, Bayer H, Maren S. Integrating Aversive Memories in the Basolateral Amygdala. Biol Psychiatry 2025:S0006-3223(25)01107-2. [PMID: 40189005 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2025.03.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2024] [Revised: 03/24/2025] [Accepted: 03/25/2025] [Indexed: 05/29/2025]
Abstract
Decades of research have established a critical role of the basolateral complex of the amygdala (BLA) in the encoding and storage of aversive memories. Much of this work has utilized Pavlovian fear conditioning procedures in which animals experience a single aversive event. Although this effort has produced great insight into the neural mechanisms that support fear memories for an isolated aversive experience, much less is known about how amygdala circuits encode and integrate multiple emotional experiences. The emergence of methods to label and record neuronal ensembles over days allows a deeper understanding of how amygdala neurons encode and integrate distinct aversive episodes over time. Here, we review evidence that the BLA is an essential site for the persistent storage of long-term fear memory. As a long-term storage site for fear memory, a challenge for encoding multiple fear memories is the mechanisms by which BLA neurons allocate, integrate, and discriminate distinct experiences from one another. In this review, we discuss the historical evidence supporting the BLA as a critical site for long-term memory storage, as well as new evidence that stems from technological advances that allow researchers to simultaneously study the encoding and storage of multiple memory traces, including recent versus remote experiences. We explore the possibility that dysfunction in ensemble coding schemes contributes to the pathophysiology of posttraumatic stress disorder and argue that future studies should place increased emphasis on potential subregional differences in memory coding schemes in the amygdala to deepen our understanding of both normal and pathological emotional memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianfeng Liu
- College of Life Sciences and Health, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China; School of Medicine, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
| | - Michael S Totty
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland
| | - Hugo Bayer
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas; Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
| | - Stephen Maren
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Champaign, Illinois; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois.
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3
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Palchaudhuri S, Lin BX, Osypenko D, Wu J, Kochubey O, Schneggenburger R. A posterior insula to lateral amygdala pathway transmits US-offset information with a limited role in fear learning. Cell Rep 2025; 44:115320. [PMID: 39954251 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2025.115320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Revised: 03/21/2024] [Accepted: 01/27/2025] [Indexed: 02/17/2025] Open
Abstract
During fear learning, associations between a sensory cue (conditioned stimulus, CS) and an aversive stimulus (unconditioned stimulus, US) are formed in specific brain circuits. The lateral amygdala (LA) is involved in CS-US integration; however, US pathways to the LA remain understudied. Here, we investigated whether the posterior insular cortex (pInsCx), a hub for aversive state signaling, transmits US information to the LA during fear learning. We find that the pInsCx makes a robust, glutamatergic projection specifically targeting the anterior LA. In vivo Ca2+ imaging reveals that neurons in the pInsCx and anterior LA display US-onset and US-offset responses; imaging combined with axon silencing shows that the pInsCx selectively transmits US-offset information to the anterior LA. Optogenetic silencing, however, does not show a role for US-driven activity in the anterior LA or its pInsCx afferents in fear memory formation. Thus, we describe a cortical projection that carries US-offset information to the amygdala with a limited role in fear learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shriya Palchaudhuri
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Science, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland; Neuroscience Institute, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Bei-Xuan Lin
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Science, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Denys Osypenko
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Science, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland; Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Jinyun Wu
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Science, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Olexiy Kochubey
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Science, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Ralf Schneggenburger
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Science, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
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4
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Xue W, Chen Y, Lei Z, Wang Y, Liu J, Wen X, Xu F, Chen P, Wu Z, Jin YN, Yu YV. Calcium levels in ASER neurons determine behavioral valence by engaging distinct neuronal circuits in C. elegans. Nat Commun 2025; 16:1814. [PMID: 39979341 PMCID: PMC11842750 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-57051-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2024] [Accepted: 02/10/2025] [Indexed: 02/22/2025] Open
Abstract
The valence of stimuli is shaped by various factors, including environmental cues, internal states, genetic variability, and past experience. However, the mechanisms behind this flexibility remain elusive. In the nematode C. elegans, we found that ethanol, an olfactory stimulus, can elicit opposite chemotaxis responses - attraction vs. aversion - depending on NaCl concentration, demonstrating the role of environmental factors in altering valence. Remarkably, a single chemosensory neuron, ASER, orchestrate this bidirectional ethanol chemotaxis by integrating information from both stimuli - ethanol and NaCl - into its neuronal activity dynamics. Specifically, different calcium dynamics in the ASER neuron differentially activate the signaling molecule CMK-1, thereby engaging different downstream interneurons and leading to opposite chemotaxis directions. Consistently, optogenetic manipulations of the ASER neuron reverse the chemotaxis directions, by altering its calcium dynamics. Our findings reveal a mechanism by which a single neuron integrates multisensory inputs to determine context-dependent behavioral valence, contributing to our current understanding of valence encoding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weikang Xue
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuanhua Chen
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
| | - Ziyi Lei
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuanxia Wang
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Jiaze Liu
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Xin Wen
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Fang Xu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tissue Engineering and Organ Manufacturing (TEOM) Lab, TaiKang Medical School (School of Basic Medical Sciences), Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| | - Pu Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tissue Engineering and Organ Manufacturing (TEOM) Lab, TaiKang Medical School (School of Basic Medical Sciences), Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
- TaiKang Center for Life and Medical Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Zhengxing Wu
- Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of Ministry of Education, Institute of Biophysics and Biochemistry, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Youngnam N Jin
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
- Frontier Science Center for Immunology and Metabolism, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
| | - Yanxun V Yu
- Department of Neurology, Medical Research Institute, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
- Frontier Science Center for Immunology and Metabolism, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
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5
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Domingues AV, Carvalho TTA, Martins GJ, Correia R, Coimbra B, Bastos-Gonçalves R, Wezik M, Gaspar R, Pinto L, Sousa N, Costa RM, Soares-Cunha C, Rodrigues AJ. Dynamic representation of appetitive and aversive stimuli in nucleus accumbens shell D1- and D2-medium spiny neurons. Nat Commun 2025; 16:59. [PMID: 39746997 PMCID: PMC11696804 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-55269-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2024] [Accepted: 12/04/2024] [Indexed: 01/04/2025] Open
Abstract
The nucleus accumbens (NAc) is a key brain region for motivated behaviors, yet how distinct neuronal populations encode appetitive or aversive stimuli remains undetermined. Using microendoscopic calcium imaging in mice, we tracked NAc shell D1- or D2-medium spiny neurons' (MSNs) activity during exposure to stimuli of opposing valence and associative learning. Despite drift in individual neurons' coding, both D1- and D2-population activity was sufficient to discriminate opposing valence unconditioned stimuli, but not predictive cues. Notably, D1- and D2-MSNs were similarly co-recruited during appetitive and aversive conditioning, supporting a concurrent role in associative learning. Conversely, when contingencies changed, there was an asymmetric response in the NAc, with more pronounced changes in the activity of D2-MSNs. Optogenetic manipulation of D2-MSNs provided causal evidence of the necessity of this population in the extinction of aversive associations. Our results reveal how NAc shell neurons encode valence, Pavlovian associations and their extinction, and unveil mechanisms underlying motivated behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Verónica Domingues
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Tawan T A Carvalho
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Gabriela J Martins
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- Allen Institute for Neural Dynamics, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Raquel Correia
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Bárbara Coimbra
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Ricardo Bastos-Gonçalves
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Marcelina Wezik
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Rita Gaspar
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Luísa Pinto
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Nuno Sousa
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
- Clinical Academic Center-Braga (2CA), Braga, Portugal
| | - Rui M Costa
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute at Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- Allen Institute, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Carina Soares-Cunha
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal.
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal.
| | - Ana João Rodrigues
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal.
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal.
