1
|
Zhang H, Zhu Z, Ma WX, Kong LX, Yuan PC, Bu LF, Han J, Huang ZL, Wang YQ. The contribution of periaqueductal gray in the regulation of physiological and pathological behaviors. Front Neurosci 2024; 18:1380171. [PMID: 38650618 PMCID: PMC11034386 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1380171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Periaqueductal gray (PAG), an integration center for neuronal signals, is located in the midbrain and regulates multiple physiological and pathological behaviors, including pain, defensive and aggressive behaviors, anxiety and depression, cardiovascular response, respiration, and sleep-wake behaviors. Due to the different neuroanatomical connections and functional characteristics of the four functional columns of PAG, different subregions of PAG synergistically regulate various instinctual behaviors. In the current review, we summarized the role and possible neurobiological mechanism of different subregions of PAG in the regulation of pain, defensive and aggressive behaviors, anxiety, and depression from the perspective of the up-down neuronal circuits of PAG. Furthermore, we proposed the potential clinical applications of PAG. Knowledge of these aspects will give us a better understanding of the key role of PAG in physiological and pathological behaviors and provide directions for future clinical treatments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hui Zhang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Screening and Re-evaluation of Active Compounds of Herbal Medicines in Southern Anhui, Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Center for Polysaccharide Drugs, Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, China
| | - Zhe Zhu
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wei-Xiang Ma
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ling-Xi Kong
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ping-Chuan Yuan
- Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Screening and Re-evaluation of Active Compounds of Herbal Medicines in Southern Anhui, Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Center for Polysaccharide Drugs, Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, China
| | - Li-Fang Bu
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jun Han
- Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Screening and Re-evaluation of Active Compounds of Herbal Medicines in Southern Anhui, Anhui Provincial Engineering Research Center for Polysaccharide Drugs, Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, China
| | - Zhi-Li Huang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yi-Qun Wang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Joint International Research Laboratory of Sleep, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Lamotte G, Shouman K, Benarroch EE. Stress and central autonomic network. Auton Neurosci 2021; 235:102870. [PMID: 34461325 DOI: 10.1016/j.autneu.2021.102870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Revised: 07/09/2021] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
The central autonomic network (CAN) plays a critical role in the stress response, which is triggered by challenges on the homeostasis (physiological stressors) or unpleasant social or environmental situations. This review focuses on the role of areas of the CAN including the insular and anterior cingulate cortices, extended amygdala, hypothalamus, periaqueductal gray and locus coeruleus in the stress response. These areas are interconnected and affect sympathetic or parasympathetic output via their influence on premotor or preganglionic autonomic neurons in the lower brainstem and spinal cord. The insula integrates multiple inputs to create a sense of the physiological state of the body, whereas the anterior cingulate initiates predictive visceromotor commands. The amygdala and bed nucleus of the stria terminalis provide automatic emotional tagging and trigger automatic survival responses to threat via their outputs to the hypothalamus, periaqueductal gray, and lower brainstem. Several regions of the hypothalamus, including the paraventricular nucleus, dorsomedial nucleus and lateral hypothalamic area participate in different patterns of stress response according to the type of stimulus and projections to premotor and preganglionic autonomic neurons. The periaqueductal gray initiates different patterns of autonomic, pain modulatory, and motor responses, including the "fight or flight" or "playing dead" responses. The locus coeruleus promotes emotional learning in the amygdala associated with states of anxiety. Neurons of the C1 area of the rostral ventrolateral medulla elicit sympathoexcitatory responses to internal stressors such as hypoxia and inflammation. The ventromedial medulla, including the nucleus raphe pallidus, initiates sympathoexcitatory responses to social and other external stressors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Guillaume Lamotte
- Mayo Clinic, Department of Neurology, Rochester, MN, USA; University of Utah, Department of Neurology, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.
