101
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Differential encoding of place value between the dorsal and intermediate hippocampus. Curr Biol 2021; 31:3053-3072.e5. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.04.073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Revised: 04/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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102
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Ito M, Nagase M, Tohyama S, Mikami K, Kato F, Watabe AM. The parabrachial-to-amygdala pathway provides aversive information to induce avoidance behavior in mice. Mol Brain 2021; 14:94. [PMID: 34167570 PMCID: PMC8223383 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-021-00807-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
The neuronal circuitry for pain signals has been intensively studied for decades. The external lateral parabrachial nucleus (PB) was shown to play a crucial role in nociceptive information processing. Previous work, including ours, has demonstrated that stimulating the neuronal pathway from the PB to the central region of the amygdala (CeA) can substitute for an actual pain signal to drive an associative form of threat/fear memory formation. However, it is still unknown whether activation of the PB-CeA pathway can directly drive avoidance behavior, escape behavior, or only acts as strategic freezing behavior for later memory retrieval. To directly address this issue, we have developed a real-time Y-maze conditioning behavioral paradigm to examine avoidance behavior induced by optogenetic stimulation of the PB-CeA pathway. In this current study, we have demonstrated that the PB-CeA pathway carries aversive information that can directly trigger avoidance behavior and thereby serve as an alarm signal to induce adaptive behaviors for later decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariko Ito
- Department of Neuroscience, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
- Institute of Clinical Medicine and Research, Research Center for Medical Sciences, The Jikei University School of Medicine, 163-1 Kashiwa-shita, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8567, Japan
- Department of Anesthesiology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Masashi Nagase
- Institute of Clinical Medicine and Research, Research Center for Medical Sciences, The Jikei University School of Medicine, 163-1 Kashiwa-shita, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8567, Japan
| | - Suguru Tohyama
- Institute of Clinical Medicine and Research, Research Center for Medical Sciences, The Jikei University School of Medicine, 163-1 Kashiwa-shita, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8567, Japan
| | - Kaori Mikami
- Institute of Clinical Medicine and Research, Research Center for Medical Sciences, The Jikei University School of Medicine, 163-1 Kashiwa-shita, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8567, Japan
| | - Fusao Kato
- Department of Neuroscience, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Ayako M Watabe
- Institute of Clinical Medicine and Research, Research Center for Medical Sciences, The Jikei University School of Medicine, 163-1 Kashiwa-shita, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8567, Japan.
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103
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Schulreich S, Gerhardt H, Meshi D, Heekeren HR. Fear-induced increases in loss aversion are linked to increased neural negative-value coding. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2021; 15:661-670. [PMID: 32644143 PMCID: PMC7438956 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nsaa091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Revised: 05/23/2020] [Accepted: 06/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Human decisions are often influenced by emotions. An economically relevant example is the role of fear in generating loss aversion. Previous research implicates the amygdala as a key brain structure in the experience of fear and loss aversion. The neural mechanism behind emotional influences on loss aversion is, however, unclear. To address this, we measured brain activation with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while participants made decisions about monetary gambles after viewing fearful or neutral faces. We observed that loss aversion following the presentation of neutral faces was mainly predicted by greater deactivations for prospective losses (relative to activations for prospective gains) in several brain regions, including the amygdala. By contrast, increases in loss aversion following the presentation of fearful faces were mainly predicted by greater activations for prospective losses. These findings suggest a fear-induced shift from positive to negative value coding that reflects a context-dependent involvement of distinct valuation processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Schulreich
- Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Center for Cognitive Neuroscience Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Faculty of Psychology and Human Movement Science, University of Hamburg, 20146 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Holger Gerhardt
- Department of Economics, University of Bonn, 53012 Bonn, Germany.,Center for Economics and Neuroscience, University of Bonn, 53012 Bonn, Germany
| | - Dar Meshi
- Department of Advertising and Public Relations, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - Hauke R Heekeren
- Department of Education and Psychology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany.,Center for Cognitive Neuroscience Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
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104
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Leyrer-Jackson JM, Hood LE, Olive MF. Alcohol consumption preferentially activates a subset of pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) producing neurons targeting the amygdala. Neuropharmacology 2021; 195:108674. [PMID: 34153315 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2021.108674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Alcohol abuse is a worldwide public health concern and leads to an estimated 90,000 alcohol-related deaths in the United States annually. Alcohol may promote its euphoric and motivational effects, in part, by activating the endogenous opioid system. Pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) producing neurons located within the arcuate nucleus (ArcN) of the hypothalamus make up one circuit of the endogenous opioid system, and heavily projects to reward-related brain areas such as the amygdala, nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA). POMC producing neurons release β-endorphin and other peptides that target opioid receptors within reward areas to elicit their associated rewarding effects. Here we explore ArcN POMC neuronal activation, as assessed via FosB expression, following alcohol consumption to determine whether activation varied within subsets of ArcN POMC projection neurons targeting different reward-related areas. METHODS Fluorescent retrobeads were used to label ArcN POMC projection neurons targeting the NAc, amygdala and VTA in POMC-cre mice expressing the reporter tdTomato. Animals (n = 57) were then allowed to voluntarily consume alcohol or water using the drinking-in-the-dark (DID) paradigm, and sacrificed for immunohistochemistry to examine FosB expression within ArcN POMC neurons. RESULTS Female mice displayed escalation of alcohol intake across DID sessions, whereas males did not. A greater percent of ArcN POMC neurons target the amygdala over the NAc and VTA, and alcohol consumption preferentially activated ArcN POMC neurons targeting the amygdala over other areas. CONCLUSION These findings highlight a novel aspect alcohol-induced activation of the endogenous opioid system, whereby alcohol activates a specific subpopulation of ArcN POMC producing neurons that project primarily to the amygdala.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lauren E Hood
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85281, USA
| | - M Foster Olive
- Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, 85281, USA
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105
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Sias AC, Morse AK, Wang S, Greenfield VY, Goodpaster CM, Wrenn TM, Wikenheiser AM, Holley SM, Cepeda C, Levine MS, Wassum KM. A bidirectional corticoamygdala circuit for the encoding and retrieval of detailed reward memories. eLife 2021; 10:e68617. [PMID: 34142660 PMCID: PMC8266390 DOI: 10.7554/elife.68617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive reward-related decision making often requires accurate and detailed representation of potential available rewards. Environmental reward-predictive stimuli can facilitate these representations, allowing one to infer which specific rewards might be available and choose accordingly. This process relies on encoded relationships between the cues and the sensory-specific details of the rewards they predict. Here, we interrogated the function of the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and its interaction with the lateral orbitofrontal cortex (lOFC) in the ability to learn such stimulus-outcome associations and use these memories to guide decision making. Using optical recording and inhibition approaches, Pavlovian cue-reward conditioning, and the outcome-selective Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer (PIT) test in male rats, we found that the BLA is robustly activated at the time of stimulus-outcome learning and that this activity is necessary for sensory-specific stimulus-outcome memories to be encoded, so they can subsequently influence reward choices. Direct input from the lOFC was found to support the BLA in this function. Based on prior work, activity in BLA projections back to the lOFC was known to support the use of stimulus-outcome memories to influence decision making. By multiplexing optogenetic and chemogenetic inhibition we performed a serial circuit disconnection and found that the lOFC→BLA and BLA→lOFC pathways form a functional circuit regulating the encoding (lOFC→BLA) and subsequent use (BLA→lOFC) of the stimulus-dependent, sensory-specific reward memories that are critical for adaptive, appetitive decision making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana C Sias
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Ashleigh K Morse
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Sherry Wang
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Venuz Y Greenfield
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Caitlin M Goodpaster
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Tyler M Wrenn
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Andrew M Wikenheiser
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Sandra M Holley
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Carlos Cepeda
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Michael S Levine
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
| | - Kate M Wassum
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
- Integrative Center for Addictive Disorders, University of California, Los AngelesLos AngelesUnited States
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106
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Zych AD, Gogolla N. Expressions of emotions across species. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2021; 68:57-66. [PMID: 33548631 PMCID: PMC8259711 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2021.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2020] [Revised: 01/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
What are emotions and how should we study them? These questions give rise to ongoing controversy amongst scientists in the fields of neuroscience, psychology and philosophy, and have resulted in different views on emotions [1-6]. In this review, we define emotions as functional states that bear essential roles in promoting survival and thus have emerged through evolution. Emotions trigger behavioral, somatic, hormonal, and neurochemical reactions, referred to as expressions of emotion. We discuss recent studies on emotion expression across species and highlight emerging common principles. We argue that detailed and multidimensional analyses of emotion expressions are key to develop biology-based definitions of emotions and to reveal their neuronal underpinnings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna D Zych
- Circuits for Emotion Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany; International Max-Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Nadine Gogolla
- Circuits for Emotion Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany.
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107
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Piantadosi PT, Halladay LR, Radke AK, Holmes A. Advances in understanding meso-cortico-limbic-striatal systems mediating risky reward seeking. J Neurochem 2021; 157:1547-1571. [PMID: 33704784 PMCID: PMC8981567 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.15342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2021] [Revised: 03/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/06/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The risk of an aversive consequence occurring as the result of a reward-seeking action can have a profound effect on subsequent behavior. Such aversive events can be described as punishers, as they decrease the probability that the same action will be produced again in the future and increase the exploration of less risky alternatives. Punishment can involve the omission of an expected rewarding event ("negative" punishment) or the addition of an unpleasant event ("positive" punishment). Although many individuals adaptively navigate situations associated with the risk of negative or positive punishment, those suffering from substance use disorders or behavioral addictions tend to be less able to curtail addictive behaviors despite the aversive consequences associated with them. Here, we discuss the psychological processes underpinning reward seeking despite the risk of negative and positive punishment and consider how behavioral assays in animals have been employed to provide insights into the neural mechanisms underlying addictive disorders. We then review the critical contributions of dopamine signaling to punishment learning and risky reward seeking, and address the roles of interconnected ventral striatal, cortical, and amygdala regions to these processes. We conclude by discussing the ample opportunities for future study to clarify critical gaps in the literature, particularly as related to delineating neural contributions to distinct phases of the risky decision-making process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick T. Piantadosi
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Genomic Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Lindsay R. Halladay
- Department of Psychology, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, California 95053, USA
| | - Anna K. Radke
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience and Behavior, Miami University, Oxford, OH, USA
| | - Andrew Holmes
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Genomic Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, NIH, Bethesda, MD, USA
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108
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Ressler KJ. Translating Across Circuits and Genetics Toward Progress in Fear- and Anxiety-Related Disorders. FOCUS (AMERICAN PSYCHIATRIC PUBLISHING) 2021; 19:247-255. [PMID: 34690590 PMCID: PMC8475910 DOI: 10.1176/appi.focus.19205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/15/2020] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
(Reprinted with permission from Am J Psychiatry 2020; 177:214-222).