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6
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Silva SADCE, McDonald NJ, Chamaria A, Stujenske JM. Population imaging of internal state circuits relevant to psychiatric disease: a review. NEUROPHOTONICS 2025; 12:S14607. [PMID: 39872404 PMCID: PMC11772092 DOI: 10.1117/1.nph.12.s1.s14607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2024] [Revised: 12/18/2024] [Accepted: 12/30/2024] [Indexed: 01/30/2025]
Abstract
Internal states involve brain-wide changes that subserve coordinated behavioral and physiological responses for adaptation to changing environments and body states. Investigations of single neurons or small populations have yielded exciting discoveries for the field of neuroscience, but it has been increasingly clear that the encoding of internal states involves the simultaneous representation of multiple different variables in distributed neural ensembles. Thus, an understanding of the representation and regulation of internal states requires capturing large population activity and benefits from approaches that allow for parsing intermingled, genetically defined cell populations. We will explain imaging technologies that permit recording from large populations of single neurons in rodents and the unique capabilities of these technologies in comparison to electrophysiological methods. We will focus on findings for appetitive and aversive states given their high relevance to a wide range of psychiatric disorders and briefly explain how these approaches have been applied to models of psychiatric disease in rodents. We discuss challenges for studying internal states which must be addressed with future studies as well as the therapeutic implications of findings from rodents for improving treatments for psychiatric diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophia Arruda Da Costa E. Silva
- University of Pittsburgh, Department of Psychiatry, Translational Neuroscience Program, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
| | - Nicholas J. McDonald
- University of Pittsburgh, Department of Psychiatry, Translational Neuroscience Program, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
| | - Arushi Chamaria
- University of Pittsburgh, Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
| | - Joseph M. Stujenske
- University of Pittsburgh, Department of Psychiatry, Translational Neuroscience Program, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
- University of Pittsburgh, Center for Neuroscience, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
- University of Pittsburgh, Department of Bioengineering, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
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7
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Ottenheimer DJ, Vitale KR, Ambroggi F, Janak PH, Saunders BT. Orbitofrontal Cortex Mediates Sustained Basolateral Amygdala Encoding of Cued Reward-Seeking States. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e0013242024. [PMID: 39353730 PMCID: PMC11561866 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0013-24.2024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2024] [Revised: 09/04/2024] [Accepted: 09/27/2024] [Indexed: 10/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Basolateral amygdala (BLA) neurons are engaged by emotionally salient stimuli. An area of increasing interest is how BLA dynamics relate to evolving reward-seeking behavior, especially under situations of uncertainty or ambiguity. Here, we recorded the activity of individual BLA neurons in male rats across the acquisition and extinction of conditioned reward seeking. We assessed ongoing neural dynamics in a task where long reward cue presentations preceded an unpredictable, variably time reward delivery. We found that, with training, BLA neurons discriminated the CS+ and CS- cues with sustained cue-evoked activity that correlated with behavior and terminated only after reward receipt. BLA neurons were bidirectionally modulated, with a majority showing prolonged inhibition during cued reward seeking. Strikingly, population-level analyses revealed that neurons showing cue-evoked inhibitions and those showing excitations similarly represented the CS+ and behavioral state. This sustained population code rapidly extinguished in parallel with conditioned behavior. We next assessed the contribution of the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a major reciprocal partner to the BLA. Inactivation of the OFC while simultaneously recording in the BLA revealed a blunting of sustained cue-evoked activity in the BLA that accompanied reduced reward seeking. Optogenetic disruption of BLA activity and OFC terminals in the BLA also reduced reward seeking. Our data indicate that the BLA represents reward-seeking states via sustained, bidirectional cue-driven neural encoding. This code is regulated by cortical input and is important for the maintenance of vigilant reward-seeking behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- David J Ottenheimer
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21205
- Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Katherine R Vitale
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143
| | - Frederic Ambroggi
- Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Universite, CNRS, INT, Marseille 13005, France
| | - Patricia H Janak
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21205
| | - Benjamin T Saunders
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota, Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455
- Medical Discovery Team on Addiction, University of Minnesota, Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455
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8
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Biane JS, Ladow MA, Fan A, Choi HS, Zhou LZ, Hassan S, Apodaca-Montano DL, Kwon AO, Bratsch-Prince JX, Kheirbek MA. Representations of stimulus meaning in the hippocampus. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.10.14.618280. [PMID: 39464010 PMCID: PMC11507678 DOI: 10.1101/2024.10.14.618280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/29/2024]
Abstract
The ability to discriminate and categorize the meaning of environmental stimuli and respond accordingly is essential for survival. The ventral hippocampus (vHPC) controls emotional and motivated behaviors in response to environmental cues and is hypothesized to do so in part by deciphering the positive or negative quality of these cues. Yet, what features of the environment are represented in the activity patterns of vCA1 neurons, and whether the positive or negative meaning of a stimulus is present at this stage, remains unclear. Here, using 2-photon calcium imaging across six different experimental paradigms, we consistently found that vCA1 ensembles encode the identity, sensory features, and intensity of learned and innately salient stimuli, but not their overall valence. These results offer a reappraisal of vCA1 function, wherein information corresponding to individual stimulus features and their behavioral saliency predominates, while valence-related information is attached elsewhere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy S. Biane
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Max A. Ladow
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Austin Fan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Hye Sun Choi
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Lexi Zichen Zhou
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Shazreh Hassan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Daniel L. Apodaca-Montano
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Andrew O. Kwon
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Joshua X. Bratsch-Prince
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Mazen A. Kheirbek
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, Weill Institute for Neurosciences and Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
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9
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Phalip A, Netser S, Wagner S. Understanding the neurobiology of social behavior through exploring brain-wide dynamics of neural activity. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 165:105856. [PMID: 39159735 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2024] [Revised: 08/11/2024] [Accepted: 08/14/2024] [Indexed: 08/21/2024]
Abstract
Social behavior is highly complex and adaptable. It can be divided into multiple temporal stages: detection, approach, and consummatory behavior. Each stage can be further divided into several cognitive and behavioral processes, such as perceiving social cues, evaluating the social and non-social contexts, and recognizing the internal/emotional state of others. Recent studies have identified numerous brain-wide circuits implicated in social behavior and suggested the existence of partially overlapping functional brain networks underlying various types of social and non-social behavior. However, understanding the brain-wide dynamics underlying social behavior remains challenging, and several brain-scale dynamics (macro-, meso-, and micro-scale levels) need to be integrated. Here, we suggest leveraging new tools and concepts to explore social brain networks and integrate those different levels. These include studying the expression of immediate-early genes throughout the entire brain to impartially define the structure of the neuronal networks involved in a given social behavior. Then, network dynamics could be investigated using electrode arrays or multi-channel fiber photometry. Finally, tools like high-density silicon probes and miniscopes can probe neural activity in specific areas and across neuronal populations at the single-cell level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adèle Phalip
- Sagol Department of Neurobiology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | - Shai Netser
- Sagol Department of Neurobiology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Shlomo Wagner
- Sagol Department of Neurobiology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
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10
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Levitan D, Gilad A. Amygdala and Cortex Relationships during Learning of a Sensory Discrimination Task. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e0125242024. [PMID: 39025676 PMCID: PMC11340284 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0125-24.2024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2024] [Revised: 06/09/2024] [Accepted: 06/14/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024] Open
Abstract
During learning of a sensory discrimination task, the cortical and subcortical regions display complex spatiotemporal dynamics. During learning, both the amygdala and cortex link stimulus information to its appropriate association, for example, a reward. In addition, both structures are also related to nonsensory parameters such as body movements and licking during the reward period. However, the emergence of the cortico-amygdala relationships during learning is largely unknown. To study this, we combined wide-field cortical imaging with fiber photometry to simultaneously record cortico-amygdala population dynamics as male mice learn a whisker-dependent go/no-go task. We were able to simultaneously record neuronal populations from the posterior cortex and either the basolateral amygdala (BLA) or central/medial amygdala (CEM). Prior to learning, the somatosensory and associative cortex responded during sensation, while amygdala areas did not show significant responses. As mice became experts, amygdala responses emerged early during the sensation period, increasing in the CEM, while decreasing in the BLA. Interestingly, amygdala and cortical responses were associated with task-related body movement, displaying significant responses ∼200 ms before movement initiation which led to licking for the reward. A correlation analysis between the cortex and amygdala revealed negative and positive correlation with the BLA and CEM, respectively, only in the expert case. These results imply that learning induces an involvement of the cortex and amygdala which may aid to link sensory stimuli with appropriate associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Levitan
- Department of Medical Neurobiology, Faculty of Medicine, The Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC), The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
| | - Ariel Gilad
- Department of Medical Neurobiology, Faculty of Medicine, The Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada (IMRIC), The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 9112102, Israel
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11
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Ghasemahmad Z, Mrvelj A, Panditi R, Sharma B, Perumal KD, Wenstrup JJ. Emotional vocalizations alter behaviors and neurochemical release into the amygdala. eLife 2024; 12:RP88838. [PMID: 39008352 PMCID: PMC11249735 DOI: 10.7554/elife.88838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/16/2024] Open
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala (BLA), a brain center of emotional expression, contributes to acoustic communication by first interpreting the meaning of social sounds in the context of the listener's internal state, then organizing the appropriate behavioral responses. We propose that modulatory neurochemicals such as acetylcholine (ACh) and dopamine (DA) provide internal-state signals to the BLA while an animal listens to social vocalizations. We tested this in a vocal playback experiment utilizing highly affective vocal sequences associated with either mating or restraint, then sampled and analyzed fluids within the BLA for a broad range of neurochemicals and observed behavioral responses of adult male and female mice. In male mice, playback of restraint vocalizations increased ACh release and usually decreased DA release, while playback of mating sequences evoked the opposite neurochemical release patterns. In non-estrus female mice, patterns of ACh and DA release with mating playback were similar to males. Estrus females, however, showed increased ACh, associated with vigilance, as well as increased DA, associated with reward-seeking. Experimental groups that showed increased ACh release also showed the largest increases in an aversive behavior. These neurochemical release patterns and several behavioral responses depended on a single prior experience with the mating and restraint behaviors. Our results support a model in which ACh and DA provide contextual information to sound analyzing BLA neurons that modulate their output to downstream brain regions controlling behavioral responses to social vocalizations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zahra Ghasemahmad
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and Hearing Research Group, Northeast Ohio Medical UniversityRootstownUnited States
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State UniversityKentUnited States
- Brain Health Research Institute, Kent State UniversityKentUnited States
| | - Aaron Mrvelj
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and Hearing Research Group, Northeast Ohio Medical UniversityRootstownUnited States
| | - Rishitha Panditi
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and Hearing Research Group, Northeast Ohio Medical UniversityRootstownUnited States
| | - Bhavya Sharma
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and Hearing Research Group, Northeast Ohio Medical UniversityRootstownUnited States
| | - Karthic Drishna Perumal
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and Hearing Research Group, Northeast Ohio Medical UniversityRootstownUnited States
| | - Jeffrey J Wenstrup
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and Hearing Research Group, Northeast Ohio Medical UniversityRootstownUnited States
- School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State UniversityKentUnited States
- Brain Health Research Institute, Kent State UniversityKentUnited States
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12
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Cisler JM, Dunsmoor JE, Privratsky AA, James GA. Decoding neural reactivation of threat during fear learning, extinction, and recall in a randomized clinical trial of L-DOPA among women with PTSD. Psychol Med 2024; 54:1091-1101. [PMID: 37807886 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291723002891] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Laboratory paradigms are widely used to study fear learning in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Recent basic science models demonstrate that, during fear learning, patterns of activity in large neuronal ensembles for the conditioned stimuli (CS) begin to reinstate neural activity patterns for the unconditioned stimuli (US), suggesting a direct way of quantifying fear memory strength for the CS. Here, we translate this concept to human neuroimaging and test the impact of post-learning dopaminergic neurotransmission on fear memory strength during fear acquisition, extinction, and recall among women with PTSD in a re-analysis of previously reported data. METHODS Participants (N = 79) completed a context-dependent fear acquisition and extinction task on day 1 and extinction recall tests 24 h later. We decoded activity patterns in large-scale functional networks for the US, then applied this decoder to activity patterns toward the CS on day 1 and day 2. RESULTS US decoder output for the CS+ increased during acquisition and decreased during extinction in networks traditionally implicated in human fear learning. The strength of US neural reactivation also predicted individuals skin conductance responses. Participants randomized to receive L-DOPA (n = 43) following extinction on day 1 demonstrated less US neural reactivation on day 2 relative to the placebo group (n = 28). CONCLUSION These results support neural reactivation as a measure of memory strength between competing memories of threat and safety and further demonstrate the role of dopaminergic neurotransmission in the consolidation of fear extinction memories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Josh M Cisler
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
- Institute for Early Life Adversity Research, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Joseph E Dunsmoor
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
- Institute for Early Life Adversity Research, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | | | - G Andrew James
- Brain Imaging Research Center, Department of Psychiatry, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA
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13
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Jared Ramirez Sanchez L, Li B. Driving valence-specific behavior through single-cell resolution control in the amygdala. Neuron 2024; 112:521-523. [PMID: 38387436 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.01.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2024] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
In this issue of Neuron, Piantadosi et al.1 demonstrate that by precisely controlling the activity of individual negative-valence neurons and positive-valence neurons in the basolateral amygdala, one can alter animals' appetitive or aversive responses, respectively, establishing a causal role of these neurons in valence-specific behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Bo Li
- School of Biological Sciences, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA; Westlake Laboratory of Life Sciences and Biomedicine, School of Life Sciences, Westlake University, Hangzhou 310024, China.
