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Park S, Ko SY, Frankland PW, Josselyn SA. Comparing behaviours induced by natural memory retrieval and optogenetic reactivation of an engram ensemble in mice. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2024; 379:20230227. [PMID: 38853560 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2023.0227] [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: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Memories are thought to be stored within sparse collections of neurons known as engram ensembles. Neurons active during a training episode are allocated to an engram ensemble ('engram neurons'). Memory retrieval is initiated by external sensory or internal cues present at the time of training reactivating engram neurons. Interestingly, optogenetic reactivation of engram ensemble neurons alone in the absence of external sensory cues is sufficient to induce behaviour consistent with memory retrieval in mice. However, there may exist differences between the behaviours induced by natural retrieval cues or artificial engram reactivation. Here, we compared two defensive behaviours (freezing and the syllable structure of ultrasonic vocalizations, USVs) induced by sensory cues present at training (natural memory retrieval) and optogenetic engram ensemble reactivation (artificial memory retrieval) in a threat conditioning paradigm in the same mice. During natural memory recall, we observed a strong positive correlation between freezing levels and distinct USV syllable features (characterized by an unsupervised algorithm, MUPET (Mouse Ultrasonic Profile ExTraction)). Moreover, we observed strikingly similar behavioural profiles in terms of freezing and USV characteristics between natural memory recall and artificial memory recall in the absence of sensory retrieval cues. Although our analysis focused on two behavioural measures of threat memory (freezing and USV characteristics), these results underscore the similarities between threat memory recall triggered naturally and through optogenetic reactivation of engram ensembles. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'Long-term potentiation: 50 years on'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sungmo Park
- Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Sang Yoon Ko
- Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Paul W Frankland
- Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Sheena A Josselyn
- Program in Neurosciences and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto , Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X8, Canada
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2
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Yi R, Cheng S, Zhong F, Luo D, You Y, Yu T, Wang H, Zhou L, Zhang Y. GABAergic neurons of anterior thalamic reticular nucleus regulate states of consciousness in propofol- and isoflurane-mediated general anesthesia. CNS Neurosci Ther 2024; 30:e14782. [PMID: 38828651 PMCID: PMC11145368 DOI: 10.1111/cns.14782] [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: 02/18/2024] [Revised: 04/22/2024] [Accepted: 05/13/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The thalamus system plays critical roles in the regulation of reversible unconsciousness induced by general anesthetics, especially the arousal stage of general anesthesia (GA). But the function of thalamus in GA-induced loss of consciousness (LOC) is little known. The thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) is the only GABAergic neurons-composed nucleus in the thalamus, which is composed of parvalbumin (PV) and somatostatin (SST)-expressing GABAergic neurons. The anterior sector of TRN (aTRN) is indicated to participate in the induction of anesthesia, but the roles remain unclear. This study aimed to reveal the role of the aTRN in propofol and isoflurane anesthesia. METHODS We first set up c-Fos straining to monitor the activity variation of aTRNPV and aTRNSST neurons during propofol and isoflurane anesthesia. Subsequently, optogenetic tools were utilized to activate aTRNPV and aTRNSST neurons to elucidate the roles of aTRNPV and aTRNSST neurons in propofol and isoflurane anesthesia. Electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings and behavioral tests were recorded and analyzed. Lastly, chemogenetic activation of the aTRNPV neurons was applied to confirm the function of the aTRN neurons in propofol and isoflurane anesthesia. RESULTS c-Fos straining showed that both aTRNPV and aTRNSST neurons are activated during the LOC period of propofol and isoflurane anesthesia. Optogenetic activation of aTRNPV and aTRNSST neurons promoted isoflurane induction and delayed the recovery of consciousness (ROC) after propofol and isoflurane anesthesia, meanwhile chemogenetic activation of the aTRNPV neurons displayed the similar effects. Moreover, optogenetic and chemogenetic activation of the aTRN neurons resulted in the accumulated burst suppression ratio (BSR) during propofol and isoflurane GA, although they represented different effects on the power distribution of EEG frequency. CONCLUSION Our findings reveal that the aTRN GABAergic neurons play a critical role in promoting the induction of propofol- and isoflurane-mediated GA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rulan Yi
- Department of AnesthesiologyAffiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Shiyu Cheng
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Fuwang Zhong
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Dan Luo
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Ying You
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Tian Yu
- Department of AnesthesiologyAffiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Haiying Wang
- Department of AnesthesiologyAffiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Liang Zhou
- Department of AnesthesiologyAffiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
| | - Yu Zhang
- Department of AnesthesiologyAffiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ Protection (Zunyi Medical University), Ministry of EducationZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Key Laboratory of Brain ScienceZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
- Guizhou Key Laboratory of Anesthesia and Organ ProtectionZunyi Medical UniversityZunyiChina
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Shin JD, Jadhav SP. Prefrontal cortical ripples mediate top-down suppression of hippocampal reactivation during sleep memory consolidation. Curr Biol 2024:S0960-9822(24)00616-X. [PMID: 38834064 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.05.018] [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: 02/13/2024] [Revised: 04/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/06/2024]
Abstract
Consolidation of initially encoded hippocampal representations in the neocortex through reactivation is crucial for long-term memory formation and is facilitated by the coordination of hippocampal sharp-wave ripples (SWRs) with cortical slow and spindle oscillations during non-REM sleep. Recent evidence suggests that high-frequency cortical ripples can also coordinate with hippocampal SWRs in support of consolidation; however, the contribution of cortical ripples to reactivation remains unclear. We used high-density, continuous recordings in the hippocampus (area CA1) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) over the course of spatial learning and show that independent PFC ripples dissociated from SWRs are prevalent in NREM sleep and predominantly suppress hippocampal activity. PFC ripples paradoxically mediate top-down suppression of hippocampal reactivation rather than coordination, and this suppression is stronger for assemblies that are reactivated during coordinated CA1-PFC ripples for consolidation of recent experiences. Further, we show non-canonical, serial coordination of independent cortical ripples with slow and spindle oscillations, which are known signatures of memory consolidation. These results establish a role for prefrontal cortical ripples in top-down regulation of behaviorally relevant hippocampal representations during consolidation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin D Shin
- Neuroscience Program, Department of Psychology, and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, 415 South Street, Waltham, MA 02453, USA
| | - Shantanu P Jadhav
- Neuroscience Program, Department of Psychology, and Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis University, 415 South Street, Waltham, MA 02453, USA.
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Wang DC, Santos-Valencia F, Song JH, Franks KM, Luo L. Embryonically Active Piriform Cortex Neurons Promote Intracortical Recurrent Connectivity during Development. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.08.593265. [PMID: 38766173 PMCID: PMC11100831 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.08.593265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Neuronal activity plays a critical role in the maturation of circuits that propagate sensory information into the brain. How widely does early activity regulate circuit maturation across the developing brain? Here, we used Targeted Recombination in Active Populations (TRAP) to perform a brain-wide survey for prenatally active neurons in mice and identified the piriform cortex as an abundantly TRAPed region. Whole-cell recordings in neonatal slices revealed preferential interconnectivity within embryonically TRAPed piriform neurons and their enhanced synaptic connectivity with other piriform neurons. In vivo Neuropixels recordings in neonates demonstrated that embryonically TRAPed piriform neurons exhibit broad functional connectivity within piriform and lead spontaneous synchronized population activity during a transient neonatal period, when recurrent connectivity is strengthening. Selectively activating or silencing of these neurons in neonates enhanced or suppressed recurrent synaptic strength, respectively. Thus, embryonically TRAPed piriform neurons represent an interconnected hub-like population whose activity promotes recurrent connectivity in early development.
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Yang X, Camera GL. Co-existence of synaptic plasticity and metastable dynamics in a spiking model of cortical circuits. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.12.07.570692. [PMID: 38106233 PMCID: PMC10723399 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.07.570692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Evidence for metastable dynamics and its role in brain function is emerging at a fast pace and is changing our understanding of neural coding by putting an emphasis on hidden states of transient activity. Clustered networks of spiking neurons have enhanced synaptic connections among groups of neurons forming structures called cell assemblies; such networks are capable of producing metastable dynamics that is in agreement with many experimental results. However, it is unclear how a clustered network structure producing metastable dynamics may emerge from a fully local plasticity rule, i.e., a plasticity rule where each synapse has only access to the activity of the neurons it connects (as opposed to the activity of other neurons or other synapses). Here, we propose a local plasticity rule producing ongoing metastable dynamics in a deterministic, recurrent network of spiking neurons. The metastable dynamics co-exists with ongoing plasticity and is the consequence of a self-tuning mechanism that keeps the synaptic weights close to the instability line where memories are spontaneously reactivated. In turn, the synaptic structure is stable to ongoing dynamics and random perturbations, yet it remains sufficiently plastic to remap sensory representations to encode new sets of stimuli. Both the plasticity rule and the metastable dynamics scale well with network size, with synaptic stability increasing with the number of neurons. Overall, our results show that it is possible to generate metastable dynamics over meaningful hidden states using a simple but biologically plausible plasticity rule which co-exists with ongoing neural dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyu Yang
- Graduate Program in Physics and Astronomy, Stony Brook University
- Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Stony Brook University
- Center for Neural Circuit Dynamics, Stony Brook University
| | - Giancarlo La Camera
- Department of Neurobiology & Behavior, Stony Brook University
- Center for Neural Circuit Dynamics, Stony Brook University
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6
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Shen C, Shen B, Liu D, Han L, Zou K, Gan L, Ren J, Wu B, Tang Y, Zhao J, Sun Y, Liu F, Yu W, Yao H, Wu J, Wang J. Bidirectional regulation of levodopa-induced dyskinesia by a specific neural ensemble in globus pallidus external segment. Cell Rep Med 2024:101566. [PMID: 38759649 DOI: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2024.101566] [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: 07/10/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/19/2024]
Abstract
Levodopa-induced dyskinesia (LID) is an intractable motor complication arising in Parkinson's disease with the progression of disease and chronic treatment of levodopa. However, the specific cell assemblies mediating dyskinesia have not been fully elucidated. Here, we utilize the activity-dependent tool to identify three brain regions (globus pallidus external segment [GPe], parafascicular thalamic nucleus, and subthalamic nucleus) that specifically contain dyskinesia-activated ensembles. An intensity-dependent hyperactivity in the dyskinesia-activated subpopulation in GPe (GPeTRAPed in LID) is observed during dyskinesia. Optogenetic inhibition of GPeTRAPed in LID significantly ameliorates LID, whereas reactivation of GPeTRAPed in LID evokes dyskinetic behavior in the levodopa-off state. Simultaneous chemogenetic reactivation of GPeTRAPed in LID and another previously reported ensemble in striatum fully reproduces the dyskinesia induced by high-dose levodopa. Finally, we characterize GPeTRAPed in LID as a subset of prototypic neurons in GPe. These findings provide theoretical foundations for precision medication and modulation of LID in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cong Shen
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Bo Shen
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Dechen Liu
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Linlin Han
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Kexin Zou
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Linhua Gan
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jingyu Ren
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Bin Wu
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yilin Tang
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jue Zhao
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yimin Sun
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fengtao Liu
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wenbo Yu
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Haishan Yao
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Brain Cognition and Brain-inspired Intelligence Technology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
| | - Jianjun Wu
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Jian Wang
- Department of Neurology and National Research Center for Aging and Medicine & National Center for Neurological Disorders, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
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Mocle AJ, Ramsaran AI, Jacob AD, Rashid AJ, Luchetti A, Tran LM, Richards BA, Frankland PW, Josselyn SA. Excitability mediates allocation of pre-configured ensembles to a hippocampal engram supporting contextual conditioned threat in mice. Neuron 2024; 112:1487-1497.e6. [PMID: 38447576 PMCID: PMC11065628 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.02.007] [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: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 01/08/2024] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Little is understood about how engrams, sparse groups of neurons that store memories, are formed endogenously. Here, we combined calcium imaging, activity tagging, and optogenetics to examine the role of neuronal excitability and pre-existing functional connectivity on the allocation of mouse cornu ammonis area 1 (CA1) hippocampal neurons to an engram ensemble supporting a contextual threat memory. Engram neurons (high activity during recall or TRAP2-tagged during training) were more active than non-engram neurons 3 h (but not 24 h to 5 days) before training. Consistent with this, optogenetically inhibiting scFLARE2-tagged neurons active in homecage 3 h, but not 24 h, before conditioning disrupted memory retrieval, indicating that neurons with higher pre-training excitability were allocated to the engram. We also observed stable pre-configured functionally connected sub-ensembles of neurons whose activity cycled over days. Sub-ensembles that were more active before training were allocated to the engram, and their functional connectivity increased at training. Therefore, both neuronal excitability and pre-configured functional connectivity mediate allocation to an engram ensemble.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J Mocle
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Adam I Ramsaran
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Alexander D Jacob
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Asim J Rashid
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Alessandro Luchetti
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Lina M Tran
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Vector Institute, Toronto, ON M5G 1M1, Canada
| | | | - Paul W Frankland
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Child & Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), Toronto, ON M5G 1M1, Canada
| | - Sheena A Josselyn
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Ave., Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada.