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109
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Lee J, An B, Choi S. Longitudinal recordings of single units in the basal amygdala during fear conditioning and extinction. Sci Rep 2021; 11:11177. [PMID: 34045527 PMCID: PMC8159982 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-90530-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2020] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The balance between activities of fear neurons and extinction neurons in the basolateral nucleus of the basal amygdala (BAL) has been hypothesized to encode fear states after extinction. However, it remains unclear whether these neurons are solely responsible for encoding fear states. In this study, we stably recorded single-unit activities in the BAL during fear conditioning and extinction for 3 days, providing a comprehensive view on how different BAL neurons respond during fear learning. We found BAL neurons that showed excitatory responses to the conditioned stimulus (CS) after fear conditioning ('conditioning-potentiated neurons') and another population that showed excitatory responses to the CS after extinction ('extinction-potentiated neurons'). Interestingly, we also found BAL neurons that developed inhibitory responses to the CS after fear conditioning ('conditioning-inhibited neurons') or after extinction ('extinction-inhibited neurons'). BAL neurons that showed excitatory responses to the CS displayed various functional connectivity with each other, whereas less connectivity was observed among neurons with inhibitory responses to the CS. Intriguingly, we found correlative neuronal activities between conditioning-potentiated neurons and neurons with inhibitory responses to the CS. Our findings suggest that distinct BAL neurons, which are responsive to the CS with excitation or inhibition, encode various facets of fear conditioning and extinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junghwa Lee
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Bobae An
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Sukwoo Choi
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
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110
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Smith DM, Torregrossa MM. Valence encoding in the amygdala influences motivated behavior. Behav Brain Res 2021; 411:113370. [PMID: 34051230 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2020] [Revised: 05/11/2021] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
The amygdala is critical for emotional processing and motivated behavior. Its role in these functions is due to its processing of the valence of environmental stimuli. The amygdala receives direct sensory input from sensory thalamus and cortical regions to integrate sensory information from the environment with aversive and/or appetitive outcomes. As many reviews have discussed the amygdala's role in threat processing and fear conditioning, this review will focus on how the amygdala encodes positive valence and the mechanisms that allow it to distinguish between stimuli of positive and negative valence. These findings are also extended to consider how valence encoding populations in the amygdala contribute to local and long-range circuits including those that integrate environmental cues and positive valence. Understanding the complexity of valence encoding in the amygdala is crucial as these mechanisms are implicated in a variety of disease states including anxiety disorders and substance use disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dana M Smith
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, 450 Technology Drive, Pittsburgh, PA, 15219, USA; Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, 4200 Fifth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA.
| | - Mary M Torregrossa
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, 450 Technology Drive, Pittsburgh, PA, 15219, USA; Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, 4200 Fifth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA
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111
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Lin JY, Mukherjee N, Bernstein MJ, Katz DB. Perturbation of amygdala-cortical projections reduces ensemble coherence of palatability coding in gustatory cortex. eLife 2021; 10:e65766. [PMID: 34018924 PMCID: PMC8139825 DOI: 10.7554/elife.65766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2020] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Taste palatability is centrally involved in consumption decisions-we ingest foods that taste good and reject those that don't. Gustatory cortex (GC) and basolateral amygdala (BLA) almost certainly work together to mediate palatability-driven behavior, but the precise nature of their interplay during taste decision-making is still unknown. To probe this issue, we discretely perturbed (with optogenetics) activity in rats' BLA→GC axons during taste deliveries. This perturbation strongly altered GC taste responses, but while the perturbation itself was tonic (2.5 s), the alterations were not-changes preferentially aligned with the onset times of previously-described taste response epochs, and reduced evidence of palatability-related activity in the 'late-epoch' of the responses without reducing the amount of taste identity information available in the 'middle epoch.' Finally, BLA→GC perturbations changed behavior-linked taste response dynamics themselves, distinctively diminishing the abruptness of ensemble transitions into the late epoch. These results suggest that BLA 'organizes' behavior-related GC taste dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian-You Lin
- Department of PsychologyWalthamUnited States
- The Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis UniversityWalthamUnited States
| | - Narendra Mukherjee
- The Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis UniversityWalthamUnited States
| | - Max J Bernstein
- Department of PsychologyWalthamUnited States
- The Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis UniversityWalthamUnited States
| | - Donald B Katz
- Department of PsychologyWalthamUnited States
- The Volen National Center for Complex Systems, Brandeis UniversityWalthamUnited States
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112
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McDonald AJ, Mascagni F. Specific neuronal subpopulations in the rat basolateral amygdala express high levels of nonphosphorylated neurofilaments. J Comp Neurol 2021; 529:3292-3312. [PMID: 33960421 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2021] [Revised: 05/02/2021] [Accepted: 05/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Cortical pyramidal neurons (PNs) containing nonphosphorylated neurofilaments (NNFs) localized with the SMI-32 monoclonal antibody have been shown to be especially vulnerable to degeneration in Alzheimer's disease (AD). The present investigation is the first to study the expression of SMI-32+ NNFs in neurons of the basolateral nuclear complex of the amygdala (BNC), which contains cortex-like PNs and nonpyramidal neurons (NPNs). We observed that PNs in the rat basolateral nucleus (BL), but not in the lateral (LAT) or basomedial (BM) nuclei, have significant levels of SMI-32-ir in their somata with antibody diluents that did not contain Triton X-100, but staining in these cells was greatly attenuated when the antibody diluent contained 0.3% Triton. Using Triton-containing diluents, we found that all SMI-32+ neurons in all three of the BNC nuclei were NPNs. Using a dual-labeling immunoperoxidase technique, we demonstrated that most of these SMI-32+ NPNs were parvalbumin-positive (PV+) or somatostatin-positive NPNs but not vasoactive intestinal peptide-positive or neuropeptide Y-positive NPNs. Using a technique that combines retrograde tracing with SMI-32 immunohistochemistry using intermediate levels of Triton in the diluent, we found that all BNC neurons projecting to the mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD) were large NPNs, and most were SMI-32+. In contrast, BNC neurons projecting to the ventral striatum or cerebral cortex were PNs that expressed low levels of SMI-32 immunoreactivity (SMI-32-ir) in the BL, and no SMI-32-ir in the LAT or BM. These data suggest that the main neuronal subpopulations in the BNC that degenerate in AD may be PV+ and MD-projecting NPNs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Joseph McDonald
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, South Carolina, USA
| | - Franco Mascagni
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, South Carolina, USA
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113
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Kim IH, Kim N, Kim S, Toda K, Catavero CM, Courtland JL, Yin HH, Soderling SH. Dysregulation of the Synaptic Cytoskeleton in the PFC Drives Neural Circuit Pathology, Leading to Social Dysfunction. Cell Rep 2021; 32:107965. [PMID: 32726629 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2020] [Revised: 05/15/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Psychiatric disorders are highly heritable pathologies of altered neural circuit functioning. How genetic mutations lead to specific neural circuit abnormalities underlying behavioral disruptions, however, remains unclear. Using circuit-selective transgenic tools and a mouse model of maladaptive social behavior (ArpC3 mutant), we identify a neural circuit mechanism driving dysfunctional social behavior. We demonstrate that circuit-selective knockout (ctKO) of the ArpC3 gene within prefrontal cortical neurons that project to the basolateral amygdala elevates the excitability of the circuit neurons, leading to disruption of socially evoked neural activity and resulting in abnormal social behavior. Optogenetic activation of this circuit in wild-type mice recapitulates the social dysfunction observed in ArpC3 mutant mice. Finally, the maladaptive sociability of ctKO mice is rescued by optogenetically silencing neurons within this circuit. These results highlight a mechanism of how a gene-to-neural circuit interaction drives altered social behavior, a common phenotype of several psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Il Hwan Kim
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical School, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Namsoo Kim
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Sunwhi Kim
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Koji Toda
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Jamie L Courtland
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical School, Durham, NC, USA; Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical School, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Henry H Yin
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical School, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Scott H Soderling
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical School, Durham, NC, USA; Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical School, Durham, NC, USA.
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114
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Zhang WH, Zhang JY, Holmes A, Pan BX. Amygdala Circuit Substrates for Stress Adaptation and Adversity. Biol Psychiatry 2021; 89:847-856. [PMID: 33691931 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.12.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 28.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Revised: 11/24/2020] [Accepted: 12/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Brain systems that promote maintenance of homeostasis in the face of stress have significant adaptive value. A growing body of work across species demonstrates a critical role for the amygdala in promoting homeostasis by regulating physiological and behavioral responses to stress. This review focuses on an emerging body of evidence that has begun to delineate the contribution of specific long-range amygdala circuits in mediating the effects of stress. After summarizing the major anatomical features of the amygdala and its connectivity to other limbic structures, we discuss recent findings from rodents showing how stress causes structural and functional remodeling of amygdala neuronal outputs to defined cortical and subcortical target regions. We also consider some of the environmental and genetic factors that have been found to moderate how the amygdala responds to stress and relate the emerging preclinical literature to the current understanding of the pathophysiology and treatment of stress-related neuropsychiatric disorders. Future effort to translate these findings to clinics may help to develop valuable tools for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of these diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Hua Zhang
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China
| | - Jun-Yu Zhang
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China
| | - Andrew Holmes
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Genomic Neuroscience, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institues of Health, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Bing-Xing Pan
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, Nanchang, China.