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14
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Piantadosi SC, Zhou ZC, Pizzano C, Pedersen CE, Nguyen TK, Thai S, Stuber GD, Bruchas MR. Holographic stimulation of opposing amygdala ensembles bidirectionally modulates valence-specific behavior via mutual inhibition. Neuron 2024; 112:593-610.e5. [PMID: 38086375 PMCID: PMC10984369 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Revised: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is an evolutionarily conserved brain region, well known for valence processing. Despite this central role, the relationship between activity of BLA neuronal ensembles in response to appetitive and aversive stimuli and the subsequent expression of valence-specific behavior has remained elusive. Here, we leverage two-photon calcium imaging combined with single-cell holographic photostimulation through an endoscopic lens to demonstrate a direct causal role for opposing ensembles of BLA neurons in the control of oppositely valenced behavior in mice. We report that targeted photostimulation of either appetitive or aversive BLA ensembles results in mutual inhibition and shifts behavioral responses to promote consumption of an aversive tastant or reduce consumption of an appetitive tastant, respectively. Here, we identify that neuronal encoding of valence in the BLA is graded and relies on the relative proportion of individual BLA neurons recruited in a stable appetitive or quinine ensemble.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean C Piantadosi
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Zhe Charles Zhou
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Carina Pizzano
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Christian E Pedersen
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Tammy K Nguyen
- Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Sarah Thai
- Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Garret D Stuber
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Michael R Bruchas
- Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
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15
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Palchaudhuri S, Osypenko D, Schneggenburger R. Fear Learning: An Evolving Picture for Plasticity at Synaptic Afferents to the Amygdala. Neuroscientist 2024; 30:87-104. [PMID: 35822657 DOI: 10.1177/10738584221108083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Unraveling the neuronal mechanisms of fear learning might allow neuroscientists to make links between a learned behavior and the underlying plasticity at specific synaptic connections. In fear learning, an innocuous sensory event such as a tone (called the conditioned stimulus, CS) acquires an emotional value when paired with an aversive outcome (unconditioned stimulus, US). Here, we review earlier studies that have shown that synaptic plasticity at thalamic and cortical afferents to the lateral amygdala (LA) is critical for the formation of auditory-cued fear memories. Despite the early progress, it has remained unclear whether there are separate synaptic inputs that carry US information to the LA to act as a teaching signal for plasticity at CS-coding synapses. Recent findings have begun to fill this gap by showing, first, that thalamic and cortical auditory afferents can also carry US information; second, that the release of neuromodulators contributes to US-driven teaching signals; and third, that synaptic plasticity additionally happens at connections up- and downstream of the LA. Together, a picture emerges in which coordinated synaptic plasticity in serial and parallel circuits enables the formation of a finely regulated fear memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shriya Palchaudhuri
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Denys Osypenko
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Ralf Schneggenburger
- Laboratory of Synaptic Mechanisms, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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16
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Ottenheimer DJ, Vitale KR, Ambroggi F, Janak PH, Saunders BT. Basolateral amygdala population coding of a cued reward seeking state depends on orbitofrontal cortex. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.12.31.573789. [PMID: 38260546 PMCID: PMC10802313 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.31.573789] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Basolateral amygdala (BLA) neuronal responses to conditioned stimuli are closely linked to the expression of conditioned behavior. An area of increasing interest is how the dynamics of BLA neurons relate to evolving behavior. Here, we recorded the activity of individual BLA neurons across the acquisition and extinction of conditioned reward seeking and employed population-level analyses to assess ongoing neural dynamics. We found that, with training, sustained cue-evoked activity emerged that discriminated between the CS+ and CS- and correlated with conditioned responding. This sustained population activity continued until reward receipt and rapidly extinguished along with conditioned behavior during extinction. To assess the contribution of orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), a major reciprocal partner to BLA, to this component of BLA neural activity, we inactivated OFC while recording in BLA and found blunted sustained cue-evoked activity in BLA that accompanied reduced reward seeking. Optogenetic disruption of BLA activity and OFC terminals in BLA also reduced reward seeking. Our data suggest that sustained cue-driven activity in BLA, which in part depends on OFC input, underlies conditioned reward-seeking states.
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Affiliation(s)
- David J Ottenheimer
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University
- Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, University of Washington
| | | | - Frederic Ambroggi
- Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseilles Universite, CNRS, INT
| | - Patricia H Janak
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University
| | - Benjamin T Saunders
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Minnesota
- Medical Discovery Team on Addiction, University of Minnesota
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17
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Martin-Fernandez M, Menegolla AP, Lopez-Fernandez G, Winke N, Jercog D, Kim HR, Girard D, Dejean C, Herry C. Prefrontal circuits encode both general danger and specific threat representations. Nat Neurosci 2023; 26:2147-2157. [PMID: 37904042 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01472-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 09/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/01/2023]
Abstract
Behavioral adaptation to potential threats requires both a global representation of danger to prepare the organism to react in a timely manner but also the identification of specific threatening situations to select the appropriate behavioral responses. The prefrontal cortex is known to control threat-related behaviors, yet it is unknown whether it encodes global defensive states and/or the identity of specific threatening encounters. Using a new behavioral paradigm that exposes mice to different threatening situations, we show that the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC) encodes a general representation of danger while simultaneously encoding a specific neuronal representation of each threat. Importantly, the global representation of danger persisted in error trials that instead lacked specific threat identity representations. Consistently, optogenetic prefrontal inhibition impaired overall behavioral performance and discrimination of different threatening situations without any bias toward active or passive behaviors. Together, these data indicate that the prefrontal cortex encodes both a global representation of danger and specific representations of threat identity to control the selection of defensive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Martin-Fernandez
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France.
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France.
| | - Ana Paula Menegolla
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Guillem Lopez-Fernandez
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Nanci Winke
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Daniel Jercog
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Ha-Rang Kim
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Delphine Girard
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Cyril Dejean
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France
| | - Cyril Herry
- Université de Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France.
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, Bordeaux, France.
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18
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Domingues AV, Rodrigues AJ, Soares-Cunha C. A novel perspective on the role of nucleus accumbens neurons in encoding associative learning. FEBS Lett 2023; 597:2601-2610. [PMID: 37643893 DOI: 10.1002/1873-3468.14727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
The nucleus accumbens (NAc) has been considered a key brain region for encoding reward/aversion and cue-outcome associations. These processes are encoded by medium spiny neurons that express either dopamine receptor D1 (D1-MSNs) or D2 (D2-MSNs). Despite the well-established role of NAc neurons in encoding reward/aversion, the underlying processing by D1-/D2-MSNs remains largely unknown. Recent electrophysiological, optogenetic and calcium imaging studies provided insight on the complex role of D1- and D2-MSNs in these behaviours and helped to clarify their involvement in associative learning. Here, we critically discuss findings supporting an intricate and complementary role of NAc D1- and D2-MSNs in associative learning, emphasizing the need for additional studies in order to fully understand the role of these neurons in behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Verónica Domingues
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Ana João Rodrigues
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Carina Soares-Cunha
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Medicine, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
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19
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Aso Y, Yamada D, Bushey D, Hibbard KL, Sammons M, Otsuna H, Shuai Y, Hige T. Neural circuit mechanisms for transforming learned olfactory valences into wind-oriented movement. eLife 2023; 12:e85756. [PMID: 37721371 PMCID: PMC10588983 DOI: 10.7554/elife.85756] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/19/2023] Open
Abstract
How memories are used by the brain to guide future action is poorly understood. In olfactory associative learning in Drosophila, multiple compartments of the mushroom body act in parallel to assign a valence to a stimulus. Here, we show that appetitive memories stored in different compartments induce different levels of upwind locomotion. Using a photoactivation screen of a new collection of split-GAL4 drivers and EM connectomics, we identified a cluster of neurons postsynaptic to the mushroom body output neurons (MBONs) that can trigger robust upwind steering. These UpWind Neurons (UpWiNs) integrate inhibitory and excitatory synaptic inputs from MBONs of appetitive and aversive memory compartments, respectively. After formation of appetitive memory, UpWiNs acquire enhanced response to reward-predicting odors as the response of the inhibitory presynaptic MBON undergoes depression. Blocking UpWiNs impaired appetitive memory and reduced upwind locomotion during retrieval. Photoactivation of UpWiNs also increased the chance of returning to a location where activation was terminated, suggesting an additional role in olfactory navigation. Thus, our results provide insight into how learned abstract valences are gradually transformed into concrete memory-driven actions through divergent and convergent networks, a neuronal architecture that is commonly found in the vertebrate and invertebrate brains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshinori Aso
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Daichi Yamada
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillUnited States
| | - Daniel Bushey
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Karen L Hibbard
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Megan Sammons
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Hideo Otsuna
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Yichun Shuai
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Toshihide Hige
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillUnited States
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillUnited States
- Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel HillChapel HillUnited States
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20
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Guan W, Li B. Diverse Roles of Serotonergic Projections to the Basolateral Amygdala. Neurosci Bull 2023; 39:1463-1465. [PMID: 37029325 PMCID: PMC10465427 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-023-01061-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/09/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Wuqiang Guan
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, 11724, USA
| | - Bo Li
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, 11724, USA.
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21
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Haris EM, Bryant RA, Williamson T, Korgaonkar MS. Functional connectivity of amygdala subnuclei in PTSD: a narrative review. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:3581-3594. [PMID: 37845498 PMCID: PMC10730419 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-023-02291-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 09/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/03/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023]
Abstract
While the amygdala is often implicated in the neurobiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the pattern of results remains mixed. One reason for this may be the heterogeneity of amygdala subnuclei and their functional connections. This review used PRISMA guidelines to synthesize research exploring the functional connectivity of three primary amygdala subnuclei, basolateral (BLA), centromedial (CMA), and superficial nuclei (SFA), in PTSD (N = 331) relative to trauma-exposed (N = 155) and non-trauma-exposed controls (N = 210). Although studies were limited (N = 11), preliminary evidence suggests that in PTSD compared to trauma-exposed controls, the BLA shows greater connectivity with the dorsal anterior cingulate, an area involved in salience detection. In PTSD compared to non-trauma-exposed controls, the BLA shows greater connectivity with the middle frontal gyrus, an area involved in attention. No other connections were replicated across studies. A secondary aim of this review was to outline the limitations of this field to better shape future research. Importantly, the results from this review indicate the need to consider potential mediators of amygdala subnuclei connectivity, such as trauma type and sex, when conducting such studies. They also highlight the need to be aware of the limited inferences we can make with such small samples that investigate small subcortical structures on low field strength magnetic resonance imaging scanners. Collectively, this review demonstrates the importance of exploring the differential connectivity of amygdala subnuclei to understand the pathophysiology of PTSD and stresses the need for future research to harness the strength of ultra-high field imaging to gain a more sensitive picture of the neural connectivity underlying PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth M Haris
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
- Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, The University of Sydney, Westmead, NSW, Australia.
| | - Richard A Bryant
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, The University of Sydney, Westmead, NSW, Australia
| | - Thomas Williamson
- Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, The University of Sydney, Westmead, NSW, Australia
| | - Mayuresh S Korgaonkar
- Brain Dynamics Centre, Westmead Institute for Medical Research, The University of Sydney, Westmead, NSW, Australia.