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Lazarov O, Gupta M, Kumar P, Morrissey Z, Phan T. Memory circuits in dementia: The engram, hippocampal neurogenesis and Alzheimer's disease. Prog Neurobiol 2024; 236:102601. [PMID: 38570083 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2024.102601] [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: 08/10/2023] [Revised: 03/20/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Here, we provide an in-depth consideration of our current understanding of engrams, spanning from molecular to network levels, and hippocampal neurogenesis, in health and Alzheimer's disease (AD). This review highlights novel findings in these emerging research fields and future research directions for novel therapeutic avenues for memory failure in dementia. Engrams, memory in AD, and hippocampal neurogenesis have each been extensively studied. The integration of these topics, however, has been relatively less deliberated, and is the focus of this review. We primarily focus on the dentate gyrus (DG) of the hippocampus, which is a key area of episodic memory formation. Episodic memory is significantly impaired in AD, and is also the site of adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Advancements in technology, especially opto- and chemogenetics, have made sophisticated manipulations of engram cells possible. Furthermore, innovative methods have emerged for monitoring neurons, even specific neuronal populations, in vivo while animals engage in tasks, such as calcium imaging. In vivo calcium imaging contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of engram cells. Critically, studies of the engram in the DG using these technologies have shown the important contribution of hippocampal neurogenesis for memory in both health and AD. Together, the discussion of these topics provides a holistic perspective that motivates questions for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orly Lazarov
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA.
| | - Muskan Gupta
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
| | - Pavan Kumar
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
| | - Zachery Morrissey
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
| | - Trongha Phan
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, College of Medicine, The University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
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Botterill JJ, Khlaifia A, Appings R, Wilkin J, Violi F, Premachandran H, Cruz-Sanchez A, Canella AE, Patel A, Zaidi SD, Arruda-Carvalho M. Dorsal peduncular cortex activity modulates affective behavior and fear extinction in mice. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024; 49:993-1006. [PMID: 38233571 PMCID: PMC11039686 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-024-01795-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Revised: 12/27/2023] [Accepted: 12/28/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is critical to cognitive and emotional function and underlies many neuropsychiatric disorders, including mood, fear and anxiety disorders. In rodents, disruption of mPFC activity affects anxiety- and depression-like behavior, with specialized contributions from its subdivisions. The rodent mPFC is divided into the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC), spanning the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and dorsal prelimbic cortex (PL), and the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), which includes the ventral PL, infralimbic cortex (IL), and in some studies the dorsal peduncular cortex (DP) and dorsal tenia tecta (DTT). The DP/DTT have recently been implicated in the regulation of stress-induced sympathetic responses via projections to the hypothalamus. While many studies implicate the PL and IL in anxiety-, depression-like and fear behavior, the contribution of the DP/DTT to affective and emotional behavior remains unknown. Here, we used chemogenetics and optogenetics to bidirectionally modulate DP/DTT activity and examine its effects on affective behaviors, fear and stress responses in C57BL/6J mice. Acute chemogenetic activation of DP/DTT significantly increased anxiety-like behavior in the open field and elevated plus maze tests, as well as passive coping in the tail suspension test. DP/DTT activation also led to an increase in serum corticosterone levels and facilitated auditory fear extinction learning and retrieval. Activation of DP/DTT projections to the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) acutely decreased freezing at baseline and during extinction learning, but did not alter affective behavior. These findings point to the DP/DTT as a new regulator of affective behavior and fear extinction in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin J Botterill
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology, and Pharmacology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada
| | - Abdessattar Khlaifia
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Ryan Appings
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Jennifer Wilkin
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Francesca Violi
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Hanista Premachandran
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Arely Cruz-Sanchez
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S3G5, Canada
| | - Anna Elisabete Canella
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Ashutosh Patel
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - S Danyal Zaidi
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada
| | - Maithe Arruda-Carvalho
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Scarborough, Toronto, ON, M1C1A4, Canada.
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5S3G5, Canada.
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10
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Kooiker CL, Birnie MT, Floriou-Servou A, Ding Q, Thiagarajan N, Hardy M, Baram TZ. Paraventricular Thalamus Neuronal Ensembles Encode Early-life Adversity and Mediate the Consequent Sex-dependent Disruptions of Adult Reward Behaviors. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.28.591547. [PMID: 38746198 PMCID: PMC11092514 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.28.591547] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Early-life adversity increases risk for mental illnesses including depression and substance use disorders, disorders characterized by dysregulated reward behaviors. However, the mechanisms by which transient ELA enduringly impacts reward circuitries are not well understood. In mice, ELA leads to anhedonia-like behaviors in males and augmented motivation for palatable food and sex-reward cues in females. Here, the use of genetic tagging demonstrated robust, preferential, and sex-specific activation of the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) during ELA and a potentiated reactivation of these PVT neurons during a reward task in adult ELA mice. Chemogenetic manipulation of specific ensembles of PVT neurons engaged during ELA identified a role for the posterior PVT in ELA-induced aberrantly augmented reward behaviors in females. In contrast, anterior PVT neurons activated during ELA were required for the anhedonia-like behaviors in males. Thus, the PVT encodes adverse experiences early-in life, prior to the emergence of the hippocampal memory system, and contributes critically to the lasting, sex-modulated impacts of ELA on reward behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cassandra L. Kooiker
- Department of Anatomy/Neurobiology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Matthew T. Birnie
- Department of Anatomy/Neurobiology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Amalia Floriou-Servou
- Department of Anatomy/Neurobiology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Qinxin Ding
- School of Biological Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Neeraj Thiagarajan
- School of Biological Sciences, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Mason Hardy
- Department of Anatomy/Neurobiology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Tallie Z. Baram
- Department of Anatomy/Neurobiology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
- Department of Neurology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA
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11
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James JG, McCall NM, Hsu AI, Oswell CS, Salimando GJ, Mahmood M, Wooldridge LM, Wachira M, Jo A, Sandoval Ortega RA, Wojick JA, Beattie K, Farinas SA, Chehimi SN, Rodrigues A, Ejoh LSL, Kimmey BA, Lo E, Azouz G, Vasquez JJ, Banghart MR, Creasy KT, Beier KT, Ramakrishnan C, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Deisseroth K, Yttri EA, Corder G. Mimicking opioid analgesia in cortical pain circuits. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.26.591113. [PMID: 38746090 PMCID: PMC11092437 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.26.591113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
The anterior cingulate cortex plays a pivotal role in the cognitive and affective aspects of pain perception. Both endogenous and exogenous opioid signaling within the cingulate mitigate cortical nociception, reducing pain unpleasantness. However, the specific functional and molecular identities of cells mediating opioid analgesia in the cingulate remain elusive. Given the complexity of pain as a sensory and emotional experience, and the richness of ethological pain-related behaviors, we developed a standardized, deep-learning platform for deconstructing the behavior dynamics associated with the affective component of pain in mice-LUPE (Light aUtomated Pain Evaluator). LUPE removes human bias in behavior quantification and accelerated analysis from weeks to hours, which we leveraged to discover that morphine altered attentional and motivational pain behaviors akin to affective analgesia in humans. Through activity-dependent genetics and single-nuclei RNA sequencing, we identified specific ensembles of nociceptive cingulate neuron-types expressing mu-opioid receptors. Tuning receptor expression in these cells bidirectionally modulated morphine analgesia. Moreover, we employed a synthetic opioid receptor promoter-driven approach for cell-type specific optical and chemical genetic viral therapies to mimic morphine's pain-relieving effects in the cingulate, without reinforcement. This approach offers a novel strategy for precision pain management by targeting a key nociceptive cortical circuit with on-demand, non-addictive, and effective analgesia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin G. James
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Nora M. McCall
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Alex I. Hsu
- Dept. of Biobehavioral Health Sciences, School of Nursing, and Translational Medicine and Human Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Corinna S. Oswell
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Gregory J. Salimando
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Malaika Mahmood
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lisa M. Wooldridge
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Meghan Wachira
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Adrienne Jo
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | | | - Jessica A. Wojick
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Katherine Beattie
- Dept. of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Sofia A. Farinas
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Samar N. Chehimi
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Amrith Rodrigues
- Dept. of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lind-say L. Ejoh
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Blake A. Kimmey
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Emily Lo
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Ghalia Azouz
- Dept. of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Jose J. Vasquez
- Dept. of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Matthew R. Banghart
- Dept. of Neurobiology, School of Biological Sciences, University of California San Diego, CA, USA
| | - Kate Townsend Creasy
- Dept. of Biobehavioral Health Sciences, School of Nursing, and Translational Medicine and Human Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kevin T. Beier
- Dept. of Physiology and Biophysics, University of California Irvine, CA, USA
| | | | - Richard C. Crist
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Benjamin C. Reiner
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Karl Deisseroth
- CNC Program, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Dept. of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Dept. of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Eric A. Yttri
- Dept. of Biological Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Neuroscience Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Gregory Corder
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Anesthesiology and Critical Care, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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12
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Kawatake-Kuno A, Li H, Inaba H, Hikosaka M, Ishimori E, Ueki T, Garkun Y, Morishita H, Narumiya S, Oishi N, Ohtsuki G, Murai T, Uchida S. Sustained antidepressant effects of ketamine metabolite involve GABAergic inhibition-mediated molecular dynamics in aPVT glutamatergic neurons. Neuron 2024; 112:1265-1285.e10. [PMID: 38377990 PMCID: PMC11031324 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.01.023] [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: 06/29/2023] [Revised: 12/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Despite the rapid and sustained antidepressant effects of ketamine and its metabolites, their underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms are not fully understood. Here, we demonstrate that the sustained antidepressant-like behavioral effects of (2S,6S)-hydroxynorketamine (HNK) in repeatedly stressed animal models involve neurobiological changes in the anterior paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (aPVT). Mechanistically, (2S,6S)-HNK induces mRNA expression of extrasynaptic GABAA receptors and subsequently enhances GABAA-receptor-mediated tonic currents, leading to the nuclear export of histone demethylase KDM6 and its replacement by histone methyltransferase EZH2. This process increases H3K27me3 levels, which in turn suppresses the transcription of genes associated with G-protein-coupled receptor signaling. Thus, our findings shed light on the comprehensive cellular and molecular mechanisms in aPVT underlying the sustained antidepressant behavioral effects of ketamine metabolites. This study may support the development of potentially effective next-generation pharmacotherapies to promote sustained remission of stress-related psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ayako Kawatake-Kuno
- SK Project, Medical Innovation Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan; Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Department of Ophthalmology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029
| | - Haiyan Li
- SK Project, Medical Innovation Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Hiromichi Inaba
- SK Project, Medical Innovation Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan; Department of Psychiatry, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Momoka Hikosaka
- Department of Drug Discovery Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Erina Ishimori
- SK Project, Medical Innovation Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Takatoshi Ueki
- Department of Integrative Anatomy, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 467-8601, Japan
| | - Yury Garkun
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Department of Ophthalmology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029
| | - Hirofumi Morishita
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Department of Ophthalmology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029; Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, One Gustave L. Levy Place, New York, NY 10029
| | - Shuh Narumiya
- Department of Drug Discovery Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Naoya Oishi
- SK Project, Medical Innovation Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan; Department of Psychiatry, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Gen Ohtsuki
- Department of Drug Discovery Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.
| | - Toshiya Murai
- Department of Psychiatry, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 54 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Shusaku Uchida
- SK Project, Medical Innovation Center, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan; Department of Drug Discovery Medicine, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan; Department of Integrative Anatomy, Nagoya City University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, 1 Kawasumi, Mizuho-cho, Mizuho-ku, Nagoya, Aichi 467-8601, Japan; Kyoto University Medical Science and Business Liaison Organization, 53 Shogoin-Kawahara-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.