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115
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Wahlstrom KL, Alvarez-Dieppa AC, McIntyre CK, LaLumiere RT. The medial entorhinal cortex mediates basolateral amygdala effects on spatial memory and downstream activity-regulated cytoskeletal-associated protein expression. Neuropsychopharmacology 2021; 46:1172-1182. [PMID: 33007779 PMCID: PMC8115646 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-020-00875-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Revised: 09/08/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala (BLA) modulates the consolidation of dorsal hippocampus (DH)-dependent spatial and dorsolateral striatum (DLS)-dependent cued-response memories, often in competition with one another. Evidence suggests that a critical mechanism for BLA influences on memory consolidation is via effects on activity-regulated cytoskeletal-associated protein (ARC) in downstream brain regions. However, the circuitry by which the BLA modulates ARC in multiple competing memory systems remains unclear. Prior evidence indicates that optogenetic stimulation of BLA projections to the medial entorhinal cortex (mEC) enhances the consolidation of spatial learning and impairs the consolidation of cued-response learning, suggesting this pathway provides a circuit for favoring one system over another. Therefore, we hypothesized the BLA-mEC pathway mediates effects on downstream ARC-based synaptic plasticity related to these competing memory systems. To address this, male and female Sprague-Dawley rats underwent spatial or cued-response Barnes maze training and, 45 min later, were sacrificed for ARC analysis in synaptoneurosomes from the DH and DLS. Initial experiments found that spatial training alone increased ARC levels in the DH above those observed in control rats and rats that underwent a cued-response version of the task. Postspatial training optogenetic stimulation of the BLA-mEC pathway altered the balance of ARC expression in the DH vs. DLS, specifically shifting the balance in favor of the DH-based spatial memory system, although the precise region of ARC changes differed by sex. These findings suggest that BLA-mEC pathway influences on ARC in downstream regions are a mechanism by which the BLA can favor one memory system over another.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krista L. Wahlstrom
- grid.214572.70000 0004 1936 8294Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242 USA
| | - Amanda C. Alvarez-Dieppa
- grid.267323.10000 0001 2151 7939School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, University of Texas-Dallas, Richardson, TX 75080 USA
| | - Christa K. McIntyre
- grid.267323.10000 0001 2151 7939School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, University of Texas-Dallas, Richardson, TX 75080 USA
| | - Ryan T. LaLumiere
- grid.214572.70000 0004 1936 8294Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242 USA ,grid.214572.70000 0004 1936 8294Iowa Neuroscience Institute, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242 USA
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116
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Abstract
Appropriate food intake requires exquisite coordination between the gut and the brain. Indeed, it has long been known that gastrointestinal signals communicate with the brain to promote or inhibit feeding behavior. Recent advances in the ability to monitor and manipulate neural activity in awake, behaving rodents has facilitated important discoveries about how gut signaling influences neural activity and feeding behavior. This review emphasizes recent studies that have advanced our knowledge of gut-brain signaling and food intake control, with a focus on how gut signaling influences in vivo neural activity in animal models. Moving forward, dissecting the complex pathways and circuits that transmit nutritive signals from the gut to the brain will reveal fundamental principles of energy balance, ultimately enabling new treatment strategies for diseases rooted in body weight control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amber L Alhadeff
- Monell Chemical Senses Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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117
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Huang WC, Zucca A, Levy J, Page DT. Social Behavior Is Modulated by Valence-Encoding mPFC-Amygdala Sub-circuitry. Cell Rep 2021; 32:107899. [PMID: 32668253 PMCID: PMC7410267 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2019] [Revised: 03/04/2020] [Accepted: 06/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex and amygdala are anatomical substrates linked to both social information and emotional valence processing, but it is not known whether sub-circuits in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) that project to the basolateral amygdala (BLA) are recruited and functionally contribute to social approach-avoidance behavior. Using retrograde labeling of mPFC projections to the BLA, we find that BLA-projecting neurons in the infralimbic cortex (IL) are preferentially activated in response to a social cue as compared with BLA-projecting neurons in the prelimbic cortex (PL). Chemogenetic interrogation of these sub-circuits shows that activation of PL-BLA or inhibition of IL-BLA circuits impairs social behavior. Sustained closed-loop optogenetic activation of PL-BLA circuitry induces social impairment, corresponding to a negative emotional state as revealed by real-time place preference behavioral avoidance. Reactivation of foot shock-responsive PL-BLA circuitry impairs social behavior. Altogether, these data suggest a circuit-level mechanism by which valence-encoding mPFC-BLA sub-circuits shape social approach-avoidance behavior. Huang et al. investigate a circuit involving two brain regions important for both social and emotional processing. Activation of descending projections to the basolateral amygdala from the prelimbic cortex abolishes social preference and produces behavioral avoidance. Reactivation of negative stimulus-responsive neurons in this circuit abolishes social preference.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Chin Huang
- Department of Neuroscience, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA; Doctoral Program in Chemical and Biological Sciences, The Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences at Scripps Research, Jupiter, FL, USA
| | - Aya Zucca
- Department of Neuroscience, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA
| | - Jenna Levy
- Department of Neuroscience, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA; Doctoral Program in Chemical and Biological Sciences, The Skaggs Graduate School of Chemical and Biological Sciences at Scripps Research, Jupiter, FL, USA
| | - Damon T Page
- Department of Neuroscience, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL, USA.
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118
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Neuronal ensembles in memory processes. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2021; 125:136-143. [PMID: 33858772 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2021.04.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Revised: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
A neuronal ensemble represents the concomitant activity of a specific group of neurons that could encompass a broad repertoire of brain functions such as motor, perceptual, memory or cognitive states. On the other hand, a memory engram portrays the physical manifestation of memory or the changes that enable learning and retrieval. Engram studies focused for many years on finding where memories are stored as in, which cells or brain regions represent a memory trace, and disregarded the investigation of how neuronal activity patterns give rise to such memories. Recent experiments suggest that the association and reactivation of specific neuronal groups could be the main mechanism underlying the brain's ability to remember past experiences and envision future actions. Thus, the growing consensus is that the interaction between neuronal ensembles could allow sequential activity patterns to become memories and recurrent memories to compose complex behaviors. The goal of this review is to propose how the neuronal ensemble framework could be translated and useful to understand memory processes.
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119
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Bouton ME, Maren S, McNally GP. BEHAVIORAL AND NEUROBIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS OF PAVLOVIAN AND INSTRUMENTAL EXTINCTION LEARNING. Physiol Rev 2021; 101:611-681. [PMID: 32970967 PMCID: PMC8428921 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00016.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 153] [Impact Index Per Article: 51.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This article reviews the behavioral neuroscience of extinction, the phenomenon in which a behavior that has been acquired through Pavlovian or instrumental (operant) learning decreases in strength when the outcome that reinforced it is removed. Behavioral research indicates that neither Pavlovian nor operant extinction depends substantially on erasure of the original learning but instead depends on new inhibitory learning that is primarily expressed in the context in which it is learned, as exemplified by the renewal effect. Although the nature of the inhibition may differ in Pavlovian and operant extinction, in either case the decline in responding may depend on both generalization decrement and the correction of prediction error. At the neural level, Pavlovian extinction requires a tripartite neural circuit involving the amygdala, prefrontal cortex, and hippocampus. Synaptic plasticity in the amygdala is essential for extinction learning, and prefrontal cortical inhibition of amygdala neurons encoding fear memories is involved in extinction retrieval. Hippocampal-prefrontal circuits mediate fear relapse phenomena, including renewal. Instrumental extinction involves distinct ensembles in corticostriatal, striatopallidal, and striatohypothalamic circuits as well as their thalamic returns for inhibitory (extinction) and excitatory (renewal and other relapse phenomena) control over operant responding. The field has made significant progress in recent decades, although a fully integrated biobehavioral understanding still awaits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark E Bouton
- Department of Psychological Science, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont
| | - Stephen Maren
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas
| | - Gavan P McNally
- School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
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120
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Understanding the dynamic and destiny of memories. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 125:592-607. [PMID: 33722616 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Revised: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Memory formation enables the retention of life experiences overtime. Based on previously acquired information, organisms can anticipate future events and adjust their behaviors to maximize survival. However, in an ever-changing environment, a memory needs to be malleable to maintain its relevance. In fact, substantial evidence suggests that a consolidated memory can become labile and susceptible to modifications after being reactivated, a process termed reconsolidation. When an extinction process takes place, a memory can also be temporarily inhibited by a second memory that carries information with opposite meaning. In addition, a memory can fade and lose its significance in a process known as forgetting. Thus, following retrieval, new life experiences can be integrated with the original memory trace to maintain its predictive value. In this review, we explore the determining factors that regulate the fate of a memory after its reactivation. We focus on three post-retrieval memory destinies (reconsolidation, extinction, and forgetting) and discuss recent rodent studies investigating the biological functions and neural mechanisms underlying each of these processes.