- Discipline of Psychiatry, Sydney Medical School, Westmead, NSW, Australia.
- Western Sydney Local Health District, Westmead, NSW, Australia.
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22
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Suthard RL, Senne RA, Buzharsky MD, Pyo AY, Dorst KE, Diep AH, Cole RH, Ramirez S. Basolateral Amygdala Astrocytes Are Engaged by the Acquisition and Expression of a Contextual Fear Memory. J Neurosci 2023; 43:4997-5013. [PMID: 37268419 PMCID: PMC10324998 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1775-22.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 06/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Astrocytes are key cellular regulators within the brain. The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is implicated in fear memory processing, yet most research has entirely focused on neuronal mechanisms, despite a significant body of work implicating astrocytes in learning and memory. In the present study, we used in vivo fiber photometry in C57BL/6J male mice to record from amygdalar astrocytes across fear learning, recall, and three separate periods of extinction. We found that BLA astrocytes robustly responded to foot shock during acquisition, their activity remained remarkably elevated across days in comparison to unshocked control animals, and their increased activity persisted throughout extinction. Further, we found that astrocytes responded to the initiation and termination of freezing bouts during contextual fear conditioning and recall, and this behavior-locked pattern of activity did not persist throughout the extinction sessions. Importantly, astrocytes do not display these changes while exploring a novel context, suggesting that these observations are specific to the original fear-associated environment. Chemogenetic inhibition of fear ensembles in the BLA did not affect freezing behavior or astrocytic calcium dynamics. Overall, our work presents a real-time role for amygdalar astrocytes in fear processing and provides new insight into the emerging role of these cells in cognition and behavior.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT We show that basolateral amygdala astrocytes are robustly responsive to negative experiences, like shock, and display changed calcium activity patterns through fear learning and memory. Additionally, astrocytic calcium responses become time locked to the initiation and termination of freezing behavior during fear learning and recall. We find that astrocytes display calcium dynamics unique to a fear-conditioned context, and chemogenetic inhibition of BLA fear ensembles does not have an impact on freezing behavior or calcium dynamics. These findings show that astrocytes play a key real-time role in fear learning and memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca L Suthard
- Graduate Program for Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Systems Neuroscience, Neurophotonics Center, and Photonics Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Ryan A Senne
- Graduate Program for Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Systems Neuroscience, Neurophotonics Center, and Photonics Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Michelle D Buzharsky
- Undergraduate Program in Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Angela Y Pyo
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Systems Neuroscience, Neurophotonics Center, and Photonics Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Kaitlyn E Dorst
- Graduate Program for Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Systems Neuroscience, Neurophotonics Center, and Photonics Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Anh H Diep
- Undergraduate Program in Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Rebecca H Cole
- Undergraduate Program in Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
| | - Steve Ramirez
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Systems Neuroscience, Neurophotonics Center, and Photonics Center, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215
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23
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Nguyen R, Koukoutselos K, Forro T, Ciocchi S. Fear extinction relies on ventral hippocampal safety codes shaped by the amygdala. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadg4881. [PMID: 37256958 PMCID: PMC10413664 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg4881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Extinction memory retrieval is influenced by spatial contextual information that determines responding to conditioned stimuli (CS). However, it is poorly understood whether contextual representations are imbued with emotional values to support memory selection. Here, we performed activity-dependent engram tagging and in vivo single-unit electrophysiological recordings from the ventral hippocampus (vH) while optogenetically manipulating basolateral amygdala (BLA) inputs during the formation of cued fear extinction memory. During fear extinction when CS acquire safety properties, we found that CS-related activity in the vH reactivated during sleep consolidation and was strengthened upon memory retrieval. Moreover, fear extinction memory was facilitated when the extinction context exhibited precise coding of its affective zones. Last, these activity patterns along with the retrieval of the fear extinction memory were dependent on glutamatergic transmission from the BLA during extinction learning. Thus, fear extinction memory relies on the formation of contextual and stimulus safety representations in the vH instructed by the BLA.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Thomas Forro
- Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience, Department of Physiology, University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
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24
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Yang T, Yu K, Zhang X, Xiao X, Chen X, Fu Y, Li B. Plastic and stimulus-specific coding of salient events in the central amygdala. Nature 2023; 616:510-519. [PMID: 37020025 PMCID: PMC10665639 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-05910-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 04/07/2023]
Abstract
The central amygdala (CeA) is implicated in a range of mental processes including attention, motivation, memory formation and extinction and in behaviours driven by either aversive or appetitive stimuli1-7. How it participates in these divergent functions remains elusive. Here we show that somatostatin-expressing (Sst+) CeA neurons, which mediate much of CeA functions3,6,8-10, generate experience-dependent and stimulus-specific evaluative signals essential for learning. The population responses of these neurons in mice encode the identities of a wide range of salient stimuli, with the responses of separate subpopulations selectively representing the stimuli that have contrasting valences, sensory modalities or physical properties (for example, shock and water reward). These signals scale with stimulus intensity, undergo pronounced amplification and transformation during learning, and are required for both reward and aversive learning. Notably, these signals contribute to the responses of dopamine neurons to reward and reward prediction error, but not to their responses to aversive stimuli. In line with this, Sst+ CeA neuron outputs to dopamine areas are required for reward learning, but are dispensable for aversive learning. Our results suggest that Sst+ CeA neurons selectively process information about differing salient events for evaluation during learning, supporting the diverse roles of the CeA. In particular, the information for dopamine neurons facilitates reward evaluation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Yang
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA.
| | - Kai Yu
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Xian Zhang
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- Bioscience and Biomedical Engineering Thrust, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiong Xiao
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- Institute of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaoke Chen
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Yu Fu
- Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Singapore
| | - Bo Li
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA.
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25
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Furlan A, Corona A, Boyle S, Sharma R, Rubino R, Habel J, Gablenz EC, Giovanniello J, Beyaz S, Janowitz T, Shea SD, Li B. Neurotensin neurons in the extended amygdala control dietary choice and energy homeostasis. Nat Neurosci 2022; 25:1470-1480. [PMID: 36266470 PMCID: PMC9682790 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-022-01178-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2021] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Obesity is a global pandemic that is causally linked to many life-threatening diseases. Apart from some rare genetic conditions, the biological drivers of overeating and reduced activity are unclear. Here, we show that neurotensin-expressing neurons in the mouse interstitial nucleus of the posterior limb of the anterior commissure (IPAC), a nucleus of the central extended amygdala, encode dietary preference for unhealthy energy-dense foods. Optogenetic activation of IPACNts neurons promotes obesogenic behaviors, such as hedonic eating, and modulates food preference. Conversely, acute inhibition of IPACNts neurons reduces feeding and decreases hedonic eating. Chronic inactivation of IPACNts neurons recapitulates these effects, reduces preference for sweet, non-caloric tastants and, furthermore, enhances locomotion and energy expenditure; as a result, mice display long-term weight loss and improved metabolic health and are protected from obesity. Thus, the activity of a single neuronal population bidirectionally regulates energy homeostasis. Our findings could lead to new therapeutic strategies to prevent and treat obesity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Furlan
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
| | - Alberto Corona
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- School of Biological Sciences, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Sara Boyle
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- School of Biological Sciences, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | | | - Rachel Rubino
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Jill Habel
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Eva Carlotta Gablenz
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- Ruprecht Karls University Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jacqueline Giovanniello
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- School of Biological Sciences, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Semir Beyaz
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Tobias Janowitz
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- Northwell Health Cancer Institute, Northwell Health, New Hyde Park, New York, USA
| | | | - Bo Li
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA.
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26
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Keefer SE, Petrovich GD. Necessity and recruitment of cue-specific neuronal ensembles within the basolateral amygdala during appetitive reversal learning. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2022; 194:107663. [PMID: 35870716 PMCID: PMC10326893 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2022.107663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Revised: 07/14/2022] [Accepted: 07/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Through Pavlovian appetitive conditioning, environmental cues can become predictors of food availability. Over time, however, the food, and thus the value of the associated cues, can change based on environmental variations. This change in outcome necessitates updating of the value of the cue to appropriately alter behavioral responses to these cues. The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is critical in updating the outcomes of learned cues. However, it is unknown if the same BLA neuronal ensembles that are recruited in the initial associative memory are required when the new cue-outcome association is formed during reversal learning. The current study used the Daun02 inactivation method that enables selective targeting and disruption of activated neuronal ensembles in Fos-lacZ transgenic rats. Rats were implanted with bilateral cannulas that target the BLA and underwent appetitive discriminative conditioning in which rats had to discriminate between two auditory stimuli. One stimulus (CS+) co-terminated with food delivery, and the other stimulus was unrewarded (CS-; counterbalanced). Rats were then tested for CS+ or CS- memory retrieval and infused with either Daun02 or a vehicle solution into the BLA to inactivate either CS+ or CS- neuronal ensembles that were activated during that test. To assess if the same neuronal ensembles are necessary to update the value of the new association when the outcomes are changed, rats underwent reversal learning: the CS+ was no longer followed by food (reversal CS-, rCS-), and the CS- was now followed by food (reversal CS+; rCS+). The group that received Daun02 following CS+ session showed a decrease in conditioned responding and increased latency to the rCS- (previously CS+) during the first session of reversal learning, specifically during the first trial. This indicates that the neuronal ensemble that was activated during the recall of the CS+ memory was the same neuronal ensemble needed for learning the new outcome of the same CS, now rCS-. Additionally, the group that received Daun02 following CS- session was slower to respond to the rCS+ (previously CS-) during reversal learning. This indicates that the neuronal ensemble that was activated during the recall of the CS- memory was the same neuronal ensemble needed for learning the new outcome of the same CS. These results demonstrate that different neuronal ensembles within the BLA mediate memory recall of CS+ and CS- cues and reactivation of each cue-specific neuronal ensemble is necessary to update the value of that specific cue to respond appropriately during reversal learning. These results also indicate substantial plasticity within the BLA for behavioral flexibility as both groups eventually showed similar terminal levels of reversal learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara E Keefer
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA.