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13
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Kietzman HW, Trinoskey-Rice G, Seo EH, Guo J, Gourley SL. Neuronal Ensembles in the Amygdala Allow Social Information to Motivate Later Decisions. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e1848232024. [PMID: 38499360 PMCID: PMC11026342 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1848-23.2024] [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: 09/28/2023] [Revised: 02/02/2024] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 03/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Social experiences carry tremendous weight in our decision-making, even when social partners are not present. To determine mechanisms, we trained female mice to respond for two food reinforcers. Then, one food was paired with a novel conspecific. Mice later favored the conspecific-associated food, even in the absence of the conspecific. Chemogenetically silencing projections from the prelimbic subregion (PL) of the medial prefrontal cortex to the basolateral amygdala (BLA) obstructed this preference while leaving social discrimination intact, indicating that these projections are necessary for socially driven choice. Further, mice that performed the task had greater densities of dendritic spines on excitatory BLA neurons relative to mice that did not. We next induced chemogenetic receptors in cells active during social interactions-when mice were encoding information that impacted later behavior. BLA neurons stimulated by social experience were necessary for mice to later favor rewards associated with social conspecifics but not make other choices. This profile contrasted with that of PL neurons stimulated by social experience, which were necessary for choice behavior in social and nonsocial contexts alike. The PL may convey a generalized signal allowing mice to favor particular rewards, while units in the BLA process more specialized information, together supporting choice motivated by social information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henry W Kietzman
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06510
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Department of Psychiatry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Gracy Trinoskey-Rice
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Department of Psychiatry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Esther H Seo
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Department of Psychiatry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Jidong Guo
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
| | - Shannon L Gourley
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Department of Psychiatry, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30329
- Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
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14
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Yadav N, Toader A, Rajasethupathy P. Beyond hippocampus: Thalamic and prefrontal contributions to an evolving memory. Neuron 2024; 112:1045-1059. [PMID: 38272026 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.12.021] [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: 08/04/2023] [Revised: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/22/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
The hippocampus has long been at the center of memory research, and rightfully so. However, with emerging technological capabilities, we can increasingly appreciate memory as a more dynamic and brain-wide process. In this perspective, our goal is to begin developing models to understand the gradual evolution, reorganization, and stabilization of memories across the brain after their initial formation in the hippocampus. By synthesizing studies across the rodent and human literature, we suggest that as memory representations initially form in hippocampus, parallel traces emerge in frontal cortex that cue memory recall, and as they mature, with sustained support initially from limbic then diencephalic then cortical circuits, they become progressively independent of hippocampus and dependent on a mature cortical representation. A key feature of this model is that, as time progresses, memory representations are passed on to distinct circuits with progressively longer time constants, providing the opportunity to filter, forget, update, or reorganize memories in the process of committing to long-term storage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nakul Yadav
- Laboratory of Neural Dynamics & Cognition, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Andrew Toader
- Laboratory of Neural Dynamics & Cognition, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Priya Rajasethupathy
- Laboratory of Neural Dynamics & Cognition, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA.
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15
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Lopez MR, Wasberg SMH, Gagliardi CM, Normandin ME, Muzzio IA. Mystery of the memory engram: History, current knowledge, and unanswered questions. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 159:105574. [PMID: 38331127 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105574] [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: 09/18/2023] [Revised: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/03/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024]
Abstract
The quest to understand the memory engram has intrigued humans for centuries. Recent technological advances, including genetic labelling, imaging, optogenetic and chemogenetic techniques, have propelled the field of memory research forward. These tools have enabled researchers to create and erase memory components. While these innovative techniques have yielded invaluable insights, they often focus on specific elements of the memory trace. Genetic labelling may rely on a particular immediate early gene as a marker of activity, optogenetics may activate or inhibit one specific type of neuron, and imaging may capture activity snapshots in a given brain region at specific times. Yet, memories are multifaceted, involving diverse arrays of neuronal subpopulations, circuits, and regions that work in concert to create, store, and retrieve information. Consideration of contributions of both excitatory and inhibitory neurons, micro and macro circuits across brain regions, the dynamic nature of active ensembles, and representational drift is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of the complex nature of memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- M R Lopez
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - S M H Wasberg
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - C M Gagliardi
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - M E Normandin
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA
| | - I A Muzzio
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
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16
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Eom K, Jung J, Kim B, Hyun JH. Molecular tools for recording and intervention of neuronal activity. Mol Cells 2024; 47:100048. [PMID: 38521352 PMCID: PMC11021360 DOI: 10.1016/j.mocell.2024.100048] [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: 12/15/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/17/2024] [Indexed: 03/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Observing the activity of neural networks is critical for the identification of learning and memory processes, as well as abnormal activities of neural circuits in disease, particularly for the purpose of tracking disease progression. Methodologies for describing the activity history of neural networks using molecular biology techniques first utilized genes expressed by active neurons, followed by the application of recently developed techniques including optogenetics and incorporation of insights garnered from other disciplines, including chemistry and physics. In this review, we will discuss ways in which molecular biological techniques used to describe the activity of neural networks have evolved along with the potential for future development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kisang Eom
- Department of Brain Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu 42988, Republic of Korea
| | - Jinhwan Jung
- Department of Brain Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu 42988, Republic of Korea
| | - Byungsoo Kim
- Department of Brain Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu 42988, Republic of Korea
| | - Jung Ho Hyun
- Department of Brain Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu 42988, Republic of Korea; Center for Synapse Diversity and Specificity, DGIST, Daegu 42988, Republic of Korea.
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17
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Refaeli R, Kreisel T, Yaish TR, Groysman M, Goshen I. Astrocytes control recent and remote memory strength by affecting the recruitment of the CA1→ACC projection to engrams. Cell Rep 2024; 43:113943. [PMID: 38483907 PMCID: PMC10995765 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.113943] [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: 10/08/2023] [Revised: 01/14/2024] [Accepted: 02/23/2024] [Indexed: 04/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The maturation of engrams from recent to remote time points involves the recruitment of CA1 neurons projecting to the anterior cingulate cortex (CA1→ACC). Modifications of G-protein-coupled receptor pathways in CA1 astrocytes affect recent and remote recall in seemingly contradictory ways. To address this inconsistency, we manipulated these pathways in astrocytes during memory acquisition and tagged c-Fos-positive engram cells and CA1→ACC cells during recent and remote recall. The behavioral results were coupled with changes in the recruitment of CA1→ACC projection cells to the engram: Gq pathway activation in astrocytes caused enhancement of recent recall alone and was accompanied by earlier recruitment of CA1→ACC projecting cells to the engram. In contrast, Gi pathway activation in astrocytes resulted in the impairment of only remote recall, and CA1→ACC projecting cells were not recruited during remote memory. Finally, we provide a simple working model, hypothesizing that Gq and Gi pathway activation affect memory differently, by modulating the same mechanism: CA1→ACC projection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ron Refaeli
- Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC), The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Tirzah Kreisel
- Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC), The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | | | - Maya Groysman
- ELSC Vector Core Facility, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Inbal Goshen
- Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences (ELSC), The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel.