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121
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Beyeler A, Ju A, Chagraoui A, Cuvelle L, Teixeira M, Di Giovanni G, De Deurwaerdère P. Multiple facets of serotonergic modulation. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2021; 261:3-39. [PMID: 33785133 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2021.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The serotonergic system of the central nervous system (CNS) has been implicated in a broad range of physiological functions and behaviors, such as cognition, mood, social interaction, sexual behavior, feeding behavior, sleep-wake cycle and thermoregulation. Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) establishes a plethora of interactions with neurochemical systems in the CNS via its numerous 5-HT receptors and autoreceptors. The facets of this control are multiple if we consider the molecular actors playing a role in the autoregulation of 5-HT neuron activity including the 5-HT1A, 5-HT1B, 5-HT1D, 5-HT2B, 5-HT7 receptors as well as the serotonin transporter. Moreover, extrinsic loops involving other neurotransmitters giving the other 5-HT receptors the possibility to impact 5-HT neuron activity. Grasping the complexity of these interactions is essential for the development of a variety of therapeutic strategies for cognitive defects and mood disorders. Presently we can illustrate the plurality of the mechanisms and only conceive that these 5-HT controls are likely not uniform in terms of regional and neuronal distribution. Our understanding of the specific expression patterns of these receptors on specific circuits and neuronal populations are progressing and will expand our comprehension of the function and interaction of these receptors with other chemical systems. Thus, the development of new approaches profiling the expression of 5-HT receptors and autoreceptors should reveal additional facets of the 5-HT controls of neurochemical systems in the CNS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Beyeler
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
| | - Anes Ju
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - Abdeslam Chagraoui
- Laboratory of Neuronal and Neuroendocrine Differentiation and Communication, Institute for Research and Innovation in Biomedicine of Normandy (IRIB), Normandie University, UNIROUEN, INSERM U1239, Rouen, France; Department of Medical Biochemistry, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen, France
| | - Lise Cuvelle
- Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Intégratives et Cognitives d'Aquitaine, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | - Maxime Teixeira
- Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Intégratives et Cognitives d'Aquitaine, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | - Giuseppe Di Giovanni
- Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Department of Physiology and Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Malta, Msida, Malta; Neuroscience Division, School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
| | - Philippe De Deurwaerdère
- Centre National de La Recherche Scientifique, Institut des Neurosciences Intégratives et Cognitives d'Aquitaine, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
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122
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Ren W, Centeno MV, Wei X, Wickersham I, Martina M, Apkarian AV, Surmeier DJ. Adaptive alterations in the mesoaccumbal network after peripheral nerve injury. Pain 2021; 162:895-906. [PMID: 33021562 PMCID: PMC9272541 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000002092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 09/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT The nucleus accumbens (NAc) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA) are critical hubs in the brain circuitry controlling chronic pain. Yet, how these 2 regions interact to shape the chronic pain state is poorly understood. Our studies show that in mice, spared nerve injury (SNI) induced alterations in the functional connectome of D2-receptor expressing spiny projection neurons in the core region of the NAc-enhancing connections with prelimbic cortex and weakening them with basolateral amygdala. These changes, which were attributable in part to SNI-induced suppression of VTA dopaminergic signaling, were adaptive because mimicking them chemogenetically alleviated the anxiety and social withdrawal accompanying injury. By contrast, chemogenetic enhancement of activity in VTA dopaminergic neurons projecting to the medial shell of the NAc selectively suppressed tactile allodynia in SNI mice. These results suggest that SNI induces regionally specific alterations in VTA dopaminergic signaling in the NAc to promote environmental reengagement after injury. However, countervailing, homeostatic mechanisms limit these adaptive changes, potentially leading to the chronic pain state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wenjie Ren
- Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 303 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611
- Center of Excellence for Chronic Pain and Drug Abuse Research
| | - Maria Virginia Centeno
- Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 303 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611
- Center of Excellence for Chronic Pain and Drug Abuse Research
| | - Xuhong Wei
- Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 303 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611
| | - Ian Wickersham
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139
| | - Marco Martina
- Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 303 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611
- Center of Excellence for Chronic Pain and Drug Abuse Research
| | - A. Vania Apkarian
- Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 303 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611
- Center of Excellence for Chronic Pain and Drug Abuse Research
| | - D. James Surmeier
- Department of Physiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 303 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611
- Center of Excellence for Chronic Pain and Drug Abuse Research
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123
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Bravo-Rivera H, Rubio Arzola P, Caban-Murillo A, Vélez-Avilés AN, Ayala-Rosario SN, Quirk GJ. Characterizing Different Strategies for Resolving Approach-Avoidance Conflict. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:608922. [PMID: 33716644 PMCID: PMC7947632 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.608922] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2020] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability of animals to maximize benefits and minimize costs during approach-avoidance conflicts is an important evolutionary tool, but little is known about the emergence of specific strategies for conflict resolution. Accordingly, we developed a simple approach-avoidance conflict task in rats that pits the motivation to press a lever for sucrose against the motivation to step onto a distant platform to avoid a footshock delivered at the end of a 30 s tone (sucrose is available only during the tone). Rats received conflict training for 16 days to give them a chance to optimize their strategy by learning to properly time the expression of both behaviors across the tone. Rats unexpectedly separated into three distinct subgroups: those pressing early in the tone and avoiding later (Timers, 49%); those avoiding throughout the tone (Avoidance-preferring, 32%); and those pressing throughout the tone (Approach-preferring, 19%). The immediate early gene cFos revealed that Timers showed increased activity in the ventral striatum and midline thalamus relative to the other two subgroups, Avoidance-preferring rats showed increased activity in the amygdala, and Approach-preferring rats showed decreased activity in the prefrontal cortex. This pattern is consistent with low fear and high behavioral flexibility in Timers, suggesting the potential of this task to reveal the neural mechanisms of conflict resolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hector Bravo-Rivera
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Patricia Rubio Arzola
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Albit Caban-Murillo
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Adriana N. Vélez-Avilés
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Shantée N. Ayala-Rosario
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Gregory J. Quirk
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
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124
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Dieterich A, Floeder J, Stech K, Lee J, Srivastava P, Barker DJ, Samuels BA. Activation of Basolateral Amygdala to Nucleus Accumbens Projection Neurons Attenuates Chronic Corticosterone-Induced Behavioral Deficits in Male Mice. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:643272. [PMID: 33716685 PMCID: PMC7943928 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.643272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is critical for reward behaviors via a projection to the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Specifically, BLA-NAc projections are involved in reinforcement learning, reward-seeking, sustained instrumental responding, and risk behaviors. However, it remains unclear whether chronic stress interacts with BLA-NAc projection neurons to result in maladaptive behaviors. Here we take a chemogenetic, projection-specific approach to clarify how NAc-projecting BLA neurons affect avoidance, reward, and feeding behaviors in male mice. Then, we examine whether chemogenetic activation of NAc-projecting BLA neurons attenuates the maladaptive effects of chronic corticosterone (CORT) administration on these behaviors. CORT mimics the behavioral and neural effects of chronic stress exposure. We found a nuanced role of BLA-NAc neurons in mediating reward behaviors. Surprisingly, activation of BLA-NAc projections rescues CORT-induced deficits in the novelty suppressed feeding, a behavior typically associated with avoidance. Activation of BLA-NAc neurons also increases instrumental reward-seeking without affecting free-feeding in chronic CORT mice. Taken together, these data suggest that NAc-projecting BLA neurons are involved in chronic CORT-induced maladaptive reward and motivation behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Dieterich
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - Joseph Floeder
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - Karina Stech
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - Jay Lee
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - Prachi Srivastava
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - David J. Barker
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
| | - Benjamin A. Samuels
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
- Department of Psychology, Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, United States
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125
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Motivational competition and the paraventricular thalamus. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 125:193-207. [PMID: 33609570 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.02.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2019] [Revised: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Although significant progress has been made in understanding the behavioral and brain mechanisms for motivational systems, much less is known about competition between motivational states or motivational conflict (e.g., approach - avoidance conflict). Despite being produced under diverse conditions, behavior during motivational competition has two signatures: bistability and metastability. These signatures reveal the operation of positive feedback mechanisms in behavioral selection. Different neuronal architectures can instantiate this selection to achieve bistability and metastability in behavior, but each relies on circuit-level inhibition to achieve rapid and stable selection between competing tendencies. Paraventricular thalamus (PVT) is identified as critical to this circuit level inhibition, resolving motivational competition via its extensive projections to local inhibitory networks in the ventral striatum and extended amygdala, enabling adaptive responding under motivational conflict.
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126
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Ma H, Li C, Wang J, Zhang X, Li M, Zhang R, Huang Z, Zhang Y. Amygdala-hippocampal innervation modulates stress-induced depressive-like behaviors through AMPA receptors. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2019409118. [PMID: 33526688 PMCID: PMC8017726 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2019409118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic stress is one of the most critical factors in the onset of depressive disorders; hence, environmental factors such as psychosocial stress are commonly used to induce depressive-like traits in animal models of depression. Ventral CA1 (vCA1) in hippocampus and basal lateral amygdala (BLA) are critical sites during chronic stress-induced alterations in depressive subjects; however, the underlying neural mechanisms remain unclear. Here we employed chronic unpredictable mild stress (CUMS) to model depression in mice and found that the activity of the posterior BLA to vCA1 (pBLA-vCA1) innervation was markedly reduced. Mice subjected to CUMS showed reduction in dendritic complexity, spine density, and synaptosomal AMPA receptors (AMPARs). Stimulation of pBLA-vCA1 innervation via chemogenetics or administration of cannabidiol (CBD) could reverse CUMS-induced synaptosomal AMPAR decrease and efficiently alleviate depressive-like behaviors in mice. These findings demonstrate a critical role for AMPARs and CBD modulation of pBLA-vCA1 innervation in CUMS-induced depressive-like behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Ma
- Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health Commission of People's Republic of China, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| | - Chenyang Li
- Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health Commission of People's Republic of China, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Jinpeng Wang
- Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health Commission of People's Republic of China, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaochen Zhang
- Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health Commission of People's Republic of China, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Mingyue Li
- State Key Laboratory of Natural and Biomimetic Drugs, Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Translational Research (Ministry of Education), Beijing Key Laboratory of Protein Posttranslational Modifications and Cell Function, Department of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Rong Zhang
- Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health Commission of People's Republic of China, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhuo Huang
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104
| | - Yong Zhang
- Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory for Neuroscience, Ministry of Education/National Health Commission of People's Republic of China, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Peking University, 100083 Beijing, People's Republic of China;
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127
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Pereyra AE, Mininni CJ, Zanutto BS. Serotonergic modulation of basolateral amygdala nucleus in the extinction of reward-driven learning: The role of 5-HT bioavailability and 5-HT 1A receptor. Behav Brain Res 2021; 404:113161. [PMID: 33571570 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2020] [Revised: 01/15/2021] [Accepted: 01/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Serotonin (5-HT) neurotransmission has been associated with reward-related behaviour. Moreover, the serotonergic system modulates the basolateral amygdala (BLA), a structure involved in reward encoding, and reward prediction error. However, the role played by 5-HT on BLA during a reward-driven task has not been fully elucidated. In this paper, we investigated whether serotonergic modulation of the BLA is involved in reward-driven learning. To this end, we trained Long Evans rats in an operant conditioning task, and examined the effects of fluoxetine treatment (a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, 10 mg/kg) in combination with BLA lesions with NMDA (20 mg/mL) on extinction learning. We also investigated whether intra-BLA injection of the serotonergic 5-HT1A receptor agonist 8-OH DPAT, or antagonist WAY-100635, alters extinction performance. We found that fluoxetine treatment strongly accelerated extinction learning, while BLA lesions partially reverted this effect and slightly impaired consolidation of extinction. Stimulation and inhibition of 5-HT1A receptors in BLA induced opposite effects to those of fluoxetine, impairing or accelerating extinction performance, respectively. Our findings suggest that 5-HT modulates reward-driven learning, and 5-HT1A receptors located in the BLA are relevant for extinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Ezequiel Pereyra
- Instituto de Biologı́a y Medicina Experimental (IBYME-CONICET), Vuelta de Obligado 2490, CABA, Argentina.
| | - Camilo J Mininni
- Instituto de Biologı́a y Medicina Experimental (IBYME-CONICET), Vuelta de Obligado 2490, CABA, Argentina; Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ingenierı́a, Instituto de Ingenierı́a Biomédica (IIBM), CABA, Argentina.
| | - B Silvano Zanutto
- Instituto de Biologı́a y Medicina Experimental (IBYME-CONICET), Vuelta de Obligado 2490, CABA, Argentina; Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ingenierı́a, Instituto de Ingenierı́a Biomédica (IIBM), CABA, Argentina.