| | - Gorica D Petrovich
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA
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27
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Kaneko S, Niki Y, Yamada K, Nasukawa D, Ujihara Y, Toda K. Systemic injection of nicotinic acetylcholine receptor antagonist mecamylamine affects licking, eyelid size, and locomotor and autonomic activities but not temporal prediction in male mice. Mol Brain 2022; 15:77. [PMID: 36068635 PMCID: PMC9450238 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-022-00959-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors are thought to be associated with a wide range of phenomena, such as movement, learning, memory, attention, and addiction. However, the causal relationship between nicotinic receptor activity and behavior remains unclear. Contrary to the studies that examined the functions of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors, the role of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on behavior has not been examined as extensively. Here, we examined the effects of intraperitoneal injection of mecamylamine, a nicotinic acetylcholine receptor antagonist, on the performance of male mice in a head-fixed temporal conditioning task and a free-moving open-field task. The head-fixed experimental setup allowed us to record and precisely quantify the licking response while the mice performed the behavioral task with no external cues. In addition, by combining the utility of the head-fixed experimental design with computer vision analysis based on deep learning algorithms, we succeeded in quantifying the eyelid size of awake mice. In the temporal conditioning task, we delivered a 10% sucrose solution every 10 s using a blunt-tipped needle placed within the licking distance of the mice. After the training, the mice showed increased anticipatory licking toward the timing of sucrose delivery, suggesting that the mice could predict the timing of the reward. Systemic injection of mecamylamine decreased licking behavior and caused eye closure but had no effect on learned conditioned predictive behavior in the head-fixed temporal conditioning task. In addition, the injection of mecamylamine decreased spontaneous locomotor activity in a dose-dependent manner in the free-moving open-field task. The results in the open-field experiments further revealed that the effect of mecamylamine on fecal output and urination, suggesting the effects on autonomic activities. Our achievement of successful eyelid size recording has potential as a useful approach in initial screening for drug discovery. Our study paves a way forward to understanding the role of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors on learning and behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shohei Kaneko
- Department of Psychology, Keio University, Mita 2-15-45, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yasuyuki Niki
- Department of Psychology, Keio University, Mita 2-15-45, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kota Yamada
- Department of Psychology, Keio University, Mita 2-15-45, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
- Japan Society for Promotion of Science, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Daiki Nasukawa
- Department of Psychology, Keio University, Mita 2-15-45, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yusuke Ujihara
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, TN, Memphis, USA
| | - Koji Toda
- Department of Psychology, Keio University, Mita 2-15-45, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
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28
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Immature excitatory neurons in the amygdala come of age during puberty. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2022; 56:101133. [PMID: 35841648 PMCID: PMC9289873 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2022.101133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The human amygdala is critical for emotional learning, valence coding, and complex social interactions, all of which mature throughout childhood, puberty, and adolescence. Across these ages, the amygdala paralaminar nucleus (PL) undergoes significant structural changes including increased numbers of mature neurons. The PL contains a large population of immature excitatory neurons at birth, some of which may continue to be born from local progenitors. These progenitors disappear rapidly in infancy, but the immature neurons persist throughout childhood and adolescent ages, indicating that they develop on a protracted timeline. Many of these late-maturing neurons settle locally within the PL, though a small subset appear to migrate into neighboring amygdala subnuclei. Despite its prominent growth during postnatal life and possible contributions to multiple amygdala circuits, the function of the PL remains unknown. PL maturation occurs predominately during late childhood and into puberty when sex hormone levels change. Sex hormones can promote developmental processes such as neuron migration, dendritic outgrowth, and synaptic plasticity, which appear to be ongoing in late-maturing PL neurons. Collectively, we describe how the growth of late-maturing neurons occurs in the right time and place to be relevant for amygdala functions and neuropsychiatric conditions.
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29
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Keller NE, Hennings AC, Leiker EK, Lewis-Peacock JA, Dunsmoor JE. Rewarded Extinction Increases Amygdalar Connectivity and Stabilizes Long-Term Memory Traces in the vmPFC. J Neurosci 2022; 42:5717-5729. [PMID: 35680411 PMCID: PMC9302464 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0075-22.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Revised: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Neurobiological evidence in rodents indicates that threat extinction incorporates reward neurocircuitry. Consequently, incorporating reward associations with an extinction memory may be an effective strategy to persistently attenuate threat responses. Moreover, while there is considerable research on the short-term effects of extinction strategies in humans, the long-term effects of extinction are rarely considered. In a within-subjects fMRI study with both female and male participants, we compared counterconditioning (CC; a form of rewarded-extinction) to standard extinction at recent (24 h) and remote (approximately one month) retrieval tests. Relative to standard extinction, rewarded extinction diminished 24-h relapse of arousal and threat expectancy, and reduced activity in brain regions associated with the appraisal and expression of threat (e.g., thalamus, insula, periaqueductal gray). The retrieval of reward-associated extinction memory was accompanied by functional connectivity between the amygdala and the ventral striatum, whereas the retrieval of standard-extinction memories was associated with connectivity between the amygdala and ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). One month later, the retrieval of both standard-extinction and rewarded-extinction was associated with amygdala-vmPFC connectivity. However, only rewarded extinction created a stable memory trace in the vmPFC, identified through overlapping multivariate patterns of fMRI activity from extinction to 24-h and one-month retrieval. These findings provide new evidence that reward may generate a more stable and enduring memory trace of attenuated threat in humans.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Prevalent treatments for pathologic fear and anxiety are based on the principles of Pavlovian extinction. Unfortunately, extinction forms weak memories that only temporarily inhibit the retrieval of threat associations. Thus, to increase the translational relevance of extinction research, it is critical to investigate whether extinction can be augmented to form a more enduring memory, especially after long intervals. Here, we used a multiday fMRI paradigm in humans to compare the short-term and long-term neurobehavioral effects of aversive-to-appetitive counterconditioning (CC), a form of augmented extinction. Our results provide novel evidence that including an appetitive stimulus during extinction can reduce short-term threat relapse and stabilize the memory trace of extinction in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), for at least one month after learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole E Keller
- Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
| | - Augustin C Hennings
- Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
| | - Emily K Leiker
- Department of Psychiatry School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213
| | - Jarrod A Lewis-Peacock
- Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
- Center for Learning and Memory, Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
- Department of Psychiatry, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
| | - Joseph E Dunsmoor
- Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
- Center for Learning and Memory, Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
- Department of Psychiatry, Dell Medical School, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712
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30
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Mattera A, Cavallo A, Granato G, Baldassarre G, Pagani M. A Biologically Inspired Neural Network Model to Gain Insight Into the Mechanisms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy. Front Psychol 2022; 13:944838. [PMID: 35911047 PMCID: PMC9326218 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.944838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is a well-established therapeutic method to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, how EMDR exerts its therapeutic action has been studied in many types of research but still needs to be completely understood. This is in part due to limited knowledge of the neurobiological mechanisms underlying EMDR, and in part to our incomplete understanding of PTSD. In order to model PTSD, we used a biologically inspired computational model based on firing rate units, encompassing the cortex, hippocampus, and amygdala. Through the modulation of its parameters, we fitted real data from patients treated with EMDR or classical exposure therapy. This allowed us to gain insights into PTSD mechanisms and to investigate how EMDR achieves trauma remission.
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31
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Herry C, Jercog D. Decoding defensive systems. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2022; 76:102600. [PMID: 35809501 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2022.102600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2022] [Revised: 05/21/2022] [Accepted: 05/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Our understanding of the neuronal circuits and mechanisms of defensive systems has been primarily dominated by studies focusing on the contribution of individual cells in the processing of threat-predictive cues, defensive responses, the extinction of such responses and the contextual modulation of threat-related behavior. These studies have been key in establishing threat-related circuits and mechanisms. Yet, they fall short in answering long-standing questions related to the integrative processing of distinct threatening cues, behavioral states induced by threat-related events, or the bridging from sensory processing of threat-related cues to specific defensive responses. Recent conceptual and technical developments has allowed the monitoring of large populations of neurons, which in addition to advanced analytic tools, have improved our understanding of how collective neuronal activity supports threat-related behaviors. In this review, we discuss the current knowledge of neuronal population codes within threat-related networks, in the context of aversive motivated behavior and the study of defensive systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cyril Herry
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, 146 Rue Léo-Saignat, 33077 Bordeaux, France; Univ. Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, 146 Rue Léo-Saignat, 33077 Bordeaux, France.
| | - Daniel Jercog
- INSERM, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, 146 Rue Léo-Saignat, 33077 Bordeaux, France; Univ. Bordeaux, Neurocentre Magendie, U1215, 146 Rue Léo-Saignat, 33077 Bordeaux, France.