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18
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Shi J, Nutkovich B, Kushinsky D, Rao BY, Herrlinger SA, Mihaila TS, Malina KCK, O’Toole CK, Conde Paredes ME, Yong HC, Varol E, Losonczy A, Spiegel I. 2P-NucTag: on-demand phototagging for molecular analysis of functionally identified cortical neurons. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.21.586118. [PMID: 38585980 PMCID: PMC10996538 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.21.586118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
Neural circuits are characterized by genetically and functionally diverse cell types. A mechanistic understanding of circuit function is predicated on linking the genetic and physiological properties of individual neurons. However, it remains highly challenging to map the functional properties of transcriptionally heterogeneous neuronal subtypes in mammalian cortical circuits in vivo. Here, we introduce a high-throughput two-photon nuclear phototagging (2P-NucTag) approach optimized for on-demand and indelible labeling of single neurons via a photoactivatable red fluorescent protein following in vivo functional characterization in behaving mice. We demonstrate the utility of this function-forward pipeline by selectively labeling and transcriptionally profiling previously inaccessible 'place' and 'silent' cells in the mouse hippocampus. Our results reveal unexpected differences in gene expression between these hippocampal pyramidal neurons with distinct spatial coding properties. Thus, 2P-NucTag opens a new way to uncover the molecular principles that govern the functional organization of neural circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingcheng Shi
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Boaz Nutkovich
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Dahlia Kushinsky
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Bovey Y. Rao
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Stephanie A. Herrlinger
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Tiberiu S. Mihaila
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Katayun Cohen-Kashi Malina
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
- Department of Molecular Neuroscience, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Cliodhna K. O’Toole
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Margaret E. Conde Paredes
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Doctoral Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Hyun Choong Yong
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Erdem Varol
- Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Attila Losonczy
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Ivo Spiegel
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
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19
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Contreras MP, Mendez M, Shan X, Fechner J, Sawangjit A, Born J, Inostroza M. Context memory formed in medial prefrontal cortex during infancy enhances learning in adulthood. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2475. [PMID: 38509099 PMCID: PMC10954687 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46734-6] [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: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Adult behavior is commonly thought to be shaped by early-life experience, although episodes experienced during infancy appear to be forgotten. Exposing male rats during infancy to discrete spatial experience we show that these rats in adulthood are significantly better at forming a spatial memory than control rats without such infantile experience. We moreover show that the adult rats' improved spatial memory capability is mainly based on memory for context information during the infantile experiences. Infantile spatial experience increased c-Fos activity at memory testing during adulthood in the prelimbic medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), but not in the hippocampus. Inhibiting prelimbic mPFC at testing during adulthood abolished the enhancing effect of infantile spatial experience on learning. Adult spatial memory capability only benefitted from spatial experience occurring during the sensitive period of infancy, but not when occurring later during childhood, and when sleep followed the infantile experience. In conclusion, the infantile brain, by a sleep-dependent mechanism, favors consolidation of memory for the context in which episodes are experienced. These representations comprise mPFC regions and context-dependently facilitate learning in adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- María P Contreras
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Graduate School of Neural & Behavioral Science, International Max Planck Research School, Tübingen, Germany
- Leibniz-Institute of Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Marta Mendez
- Laboratory of Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Instituto de Neurociencias del Principado de Asturias (INEUROPA), University of Oviedo, Plaza Feijoo, Oviedo, Spain
| | - Xia Shan
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Graduate School of Neural & Behavioral Science, International Max Planck Research School, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Julia Fechner
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Graduate School of Neural & Behavioral Science, International Max Planck Research School, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Anuck Sawangjit
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Jan Born
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
- Werner Reichert Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD)-Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Center Munich (IDM) at the University Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
| | - Marion Inostroza
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
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20
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Yang D, Wang Y, Qi T, Zhang X, Shen L, Ma J, Pang Z, Lal NK, McClatchy DB, Seradj SH, Leung VH, Wang K, Xie Y, Polli FS, Maximov A, Gonzalez OC, de Lecea L, Cline HT, Augustine V, Yates JR, Ye L. Phosphorylation of pyruvate dehydrogenase inversely associates with neuronal activity. Neuron 2024; 112:959-971.e8. [PMID: 38266644 PMCID: PMC11021214 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.12.015] [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: 10/12/2022] [Revised: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
For decades, the expression of immediate early genes (IEGs) such as FOS has been the most widely used molecular marker representing neuronal activation. However, to date, there is no equivalent surrogate available for the decrease of neuronal activity. Here, we developed an optogenetic-based biochemical screen in which population neural activities can be controlled by light with single action potential precision, followed by unbiased phosphoproteomic profiling. We identified that the phosphorylation of pyruvate dehydrogenase (pPDH) inversely correlated with the intensity of action potential firing in primary neurons. In in vivo mouse models, monoclonal antibody-based pPDH immunostaining detected activity decreases across the brain, which were induced by a wide range of factors including general anesthesia, chemogenetic inhibition, sensory experiences, and natural behaviors. Thus, as an inverse activity marker (IAM) in vivo, pPDH can be used together with IEGs or other cell-type markers to profile and identify bi-directional neural dynamics induced by experiences or behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong Yang
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Yu Wang
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Tianbo Qi
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Xi Zhang
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Leyao Shen
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Jingrui Ma
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; Department of Neurobiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Zhengyuan Pang
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Neeraj K Lal
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Daniel B McClatchy
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Saba Heydari Seradj
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Verina H Leung
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Kristina Wang
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Yi Xie
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Filip S Polli
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Anton Maximov
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | | | - Luis de Lecea
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Hollis T Cline
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Vineet Augustine
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; Department of Neurobiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - John R Yates
- Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Li Ye
- Department of Neuroscience and Dorris Neuroscience Center, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA; Department of Molecular Medicine, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
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21
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Liu S, Nawarawong N, Liu X, Liu QS, Olsen CM. Dissociable dorsal medial prefrontal cortex ensembles are necessary for cocaine seeking and fear conditioning in mice. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.17.585444. [PMID: 38562850 PMCID: PMC10983871 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.17.585444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
The dmPFC plays a dual role in modulating drug seeking and fear-related behaviors. Learned associations between cues and drug seeking are encoded by a specific ensemble of neurons. This study explored the stability of a dmPFC cocaine seeking ensemble over two weeks and its influence on persistent cocaine seeking and fear memory retrieval. In the first series of experiments, we trained TetTag mice in cocaine self-administration and tagged strongly activated neurons with EGFP during the initial day 7 cocaine seeking session. Subsequently, a follow-up seeking test was conducted two weeks later to examine ensemble reactivation between two seeking sessions via c-Fos immunostaining. In the second series of experiments, we co-injected viruses expressing TRE-cre and a cre-dependent inhibitory PSAM-GlyR into the dmPFC of male and female c-fos -tTA mice to enable "tagging" of cocaine seeking ensemble or cued fear ensemble neurons with an inhibitory chemogenetic receptors. Then we investigated their contribution to subsequent cocaine seeking and fear recall during inhibition of the tagged ensemble by administering uPSEM792s (0.3 mg/kg), a selective ligand for PSAM-GlyR. In both sexes, there was a positive association between the persistence of cocaine seeking and the proportion of reactivated EGFP+ neurons within the dmPFC. More importantly, inhibition of the cocaine seeking ensemble suppressed cocaine seeking, but not recall of fear memory, while inhibition of the fear ensemble reduced conditioned freezing but not cocaine seeking. The results demonstrate that cocaine and fear recall ensembles in the dmPFC are stable, but largely exclusive from one another.
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22
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Ziobro P, Woo Y, He Z, Tschida K. Midbrain neurons important for the production of mouse ultrasonic vocalizations are not required for distress calls. Curr Biol 2024; 34:1107-1113.e3. [PMID: 38301649 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.016] [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: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 11/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
A fundamental feature of vocal communication is that animals produce vocalizations with different acoustic features in different behavioral contexts (contact calls, territorial calls, courtship calls, etc.). The midbrain periaqueductal gray (PAG) is a key region that regulates vocal production, and artificial activation of the PAG can elicit the production of multiple species-typical vocalization types.1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 How PAG circuits are organized to regulate the production of different vocalization types remains unknown. On the one hand, studies have found that partial PAG lesions abolish the production of some vocalization types while leaving others intact,3,8,10,11 suggesting that different populations of PAG neurons might control the production of different vocalization types. On the other hand, electrophysiological recordings have revealed individual PAG neurons that increase their activity during the production of multiple vocalization types,12,13,14 suggesting that some PAG neurons may regulate the production of more than one vocalization type. To test whether a single population of midbrain neurons regulates the production of different vocalization types, we applied intersectional methods to selectively ablate a population of midbrain neurons important for the production of ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) in mice. We find that, although ablation of these PAG-USV neurons blocks USV production in both males and females, these neurons are not required for the production of distress calls. Our findings suggest that distinct populations of midbrain neurons control the production of different vocalization types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patryk Ziobro
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 109 Tower Road, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Yena Woo
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 109 Tower Road, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Zichen He
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, 417 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Katherine Tschida
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 109 Tower Road, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA.
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23
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Santos TB, de Oliveira Coelho CA, Kramer-Soares JC, Frankland PW, Oliveira MGM. Reactivation of encoding ensembles in the prelimbic cortex supports temporal associations. Neuropsychopharmacology 2024:10.1038/s41386-024-01825-2. [PMID: 38454052 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-024-01825-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2023] [Revised: 01/14/2024] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/09/2024]
Abstract
Fear conditioning is encoded by strengthening synaptic connections between the neurons activated by a conditioned stimulus (CS) and those activated by an unconditioned stimulus (US), forming a memory engram, which is reactivated during memory retrieval. In temporal associations, activity within the prelimbic cortex (PL) plays a role in sustaining a short-term, transient memory of the CS, which is associated with the US after a temporal gap. However, it is unknown whether the PL has only a temporary role, transiently representing the CS, or is part of the neuronal ensembles that support the retrieval, i.e., whether PL neurons support both transient, short-term memories and stable, long-term memories. We investigated neuronal ensembles underlying temporal associations using fear conditioning with a 5-s interval between the CS and US (CFC-5s). Controls were trained in contextual fear conditioning (CFC), in which the CS-US overlaps. We used Robust Activity Marking (RAM) to selectively manipulate PL neurons activated by CFC-5s learning and Targeted Recombination in Active Populations (TRAP2) mice to label neurons activated by CFC-5s learning and reactivated by memory retrieval in the amygdala, medial prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, perirhinal cortices (PER) and subiculum. We also computed their co-reactivation to generate correlation-based networks. The optogenetic reactivation or silencing of PL encoding ensembles either promoted or impaired the retrieval of CFC-5s but not CFC. CFC-5s retrieval reactivated encoding ensembles in the PL, PER, and basolateral amygdala. The engram network of CFC-5s had higher amygdala and PER centralities and interconnectivity. The same PL neurons support learning and stable associative memories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thays Brenner Santos
- Departamento de Psicobiologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo - UNIFESP, São Paulo, 04023-062, Brazil.
| | | | - Juliana Carlota Kramer-Soares
- Departamento de Psicobiologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo - UNIFESP, São Paulo, 04023-062, Brazil
- Universidade Cruzeiro do Sul - UNICSUL, São Paulo, 08060-070, Brazil
| | - Paul W Frankland
- Neuroscience and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, M5G 0A4, Canada
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X8, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X8, Canada
- Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, M5G 1X8, Canada
- Child & Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, ON, M5G 1M1, Canada
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24
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Pomrenze MB, Vaillancourt S, Llorach P, Rijsketic DR, Casey AB, Gregory N, Salgado JS, Malenka RC, Heifets BD. Opioid receptor expressing neurons of the central amygdala gate behavioral effects of ketamine in mice. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.03.583196. [PMID: 38496451 PMCID: PMC10942405 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.03.583196] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
Ketamine has anesthetic, analgesic, and antidepressant properties which may involve multiple neuromodulatory systems. In humans, the opioid receptor (OR) antagonist naltrexone blocks the antidepressant effect of ketamine. It is unclear whether naltrexone blocks a direct effect of ketamine at ORs, or whether normal functioning of the OR system is required to realize the full antidepressant effects of treatment. In mice, the effect of ketamine on locomotion, but not analgesia or the forced swim test, was sensitive to naltrexone and was therefore used as a behavioral readout to localize the effect of naltrexone in the brain. We performed whole-brain imaging of cFos expression in ketamine-treated mice, pretreated with naltrexone or vehicle, and identified the central amygdala (CeA) as the area with greatest difference in cFos intensity. CeA neurons expressing both μOR (MOR) and PKCμ were strongly activated by naltrexone but not ketamine, and selectively interrupting MOR function in the CeA either pharmacologically or genetically blocked the locomotor effects of ketamine. These data suggest that MORs expressed in CeA neurons gate behavioral effects of ketamine but are not direct targets of ketamine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew B. Pomrenze
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Sam Vaillancourt
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Pierre Llorach
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Daniel Ryskamp Rijsketic
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Austen B. Casey
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Nicholas Gregory
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Juliana S. Salgado
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Robert C. Malenka
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305
| | - Boris D. Heifets
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305
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25
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Sun W, Liu Z, Jiang X, Chen MB, Dong H, Liu J, Südhof TC, Quake SR. Spatial transcriptomics reveal neuron-astrocyte synergy in long-term memory. Nature 2024; 627:374-381. [PMID: 38326616 PMCID: PMC10937396 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-07011-6] [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: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/21/2023] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Memory encodes past experiences, thereby enabling future plans. The basolateral amygdala is a centre of salience networks that underlie emotional experiences and thus has a key role in long-term fear memory formation1. Here we used spatial and single-cell transcriptomics to illuminate the cellular and molecular architecture of the role of the basolateral amygdala in long-term memory. We identified transcriptional signatures in subpopulations of neurons and astrocytes that were memory-specific and persisted for weeks. These transcriptional signatures implicate neuropeptide and BDNF signalling, MAPK and CREB activation, ubiquitination pathways, and synaptic connectivity as key components of long-term memory. Notably, upon long-term memory formation, a neuronal subpopulation defined by increased Penk and decreased Tac expression constituted the most prominent component of the memory engram of the basolateral amygdala. These transcriptional changes were observed both with single-cell RNA sequencing and with single-molecule spatial transcriptomics in intact slices, thereby providing a rich spatial map of a memory engram. The spatial data enabled us to determine that this neuronal subpopulation interacts with adjacent astrocytes, and functional experiments show that neurons require interactions with astrocytes to encode long-term memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenfei Sun
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Zhihui Liu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Xian Jiang
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Michelle B Chen
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Hua Dong
- Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jonathan Liu
- Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Redwood City, CA, USA
| | - Thomas C Südhof
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.
| | - Stephen R Quake
- Department of Bioengineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
- Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Redwood City, CA, USA.