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128
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Coley AA, Padilla-Coreano N, Patel R, Tye KM. Valence processing in the PFC: Reconciling circuit-level and systems-level views. INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF NEUROBIOLOGY 2021; 158:171-212. [PMID: 33785145 DOI: 10.1016/bs.irn.2020.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
An essential component in animal behavior is the ability to process emotion and dissociate among positive and negative valence in response to a rewarding or aversive stimulus. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC)-responsible for higher order executive functions that include cognition, learning, and working memory; and is also involved in sociability-plays a major role in emotional processing and control. Although the amygdala is widely regarded as the "emotional hub," the mPFC encodes for context-specific salience and elicits top-down control over limbic circuitry. The mPFC can then conduct behavioral responses, via cortico-striatal and cortico-brainstem pathways, that correspond to emotional stimuli. Evidence shows that abnormalities within the mPFC lead to sociability deficits, working memory impairments, and drug-seeking behavior that include addiction and compulsive disorders; as well as conditions such as anhedonia. Recent studies investigate the effects of aberrant salience processing on cortical circuitry and neuronal populations associated with these behaviors. In this chapter, we discuss mPFC valence processing, neuroanatomical connections, and physiological substrates involved in mPFC-associated behavior. We review neurocomputational and theoretical models such as "mixed selectivity," that describe cognitive control, attentiveness, and motivational drives. Using this knowledge, we describe the effects of valence imbalances and its influence on mPFC neural pathways that contribute to deficits in social cognition, while understanding the effects in addiction/compulsive behaviors and anhedonia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Austin A Coley
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | | | - Reesha Patel
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Kay M Tye
- Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, United States.
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129
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Representation of Fear of Heights by Basolateral Amygdala Neurons. J Neurosci 2021; 41:1080-1091. [PMID: 33436527 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0483-20.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2020] [Revised: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 10/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Fear of heights is evolutionarily important for survival, yet it is unclear how and which brain regions process such height threats. Given the importance of the basolateral amygdala (BLA) in mediating both learned and innate fear, we investigated how BLA neurons may respond to high-place exposure in freely behaving male mice. We found that a discrete set of BLA neurons exhibited robust firing increases when the mouse was either exploring or placed on a high place, accompanied by increased heart rate and freezing. Importantly, these high-place fear neurons were only activated under height threats, but not looming, acoustic startle, predatory odor, or mild anxiogenic conditions. Furthermore, after a fear-conditioning procedure, these high-place fear neurons developed conditioned responses to the context, but not the cue, indicating a convergence in processing of dangerous/risky contextual information. Our results provide insights into the neuronal representation of the fear of heights and may have implications for the treatment of excessive fear disorders.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Fear can be innate or learned, as innate fear does not require any associative learning or experiences. Previous research mainly focused on studying the neural mechanism of learned fear, often using an associative conditioning procedure such as pairing a tone with a footshock. Only recently scientists started to investigate the neural circuits of innate fear, including the fear of predator odors and looming visual threats; however, how the brain processes the innate fear of heights is unclear. Here we provide direct evidence that the basolateral amygdala (BLA) is involved in representing the fear of heights. A subpopulation of BLA neurons exhibits a selective response to height and contextual threats, but not to other fear-related sensory or anxiogenic stimuli.
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130
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Levy I, Schiller D. Neural Computations of Threat. Trends Cogn Sci 2021; 25:151-171. [PMID: 33384214 PMCID: PMC8084636 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2020.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2020] [Revised: 11/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
A host of learning, memory, and decision-making processes form the individual's response to threat and may be disrupted in anxiety and post-trauma psychopathology. Here we review the neural computations of threat, from the first encounter with a dangerous situation, through learning, storing, and updating cues that predict it, to making decisions about the optimal course of action. The overview highlights the interconnected nature of these processes and their reliance on shared neural and computational mechanisms. We propose an integrative approach to the study of threat-related processes, in which specific computations are studied across the various stages of threat experience rather than in isolation. This approach can generate new insights about the evolution, diagnosis, and treatment of threat-related psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ifat Levy
- Departments of Comparative Medicine, Neuroscience, and Psychology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.
| | - Daniela Schiller
- Department of Psychiatry, Department of Neuroscience, and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
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131
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Sullivan KE, Kendrick RM, Cembrowski MS. Elucidating memory in the brain via single-cell transcriptomics. J Neurochem 2020; 157:982-992. [PMID: 33230878 DOI: 10.1111/jnc.15250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2020] [Revised: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 11/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Elucidating the neural mechanisms of memory in the brain is a central goal of neuroscience. Here, we discuss modern-day transcriptomics methodologies, and how they are well-poised to revolutionize our insight into memory mechanisms at unprecedented resolution and throughput. Focusing on the hippocampus and amygdala, two regions extensively examined in memory research, we show how single-cell transcriptomics technologies have been leveraged to understand the naïve state of these brain regions. Building upon this foundation, we show that these technologies can be applied to single-trial learning paradigms to comprehensively identify molecules and cells that participate in the encoding and retrieval of memory. Transcriptomics also provides an opportunity to understand the cell-type organization of the human hippocampus and amygdala, and due to conservation of these brain regions between humans and rodents, to infer behavioral and causal contributions in the human brain by leveraging rodent cell-type homologies and interventions. Ultimately, such transcriptomic technologies are poised to usher in a qualitatively novel understanding of memory in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaitlin E Sullivan
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Rennie M Kendrick
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Mark S Cembrowski
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,School of Biomedical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,Institute of Applied Mathematics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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132
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Naneix F, Bakoyiannis I, Santoyo-Zedillo M, Bosch-Bouju C, Pacheco-Lopez G, Coutureau E, Ferreira G. Chemogenetic silencing of hippocampus and amygdala reveals a double dissociation in periadolescent obesogenic diet-induced memory alterations. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2020; 178:107354. [PMID: 33276069 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2020.107354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Revised: 10/16/2020] [Accepted: 11/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
In addition to numerous metabolic comorbidities, obesity is associated with several adverse neurobiological outcomes, especially learning and memory alterations. Obesity prevalence is rising dramatically in youth and is persisting in adulthood. This is especially worrying since adolescence is a crucial period for the maturation of certain brain regions playing a central role in memory processes such as the hippocampus and the amygdala. We previously showed that periadolescent, but not adult, exposure to obesogenic high-fat diet (HFD) had opposite effects on hippocampus- and amygdala-dependent memory, impairing the former and enhancing the latter. However, the causal role of these two brain regions in periadolescent HFD-induced memory alterations remains unclear. Here, we first showed that periadolescent HFD induced long-term, but not short-term, object recognition memory deficits, specifically when rats were exposed to a novel context. Using chemogenetic approaches to inhibit targeted brain regions, we then demonstrated that recognition memory deficits are dependent on the activity of the ventral hippocampus, but not the basolateral amygdala. On the contrary, the HFD- induced enhancement of conditioned odor aversion specifically requires amygdala activity. Taken together, these findings suggest that HFD consumption throughout adolescence impairs long-term object recognition memory through alterations of ventral hippocampal activity during memory acquisition. Moreover, these results further highlight the bidirectional effects of adolescent HFD on hippocampal and amygdala functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabien Naneix
- Univ. Bordeaux, INRAE, Bordeaux INP, NutriNeuro, UMR 1286, F-33077, Bordeaux, France; Univ. Bordeaux, CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, 33077 Bordeaux, France
| | - Ioannis Bakoyiannis
- Univ. Bordeaux, INRAE, Bordeaux INP, NutriNeuro, UMR 1286, F-33077, Bordeaux, France
| | - Marianela Santoyo-Zedillo
- Univ. Bordeaux, INRAE, Bordeaux INP, NutriNeuro, UMR 1286, F-33077, Bordeaux, France; Department of Health Sciences, Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), Campus Lerma, Mexico
| | | | - Gustavo Pacheco-Lopez
- Department of Health Sciences, Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM), Campus Lerma, Mexico
| | | | - Guillaume Ferreira
- Univ. Bordeaux, INRAE, Bordeaux INP, NutriNeuro, UMR 1286, F-33077, Bordeaux, France.
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133
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Luchicchi A, Pattij T, Viaña JNM, de Kloet S, Marchant N. Tracing goes viral: Viruses that introduce expression of fluorescent proteins in chemically-specific neurons. J Neurosci Methods 2020; 348:109004. [PMID: 33242528 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2020.109004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2020] [Revised: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Over the last century, there has been great progress in understanding how the brain works. In particular, the last two decades have been crucial in gaining more awareness over the complex functioning of neurotransmitter systems. The use of viral vectors in neuroscience has been pivotal for such development. Exploiting the properties of viral particles, modifying them according to the research needs, and making them target chemically-specific neurons, techniques such as optogenetics and chemogenetics have been developed, which could lead to a giant step toward gene therapy for brain disorders. In this review, we aim to provide an overview of some of the most widely used viral techniques in neuroscience. We will discuss advantages and disadvantages of these methods. In particular, attention is dedicated to the pivotal role played by the introduction of adeno-associated virus and the retrograde tracer canine-associated-2 Cre virus in order to achieve optimal visualization, and interrogation, of chemically-specific neuronal populations and their projections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Luchicchi
- Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences, Amsterdam UMC, VU University Medical Center, de Boelelaan 1108, 1081HZ, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
| | - Tommy Pattij
- Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences, Amsterdam UMC, VU University Medical Center, de Boelelaan 1108, 1081HZ, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - John Noel M Viaña
- Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research (CNCR), VU University Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1085, 1081HZ, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Australian National Centre for the Public Awareness of Science, ANU College of Science, The Australian National University, Linnaeus Way, Acton, ACT 2601, Australia
| | - Sybren de Kloet
- Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research (CNCR), VU University Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1085, 1081HZ, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Nathan Marchant
- Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences, Amsterdam UMC, VU University Medical Center, de Boelelaan 1108, 1081HZ, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
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134
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Mollick JA, Hazy TE, Krueger KA, Nair A, Mackie P, Herd SA, O'Reilly RC. A systems-neuroscience model of phasic dopamine. Psychol Rev 2020; 127:972-1021. [PMID: 32525345 PMCID: PMC8453660 DOI: 10.1037/rev0000199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
We describe a neurobiologically informed computational model of phasic dopamine signaling to account for a wide range of findings, including many considered inconsistent with the simple reward prediction error (RPE) formalism. The central feature of this PVLV framework is a distinction between a primary value (PV) system for anticipating primary rewards (Unconditioned Stimuli [USs]), and a learned value (LV) system for learning about stimuli associated with such rewards (CSs). The LV system represents the amygdala, which drives phasic bursting in midbrain dopamine areas, while the PV system represents the ventral striatum, which drives shunting inhibition of dopamine for expected USs (via direct inhibitory projections) and phasic pausing for expected USs (via the lateral habenula). Our model accounts for data supporting the separability of these systems, including individual differences in CS-based (sign-tracking) versus US-based learning (goal-tracking). Both systems use competing opponent-processing pathways representing evidence for and against specific USs, which can explain data dissociating the processes involved in acquisition versus extinction conditioning. Further, opponent processing proved critical in accounting for the full range of conditioned inhibition phenomena, and the closely related paradigm of second-order conditioning. Finally, we show how additional separable pathways representing aversive USs, largely mirroring those for appetitive USs, also have important differences from the positive valence case, allowing the model to account for several important phenomena in aversive conditioning. Overall, accounting for all of these phenomena strongly constrains the model, thus providing a well-validated framework for understanding phasic dopamine signaling. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica A Mollick