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32
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Wirtshafter HS, Disterhoft JF. In Vivo Multi-Day Calcium Imaging of CA1 Hippocampus in Freely Moving Rats Reveals a High Preponderance of Place Cells with Consistent Place Fields. J Neurosci 2022; 42:4538-4554. [PMID: 35501152 PMCID: PMC9172072 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1750-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Calcium imaging using GCaMP indicators and miniature microscopes has been used to image cellular populations during long timescales and in different task phases, as well as to determine neuronal circuit topology and organization. Because the hippocampus (HPC) is essential for tasks of memory, spatial navigation, and learning, calcium imaging of large populations of HPC neurons can provide new insight on cell changes over time during these tasks. All reported HPC in vivo calcium imaging experiments have been done in mouse. However, rats have many behavioral and physiological experimental advantages over mice. In this paper, we present the first (to our knowledge) in vivo calcium imaging from CA1 HPC in freely moving male rats. Using the UCLA Miniscope, we demonstrate that, in rat, hundreds of cells can be visualized and held across weeks. We show that calcium events in these cells are highly correlated with periods of movement, with few calcium events occurring during periods without movement. We additionally show that an extremely large percent of cells recorded during a navigational task are place cells (77.3 ± 5.0%, surpassing the percent seen during mouse calcium imaging), and that these cells enable accurate decoding of animal position and can be held over days with consistent place fields in a consistent spatial map. A detailed protocol is included, and implications of these advancements on in vivo imaging and place field literature are discussed.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT In vivo calcium imaging in freely moving animals allows the visualization of cellular activity across days. In this paper, we present the first in vivo Ca2+ recording from CA1 hippocampus (HPC) in freely moving rats. We demonstrate that hundreds of cells can be visualized and held across weeks, and that calcium activity corresponds to periods of movement. We show that a high percentage (77.3 ± 5.0%) of imaged cells are place cells, and that these place cells enable accurate decoding and can be held stably over days with little change in field location. Because the HPC is essential for many tasks involving memory, navigation, and learning, imaging of large populations of HPC neurons can shed new insight on cellular activity changes and organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah S Wirtshafter
- Department of Neuroscience, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois 60611
| | - John F Disterhoft
- Department of Neuroscience, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois 60611
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33
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Jung SJ, Vlasov K, D’Ambra AF, Parigi A, Baya M, Frez EP, Villalobos J, Fernandez-Frentzel M, Anguiano M, Ideguchi Y, Antzoulatos EG, Fioravante D. Novel Cerebello-Amygdala Connections Provide Missing Link Between Cerebellum and Limbic System. Front Syst Neurosci 2022; 16:879634. [PMID: 35645738 PMCID: PMC9136059 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2022.879634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The cerebellum is emerging as a powerful regulator of cognitive and affective processing and memory in both humans and animals and has been implicated in affective disorders. How the cerebellum supports affective function remains poorly understood. The short-latency (just a few milliseconds) functional connections that were identified between the cerebellum and amygdala—a structure crucial for the processing of emotion and valence—more than four decades ago raise the exciting, yet untested, possibility that a cerebellum-amygdala pathway communicates information important for emotion. The major hurdle in rigorously testing this possibility is the lack of knowledge about the anatomy and functional connectivity of this pathway. Our initial anatomical tracing studies in mice excluded the existence of a direct monosynaptic connection between the cerebellum and amygdala. Using transneuronal tracing techniques, we have identified a novel disynaptic circuit between the cerebellar output nuclei and the basolateral amygdala. This circuit recruits the understudied intralaminar thalamus as a node. Using ex vivo optophysiology and super-resolution microscopy, we provide the first evidence for the functionality of the pathway, thus offering a missing mechanistic link between the cerebellum and amygdala. This discovery provides a connectivity blueprint between the cerebellum and a key structure of the limbic system. As such, it is the requisite first step toward obtaining new knowledge about cerebellar function in emotion, thus fundamentally advancing understanding of the neurobiology of emotion, which is perturbed in mental and autism spectrum disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Se Jung Jung
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Ksenia Vlasov
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Alexa F. D’Ambra
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Abhijna Parigi
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Mihir Baya
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Edbertt Paul Frez
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | | | | | - Maribel Anguiano
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Yoichiro Ideguchi
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Evan G. Antzoulatos
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Diasynou Fioravante
- Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Diasynou Fioravante
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34
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Jean-Richard-dit-Bressel P, Tran J, Didachos A, McNally GP. Instrumental aversion coding in the basolateral amygdala and its reversion by a benzodiazepine. Neuropsychopharmacology 2022; 47:1199-1209. [PMID: 34493829 PMCID: PMC9018846 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-021-01176-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Revised: 08/05/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Punishment involves learning the relationship between actions and their adverse consequences. Both the acquisition and expression of punishment learning depend on the basolateral amygdala (BLA), but how BLA supports punishment remains poorly understood. To address this, we measured calcium (Ca2+) transients in BLA principal neurons during punishment. Male rats were trained to press two individually presented levers for food; when one of these levers also yielded aversive footshock, responding on this punished lever decreased relative to the other, unpunished lever. In rats with the Ca2+ indicator GCaMP6f targeted to BLA principal neurons, we observed excitatory activity transients to the footshock punisher and inhibitory transients to lever-presses earning a reward. Critically, as rats learned punishment, activity around the punished response transformed from inhibitory to excitatory and similarity analyses showed that these punished lever-press transients resembled BLA transients to the punisher itself. Systemically administered benzodiazepine (midazolam) selectively alleviated punishment. Moreover, the degree to which midazolam alleviated punishment was associated with how much punished response-related BLA transients reverted to their pre-punishment state. Together, these findings show that punishment learning is supported by aversion-coding of instrumental responses in the BLA and that the anti-punishment effects of benzodiazepines are associated with a reversion of this aversion coding.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jenny Tran
- grid.1005.40000 0004 4902 0432School of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Kensington, NSW Australia
| | - Angelos Didachos
- grid.1005.40000 0004 4902 0432School of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Kensington, NSW Australia
| | - Gavan P. McNally
- grid.1005.40000 0004 4902 0432School of Psychology, UNSW Sydney, Kensington, NSW Australia
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35
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Honda T. Optogenetic and thermogenetic manipulation of defined neural circuits and behaviors in Drosophila. Learn Mem 2022; 29:100-109. [PMID: 35332066 PMCID: PMC8973390 DOI: 10.1101/lm.053556.121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 03/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Neural network dynamics underlying flexible animal behaviors remain elusive. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is considered an excellent model in behavioral neuroscience because of its simple neuroanatomical architecture and the availability of various genetic methods. Moreover, Drosophila larvae's transparent body allows investigators to use optical methods on freely moving animals, broadening research directions. Activating or inhibiting well-defined events in excitable cells with a fine temporal resolution using optogenetics and thermogenetics led to the association of functions of defined neural populations with specific behavioral outputs such as the induction of associative memory. Furthermore, combining optogenetics and thermogenetics with state-of-the-art approaches, including connectome mapping and machine learning-based behavioral quantification, might provide a complete view of the experience- and time-dependent variations of behavioral responses. These methodologies allow further understanding of the functional connections between neural circuits and behaviors such as chemosensory, motivational, courtship, and feeding behaviors and sleep, learning, and memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takato Honda
- Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA
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36
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Sun W, Tang P, Liang Y, Li J, Feng J, Zhang N, Lu D, He J, Chen X. The anterior cingulate cortex directly enhances auditory cortical responses in air-puffing-facilitated flight behavior. Cell Rep 2022; 38:110506. [PMID: 35263590 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 11/11/2021] [Accepted: 02/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
For survival, animals encode prominent events in complex environments, which modulates their defense behavior. Here, we design a paradigm that assesses how a mild aversive cue (i.e., mild air puff) interacts with sound-evoked flight behavior in mice. We find that air puffing facilitates sound-evoked flight behavior by enhancing the auditory responses of auditory cortical neurons. We then find that the anterior part of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) encodes the valence of air puffing and modulates the auditory cortex through anatomical examination, physiological recordings, and optogenetic/chemogenetic manipulations. Activating ACC projections to the auditory cortex simulates the facilitating effect of air puffing, whereas inhibiting the ACC or its projections to the auditory cortex neutralizes this facilitating effect. These findings show that the ACC regulates sound-evoked flight behavior by potentiating neuronal responses in the auditory cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjian Sun
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China; Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Health, Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Peng Tang
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China; Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Health, Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Ye Liang
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Jing Li
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China; Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Health, Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Jingyu Feng
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Nan Zhang
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China; Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Health, Hong Kong Institute of Science & Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Danyi Lu
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China
| | - Jufang He
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China; City University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen 518507, P.R. China.
| | - Xi Chen
- Department of Neuroscience, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon Tong, 0000 Hong Kong SAR, P.R. China; City University of Hong Kong Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen 518507, P.R. China.
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37
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Lutas A, Fernando K, Zhang SX, Sambangi A, Andermann ML. History-dependent dopamine release increases cAMP levels in most basal amygdala glutamatergic neurons to control learning. Cell Rep 2022; 38:110297. [PMID: 35081349 PMCID: PMC8867603 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2021] [Revised: 11/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Dopaminergic inputs to basal amygdala (BA) instruct learning of motivational salience. This learning depends on intracellular plasticity signals such as cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP), which is regulated by activation of dopamine receptors. We examine the dynamics of dopamine release and downstream signaling during multiple salient events occurring within tens of seconds. We perform real-time tracking and manipulation of cAMP in BA neurons in vitro and in vivo. Optogenetically evoked release of dopamine drives proportional increases in cAMP in almost all BA glutamatergic neurons, suggesting widespread actions of dopamine across neurons preferring positive or negative valence. This cAMP response decreases across trials with short intertrial intervals owing to depression of dopamine release. No such depression is evident when photostimulating cAMP production directly. cAMP and protein kinase A responses to repeated appetitive or aversive stimuli also exhibit pronounced depression. Thus, history-dependent dynamics of dopamine and cAMP may regulate learning of temporally clustered, salient stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Lutas
- Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Obesity Branch, National Institutes of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| | - Kayla Fernando
- Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Stephen X Zhang
- Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Abhijeet Sambangi
- Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Mark L Andermann
- Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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38
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Courtin J, Bitterman Y, Müller S, Hinz J, Hagihara KM, Müller C, Lüthi A. A neuronal mechanism for motivational control of behavior. Science 2022; 375:eabg7277. [PMID: 34990249 DOI: 10.1126/science.abg7277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Acting to achieve goals depends on the ability to motivate specific behaviors based on their predicted consequences given an individual’s internal state. However, the underlying neuronal mechanisms that encode and maintain such specific motivational control of behavior are poorly understood. Here, we used Ca2+ imaging and optogenetic manipulations in the basolateral amygdala of freely moving mice performing noncued, self-paced instrumental goal-directed actions to receive and consume rewards. We found that distinct neuronal activity patterns sequentially represent the entire action-consumption behavioral sequence. Whereas action-associated patterns integrated the identity, value, and expectancy of pursued goals, consumption-associated patterns reflected the identity and value of experienced outcomes. Thus, the interplay between these patterns allows the maintenance of specific motivational states necessary to adaptively direct behavior toward prospective rewards.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Courtin
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Y Bitterman
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - S Müller
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - J Hinz
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland.,University of Basel, CH-4000 Basel, Switzerland
| | - K M Hagihara
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland.,University of Basel, CH-4000 Basel, Switzerland
| | - C Müller
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - A Lüthi
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland.,University of Basel, CH-4000 Basel, Switzerland
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Deng H, Xiao X, Yang T, Ritola K, Hantman A, Li Y, Huang ZJ, Li B. A genetically defined insula-brainstem circuit selectively controls motivational vigor. Cell 2021; 184:6344-6360.e18. [PMID: 34890577 PMCID: PMC9103523 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.11.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2021] [Revised: 10/18/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The anterior insular cortex (aIC) plays a critical role in cognitive and motivational control of behavior, but the underlying neural mechanism remains elusive. Here, we show that aIC neurons expressing Fezf2 (aICFezf2), which are the pyramidal tract neurons, signal motivational vigor and invigorate need-seeking behavior through projections to the brainstem nucleus tractus solitarii (NTS). aICFezf2 neurons and their postsynaptic NTS neurons acquire anticipatory activity through learning, which encodes the perceived value and the vigor of actions to pursue homeostatic needs. Correspondingly, aIC → NTS circuit activity controls vigor, effort, and striatal dopamine release but only if the action is learned and the outcome is needed. Notably, aICFezf2 neurons do not represent taste or valence. Moreover, aIC → NTS activity neither drives reinforcement nor influences total consumption. These results pinpoint specific functions of aIC → NTS circuit for selectively controlling motivational vigor and suggest that motivation is subserved, in part, by aIC's top-down regulation of dopamine signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanfei Deng
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA.
| | - Xiong Xiao
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA
| | - Tao Yang
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA
| | | | - Adam Hantman
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA 20147, USA
| | - Yulong Li
- State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking University School of Life Sciences, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Z Josh Huang
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Bo Li
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA.