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26
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Hasegawa E, Li Y, Sakurai T. Regulation of REM sleep in mice: The role of dopamine and serotonin function in the basolateral amygdala. Neurosci Res 2024; 200:28-33. [PMID: 37696450 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2023.09.003] [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: 04/01/2023] [Revised: 08/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/13/2023]
Abstract
Animals have a sleep cycle that involves the repetitive occurrence of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. In a previous study, we discovered that a transient increase in dopamine (DA) levels in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) during NREM sleep terminates NREM sleep and initiates REM sleep by acting on Drd2-positive neurons (Hasegawa et al., 2022). In this study, we identified the neurons activated by the transient increase of DA in the BLA and found that chemogenetic excitation of these neurons increased REM sleep. Additionally, we demonstrated that acute inhibition of serotonin (5HT) in the BLA elicited a transient increase in DA in the BLA, which triggered REM sleep.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emi Hasegawa
- International Institute for Integrative Sleep Medicine (WPI-IIIS), University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan; Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan
| | - Yulong Li
- State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking University School of Life Sciences, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Takeshi Sakurai
- International Institute for Integrative Sleep Medicine (WPI-IIIS), University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan; Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8575, Japan.
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27
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Targowska-Duda KM, Peters D, Marcus JL, Zribi G, Toll L, Ozawa A. Functional and anatomical analyses of active spinal circuits in a mouse model of chronic pain. Pain 2024; 165:685-697. [PMID: 37820238 PMCID: PMC10922047 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Decades of efforts in elucidating pain mechanisms, including pharmacological, neuroanatomical, and physiological studies have provided insights into how nociceptive information transmits from the periphery to the brain and the locations receiving nociceptive signals. However, little is known about which specific stimulus-dependent activated neurons, amongst heterogeneous neural environments, discriminatively evoke the cognate pain behavior. We here shed light on the population of neurons in the spinal cord activated by a painful stimulus to identify chronic pain-dependent activated neuronal subsets using Fos2A-iCreER (TRAP2) mice. We have found a large number of neurons activated by a normally nonpainful stimulus in the spinal cord of spinal nerve-ligated mice, compared with sham. Neuronal activation was observed in laminae I and II outer under heat hyperalgesia. A large number of neurons in laminae II inner were activated in both mechanical allodynia and heat hyperalgesia conditions, while mechanical allodynia tends to be the only stimulus that activates cells at lamina II inner dorsal region. Neuroanatomical analyses using spinal cell markers identified a large number of spinal inhibitory neurons that are recruited by both mechanical allodynia and heat hyperalgesia. Of interest, spinal neurons expressing calretinin, calbindin, and parvalbumin were activated differently with distinct pain modalities (ie, mechanical allodynia vs heat hyperalgesia). Chemogenetic inhibition of those activated neurons significantly and specifically reduced the response to the pain stimulus associated with the stimulus modality originally given to the animals. These findings support the idea that spinal neuronal ensembles underlying nociceptive transmission undergo dynamic changes to regulate selective pain responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarzyna M. Targowska-Duda
- Department of Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, United States
- Department of Biopharmacy, Medical University of Lublin, Lublin, 20-093, Poland
| | - Darian Peters
- Department of Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, United States
| | - Jason L. Marcus
- Department of Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, United States
| | - Gilles Zribi
- Department of Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, United States
| | - Lawrence Toll
- Department of Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, United States
- Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Akihiko Ozawa
- Department of Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, 33431, United States
- Stiles-Nicholson Brain Institute, Florida Atlantic University, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
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28
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Liu X, Lu T, Chen X, Huang S, Zheng W, Zhang W, Meng S, Yan W, Shi L, Bao Y, Xue Y, Shi J, Yuan K, Han Y, Lu L. Memory consolidation drives the enhancement of remote cocaine memory via prefrontal circuit. Mol Psychiatry 2024; 29:730-741. [PMID: 38221548 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-023-02364-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 01/16/2024]
Abstract
Remote memory usually decreases over time, whereas remote drug-cue associated memory exhibits enhancement, increasing the risk of relapse during abstinence. Memory system consolidation is a prerequisite for remote memory formation, but neurobiological underpinnings of the role of consolidation in the enhancement of remote drug memory are unclear. Here, we found that remote cocaine-cue associated memory was enhanced in rats that underwent self-administration training, together with a progressive increase in the response of prelimbic cortex (PrL) CaMKII neurons to cues. System consolidation was required for the enhancement of remote cocaine memory through PrL CaMKII neurons during the early period post-training. Furthermore, dendritic spine maturation in the PrL relied on the basolateral amygdala (BLA) input during the early period of consolidation, contributing to remote memory enhancement. These findings indicate that memory consolidation drives the enhancement of remote cocaine memory through a time-dependent increase in activity and maturation of PrL CaMKII neurons receiving a sustained BLA input.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoxing Liu
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Tangsheng Lu
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China
- Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Xuan Chen
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), 100191, Beijing, China
- Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453003, China
| | - Shihao Huang
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China
- Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Zheng
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences and PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, 100871, Beijing, China
| | - Wen Zhang
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Shiqiu Meng
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Yan
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Le Shi
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Yanping Bao
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Yanxue Xue
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China.
| | - Jie Shi
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Kai Yuan
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), 100191, Beijing, China
| | - Ying Han
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China.
| | - Lin Lu
- Peking University Sixth Hospital, Peking University Institute of Mental Health, NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), 100191, Beijing, China.
- National Institute on Drug Dependence and Beijing Key Laboratory of Drug Dependence Research, Peking University, 100191, Beijing, China.
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences and PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, 100871, Beijing, China.
- Research Unit of Diagnosis and Treatment of Mood Cognitive Disorder, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (No. 2018RU006), Dongcheng, Beijing, China.
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Tomé DF, Zhang Y, Aida T, Mosto O, Lu Y, Chen M, Sadeh S, Roy DS, Clopath C. Dynamic and selective engrams emerge with memory consolidation. Nat Neurosci 2024; 27:561-572. [PMID: 38243089 PMCID: PMC10917686 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01551-w] [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: 04/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2024]
Abstract
Episodic memories are encoded by experience-activated neuronal ensembles that remain necessary and sufficient for recall. However, the temporal evolution of memory engrams after initial encoding is unclear. In this study, we employed computational and experimental approaches to examine how the neural composition and selectivity of engrams change with memory consolidation. Our spiking neural network model yielded testable predictions: memories transition from unselective to selective as neurons drop out of and drop into engrams; inhibitory activity during recall is essential for memory selectivity; and inhibitory synaptic plasticity during memory consolidation is critical for engrams to become selective. Using activity-dependent labeling, longitudinal calcium imaging and a combination of optogenetic and chemogenetic manipulations in mouse dentate gyrus, we conducted contextual fear conditioning experiments that supported our model's predictions. Our results reveal that memory engrams are dynamic and that changes in engram composition mediated by inhibitory plasticity are crucial for the emergence of memory selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Douglas Feitosa Tomé
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK.
- Institute of Science and Technology Austria, Klosterneuburg, Austria.
| | - Ying Zhang
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Center for Life Sciences & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
| | - Tomomi Aida
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Olivia Mosto
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Yifeng Lu
- Center for Life Sciences & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Mandy Chen
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Sadra Sadeh
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
- Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Dheeraj S Roy
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA.
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA.
| | - Claudia Clopath
- Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK.
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30
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Poggi G, Bergamini G, Dulinskas R, Madur L, Greter A, Ineichen C, Dagostino A, Kúkeľová D, Sigrist H, Bornemann KD, Hengerer B, Pryce CR. Engagement of basal amygdala-nucleus accumbens glutamate neurons in the processing of rewarding or aversive social stimuli. Eur J Neurosci 2024; 59:996-1015. [PMID: 38326849 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.16272] [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: 08/22/2023] [Revised: 12/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024]
Abstract
Basal amygdala (BA) neurons projecting to nucleus accumbens (NAc) core/shell are primarily glutamatergic and are integral to the circuitry of emotional processing. Several recent mouse studies have addressed whether neurons in this population(s) respond to reward, aversion or both emotional valences. The focus has been on processing of physical emotional stimuli, and here, we extend this to salient social stimuli. In male mice, an iterative study was conducted into engagement of BA-NAc neurons in response to estrous female (social reward, SR) and/or aggressive-dominant male (social aversion, SA). In BL/6J mice, SR and SA activated c-Fos expression in a high and similar number/density of BA-NAc neurons in the anteroposterior intermediate BA (int-BA), whereas activation was predominantly by SA in posterior (post-)BA. In Fos-TRAP2 mice, compared with SR-SR or SA-SA controls, exposure to successive presentation of SR-SA or SA-SR, followed by assessment of tdTomato reporter and/or c-Fos expression, demonstrated that many int-BA-NAc neurons were activated by only one of SR and SA; these SR/SA monovalent neurons were similar in number and present in both magnocellular and parvocellular int-BA subregions. In freely moving BL/6J mice exposed to SR, bulk GCaMP6 fibre photometry provided confirmatory in vivo evidence for engagement of int-BA-NAc neurons during social and sexual interactions. Therefore, populations of BA-NAc glutamate neurons are engaged by salient rewarding and aversive social stimuli in a topographic and valence-specific manner; this novel evidence is important to the overall understanding of the roles of this pathway in the circuitry of socio-emotional processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Poggi
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Giorgio Bergamini
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Redas Dulinskas
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Lorraine Madur
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
- Zurich Neuroscience Center, University of Zurich and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Alexandra Greter
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Christian Ineichen
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Amael Dagostino
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Diana Kúkeľová
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Hannes Sigrist
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Klaus D Bornemann
- CNS Diseases Research, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, Biberach, Germany
| | - Bastian Hengerer
- CNS Diseases Research, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma GmbH & Co. KG, Biberach, Germany
| | - Christopher R Pryce
- Preclinical Laboratory for Translational Research into Affective Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric University Hospital Zürich (PUK) and University of Zurich (UZH), Zurich, Switzerland
- Zurich Neuroscience Center, University of Zurich and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
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31
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Wu PY, Caceres AI, Chen J, Sokoloff J, Huang M, Baht GS, Nackley AG, Jordt SE, Terrando N. Vagus nerve stimulation rescues persistent pain following orthopedic surgery in adult mice. Pain 2024:00006396-990000000-00531. [PMID: 38422485 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Postoperative pain is a major clinical problem imposing a significant burden on patients and society. In a survey 2 years after orthopedic surgery, 57% of patients reported persisting postoperative pain. However, only limited progress has been made in the development of safe and effective therapies to prevent the onset and chronification of pain after orthopedic surgery. We established a tibial fracture mouse model that recapitulates clinically relevant orthopedic trauma surgery, which causes changes in neuropeptide levels in dorsal root ganglia and sustained neuroinflammation in the spinal cord. Here, we monitored extended pain behavior in this model, observing chronic bilateral hindpaw mechanical allodynia in both male and female C57BL/6J mice that persisted for >3 months after surgery. We also tested the analgesic effects of a novel, minimally invasive, bioelectronic approach to percutaneously stimulate the vagus nerve (termed percutaneous vagus nerve stimulation [pVNS]). Weekly pVNS treatment for 30 minutes at 10 Hz for 3 weeks after the surgery strongly reduced pain behaviors compared with untreated controls. Percutaneous vagus nerve stimulation also improved locomotor coordination and accelerated bone healing. In the dorsal root ganglia, vagal stimulation inhibited the activation of glial fibrillary acidic protein-positive satellite cells but without affecting microglial activation. Overall, these data provide novel evidence supportive of the use of pVNS to prevent postoperative pain and inform translational studies to test antinociceptive effects of bioelectronic medicine in the clinic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pau Yen Wu