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
| | - Thomas E Hazy
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
| | - Kai A Krueger
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
| | - Ananta Nair
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
| | - Prescott Mackie
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
| | - Seth A Herd
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
| | - Randall C O'Reilly
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder
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135
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Diehl MM, Iravedra-Garcia JM, Morán-Sierra J, Rojas-Bowe G, Gonzalez-Diaz FN, Valentín-Valentín VP, Quirk GJ. Divergent projections of the prelimbic cortex bidirectionally regulate active avoidance. eLife 2020; 9:59281. [PMID: 33054975 PMCID: PMC7588229 DOI: 10.7554/elife.59281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 10/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) integrates incoming information to guide our actions. When motivation for food-seeking competes with avoidance of danger, the PFC likely plays a role in selecting the optimal choice. In platform-mediated active avoidance, rats avoid a tone-signaled footshock by stepping onto a nearby platform, delaying access to sucrose pellets. This avoidance requires prelimbic (PL) PFC, basolateral amygdala (BLA), and ventral striatum (VS). We previously showed that inhibitory tone responses of PL neurons correlate with avoidability of shock (Diehl et al., 2018). Here, we optogenetically modulated PL terminals in VS and BLA to identify PL outputs regulating avoidance. Photoactivating PL-VS projections reduced avoidance, whereas photoactivating PL-BLA projections increased avoidance. Moreover, photosilencing PL-BLA or BLA-VS projections reduced avoidance, suggesting that VS receives opposing inputs from PL and BLA. Bidirectional modulation of avoidance by PL projections to VS and BLA enables the animal to make appropriate decisions when faced with competing drives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria M Diehl
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Jorge M Iravedra-Garcia
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Jonathan Morán-Sierra
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Gabriel Rojas-Bowe
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Fabiola N Gonzalez-Diaz
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Viviana P Valentín-Valentín
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Gregory J Quirk
- Departments of Psychiatry and Neurobiology & Anatomy, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico
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136
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Botta P, Fushiki A, Vicente AM, Hammond LA, Mosberger AC, Gerfen CR, Peterka D, Costa RM. An Amygdala Circuit Mediates Experience-Dependent Momentary Arrests during Exploration. Cell 2020; 183:605-619.e22. [PMID: 33031743 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.09.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2019] [Revised: 05/31/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Exploration of novel environments ensures survival and evolutionary fitness. It is expressed through exploratory bouts and arrests that change dynamically based on experience. Neural circuits mediating exploratory behavior should therefore integrate experience and use it to select the proper behavioral output. Using a spatial exploration assay, we uncovered an experience-dependent increase in momentary arrests in locations where animals arrested previously. Calcium imaging in freely exploring mice revealed a genetically and projection-defined neuronal ensemble in the basolateral amygdala that is active during self-paced behavioral arrests. This ensemble was recruited in an experience-dependent manner, and closed-loop optogenetic manipulation of these neurons revealed that they are sufficient and necessary to drive experience-dependent arrests during exploration. Projection-specific imaging and optogenetic experiments revealed that these arrests are effected by basolateral amygdala neurons projecting to the central amygdala, uncovering an amygdala circuit that mediates momentary arrests in familiar places but not avoidance or anxiety/fear-like behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Botta
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA.
| | - Akira Fushiki
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Ana Mafalda Vicente
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Luke A Hammond
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Alice C Mosberger
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | | | - Darcy Peterka
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Rui M Costa
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Champalimaud Neuroscience Program, Champalimaud Foundation, Lisbon 1400-038, Portugal.
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137
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Psychological mechanisms and functions of 5-HT and SSRIs in potential therapeutic change: Lessons from the serotonergic modulation of action selection, learning, affect, and social cognition. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 119:138-167. [PMID: 32931805 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2020] [Revised: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Uncertainty regarding which psychological mechanisms are fundamental in mediating SSRI treatment outcomes and wide-ranging variability in their efficacy has raised more questions than it has solved. Since subjective mood states are an abstract scientific construct, only available through self-report in humans, and likely involving input from multiple top-down and bottom-up signals, it has been difficult to model at what level SSRIs interact with this process. Converging translational evidence indicates a role for serotonin in modulating context-dependent parameters of action selection, affect, and social cognition; and concurrently supporting learning mechanisms, which promote adaptability and behavioural flexibility. We examine the theoretical basis, ecological validity, and interaction of these constructs and how they may or may not exert a clinical benefit. Specifically, we bridge crucial gaps between disparate lines of research, particularly findings from animal models and human clinical trials, which often seem to present irreconcilable differences. In determining how SSRIs exert their effects, our approach examines the endogenous functions of 5-HT neurons, how 5-HT manipulations affect behaviour in different contexts, and how their therapeutic effects may be exerted in humans - which may illuminate issues of translational models, hierarchical mechanisms, idiographic variables, and social cognition.
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138
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O'Leary TP, Sullivan KE, Wang L, Clements J, Lemire AL, Cembrowski MS. Extensive and spatially variable within-cell-type heterogeneity across the basolateral amygdala. eLife 2020; 9:59003. [PMID: 32869744 PMCID: PMC7486123 DOI: 10.7554/elife.59003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2020] [Accepted: 08/26/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The basolateral amygdala complex (BLA), extensively connected with both local amygdalar nuclei as well as long-range circuits, is involved in a diverse array of functional roles. Understanding the mechanisms of such functional diversity will be greatly informed by understanding the cell-type-specific landscape of the BLA. Here, beginning with single-cell RNA sequencing, we identified both discrete and graded continuous gene-expression differences within the mouse BLA. Via in situ hybridization, we next mapped this discrete transcriptomic heterogeneity onto a sharp spatial border between the basal and lateral amygdala nuclei, and identified continuous spatial gene-expression gradients within each of these regions. These discrete and continuous spatial transformations of transcriptomic cell-type identity were recapitulated by local morphology as well as long-range connectivity. Thus, BLA excitatory neurons are a highly heterogenous collection of neurons that spatially covary in molecular, cellular, and circuit properties. This heterogeneity likely drives pronounced spatial variation in BLA computation and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy P O'Leary
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Kaitlin E Sullivan
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Lihua Wang
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Jody Clements
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Andrew L Lemire
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Mark S Cembrowski
- Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States.,Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.,School of Biomedical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
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139
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Bigot M, Alonso M, Houenou J, Sarrazin S, Dargél AA, Lledo PM, Henry C. An emotional-response model of bipolar disorders integrating recent findings on amygdala circuits. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 118:358-366. [PMID: 32739421 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.07.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Revised: 07/16/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Because of our classification system limitations for defining psychiatric disorders and understanding their physiopathology, a new research area based on dimensions has emerged. It consists of exploring domains derived from fundamental behavioral components linked to neurobiological systems. Emotional processing is among the most affected dimensions in bipolar disorders (BD), but is excluded from the definition criteria. The purpose of this review is to synthesize the emotional responses disruption during the different phases of BD, using intensity and valence as the two key characteristics of emotions. We integrate those emotional disruptions into an original, emotion-based model contrasting with the current diagnostic frame built on mood. Emotional processing is underpinned by cortico-limbic circuits involving the amygdala. Recent publications showed the crucial role of the amygdala in emotional processes triggered by stimuli of negative, but also positive valence. We show how these neuroscience data can provide physiological basis for emotional disturbances observed in BD. We conclude with translational perspectives to improve the current knowledge about neural substrates underlying altered emotional responses characterizing BD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathilde Bigot
- Perception and Memory Unit, Institut Pasteur, UMR3571, CNRS, Paris, France; Sorbonne Université, Collège doctoral, Paris, France
| | - Mariana Alonso
- Perception and Memory Unit, Institut Pasteur, UMR3571, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Josselin Houenou
- Université Paris-Est, INSERM, U955, Créteil, France; NeuroSpin, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Samuel Sarrazin
- Université Paris-Est, INSERM, U955, Créteil, France; NeuroSpin, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Aroldo A Dargél
- Perception and Memory Unit, Institut Pasteur, UMR3571, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Pierre-Marie Lledo
- Perception and Memory Unit, Institut Pasteur, UMR3571, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Chantal Henry
- Perception and Memory Unit, Institut Pasteur, UMR3571, CNRS, Paris, France; Université de Paris, Paris, France; Department of Psychiatry, Service Hospitalo-Universitaire, GHU Paris Psychiatrie & Neurosciences, Paris, France.
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140
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Hsu CC, Madsen TE, O'Gorman E, Gourley SL, Rainnie DG. Reward-related dynamical coupling between basolateral amygdala and nucleus accumbens. Brain Struct Funct 2020; 225:1873-1888. [PMID: 32556583 PMCID: PMC7405940 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-020-02099-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Accepted: 06/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Recognizing reward-related stimuli is crucial for survival. Neuronal projections from the basolateral amygdala (BLA) to the nucleus accumbens (NAc) play an important role in processing reward-related cues. Previous studies revealed synchronization between distant brain regions in reward-sensitive neurocircuits; however, whether the NAc synchronizes with the BLA is unknown. Here, we recorded local field potentials simultaneously from the BLA and NAc of rats during social preference tests and an appetitive conditioning test in which explicit stimuli were associated with food. BLA-NAc coherence in the theta band (5-8 Hz) increased in response to food-associated cues. Meanwhile, the modulatory strength of theta-high gamma (50-110 Hz) phase-amplitude cross-frequency coupling (PAC) in the NAc decreased. Importantly, both of these neuromodulations disappeared upon extinction. In contrast, both theta and gamma power oscillations in each region increased in the presence of social conspecifics or contexts associated with conspecifics, but coherence did not change. To potentially disrupt behavior and associated neural activity, a subgroup of rats was exposed prenatally to valproic acid (VPA), which has been shown to disrupt transcriptome and excitatory/inhibitory balance in the amygdala. VPA-exposed rats demonstrated impulsive-like behavior, but VPA did not affect BLA-NAc coherence. These findings reveal changes in BLA-NAc coherence in response to select reward-related stimuli (i.e., food-predictive cues); the differences between the tasks used here could shed light onto the functional nature of BLA-NAc coherence and are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chia-Chun Hsu
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, USA
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Emory University, Atlanta, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, USA
| | - Teresa E Madsen
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, USA
| | | | - Shannon L Gourley
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, USA.
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Emory University, Atlanta, USA.
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University, Atlanta, USA.
| | - Donald G Rainnie
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, USA.