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40
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Bernanke A, Burnette E, Murphy J, Hernandez N, Zimmerman S, Walker QD, Wander R, Sette S, Reavis Z, Francis R, Armstrong C, Risher ML, Kuhn C. Behavior and Fos activation reveal that male and female rats differentially assess affective valence during CTA learning and expression. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0260577. [PMID: 34898621 PMCID: PMC8668140 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0260577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Females are more affected by psychiatric illnesses including eating disorders, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder than males. However, the neural mechanisms mediating these sex differences are poorly understood. Animal models can be useful in exploring such neural mechanisms. Conditioned taste aversion (CTA) is a behavioral task that assesses how animals process the competition between associated reinforcing and aversive stimuli in subsequent task performance, a process critical to healthy behavior in many domains. The purpose of the present study was to identify sex differences in this behavior and associated neural responses. We hypothesized that females would value the rewarding stimulus (Boost®) relative to the aversive stimulus (LiCl) more than males in performing CTA. We evaluated behavior (Boost® intake, LiCl-induced behaviors, ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), CTA performance) and Fos activation in relevant brain regions after the acute stimuli [acute Boost® (AB), acute LiCl (AL)] and the context-only task control (COT), Boost® only task (BOT) and Boost®-LiCl task (BLT). Acutely, females drank more Boost® than males but showed similar aversive behaviors after LiCl. Females and males performed CTA similarly. Both sexes produced 55 kHz USVs anticipating BOT and inhibited these calls in the BLT. However, more females emitted both 22 kHz and 55 kHz USVs in the BLT than males: the latter correlated with less CTA. Estrous cycle stage also influenced 55 kHz USVs. Fos responses were similar in males and females after AB or AL. Females engaged the gustatory cortex and ventral tegmental area (VTA) more than males during the BOT and males engaged the amygdala more than females in both the BOT and BLT. Network analysis of correlated Fos responses across brain regions identified two unique networks characterizing the BOT and BLT, in both of which the VTA played a central role. In situ hybridization with RNAscope identified a population of D1-receptor expressing cells in the CeA that responded to Boost® and D2 receptor-expressing cells that responded to LiCl. The present study suggests that males and females differentially process the affective valence of a stimulus to produce the same goal-directed behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alyssa Bernanke
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Elizabeth Burnette
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Justine Murphy
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Nathaniel Hernandez
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Sara Zimmerman
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Q. David Walker
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Rylee Wander
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Samantha Sette
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Zackery Reavis
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Reynold Francis
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Christopher Armstrong
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
| | - Mary-Louise Risher
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine, Marshall University, Huntington, West Virginia, United States of America
| | - Cynthia Kuhn
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States of America
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41
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Genetically identified amygdala-striatal circuits for valence-specific behaviors. Nat Neurosci 2021; 24:1586-1600. [PMID: 34663958 PMCID: PMC8556347 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-021-00927-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2020] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala (BLA) plays essential roles in behaviors motivated by stimuli with either positive or negative valence, but how it processes motivationally opposing information and participates in establishing valence-specific behaviors remains unclear. Here, by targeting Fezf2-expressing neurons in the BLA, we identify and characterize two functionally distinct classes in behaving mice, the negative-valence neurons and positive-valence neurons, which innately represent aversive and rewarding stimuli, respectively, and through learning acquire predictive responses that are essential for punishment avoidance or reward seeking. Notably, these two classes of neurons receive inputs from separate sets of sensory and limbic areas, and convey punishment and reward information through projections to the nucleus accumbens and olfactory tubercle, respectively, to drive negative and positive reinforcement. Thus, valence-specific BLA neurons are wired with distinctive input-output structures, forming a circuit framework that supports the roles of the BLA in encoding, learning and executing valence-specific motivated behaviors.
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Cao P, Chen C, Liu A, Shan Q, Zhu X, Jia C, Peng X, Zhang M, Farzinpour Z, Zhou W, Wang H, Zhou JN, Song X, Wang L, Tao W, Zheng C, Zhang Y, Ding YQ, Jin Y, Xu L, Zhang Z. Early-life inflammation promotes depressive symptoms in adolescence via microglial engulfment of dendritic spines. Neuron 2021; 109:2573-2589.e9. [PMID: 34233151 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 196] [Impact Index Per Article: 49.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Revised: 05/02/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Early-life inflammation increases the risk for depression in later life. Here, we demonstrate how early-life inflammation causes adolescent depressive-like symptoms: by altering the long-term neuronal spine engulfment capacity of microglia. For mice exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced inflammation via the Toll-like receptor 4/NF-κB signaling pathway at postnatal day (P) 14, ongoing longitudinal imaging of the living brain revealed that later stress (delivered during adolescence on P45) increases the extent of microglial engulfment around anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) glutamatergic neuronal (ACCGlu) spines. When the ACC microglia of LPS-treated mice were deleted or chemically inhibited, the mice did not exhibit depressive-like behaviors during adolescence. Moreover, we show that the fractalkine receptor CX3CR1 mediates stress-induced engulfment of ACCGlu neuronal spines. Together, our findings establish that early-life inflammation causes dysregulation of microglial engulfment capacity, which encodes long-lasting maladaptation of ACCGlu neurons to stress, thus promoting development of depression-like symptoms during adolescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Cao
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Changmao Chen
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - An Liu
- Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230022, China
| | - Qinghong Shan
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Xia Zhu
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Chunhui Jia
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Xiaoqi Peng
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Mingjun Zhang
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Zahra Farzinpour
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Wenjie Zhou
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Haitao Wang
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Jiang-Ning Zhou
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Xiaoyuan Song
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Liecheng Wang
- Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230022, China
| | - Wenjuan Tao
- Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei 230022, China
| | - Changjian Zheng
- Department of Anesthesiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Wannan Medical College, Wuhu 241002, China
| | - Yan Zhang
- Stroke Center & Department of Neurology, the First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China
| | - Yu-Qiang Ding
- State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, and Department of Laboratory Animal Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China
| | - Yan Jin
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China.
| | - Lin Xu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms, and Laboratory of Learning and Memory, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650223, China.
| | - Zhi Zhang
- Department of Anesthesiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of USTC, Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230036, China.
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Lee DA, Ko J, Lee HJ, Kim HC, Park BS, Park S, Kim IH, Park JH, Lee YJ, Park KM. Alterations of the intrinsic amygdala-hippocampal network in juvenile myoclonic epilepsy. Brain Behav 2021; 11:e2274. [PMID: 34227259 PMCID: PMC8413739 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.2274] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2021] [Revised: 06/07/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Several lines of evidence suggest that the amygdala-hippocampus is involved in the epileptogenic network of juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME). The aim of this study was to investigate the alterations in the individual nuclei of the amygdala and hippocampal subfields, and the intrinsic amygdala-hippocampal network of patients with JME compared to healthy controls. METHODS This retrospective study conducted at a single tertiary hospital involved 35 patients with newly diagnosed JME, and 34 healthy subjects. We calculated the individual structural volumes of 18 nuclei in the amygdala, and 38 hippocampal subfields using three-dimensional volumetric T1-weighted imaging and FreeSurfer program. We also performed an analysis of the intrinsic amygdala-hippocampal global and local network based on these volumes using a graph theory and Brain Analysis using Graph Theory (BRAPH) program. We investigated the differences in these volumes and network measures between patients with JME and healthy controls. RESULTS There were no significant volume differences in the nuclei of the amygdala and hippocampal subfields between patients with JME and healthy controls. However, we found significant differences in the global network between patients with JME and healthy controls. The mean clustering coefficient was significantly decreased in patients with JME compared to healthy controls (0.473 vs. 0.653, p = .047). In addition, specific regions in the hippocampal subfields showed significant differences in the local network between the two groups. The betweenness centrality of the right CA1-head, right hippocampus-amygdala-transition area, left hippocampal fissure, left fimbria, and left CA3-head, was increased in patients with JME compared to healthy controls. CONCLUSION The intrinsic amygdala-hippocampal global and local networks differed in patients with JME compared to healthy controls, which may be related to the pathogenesis of JME, and memory dysfunction in patients with JME.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Ah Lee
- Department of Neurology, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Junghae Ko
- Department of Internal Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Ho-Joon Lee
- Department of Radiology, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyung Chan Kim
- Department of Neurology, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Bong Soo Park
- Department of Internal Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Sihyung Park
- Department of Internal Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Il Hwan Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Jin Han Park
- Department of Internal Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Yoo Jin Lee
- Department of Internal Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
| | - Kang Min Park
- Department of Neurology, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Busan, Republic of Korea
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Zeng Y, Tao F, Cui Z, Wu L, Xu J, Dong W, Liu C, Yang Z, Qin S. Dynamic integration and segregation of amygdala subregional functional circuits linking to physiological arousal. Neuroimage 2021; 238:118224. [PMID: 34087364 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2021] [Revised: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 05/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The dynamical organization of brain networks is essential to support human cognition and emotion for rapid adaption to ever-changing environment. As the core nodes of emotion-related brain circuitry, the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and centromedial amygdala (CMA) as two major amygdalar nuclei, are recognized to play distinct roles in affective functions and internal states, via their unique connections with cortical and subcortical structures in rodents. However, little is known how the dynamical organization of emotion-related brain circuitry reflects internal autonomic responses in humans. Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) with K-means clustering approach in a total of 79 young healthy individuals (cohort 1: 42; cohort 2: 37), we identified two distinct states of BLA- and CMA-based intrinsic connectivity patterns, with one state (integration) showing generally stronger BLA- and CMA-based intrinsic connectivity with multiple brain networks, while the other (segregation) exhibiting weaker yet dissociable connectivity patterns. In an independent cohort 2 of fMRI data with concurrent recording of skin conductance, we replicated two similar dynamic states and further found higher skin conductance level in the integration than segregation state. Moreover, machine learning-based Elastic-net regression analyses revealed that time-varying BLA and CMA intrinsic connectivity with distinct network configurations yield higher predictive values for spontaneous fluctuations of skin conductance level in the integration than segregation state. Our findings highlight dynamic functional organization of emotion-related amygdala nuclei circuits and networks and its links to spontaneous autonomic arousal in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yimeng Zeng