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Ana Isabel Caceres
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Jiegen Chen
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Jamie Sokoloff
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Mingjian Huang
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Gurpreet Singh Baht
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Duke Molecular Physiology Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Andrea G Nackley
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
| | - Sven-Eric Jordt
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
- Department of Pharmacology and Cancer Biology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, United States
- Integrated Toxicology and Environmental Health Program, Duke University, Durham, United States
| | - Niccolò Terrando
- Department of Anesthesiology, Center for Translational Pain Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
- Department of Integrative Immunobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, United States
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32
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Wojick JA, Paranjapye A, Chiu JK, Mahmood M, Oswell C, Kimmey BA, Wooldridge LM, McCall NM, Han A, Ejoh LL, Chehimi SN, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Korb E, Corder G. A nociceptive amygdala-striatal pathway for chronic pain aversion. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.12.579947. [PMID: 38405972 PMCID: PMC10888915 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.12.579947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is essential for assigning positive or negative valence to sensory stimuli. Noxious stimuli that cause pain are encoded by an ensemble of nociceptive BLA projection neurons (BLAnoci ensemble). However, the role of the BLAnoci ensemble in mediating behavior changes and the molecular signatures and downstream targets distinguishing this ensemble remain poorly understood. Here, we show that the same BLAnoci ensemble neurons are required for both acute and chronic neuropathic pain behavior. Using single nucleus RNA-sequencing, we characterized the effect of acute and chronic pain on the BLA and identified enrichment for genes with known functions in axonal and synaptic organization and pain perception. We thus examined the brain-wide targets of the BLAnoci ensemble and uncovered a previously undescribed nociceptive hotspot of the nucleus accumbens shell (NAcSh) that mirrors the stability and specificity of the BLAnoci ensemble and is recruited in chronic pain. Notably, BLAnoci ensemble axons transmit acute and neuropathic nociceptive information to the NAcSh, highlighting this nociceptive amygdala-striatal circuit as a unique pathway for affective-motivational responses across pain states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica A Wojick
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Biology, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Alekh Paranjapye
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Juliann K Chiu
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Malaika Mahmood
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Corinna Oswell
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Blake A Kimmey
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lisa M Wooldridge
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Nora M McCall
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Alan Han
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lindsay L Ejoh
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Samar Nasser Chehimi
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Richard C Crist
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Benjamin C Reiner
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Erica Korb
- Department of Genetics, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Gregory Corder
- Dept. of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Dept. of Neuroscience, Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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33
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Harkany T, Tretiakov E, Varela L, Jarc J, Rebernik P, Newbold S, Keimpema E, Verkhratsky A, Horvath T, Romanov R. Molecularly stratified hypothalamic astrocytes are cellular foci for obesity. RESEARCH SQUARE 2024:rs.3.rs-3748581. [PMID: 38405925 PMCID: PMC10889077 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3748581/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Astrocytes safeguard the homeostasis of the central nervous system1,2. Despite their prominent morphological plasticity under conditions that challenge the brain's adaptive capacity3-5, the classification of astrocytes, and relating their molecular make-up to spatially devolved neuronal operations that specify behavior or metabolism, remained mostly futile6,7. Although it seems unexpected in the era of single-cell biology, the lack of a major advance in stratifying astrocytes under physiological conditions rests on the incompatibility of 'neurocentric' algorithms that rely on stable developmental endpoints, lifelong transcriptional, neurotransmitter, and neuropeptide signatures for classification6-8 with the dynamic functional states, anatomic allocation, and allostatic plasticity of astrocytes1. Simplistically, therefore, astrocytes are still grouped as 'resting' vs. 'reactive', the latter referring to pathological states marked by various inducible genes3,9,10. Here, we introduced a machine learning-based feature recognition algorithm that benefits from the cumulative power of published single-cell RNA-seq data on astrocytes as a reference map to stepwise eliminate pleiotropic and inducible cellular features. For the healthy hypothalamus, this walk-back approach revealed gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that specified subsets of astrocytes, and could be used as landmarking tools for their anatomical assignment. The core molecular censuses retained by astrocyte subsets were sufficient to stratify them by allostatic competence, chiefly their signaling and metabolic interplay with neurons. Particularly, we found differentially expressed mitochondrial genes in insulin-sensing astrocytes and demonstrated their reciprocal signaling with neurons that work antagonistically within the food intake circuitry. As a proof-of-concept, we showed that disrupting Mfn2 expression in astrocytes reduced their ability to support dynamic circuit reorganization, a time-locked feature of satiety in the hypothalamus, thus leading to obesity in mice. Overall, our results suggest that astrocytes in the healthy brain are fundamentally more heterogeneous than previously thought and topologically mirror the specificity of local neurocircuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tibor Harkany
- Center for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna
| | | | | | - Jasna Jarc
- Center for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna
| | | | | | - Erik Keimpema
- Medical University of Vienna, Center for Brain Research
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34
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Litif CG, Flom LT, Sandum KL, Hodgins SL, Vaccaro L, Stitzel JA, Blouin NA, Mannino MC, Gigley JP, Schoborg TA, Bobadilla AC. Differential genetic expression within reward-specific ensembles in mice. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.11.02.565378. [PMID: 37961222 PMCID: PMC10635086 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.02.565378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2023]
Abstract
Maladaptive reward seeking is a hallmark of cocaine use disorder. To develop therapeutic targets, it is critical to understand the neurobiological changes specific to cocaine-seeking without altering the seeking of natural rewards, e.g., sucrose. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) and the nucleus accumbens core (NAcore) are known regions associated with cocaine- and sucrose-seeking ensembles, i.e., a sparse population of co-activated neurons. Within ensembles, transcriptomic alterations in the PFC and NAcore underlie the learning and persistence of cocaine- and sucrose-seeking behavior. However, transcriptomes exclusively driving cocaine seeking independent from sucrose seeking have not yet been defined using a within-subject approach. Using Ai14:cFos-TRAP2 transgenic mice in a dual cocaine and sucrose self-administration model, we fluorescently sorted (FACS) and characterized (RNAseq) the transcriptomes defining cocaine- and sucrose-seeking ensembles. We found reward- and region-specific transcriptomic changes that will help develop clinically relevant genetic approaches to decrease cocaine-seeking behavior without altering non-drug reward-based positive reinforcement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carl G. Litif
- School of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | - Levi T. Flom
- School of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | | | | | - Lucio Vaccaro
- School of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | - Jerry A. Stitzel
- Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
- Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - Nicolas A. Blouin
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | | | - Jason P. Gigley
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | - Todd A. Schoborg
- Department of Molecular Biology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
| | - Ana-Clara Bobadilla
- School of Pharmacy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
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35
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McDougle M, de Araujo A, Singh A, Yang M, Braga I, Paille V, Mendez-Hernandez R, Vergara M, Woodie LN, Gour A, Sharma A, Urs N, Warren B, de Lartigue G. Separate gut-brain circuits for fat and sugar reinforcement combine to promote overeating. Cell Metab 2024; 36:393-407.e7. [PMID: 38242133 DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2023.12.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Revised: 09/25/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2024]
Abstract
Food is a powerful natural reinforcer that guides feeding decisions. The vagus nerve conveys internal sensory information from the gut to the brain about nutritional value; however, the cellular and molecular basis of macronutrient-specific reward circuits is poorly understood. Here, we monitor in vivo calcium dynamics to provide direct evidence of independent vagal sensing pathways for the detection of dietary fats and sugars. Using activity-dependent genetic capture of vagal neurons activated in response to gut infusions of nutrients, we demonstrate the existence of separate gut-brain circuits for fat and sugar sensing that are necessary and sufficient for nutrient-specific reinforcement. Even when controlling for calories, combined activation of fat and sugar circuits increases nigrostriatal dopamine release and overeating compared with fat or sugar alone. This work provides new insights into the complex sensory circuitry that mediates motivated behavior and suggests that a subconscious internal drive to consume obesogenic diets (e.g., those high in both fat and sugar) may impede conscious dieting efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly McDougle
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Alan de Araujo
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Arashdeep Singh
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Mingxin Yang
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Isadora Braga
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Vincent Paille
- Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; UMR1280 Physiopathologie des adaptations nutritionnelles, INRAE, Institut des maladies de l'appareil digestif, Université de Nantes, Nantes, France
| | - Rebeca Mendez-Hernandez
- Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Macarena Vergara
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Lauren N Woodie
- Institute for Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Abhishek Gour
- Department of Pharmaceutics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Abhisheak Sharma
- Department of Pharmaceutics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Nikhil Urs
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Brandon Warren
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| | - Guillaume de Lartigue
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA; Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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36
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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: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 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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Xing B, Barbour AJ, Vithayathil J, Li X, Dutko S, Fawcett-Patel J, Lancaster E, Talos DM, Jensen FE. Reversible synaptic adaptations in a subpopulation of murine hippocampal neurons following early-life seizures. J Clin Invest 2024; 134:e175167. [PMID: 38227384 PMCID: PMC10904056 DOI: 10.1172/jci175167] [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: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 01/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Early-life seizures (ELSs) can cause permanent cognitive deficits and network hyperexcitability, but it is unclear whether ELSs induce persistent changes in specific neuronal populations and whether these changes can be targeted to mitigate network dysfunction. We used the targeted recombination of activated populations (TRAP) approach to genetically label neurons activated by kainate-induced ELSs in immature mice. The ELS-TRAPed neurons were mainly found in hippocampal CA1, remained uniquely susceptible to reactivation by later-life seizures, and displayed sustained enhancement in α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptor-mediated (AMPAR-mediated) excitatory synaptic transmission and inward rectification. ELS-TRAPed neurons, but not non-TRAPed surrounding neurons, exhibited enduring decreases in Gria2 mRNA, responsible for encoding the GluA2 subunit of the AMPARs. This was paralleled by decreased synaptic GluA2 protein expression and heightened phosphorylated GluA2 at Ser880 in dendrites, indicative of GluA2 internalization. Consistent with increased GluA2-lacking AMPARs, ELS-TRAPed neurons showed premature silent synapse depletion, impaired long-term potentiation, and impaired long-term depression. In vivo postseizure treatment with IEM-1460, an inhibitor of GluA2-lacking AMPARs, markedly mitigated ELS-induced changes in TRAPed neurons. These findings show that enduring modifications of AMPARs occur in a subpopulation of ELS-activated neurons, contributing to synaptic dysplasticity and network hyperexcitability, but are reversible with early IEM-1460 intervention.