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141
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Tiedemann LJ, Alink A, Beck J, Büchel C, Brassen S. Valence Encoding Signals in the Human Amygdala and the Willingness to Eat. J Neurosci 2020; 40:5264-5272. [PMID: 32457069 PMCID: PMC7329310 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2382-19.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Revised: 04/28/2020] [Accepted: 05/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the strongest drivers of food consumption is pleasure, and with a large variety of palatable food continuously available, there is rarely any necessity to eat something not tasty. The amygdala is involved in hedonic valuation, but its role in valence assignment during food choices is less understood. Given recent evidence for spatially segregated amygdala signatures encoding palatability, we applied a multivariate approach on fMRI data to extract valence-specific signal patterns during an explicit evaluation of food liking. These valence localizers were then used to identify hedonic valuation processes while the same healthy human participants (14 female, 16 male; in overnight fasted state on both scanning days) performed a willingness-to-eat task in a separate fMRI measurement. Valence-specific patterns of amygdala signaling predicted decisions on food consumption significantly. Findings could be validated using the same valence localizers to predict consumption decisions participants made on a separate set of food stimuli that had not been used for localizer identification. Control analyses revealed these findings to be restricted to a multivariate compared with a univariate approach, and to be specific for valence processing in the amygdala. Spatially distributed valuation signals of the amygdala thus appear to modulate appetitive consumption decisions, and may be useful to identify current hedonic valuation processes triggering food choices even when not explicitly instructed.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The expectation of tastiness is a particularly strong driver in everyday decisions on food consumption. The amygdala is important for hedonic valuation processes and involved in valence-related behavior, but the relationship between both processes is less understood. Here, we show that hedonic values of food are represented in spatially distributed activation patterns in the amygdala. The engagement of these patterns during food choices modulates consumption decisions. Findings are stable in a separate stimulus set. These results suggest that valence-specific amygdala signals are integrated into the formation of food choices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena J Tiedemann
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, D-20246, Germany
| | - Arjen Alink
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, D-20246, Germany
| | - Judith Beck
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, D-20246, Germany
| | - Christian Büchel
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, D-20246, Germany
| | - Stefanie Brassen
- Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Centre Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, D-20246, Germany
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142
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Ju A, Fernandez-Arroyo B, Wu Y, Jacky D, Beyeler A. Expression of serotonin 1A and 2A receptors in molecular- and projection-defined neurons of the mouse insular cortex. Mol Brain 2020; 13:99. [PMID: 32594910 PMCID: PMC7322839 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-020-00605-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2019] [Accepted: 04/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The serotonin (5-HT) system is the target of multiple anxiolytics, including Buspirone, which is a partial agonist of the serotonin 1A receptor (5-HT1A). Similarly, ligands of the serotonin 2A receptor (5-HT2A) were shown to alter anxiety level. The 5-HT1A and 2A receptors are widely expressed across the brain, but the target region(s) underlying the influence of those receptors on anxiety remain unknown. Interestingly, recent studies in human and non-human primates have shown that the 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A binding potentials within the insular cortex (insula) are correlated to anxiety. As an initial step to define the function of 5-HT transmission in the insula, we quantified the proportion of specific neuronal populations of the insula expressing 5-HT1A or 5-HT2A. We analyzed seven neural populations, including three defined by a molecular marker (putative glutamate, GABA or parvalbumin), and four defined by their projections to different downstream targets. First, we found that more than 70% of putative glutamatergic neurons, and only 30% of GABAergic neurons express the 5-HT1A. Second, within insular projection neurons, 5-HT1A is highly expressed (75-80%) in the populations targeting one sub-nuclei of the amygdala (central or basolateral), or targeting the rostral or caudal sections of the lateral hypothalamus (LH). Similarly, 70% of putative glutamatergic neurons and only 30% of insular GABAergic neurons contain 5-HT2A. Finally, the 5-HT2A is present in a majority of insula-amygdala and insula-LH projection neurons (73-82%). These observations suggest that most glutamatergic neurons can respond to 5-HT through 5-HT1A or 5-HT2A in the insula, and that 5-HT directly affects a limited number of GABAergic neurons. This study defines a molecular and neuroanatomical map of the 5-HT system within the insular cortex, providing ground knowledge to identify the potential role of serotonergic modulation of selective insular populations in anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anes Ju
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, 146 Rue Léo Saignat, 33000, Bordeaux, France
| | - Beatriz Fernandez-Arroyo
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, 146 Rue Léo Saignat, 33000, Bordeaux, France
| | - Yifan Wu
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, 146 Rue Léo Saignat, 33000, Bordeaux, France
| | - Débora Jacky
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, 146 Rue Léo Saignat, 33000, Bordeaux, France
| | - Anna Beyeler
- Neurocentre Magendie, INSERM 1215, Université de Bordeaux, 146 Rue Léo Saignat, 33000, Bordeaux, France.
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143
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Neural Coding of Thermal Preferences in the Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. eNeuro 2020; 7:ENEURO.0414-19.2020. [PMID: 32253198 PMCID: PMC7322292 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0414-19.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2019] [Revised: 01/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/08/2020] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Animals are capable to modify sensory preferences according to past experiences. Surrounded by ever-changing environments, they continue assigning a hedonic value to a sensory stimulus. It remains to be elucidated however how such alteration of sensory preference is encoded in the nervous system. Here we show that past experiences alter temporal interaction between the calcium responses of sensory neurons and their postsynaptic interneurons in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. C. elegans exhibits thermotaxis, in which its temperature preference is modified by the past feeding experience: well-fed animals are attracted toward their past cultivation temperature on a thermal gradient, whereas starved animals lose that attraction. By monitoring calcium responses simultaneously from both AFD thermosensory neurons and their postsynaptic AIY interneurons in well-fed and starved animals under time-varying thermal stimuli, we found that past feeding experiences alter phase shift between AFD and AIY calcium responses. Furthermore, the difference in neuronal activities between well-fed and starved animals observed here are able to explain the difference in the behavioral output on a thermal gradient between well-fed and starved animals. Although previous studies have shown that C. elegans executes thermotaxis by regulating amplitude or frequency of the AIY response, our results proposed a new mechanism by which thermal preference is encoded by phase shift between AFD and AIY activities. Given these observations, thermal preference is likely to be computed on synapses between AFD and AIY neurons. Such a neural strategy may enable animals to enrich information processing within defined connectivity via dynamic alterations of synaptic communication.
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144
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Wang Y, Liu Z, Cai L, Guo R, Dong Y, Huang YH. A Critical Role of Basolateral Amygdala-to-Nucleus Accumbens Projection in Sleep Regulation of Reward Seeking. Biol Psychiatry 2020; 87:954-966. [PMID: 31924324 PMCID: PMC7210061 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.10.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2019] [Revised: 10/09/2019] [Accepted: 10/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Sleep impacts reward-motivated behaviors partly by retuning the brain reward circuits. The nucleus accumbens (NAc) is a reward processing hub sensitive to acute sleep deprivation. Glutamatergic transmission carrying reward-associated signals converges in the NAc and regulates various aspects of reward-motivated behaviors. The basolateral amygdala projection (BLAp) innervates broad regions of the NAc and critically regulates reward seeking. METHODS Using slice electrophysiology, we measured how acute sleep deprivation alters transmission at BLAp-NAc synapses in male C57BL/6 mice. Moreover, using SSFO (stabilized step function opsin) and DREADDs (designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs) (Gi) to amplify and reduce transmission, respectively, we tested behavioral consequences following bidirectional manipulations of BLAp-NAc transmission. RESULTS Acute sleep deprivation increased sucrose self-administration in mice and altered the BLAp-NAc transmission in a topographically specific manner. It selectively reduced glutamate release at the rostral BLAp (rBLAp) onto ventral and lateral NAc (vlNAc) synapses, but spared caudal BLAp onto medial NAc synapses. Furthermore, experimentally facilitating glutamate release at rBLAp-vlNAc synapses suppressed sucrose reward seeking. Conversely, mimicking sleep deprivation-induced reduction of rBLAp-vlNAc transmission increased sucrose reward seeking. Finally, facilitating rBLAp-vlNAc transmission per se did not promote either approach motivation or aversion. CONCLUSIONS Sleep acts on rBLAp-vINAc transmission gain control to regulate established reward seeking but does not convey approach motivation or aversion on its own.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao Wang
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA,Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Zheng Liu
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA,These authors contributed equally to this work
| | - Li Cai
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Rong Guo
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Yan Dong
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA,Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Yanhua H. Huang
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
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145
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Loossens T, Mestdagh M, Dejonckheere E, Kuppens P, Tuerlinckx F, Verdonck S. The Affective Ising Model: A computational account of human affect dynamics. PLoS Comput Biol 2020; 16:e1007860. [PMID: 32413047 PMCID: PMC7255618 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1007860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2019] [Revised: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 04/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The human affect system is responsible for producing the positive and negative feelings that color and guide our lives. At the same time, when disrupted, its workings lie at the basis of the occurrence of mood disorder. Understanding the functioning and dynamics of the affect system is therefore crucial to understand the feelings that people experience on a daily basis, their dynamics across time, and how they can become dysregulated in mood disorder. In this paper, a nonlinear stochastic model for the dynamics of positive and negative affect is proposed called the Affective Ising Model (AIM). It incorporates principles of statistical mechanics, is inspired by neurophysiological and behavioral evidence about auto-excitation and mutual inhibition of the positive and negative affect dimensions, and is intended to better explain empirical phenomena such as skewness, multimodality, and non-linear relations of positive and negative affect. The AIM is applied to two large experience sampling studies on the occurrence of positive and negative affect in daily life in both normality and mood disorder. It is examined to what extent the model is able to reproduce the aforementioned non-Gaussian features observed in the data, using two sightly different continuous-time vector autoregressive (VAR) models as benchmarks. The predictive performance of the models is also compared by means of leave-one-out cross-validation. The results indicate that the AIM is better at reproducing non-Gaussian features while their performance is comparable for strictly Gaussian features. The predictive performance of the AIM is also shown to be better for the majority of the affect time series. The potential and limitations of the AIM as a computational model approximating the workings of the human affect system are discussed. Feelings color and guide our lives. Understanding their dynamics is a crucial step on the way to eventually understanding mood disorders such as depression. In this paper, we propose a model for the dynamics of positive and negative affect, called the Affective Ising Model (AIM). Starting from a neurobiologically inspired yet abstract microscopic representation of how affect is generated, the model predicts the presence of a number of nonlinear phenomena in the dynamics of positive and negative affect. These nonlinear phenomena include skewed distributions, bimodality (people’s affect can fluctuate around one of two possible states) and a V-shaped relation between positive and negative affect. These nonlinear signature features have been empirically established, but have thus far not been integrated into a single computation model. The AIM can be used in the future to explain both normal and dysfunctional affect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Loossens
- Department of Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
- * E-mail:
| | - Merijn Mestdagh
- Department of Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Egon Dejonckheere