| | - Kamal Shouman
- Mayo Clinic, Department of Neurology, Rochester, MN, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
3
|
Genaro K, Prado WA. The role of the anterior pretectal nucleus in pain modulation: A comprehensive review. Eur J Neurosci 2021; 54:4358-4380. [PMID: 33909941 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2021] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Descending pain modulation involves multiple encephalic sites and pathways that range from the cerebral cortex to the spinal cord. Behavioral studies conducted in the 1980s revealed that electrical stimulation of the pretectal area causes antinociception dissociation from aversive responses. Anatomical and physiological studies identified the anterior pretectal nucleus and its descending projections to several midbrain, pontine, and medullary structures. The anterior pretectal nucleus is morphologically divided into a dorsal part that contains a dense neuron population (pars compacta) and a ventral part that contains a dense fiber band network (pars reticulata). Connections of the two anterior pretectal nucleus parts are broad and include prominent projections to and from major encephalic systems associated with somatosensory processes. Since the first observation that acute or chronic noxious stimuli activate the anterior pretectal nucleus, it has been established that numerous mediators participate in this response through distinct pathways. Recent studies have confirmed that at least two pain inhibitory pathways are activated from the anterior pretectal nucleus. This review focuses on rodent anatomical, behavioral, molecular, and neurochemical data that have helped to identify mediators of the anterior pretectal nucleus and pathways related to its role in pain modulation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karina Genaro
- Department of Anesthesiology, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Wiliam A Prado
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Coolen RL, Cambier JC, Spantidea PI, van Asselt E, Blok BFM. Androgen receptors in areas of the spinal cord and brainstem: A study in adult male cats. J Anat 2021; 239:125-135. [PMID: 33619726 PMCID: PMC8197961 DOI: 10.1111/joa.13407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2020] [Revised: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Sex hormones, including androgens and estrogens, play an important role in autonomic, reproductive and sexual behavior. The areas that are important in these behaviors lie within the spinal cord and brainstem. Relevant dysfunctional behavior in patients with altered androgen availability or androgen receptor sensitivity might be explained by the distribution of androgens and their receptors in the central nervous system. We hypothesize that autonomic dysfunction is correlated with the androgen sensitivity of spinal cord and brainstem areas responsible for autonomic functions. In this study, androgen receptor immunoreactive (AR‐IR) nuclei in the spinal cord and brainstem were studied using the androgen receptor antibody PG21 in four uncastrated young adult male cats. A dense distribution of AR‐IR nuclei was detected in the superior layers of the dorsal horn, including lamina I. Intensely stained nuclei, but less densely distributed, were found in lamina X and preganglionic sympathetic and parasympathetic cells of the intermediolateral cell column. Areas in the caudal brainstem showing a high density of AR‐IR nuclei included the area postrema, the dorsal motor vagus nucleus and the retrotrapezoid nucleus. More cranially, the central linear nucleus in the pons contained a dense distribution of AR‐IR nuclei. The mesencephalic periaqueductal gray (PAG) showed a dense distribution of AR‐IR nuclei apart from the most central part of the PAG directly adjacent to the ependymal lining. Other areas in the mesencephalon with a dense distribution of AR‐IR nuclei were the dorsal raphe nucleus, the retrorubral nucleus, the substantia nigra and the ventral tegmental area of Tsai. It is concluded that AR‐IR nuclei are located in specific areas of the central nervous system that are involved in the control of sensory function and autonomic behavior. Furthermore, damage of these AR‐IR areas might explain related dysfunction in humans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rosa L Coolen
- Department of Urology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | | | - Els van Asselt
- Department of Urology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Bertil F M Blok
- Department of Urology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Hohenschurz-Schmidt DJ, Calcagnini G, Dipasquale O, Jackson JB, Medina S, O'Daly O, O'Muircheartaigh J, de Lara Rubio A, Williams SCR, McMahon SB, Makovac E, Howard MA. Linking Pain Sensation to the Autonomic Nervous System: The Role of the Anterior Cingulate and Periaqueductal Gray Resting-State Networks. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:147. [PMID: 33041747 PMCID: PMC7527240 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.00147] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 02/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
There are bi-directional interactions between the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and pain. This is likely underpinned by a substantial overlap between brain areas of the central autonomic network and areas involved in pain processing and modulation. To date, however, relatively little is known about the neuronal substrates of the ANS-pain association. Here, we acquired resting state fMRI scans in 21 healthy subjects at rest and during tonic noxious cold stimulation. As indicators of autonomic function, we examined how heart rate variability (HRV) frequency measures were influenced by tonic noxious stimulation and how these variables related to participants’ pain perception and to brain functional connectivity in regions known to play a role in both ANS regulation and pain perception, namely the right dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) and periaqueductal gray (PAG). Our findings support a role of the cardiac ANS in brain connectivity during pain, linking functional connections of the dACC and PAG with measurements of low frequency (LF)-HRV. In particular, we identified a three-way relationship between the ANS, cortical brain networks known to underpin pain processing, and participants’ subjectively reported pain experiences. LF-HRV both at rest and during pain correlated with functional connectivity between the seed regions and other cortical areas including the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), left anterior insula (AI), and the precuneus. Our findings link cardiovascular autonomic parameters to brain activity changes involved in the elaboration of nociceptive information, thus beginning to elucidate underlying brain mechanisms associated with the reciprocal relationship between autonomic and pain-related systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- David Johannes Hohenschurz-Schmidt
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Giovanni Calcagnini
- Department of Technology and Health, Italian National Institute of Health, Rome, Italy
| | - Ottavia Dipasquale
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jade B Jackson
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Wolfson Centre for Age Related Diseases, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sonia Medina
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Wolfson Centre for Age Related Diseases, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Owen O'Daly
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jonathan O'Muircheartaigh
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Sackler Institute for Translational Neurodevelopment, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | | | | | - Stephen B McMahon
- Department of Technology and Health, Italian National Institute of Health, Rome, Italy
| | - Elena Makovac
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Department of Technology and Health, Italian National Institute of Health, Rome, Italy
| | - Matthew A Howard
- Department of Neuroimaging, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|