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38
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Zimmerman CA, Pan-Vazquez A, Wu B, Keppler EF, Guthman EM, Fetcho RN, Bolkan SS, McMannon B, Lee J, Hoag AT, Lynch LA, Janarthanan SR, López Luna JF, Bondy AG, Falkner AL, Wang SSH, Witten IB. A neural mechanism for learning from delayed postingestive feedback. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.10.06.561214. [PMID: 37873112 PMCID: PMC10592633 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.06.561214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
Animals learn the value of foods based on their postingestive effects and thereby develop aversions to foods that are toxic1-6 and preferences to those that are nutritious7-14. However, it remains unclear how the brain is able to assign credit to flavors experienced during a meal with postingestive feedback signals that can arise after a substantial delay. Here, we reveal an unexpected role for postingestive reactivation of neural flavor representations in this temporal credit assignment process. To begin, we leverage the fact that mice learn to associate novel15-18, but not familiar, flavors with delayed gastric malaise signals to investigate how the brain represents flavors that support aversive postingestive learning. Surveying cellular resolution brainwide activation patterns reveals that a network of amygdala regions is unique in being preferentially activated by novel flavors across every stage of the learning process: the initial meal, delayed malaise, and memory retrieval. By combining high-density recordings in the amygdala with optogenetic stimulation of genetically defined hindbrain malaise cells, we find that postingestive malaise signals potently and specifically reactivate amygdalar novel flavor representations from a recent meal. The degree of malaise-driven reactivation of individual neurons predicts strengthening of flavor responses upon memory retrieval, leading to stabilization of the population-level representation of the recently consumed flavor. In contrast, meals without postingestive consequences degrade neural flavor representations as flavors become familiar and safe. Thus, our findings demonstrate that interoceptive reactivation of amygdalar flavor representations provides a neural mechanism to resolve the temporal credit assignment problem inherent to postingestive learning.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Bichan Wu
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Emma F Keppler
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Eartha Mae Guthman
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Robert N Fetcho
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Scott S Bolkan
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Brenna McMannon
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Junuk Lee
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Austin T Hoag
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Laura A Lynch
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | | | - Juan F López Luna
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Adrian G Bondy
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Annegret L Falkner
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Samuel S-H Wang
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Ilana B Witten
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
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39
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Parrini M, Tricot G, Caroni P, Spolidoro M. Circuit mechanisms of navigation strategy learning in mice. Curr Biol 2024; 34:79-91.e4. [PMID: 38101403 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.11.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2023] [Revised: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023]
Abstract
Navigation tasks involve the gradual selection and deployment of increasingly effective searching procedures to reach targets. The brain mechanisms underlying such complex behavior are poorly understood, but their elucidation might provide insights into the systems linking exploration and decision making in complex learning. Here, we developed a trial-by-trial goal-related search strategy analysis as mice learned to navigate identical water mazes encompassing distinct goal-related rules and monitored the strategy deployment process throughout learning. We found that navigation learning involved the following three distinct phases: an early phase during which maze-specific search strategies are deployed in a minority of trials, a second phase of preferential increasing deployment of one search strategy, and a final phase of increasing commitment to this strategy only. The three maze learning phases were affected differently by inhibition of retrosplenial cortex (RSC), dorsomedial striatum (DMS), or dorsolateral striatum (DLS). Through brain region-specific inactivation experiments and gain-of-function experiments involving activation of learning-related cFos+ ensembles, we unraveled how goal-related strategy selection relates to deployment throughout these sequential processes. We found that RSC is critically important for search strategy selection, DMS mediates strategy deployment, and DLS ensures searching consistency throughout maze learning. Notably, activation of specific learning-related ensembles was sufficient to direct strategy selection (RSC) or strategy deployment (DMS) in a different maze. Our results establish a goal-related search strategy deployment approach to dissect unsupervised navigation learning processes and suggest that effective searching in navigation involves evidence-based goal-related strategy direction by RSC, reinforcement-modulated strategy deployment through DMS, and online guidance through DLS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Parrini
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Guillaume Tricot
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Pico Caroni
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Maria Spolidoro
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
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40
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Jin B, Gongwer MW, Ohanian L, Holden-Wingate L, Le B, Darmawan A, Nakayama Y, Rueda Mora SA, DeNardo LA. A developmental brain-wide screen identifies retrosplenial cortex as a key player in the emergence of persistent memory. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.07.574554. [PMID: 38260633 PMCID: PMC10802387 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.07.574554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Memories formed early in life are short-lived while those formed later persist. Recent work revealed that infant memories are stored in a latent state. But why they fail to be retrieved is poorly understood. Here we investigated brain-wide circuit mechanisms underlying infantile amnesia in mice. We performed a screen that combined activity-dependent neuronal tagging at different postnatal ages, tissue clearing and light sheet microscopy. We observed striking developmental transitions in the organization of fear memory networks and changes in the activity and functional connectivity of the retrosplenial cortex (RSP) that aligned with the emergence of persistent memory. 7 days after learning, chemogenetic reactivation of tagged RSP ensembles enhanced memory in adults but not in infants. But after 33 days, reactivating infant-tagged RSP ensembles recovered forgotten memories. These studies show that RSP ensembles store latent infant memories, reveal the time course of RSP functional maturation, and suggest that immature RSP functional networks contribute to infantile amnesia.
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41
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Hirato Y, Seiriki K, Kojima L, Yamada S, Rokujo H, Takemoto T, Nakazawa T, Kasai A, Hashimoto H. Clozapine Induces Neuronal Activation in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex in a Projection Target-Biased Manner. Biol Pharm Bull 2024; 47:478-485. [PMID: 38382927 DOI: 10.1248/bpb.b23-00898] [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] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is associated with various behavioral controls via diverse projections to cortical and subcortical areas of the brain. Dysfunctions and modulations of this circuitry are related to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and its pharmacotherapy, respectively. Clozapine is an atypical antipsychotic drug used for treatment-resistant schizophrenia and is known to modulate neuronal activity in the mPFC. However, it remains unclear which prefrontal cortical projections are activated by clozapine among the various projection targets. To identify the anatomical characteristics of neurons activated by clozapine at the mesoscale level, we investigated the brain-wide projection patterns of neurons with clozapine-induced c-Fos expression in the mPFC. Using a whole-brain imaging and virus-mediated genetic tagging of activated neurons, we found that clozapine-responsive neurons in the mPFC had a wide range of projections to the mesolimbic, amygdala and thalamic areas, especially the mediodorsal thalamus. These results may provide key insights into the neuronal basis of the therapeutic action of clozapine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yumi Hirato
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Kaoru Seiriki
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Leo Kojima
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Shohei Yamada
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Hiroki Rokujo
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Tomoya Takemoto
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Takanobu Nakazawa
- Department of Bioscience, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tokyo University of Agriculture
| | - Atsushi Kasai
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
- Systems Brain Science Project, Drug Innovation Center, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Hitoshi Hashimoto
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
- Institute for Open and Transdisciplinary Research Initiatives, Osaka University
- Molecular Research Center for Children's Mental Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui
- Institute for Datability Science, Osaka University
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutical Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University
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42
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Jung JH, Wang Y, Rashid AJ, Zhang T, Frankland PW, Josselyn SA. Examining memory linking and generalization using scFLARE2, a temporally precise neuronal activity tagging system. Cell Rep 2023; 42:113592. [PMID: 38103203 PMCID: PMC10842737 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113592] [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: 08/28/2023] [Revised: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
How memories are organized in the brain influences whether they are remembered discretely versus linked with other experiences or whether generalized information is applied to entirely novel situations. Here, we used scFLARE2 (single-chain fast light- and activity-regulated expression 2), a temporally precise tagging system, to manipulate mouse lateral amygdala neurons active during one of two 3 min threat experiences occurring close (3 h) or further apart (27 h) in time. Silencing scFLARE2-tagged neurons showed that two threat experiences occurring at distal times are dis-allocated to orthogonal engram ensembles and remembered discretely, whereas the same two threat experiences occurring in close temporal proximity are linked via co-allocation to overlapping engram ensembles. Moreover, we found that co-allocation mediates memory generalization applied to a completely novel stimulus. These results indicate that endogenous temporal evolution of engram ensemble neuronal excitability determines how memories are organized and remembered and that this would not be possible using conventional immediate-early gene-based tagging methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jung Hoon Jung
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Ying Wang
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Asim J Rashid
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Tao Zhang
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada
| | - Paul W Frankland
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3G3, Canada; Child & Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), Toronto, ON M5G 1M1, Canada
| | - Sheena A Josselyn
- Program in Neurosciences & Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children, 555 University Avenue, Toronto, ON M5G 1X8, Canada; Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3G3, Canada.
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43
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Lu D, Choi S, Park J, Kim J, Zhao S, Uldry Lavergne CG, Desimone Q, Chen B, Han BX, Wang F, Goldstein N. General Anesthesia Activates a Central Anxiolytic Center in the BNST. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.12.20.572586. [PMID: 38187782 PMCID: PMC10769264 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.20.572586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
Low doses of general anesthetics like ketamine and dexmedetomidine have anxiolytic properties independent of their sedative effects. How these different drugs exert these anxiolytic effects is not well understood. We discovered a population of GABAergic neurons in the oval division of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis that is activated by multiple anesthetics and the anxiolytic drug diazepam (ovBNST GA ). A majority of ovBNST GA neurons express neurotensin receptor 1 (Ntsr1) and innervate brain regions known to regulate anxiety and stress responses. Optogenetic activation ovBNST GA or ovBNST Ntsr1 neurons significantly attenuated anxiety-like behaviors in both naïve animals and mice with inflammatory pain, while inhibition of these cells increased anxiety. Notably, activation of these neurons decreased heart rate and increased heart rate variability, suggesting that they reduce anxiety through modulation of the autonomic nervous system. Our study identifies ovBNST GA /ovBNST Ntsr1 neurons as one of the brain's endogenous anxiolytic centers and a potential therapeutic target for treating anxiety-related disorders. HIGHLIGHTS General anesthetics and anxiolytics activate a population of neurons in the ovBNSTAnesthesia-activated ovBNST neurons bidirectionally modulate anxiety-like behaviorMost anesthesia-activated ovBNST neurons express neurotensin receptor 1 ovBNST Ntsr1 neuron activation shifts autonomic responses to an anxiolytic state.
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44
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Ortega-de San Luis C, Pezzoli M, Urrieta E, Ryan TJ. Engram cell connectivity as a mechanism for information encoding and memory function. Curr Biol 2023; 33:5368-5380.e5. [PMID: 37992719 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.10.074] [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: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 09/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/24/2023]
Abstract
Information derived from experiences is incorporated into the brain as changes to ensembles of cells, termed engram cells, which allow memory storage and recall. The mechanism by which those changes hold specific information is unclear. Here, we test the hypothesis that the specific synaptic wiring between engram cells is the substrate of information storage. First, we monitor how learning modifies the connectivity pattern between engram cells at a monosynaptic connection involving the hippocampal ventral CA1 (vCA1) region and the amygdala. Then, we assess the functional significance of these connectivity changes by artificially activating or inhibiting its presynaptic and postsynaptic components, respectively. Finally, we identify a synaptic plasticity mechanism mediated by postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD-95), which impacts the connectivity pattern among engram cells and contributes to the long-term stability of the memory. These findings impact our theory of learning and memory by helping us explain the translation of specific information into engram cells and how these connections shape brain function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clara Ortega-de San Luis
- School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College of Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland; Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland
| | - Maurizio Pezzoli
- School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College of Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland; Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne 1015, Switzerland
| | - Esteban Urrieta
- School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College of Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland; Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland
| | - Tomás J Ryan
- School of Biochemistry and Immunology, Trinity College of Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland; Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin D02 PN40, Ireland; Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, Melbourne Brain Centre, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC 3052, Australia; Child & Brain Development Program, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), Toronto, ON M5G 1M1, Canada.