- Department of Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Peter Kuppens
- Department of Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Francis Tuerlinckx
- Department of Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Stijn Verdonck
- Department of Quantitative Psychology and Individual Differences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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146
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Luo ZY, Huang L, Lin S, Yin YN, Jie W, Hu NY, Hu YY, Guan YF, Liu JH, You QL, Chen YH, Luo ZC, Zhang SR, Li XW, Yang JM, Tao YM, Mei L, Gao TM. Erbin in Amygdala Parvalbumin-Positive Neurons Modulates Anxiety-like Behaviors. Biol Psychiatry 2020; 87:926-936. [PMID: 31889536 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.10.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/21/2019] [Revised: 10/02/2019] [Accepted: 10/21/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Anxiety disorders are the most common psychiatric diseases, affecting 28% of people worldwide within their lifetime. The excitation-inhibition imbalance in the amygdala is thought to be an underlying pathological mechanism; however, the cellular and molecular control of amygdala excitation-inhibition balance is largely unknown. METHODS By using mice expressing chemogenetic activator or inhibitor channel in amygdala parvalbumin (PV) neurons, Erbin mutant mice, and mice with Erbin specifically knocked down in amygdala PV neurons, we systematically investigated the role of amygdala PV neurons and Erbin expressed therein in the pathogenesis of anxiety disorders using the combined approaches of immunohistochemistry, electrophysiology, and behavior. RESULTS In naïve mice, chemogenetic inhibition of PV neurons produced anxiogenic effects, suggesting an essential role in the regulation of anxiety. In stressed mice with anxiety, excitatory postsynaptic responses on amygdala PV neurons were selectively diminished, accompanied by a decreased expression of Erbin specifically in amygdala PV neurons. Remarkably, both Erbin mutant mice and amygdala PV-specific Erbin knockdown mice exhibited impaired excitatory postsynaptic responses on amygdala PV neurons and increased anxiety-like behaviors. Furthermore, chemogenetic activation of amygdala PV neurons normalized anxiety behaviors in amygdala PV-specific Erbin knockdown mice and stressed mice. CONCLUSIONS Together, these results demonstrate that Erbin in PV neurons is critical for maintaining the excitation-inhibition balance in the amygdala and reveal a novel pathophysiological mechanism for anxiety disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng-Yi Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lang Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Song Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ya-Nan Yin
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wei Jie
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Neng-Yuan Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yu-Ying Hu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yan-Fei Guan
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ji-Hong Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Qiang-Long You
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yi-Hua Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhou-Cai Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Sheng-Rong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiao-Wen Li
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jian-Ming Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yan-Mei Tao
- Institute of Life Sciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Lin Mei
- Department of Neurosciences, School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Tian-Ming Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Key Laboratory of Mental Health of the Ministry of Education, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Guangdong Province Key Laboratory of Psychiatric Disorders, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Department of Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
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147
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Bagley EE, Ingram SL. Endogenous opioid peptides in the descending pain modulatory circuit. Neuropharmacology 2020; 173:108131. [PMID: 32422213 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2020.108131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Revised: 05/01/2020] [Accepted: 05/04/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The opioid epidemic has led to a serious examination of the use of opioids for the treatment of pain. Opioid drugs are effective due to the expression of opioid receptors throughout the body. These receptors respond to endogenous opioid peptides that are expressed as polypeptide hormones that are processed by proteolytic cleavage. Endogenous opioids are expressed throughout the peripheral and central nervous system and regulate many different neuronal circuits and functions. One of the key functions of endogenous opioid peptides is to modulate our responses to pain. This review will focus on the descending pain modulatory circuit which consists of the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (PAG) projections to the rostral ventromedial medulla (RVM). RVM projections modulate incoming nociceptive afferents at the level of the spinal cord. Stimulation within either the PAG or RVM results in analgesia and this circuit has been studied in detail in terms of the actions of exogenous opioids, such as morphine and fentanyl. Further emphasis on understanding the complex regulation of endogenous opioids will help to make rational decisions with regard to the use of opioids for pain. We also include a discussion of the actions of endogenous opioids in the amygdala, an upstream brain structure that has reciprocal connections to the PAG that contribute to the brain's response to pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena E Bagley
- Discipline of Pharmacology and Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Susan L Ingram
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, 97239, USA.
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148
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Liu WZ, Zhang WH, Zheng ZH, Zou JX, Liu XX, Huang SH, You WJ, He Y, Zhang JY, Wang XD, Pan BX. Identification of a prefrontal cortex-to-amygdala pathway for chronic stress-induced anxiety. Nat Commun 2020; 11:2221. [PMID: 32376858 PMCID: PMC7203160 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-15920-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 181] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2019] [Accepted: 04/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Dysregulated prefrontal control over amygdala is engaged in the pathogenesis of psychiatric diseases including depression and anxiety disorders. Here we show that, in a rodent anxiety model induced by chronic restraint stress (CRS), the dysregulation occurs in basolateral amygdala projection neurons receiving mono-directional inputs from dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC→BLA PNs) rather than those reciprocally connected with dmPFC (dmPFC↔BLA PNs). Specifically, CRS shifts the dmPFC-driven excitatory-inhibitory balance towards excitation in the former, but not latter population. Such specificity is preferential to connections made by dmPFC, caused by enhanced presynaptic glutamate release, and highly correlated with the increased anxiety-like behavior in stressed mice. Importantly, low-frequency optogenetic stimulation of dmPFC afferents in BLA normalizes the enhanced prefrontal glutamate release onto dmPFC→BLA PNs and lastingly attenuates CRS-induced increase of anxiety-like behavior. Our findings thus reveal a target cell-based dysregulation of mPFC-to-amygdala transmission for stress-induced anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Zhu Liu
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China.,Department of Biological Science, School of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Wen-Hua Zhang
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Zhi-Heng Zheng
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Jia-Xin Zou
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Xiao-Xuan Liu
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Shou-He Huang
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Wen-Jie You
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Ye He
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Jun-Yu Zhang
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China
| | - Xiao-Dong Wang
- Department of Neurobiology, Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology of Ministry of Health of China, Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, 310058, Hangzhou, China
| | - Bing-Xing Pan
- Laboratory of Fear and Anxiety Disorders, Institutes of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China. .,Department of Biological Science, School of Life Science, Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China. .,Department of Ophthalmology, the 2nd Affiliated Hospital, Medical School of Nanchang University, 330031, Nanchang, China.
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149
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Ross JA, Van Bockstaele EJ. The role of catecholamines in modulating responses to stress: Sex-specific patterns, implications, and therapeutic potential for post-traumatic stress disorder and opiate withdrawal. Eur J Neurosci 2020; 52:2429-2465. [PMID: 32125035 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14714] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2019] [Revised: 01/15/2020] [Accepted: 02/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Emotional arousal is one of several factors that determine the strength of a memory and how efficiently it may be retrieved. The systems at play are multifaceted; on one hand, the dopaminergic mesocorticolimbic system evaluates the rewarding or reinforcing potential of a stimulus, while on the other, the noradrenergic stress response system evaluates the risk of threat, commanding attention, and engaging emotional and physical behavioral responses. Sex-specific patterns in the anatomy and function of the arousal system suggest that sexually divergent therapeutic approaches may be advantageous for neurological disorders involving arousal, learning, and memory. From the lens of the triple network model of psychopathology, we argue that post-traumatic stress disorder and opiate substance use disorder arise from maladaptive learning responses that are perpetuated by hyperarousal of the salience network. We present evidence that catecholamine-modulated learning and stress-responsive circuitry exerts substantial influence over the salience network and its dysfunction in stress-related psychiatric disorders, and between the sexes. We discuss the therapeutic potential of targeting the endogenous cannabinoid system; a ubiquitous neuromodulator that influences learning, memory, and responsivity to stress by influencing catecholamine, excitatory, and inhibitory synaptic transmission. Relevant preclinical data in male and female rodents are integrated with clinical data in men and women in an effort to understand how ideal treatment modalities between the sexes may be different.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A Ross
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, College of Medicine, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Elisabeth J Van Bockstaele
- Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, College of Medicine, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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150
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Twining RC, Lepak K, Kirry AJ, Gilmartin MR. Ventral Hippocampal Input to the Prelimbic Cortex Dissociates the Context from the Cue Association in Trace Fear Memory. J Neurosci 2020; 40:3217-3230. [PMID: 32188770 PMCID: PMC7159889 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1453-19.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2019] [Revised: 03/02/2020] [Accepted: 03/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The PFC, through its high degree of interconnectivity with cortical and subcortical brain areas, mediates cognitive and emotional processes in support of adaptive behaviors. This includes the formation of fear memories when the anticipation of threat demands learning about temporal or contextual cues, as in trace fear conditioning. In this variant of fear learning, the association of a cue and shock across an empty trace interval of several seconds requires sustained cue-elicited firing in the prelimbic cortex (PL). However, it is unknown how and when distinct PL afferents contribute to different associative components of memory. Among the prominent inputs to PL, the hippocampus shares with PL a role in both working memory and contextual processing. Here we tested the necessity of direct hippocampal input to the PL for the acquisition of trace-cued fear memory and the simultaneously acquired contextual fear association. Optogenetic silencing of ventral hippocampal (VH) terminals in the PL of adult male Long-Evans rats selectively during paired trials revealed that direct communication between the VH and PL during training is necessary for contextual fear memory, but not for trace-cued fear acquisition. The pattern of the contextual memory deficit and the disruption of local PL firing during optogenetic silencing of VH-PL suggest that the VH continuously updates the PL with the current contextual state of the animal, which, when disrupted during memory acquisition, is detrimental to the subsequent rapid retrieval of aversive contextual associations.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Learning to anticipate threat from available contextual and discrete cues is crucial for survival. The prelimbic cortex is required for forming fear memories when temporal or contextual complexity is involved, as in trace fear conditioning. However, the respective contribution of distinct prelimbic afferents to the temporal and contextual components of memory is not known. We report that direct input from the ventral hippocampus enables the formation of the contextual, but not trace-cued, fear memory necessary for the subsequent rapid expression of a fear response. This finding dissociates the contextual and working-memory contributions of prelimbic cortex to the formation of a fear memory and demonstrates the crucial role for hippocampal input in contextual fear learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert C Twining
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233
| | - Katie Lepak
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233
| | - Adam J Kirry
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233
| | - Marieke R Gilmartin
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233
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