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Fuxiang Tao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Zaixu Cui
- Chinese Institute for Brain Research, Beijing, China
| | - Liyun Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Jiahua Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Wenshan Dong
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Chao Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Zhi Yang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychotic Disorders, Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Shaozheng Qin
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China; Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
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Lee J, An B, Choi S. Longitudinal recordings of single units in the basal amygdala during fear conditioning and extinction. Sci Rep 2021; 11:11177. [PMID: 34045527 PMCID: PMC8159982 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-90530-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2020] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The balance between activities of fear neurons and extinction neurons in the basolateral nucleus of the basal amygdala (BAL) has been hypothesized to encode fear states after extinction. However, it remains unclear whether these neurons are solely responsible for encoding fear states. In this study, we stably recorded single-unit activities in the BAL during fear conditioning and extinction for 3 days, providing a comprehensive view on how different BAL neurons respond during fear learning. We found BAL neurons that showed excitatory responses to the conditioned stimulus (CS) after fear conditioning ('conditioning-potentiated neurons') and another population that showed excitatory responses to the CS after extinction ('extinction-potentiated neurons'). Interestingly, we also found BAL neurons that developed inhibitory responses to the CS after fear conditioning ('conditioning-inhibited neurons') or after extinction ('extinction-inhibited neurons'). BAL neurons that showed excitatory responses to the CS displayed various functional connectivity with each other, whereas less connectivity was observed among neurons with inhibitory responses to the CS. Intriguingly, we found correlative neuronal activities between conditioning-potentiated neurons and neurons with inhibitory responses to the CS. Our findings suggest that distinct BAL neurons, which are responsive to the CS with excitation or inhibition, encode various facets of fear conditioning and extinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junghwa Lee
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Bobae An
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Sukwoo Choi
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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Taylor JA, Hasegawa M, Benoit CM, Freire JA, Theodore M, Ganea DA, Innocenti SM, Lu T, Gründemann J. Single cell plasticity and population coding stability in auditory thalamus upon associative learning. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2438. [PMID: 33903596 PMCID: PMC8076296 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22421-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2020] [Accepted: 03/01/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Cortical and limbic brain areas are regarded as centres for learning. However, how thalamic sensory relays participate in plasticity upon associative learning, yet support stable long-term sensory coding remains unknown. Using a miniature microscope imaging approach, we monitor the activity of populations of auditory thalamus (medial geniculate body) neurons in freely moving mice upon fear conditioning. We find that single cells exhibit mixed selectivity and heterogeneous plasticity patterns to auditory and aversive stimuli upon learning, which is conserved in amygdala-projecting medial geniculate body neurons. Activity in auditory thalamus to amygdala-projecting neurons stabilizes single cell plasticity in the total medial geniculate body population and is necessary for fear memory consolidation. In contrast to individual cells, population level encoding of auditory stimuli remained stable across days. Our data identifies auditory thalamus as a site for complex neuronal plasticity in fear learning upstream of the amygdala that is in an ideal position to drive plasticity in cortical and limbic brain areas. These findings suggest that medial geniculate body's role goes beyond a sole relay function by balancing experience-dependent, diverse single cell plasticity with consistent ensemble level representations of the sensory environment to support stable auditory perception with minimal affective bias.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Masashi Hasegawa
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Marine Theodore
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Dan Alin Ganea
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | - Tingjia Lu
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Jan Gründemann
- Department of Biomedicine, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
- Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen (DZNE), Bonn, Germany.
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Li X, Wang Z, Chen Q, Wang X, Qing Z, Zhang W, Lu J, Wang J, Zhang X, Liu J, Wang Z, Li B, Zhang B. Atrophy in the Left Amygdala Predicted Drug Responses in Idiopathic Generalized Epilepsy Patients With Tonic-Clonic Seizures. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:640016. [PMID: 33867922 PMCID: PMC8044327 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.640016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2020] [Accepted: 02/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
We aimed to determine the alterations in the subcortical structures of patients with idiopathic generalized epilepsy with tonic-clonic seizures (IGE-GTCS) via MRI volumetry and vertex-based shape analysis and to evaluate the relationships between MRI measures and drug responses. In a follow-up sample of 48 patients with IGE-GTCS and 48 matched normal controls (NCs), high-resolution 3D T1WI was performed at baseline. After 1 year of follow-up, 31 patients were classified as seizure free (SF) and 17 as drug resistant (DR). The volumes of subcortical structures were extracted, and vertex-based shape analysis was performed using FSL-Integrated Registration and Segmentation Toolbox (FSL-FIRST). Comparisons among groups were calculated adjusting for covariates [age, sex, and intracranial volume (ICV)]. Analysis of the relationships among imaging biomarkers along with frequency and duration was assessed using partial correlations. The differential imaging indicators were used as features in a linear support vector machine (LSVM). The DR group displayed significant regional atrophy in the volume of the left amygdala compared with NCs (p = 0.004, false discovery rate corrected) and SF patients (p = 0.029, uncorrected). Meanwhile, vertex-based shape analysis showed focal inward deformation in the basolateral subregion of the left amygdala in DR compared with the results for SF and NC (p < 0.05, FWE corrected). There were significant correlations between the volume changes and seizure frequency (r = -0.324, p = 0.030) and between shape (r = -0.438, p = 0.003) changes and seizure frequency. Moreover, the volume of the left thalamus in the DR group was significantly correlated with seizure frequency (r = -0.689, p = 0.006). The SVM results revealed areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.82, 0.68, and 0.88 for the classification between SF and DR, between SF and NC, and between DR and NC, respectively. This study indicates the presence of focal atrophy in the basolateral region of the left amygdala in patients with IGE drug resistance; this finding may help predict drug responses and suggests a potential therapeutic target.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Li
- Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Zhongyuan Wang
- Department of Neurology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Qian Chen
- Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xiaoyun Wang
- Department of Neurology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Zhao Qing
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Wen Zhang
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Jiaming Lu
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Junxia Wang
- Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Jiani Liu
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Zhengge Wang
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Baoxin Li
- Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
| | - Bing Zhang
- Department of Radiology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China
- Department of Radiology, The Affiliated Drum Tower Hospital of Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing, China
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Tan T, Wang W, Liu T, Zhong P, Conrow-Graham M, Tian X, Yan Z. Neural circuits and activity dynamics underlying sex-specific effects of chronic social isolation stress. Cell Rep 2021; 34:108874. [PMID: 33761364 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.108874] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Revised: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Exposure to prolonged stress in critical developmental periods induces heightened vulnerability to psychiatric disorders, which may have sex-specific consequences. Here we investigate the neuronal circuits mediating behavioral changes in mice after chronic adolescent social isolation stress. Escalated aggression is exhibited in stressed males, while social withdrawal is shown in stressed females. In vivo multichannel recordings of free-moving animals indicate that pyramidal neurons in prefrontal cortex (PFC) from stressed males exhibit the significantly decreased spike activity during aggressive attacks, while PFC pyramidal neurons from stressed females show a blunted increase of discharge rates during sociability tests. Chemogenetic and electrophysiological evidence shows that PFC hypofunctioning and BLA principal neuron hyperactivity contribute to the elevated aggression in stressed males, while PFC hypofunctioning and VTA dopamine neuron hypoactivity contribute to the diminished sociability in stressed females. These results establish a framework for understanding the circuit and physiological mechanisms underlying sex-specific divergent effects of stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Tan
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA
| | - Wei Wang
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA
| | - Tiaotiao Liu
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA; School of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China
| | - Ping Zhong
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA
| | - Megan Conrow-Graham
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA
| | - Xin Tian
- School of Biomedical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin 300070, China
| | - Zhen Yan
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY 14203, USA.
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Understanding the dynamic and destiny of memories. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 125:592-607. [PMID: 33722616 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Memory formation enables the retention of life experiences overtime. Based on previously acquired information, organisms can anticipate future events and adjust their behaviors to maximize survival. However, in an ever-changing environment, a memory needs to be malleable to maintain its relevance. In fact, substantial evidence suggests that a consolidated memory can become labile and susceptible to modifications after being reactivated, a process termed reconsolidation. When an extinction process takes place, a memory can also be temporarily inhibited by a second memory that carries information with opposite meaning. In addition, a memory can fade and lose its significance in a process known as forgetting. Thus, following retrieval, new life experiences can be integrated with the original memory trace to maintain its predictive value. In this review, we explore the determining factors that regulate the fate of a memory after its reactivation. We focus on three post-retrieval memory destinies (reconsolidation, extinction, and forgetting) and discuss recent rodent studies investigating the biological functions and neural mechanisms underlying each of these processes.
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50
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Organizational principles of amygdalar input-output neuronal circuits. Mol Psychiatry 2021; 26:7118-7129. [PMID: 34400771 PMCID: PMC8873025 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-021-01262-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Revised: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The amygdala, one of the most studied brain structures, integrates brain-wide heterogeneous inputs and governs multidimensional outputs to control diverse behaviors central to survival, yet how amygdalar input-output neuronal circuits are organized remains unclear. Using a simplified cell-type- and projection-specific retrograde transsynaptic tracing technique, we scrutinized brain-wide afferent inputs of four major output neuronal groups in the amygdalar basolateral complex (BLA) that project to the bed nucleus of the stria terminals (BNST), ventral hippocampus (vHPC), medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc), respectively. Brain-wide input-output quantitative analysis unveils that BLA efferent neurons receive a diverse array of afferents with varied input weights and predominant contextual representation. Notably, the afferents received by BNST-, vHPC-, mPFC- and NAc-projecting BLA neurons exhibit virtually identical origins and input weights. These results indicate that the organization of amygdalar BLA input-output neuronal circuits follows the input-dependent and output-independent principles, ideal for integrating brain-wide diverse afferent stimuli to control parallel efferent actions. The data provide the objective basis for improving the virtual reality exposure therapy for anxiety disorders and validate the simplified cell-type- and projection-specific retrograde transsynaptic tracing method.
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