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45
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Davidson CJ, Mascarin AT, Yahya MA, Rubio FJ, Gheidi A. Approaches and considerations of studying neuronal ensembles: a brief review. Front Cell Neurosci 2023; 17:1310724. [PMID: 38155864 PMCID: PMC10752959 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2023.1310724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023] Open
Abstract
First theorized by Hebb, neuronal ensembles have provided a framework for understanding how the mammalian brain operates, especially regarding learning and memory. Neuronal ensembles are discrete, sparsely distributed groups of neurons that become activated in response to a specific stimulus and are thought to provide an internal representation of the world. Beyond the study of region-wide or projection-wide activation, the study of ensembles offers increased specificity and resolution to identify and target specific memories or associations. Neuroscientists interested in the neurobiology of learning, memory, and motivated behavior have used electrophysiological-, calcium-, and protein-based proxies of neuronal activity in preclinical models to better understand the neurobiology of learned and motivated behaviors. Although these three approaches may be used to pursue the same general goal of studying neuronal ensembles, technical differences lead to inconsistencies in the output and interpretation of data. This mini-review highlights some of the methodologies used in electrophysiological-, calcium-, and protein-based studies of neuronal ensembles and discusses their strengths and weaknesses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cameron J. Davidson
- William Beaumont School of Medicine, Oakland University, Rochester, MI, United States
| | - Alixandria T. Mascarin
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, United States
| | - Majd A. Yahya
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI, United States
| | - F. Javier Rubio
- Neuronal Ensembles in Addiction Section, Behavioral Neuroscience Research Branch, Intramural Research Program/National Institute on Drug Abuse/National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Ali Gheidi
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Mercer University, Macon, GA, United States
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46
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Szelenyi ER, Navarrete JS, Murry AD, Zhang Y, Girven KS, Kuo L, Cline MM, Bernstein MX, Burdyniuk M, Bowler B, Goodwin NL, Juarez B, Zweifel LS, Golden SA. An arginine-rich nuclear localization signal (ArgiNLS) strategy for streamlined image segmentation of single-cells. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.22.568319. [PMID: 38045271 PMCID: PMC10690249 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.22.568319] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
High-throughput volumetric fluorescent microscopy pipelines can spatially integrate whole-brain structure and function at the foundational level of single-cells. However, conventional fluorescent protein (FP) modifications used to discriminate single-cells possess limited efficacy or are detrimental to cellular health. Here, we introduce a synthetic and non-deleterious nuclear localization signal (NLS) tag strategy, called 'Arginine-rich NLS' (ArgiNLS), that optimizes genetic labeling and downstream image segmentation of single-cells by restricting FP localization near-exclusively in the nucleus through a poly-arginine mechanism. A single N-terminal ArgiNLS tag provides modular nuclear restriction consistently across spectrally separate FP variants. ArgiNLS performance in vivo displays functional conservation across major cortical cell classes, and in response to both local and systemic brain wide AAV administration. Crucially, the high signal-to-noise ratio afforded by ArgiNLS enhances ML-automated segmentation of single-cells due to rapid classifier training and enrichment of labeled cell detection within 2D brain sections or 3D volumetric whole-brain image datasets, derived from both staining-amplified and native signal. This genetic strategy provides a simple and flexible basis for precise image segmentation of genetically labeled single-cells at scale and paired with behavioral procedures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric R. Szelenyi
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Jovana S. Navarrete
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Alexandria D. Murry
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Yizhe Zhang
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Kasey S. Girven
- University of Washington, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
| | - Lauren Kuo
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington Undergraduate Program in Biochemistry
- Allen Institute for Cell Science, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Marcella M. Cline
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Pharmacology, Seattle, WA, USA
- Cajal Neuroscience, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Mollie X. Bernstein
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Pharmacology, Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - Bryce Bowler
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Nastacia L. Goodwin
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Barbara Juarez
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Pharmacology, Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Maryland School of Medicine, Department of Neurobiology, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Larry S. Zweifel
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Pharmacology, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Sam A. Golden
- University of Washington Center of Excellence in Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion (NAPE), Seattle, WA, USA
- University of Washington, Department of Biological Structure, Seattle, WA, USA
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47
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Campbell RR, Lobo MK. Neurobiological mechanisms underlying psychostimulant use. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2023; 83:102786. [PMID: 37776675 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2023.102786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Revised: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/01/2023] [Indexed: 10/02/2023]
Abstract
Rates of individuals struggling with psychostimulant use disorder (PSUD), defined as chronic use of psychostimulants despite negative consequences, are growing rapidly over the last few decades. However, there are no current pharmacotherapeutics to aid individuals in maintaining drug abstinence. Identifying the underlying neurobiological mechanisms that promote persistent craving and taking of psychostimulants is critical to creating novel pharmacological treatments for PSUD. Psychostimulant use dysregulates processes within the brain that are responsible for decision-making, reward, and memory formation to drive future drug-seeking. Here, we describe novel findings and theories on how psychostimulants impact mechanisms related to transcription, mitochondrial function, and synaptic plasticity within the reward system to drive drug-seeking. We also highlight work examining how psychostimulants impact neural networks through rewiring circuitry to drive addiction-related behaviors. Overall, this review aims to feature the latest progress in understanding the biological basis of PSUD and promising mechanisms for PSUD pharmacotherapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rianne R Campbell
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA. https://twitter.com/RianneThoughts
| | - Mary Kay Lobo
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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48
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Berdugo‐Vega G, Dhingra S, Calegari F. Sharpening the blades of the dentate gyrus: how adult-born neurons differentially modulate diverse aspects of hippocampal learning and memory. EMBO J 2023; 42:e113524. [PMID: 37743770 PMCID: PMC11059975 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2023113524] [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: 01/16/2023] [Revised: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/26/2023] Open
Abstract
For decades, the mammalian hippocampus has been the focus of cellular, anatomical, behavioral, and computational studies aimed at understanding the fundamental mechanisms underlying cognition. Long recognized as the brain's seat for learning and memory, a wealth of knowledge has been accumulated on how the hippocampus processes sensory input, builds complex associations between objects, events, and space, and stores this information in the form of memories to be retrieved later in life. However, despite major efforts, our understanding of hippocampal cognitive function remains fragmentary, and models trying to explain it are continually revisited. Here, we review the literature across all above-mentioned domains and offer a new perspective by bringing attention to the most distinctive, and generally neglected, feature of the mammalian hippocampal formation, namely, the structural separability of the two blades of the dentate gyrus into "supra-pyramidal" and "infra-pyramidal". Next, we discuss recent reports supporting differential effects of adult neurogenesis in the regulation of mature granule cell activity in these two blades. We propose a model for how differences in connectivity and adult neurogenesis in the two blades can potentially provide a substrate for subtly different cognitive functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Berdugo‐Vega
- CRTD‐Center for Regenerative Therapies DresdenTechnische Universität DresdenDresdenGermany
- Present address:
Laboratory of Neuroepigenetics, Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, École Polytechnique Fédérale Lausanne (EPFL)LausanneSwitzerland
| | - Shonali Dhingra
- CRTD‐Center for Regenerative Therapies DresdenTechnische Universität DresdenDresdenGermany
| | - Federico Calegari
- CRTD‐Center for Regenerative Therapies DresdenTechnische Universität DresdenDresdenGermany
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49
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Tsou JH, Lee SR, Chiang CY, Yang YJ, Guo FY, Ni SY, Yau HJ. Negative Emotions Recruit the Parabrachial Nucleus Efferent to the VTA to Disengage Instrumental Food Seeking. J Neurosci 2023; 43:7276-7293. [PMID: 37684032 PMCID: PMC10621778 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2114-22.2023] [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: 11/14/2022] [Revised: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The parabrachial nucleus (PBN) interfaces between taste and feeding systems and is also an important hub for relaying distress information and threats. Despite that the PBN sends projections to the ventral tegmental area (VTA), a heterogeneous brain region that regulates motivational behaviors, the function of the PBN-to-VTA connection remains elusive. Here, by using male mice in several behavioral paradigms, we discover that VTA-projecting PBN neurons are significantly engaged in contextual fear, restraint or mild stress but not palatable feeding, visceral malaise, or thermal pain. These results suggest that the PBN-to-VTA input may relay negative emotions under threat. Consistent with this notion, optogenetic activation of PBN-to-VTA glutamatergic input results in aversion, which is sufficient to override palatable feeding. Moreover, in a palatable food-reinforced operant task, we demonstrate that transient optogenetic activation of PBN-to-VTA input during food reward retrieval disengages instrumental food-seeking behaviors but spares learned action-outcome association. By using an activity-dependent targeting approach, we show that VTA DA neurons are disengaged by the PBN afferent activation, implicating that VTA non-DA neurons may mediate PBN afferent regulation. We further show that optogenetic activation of VTA neurons functionally recruited by the PBN input results in aversion, dampens palatable feeding, and disengages palatable food self-administration behavior. Finally, we demonstrate that transient activation of VTA glutamatergic, but not GABAergic, neurons recapitulates the negative regulation of the PBN input on food self-administration behavior. Together, we reveal that the PBN-to-VTA input conveys negative affect, likely through VTA glutamatergic neurons, to disengage instrumental food-seeking behaviors.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The PBN receives multiple inputs and thus is well positioned to route information of various modalities to engage different downstream circuits to attend or respond accordingly. We demonstrate that the PBN-to-VTA input conveys negative affect and then triggers adaptive prioritized responses to address pertinent needs by withholding ongoing behaviors, such as palatable food seeking or intake shown in the present study. It has evolutionary significance because preparing to cope with stressful situations or threats takes priority over food seeking to promote survival. Knowing how appropriate adaptive responses are generated will provide new insights into circuitry mechanisms of various coping behaviors to changing environmental stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen-Hui Tsou
- Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei 11031, Taiwan
- Synaptic Plasticity Section, Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland 21224
| | - Syun-Ruei Lee
- Laboratory for Neural Circuits and Behaviors, Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10051, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Ying Chiang
- Laboratory for Neural Circuits and Behaviors, Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10051, Taiwan
| | - Yi-Jie Yang
- Laboratory for Neural Circuits and Behaviors, Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10051, Taiwan
| | - Fong-Yi Guo
- Laboratory for Neural Circuits and Behaviors, Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10051, Taiwan
| | - Shih-Ying Ni
- School of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei 100, Taiwan
| | - Hau-Jie Yau
- Laboratory for Neural Circuits and Behaviors, Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10051, Taiwan
- Neurobiology and Cognitive Science Center, National Taiwan University, Taipei 10617, Taiwan
- Taiwan International Graduate Program in Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, National Taiwan University and Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
- PhD Program in Translational Medicine, National Taiwan University and Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
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50
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Rijsketic DR, Casey AB, Barbosa DAN, Zhang X, Hietamies TM, Ramirez-Ovalle G, Pomrenze MB, Halpern CH, Williams LM, Malenka RC, Heifets BD. UNRAVELing the synergistic effects of psilocybin and environment on brain-wide immediate early gene expression in mice. Neuropsychopharmacology 2023; 48:1798-1807. [PMID: 37248402 PMCID: PMC10579391 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-023-01613-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Revised: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The effects of context on the subjective experience of serotonergic psychedelics have not been fully examined in human neuroimaging studies, partly due to limitations of the imaging environment. Here, we administered saline or psilocybin to mice in their home cage or an enriched environment, immunofluorescently-labeled brain-wide c-Fos, and imaged iDISCO+ cleared tissue with light sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM) to examine the impact of environmental context on psilocybin-elicited neural activity at cellular resolution. Voxel-wise analysis of c-Fos-immunofluorescence revealed clusters of neural activity associated with main effects of context and psilocybin-treatment, which were validated with c-Fos+ cell density measurements. Psilocybin increased c-Fos expression in subregions of the neocortex, caudoputamen, central amygdala, and parasubthalamic nucleus while it decreased c-Fos in the hypothalamus, cortical amygdala, striatum, and pallidum in a predominantly context-independent manner. To gauge feasibility of future mechanistic studies on ensembles activated by psilocybin, we confirmed activity- and Cre-dependent genetic labeling in a subset of these neurons using TRAP2+/-;Ai14+ mice. Network analyses treating each psilocybin-sensitive cluster as a node indicated that psilocybin disrupted co-activity between highly correlated regions, reduced brain modularity, and dramatically attenuated intermodular co-activity. Overall, our results indicate that main effects of context and psilocybin were robust, widespread, and reorganized network architecture, whereas context×psilocybin interactions were surprisingly sparse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Ryskamp Rijsketic
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Austen B Casey
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Daniel A N Barbosa
- Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Xue Zhang
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Tuuli M Hietamies
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Grecia Ramirez-Ovalle
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Matthew B Pomrenze
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Casey H Halpern
- Department of Neurosurgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Leanne M Williams
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Sierra-Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center (MIRECC) Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System, Palo Alto, CA, USA
| | - Robert C Malenka
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA
| | - Boris D Heifets
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
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