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Dogra S, Aguayo C, Xiang Z, Putnam J, Smith J, Johnston C, Foster DJ, Lindsley CW, Niswender CM, Conn PJ. Activation of Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 3 Modulates Thalamo-accumbal Transmission and Rescues Schizophrenia-Like Physiological and Behavioral Deficits. Biol Psychiatry 2024; 96:230-242. [PMID: 38061467 PMCID: PMC11150332 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2023.11.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2023] [Revised: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 11/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/04/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Polymorphisms in the gene encoding for metabotropic glutamate receptor 3 (mGlu3) are associated with an increased likelihood of schizophrenia diagnosis and can predict improvements in negative symptoms following treatment with antipsychotics. However, the mechanisms by which mGlu3 can regulate brain circuits involved in schizophrenia pathophysiology are not clear. METHODS We employed selective pharmacological tools and a variety of approaches including whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology, slice optogenetics, and fiber photometry to investigate the effects of mGlu3 activation on phencyclidine (PCP)-induced impairments in thalamo-accumbal transmission and sociability deficits. A chemogenetic approach was used to evaluate the role of thalamo-accumbal transmission in PCP-induced sociability deficits. RESULTS We first established that PCP treatment augmented excitatory transmission onto dopamine D1 receptor-expressing medium spiny neurons (D1-MSNs) in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and induced sociability deficits. Our studies revealed a selective increase in glutamatergic synaptic transmission from thalamic afferents to D1-MSNs in the NAc shell. Chemogenetic silencing of thalamo-accumbal inputs rescued PCP-induced sociability deficits. Pharmacological activation of mGlu3 normalized PCP-induced impairments in thalamo-accumbal transmission and sociability deficits. Mechanistic studies revealed that mGlu3 activation induced robust long-term depression at synapses from the thalamic projections onto D1-MSNs in the NAc shell. CONCLUSIONS These data demonstrate that activation of mGlu3 decreases thalamo-accumbal transmission and thereby rescues sociability deficits in mouse modeling schizophrenia-like symptoms. These findings provide novel insights into the NAc-specific mechanisms and suggest that agents modulating glutamatergic signaling in the NAc may provide a promising approach for treating negative symptoms in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shalini Dogra
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee.
| | - Caleb Aguayo
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Zixiu Xiang
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Jason Putnam
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Joshua Smith
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Curran Johnston
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, South Carolina
| | - Daniel J Foster
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, South Carolina
| | - Craig W Lindsley
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Department of Chemistry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Vanderbilt Institute for Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - Colleen M Niswender
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Vanderbilt Institute for Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
| | - P Jeffrey Conn
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Vanderbilt Institute for Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee.
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Curtis GR, Carpenter BA, Pirino BE, Hawks A, Li G, Barson JR. Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) in the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus: Influence on binge-type eating in male and female mice. RESEARCH SQUARE 2024:rs.3.rs-4145128. [PMID: 38645077 PMCID: PMC11030496 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4145128/v1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/23/2024]
Abstract
Binge eating disorder, characterized by the overconsumption of food in a discrete time period, is the most common eating disorder in the United States, but its neurological basis is not fully understood. The paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) is a limbic brain region implicated in eating, and the anorexigenic neuropeptide, pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP), is densely expressed in the PVT. This study sought to examine the possible involvement of PACAP in the PVT in binge-type eating. First, a model of binge-type eating was established in mice. Male and female C57BL/6J mice were given limited access to Milk Chocolate Ensure Plus® or had access only to chow and water. Under this model, while males and females both engaged in binge-type eating with Ensure, females engaged in this behavior to a greater degree than males. Next, the role of PACAP in the PVT was defined in relation to binge-type eating. Using quantitative real-time PCR, females were found to have higher baseline levels of PVT PACAP mRNA than males, but only males showed an increase in levels of PACAP after a history of binge-type eating, and only males showed a reduction in levels of PACAP immediately prior to a binge session. Using chemogenetics in PACAP-Cre transgenic mice on a C57BL/6J background, activation of PVT PACAP+ cells with a Cre-dependent Gq-DREADD was found to reduce binge-type eating, significantly in male but not female mice. These results indicate that PVT PACAP is involved in binge-type eating in a sex-dependent manner, with a decrease in PVT PACAP levels preceding binge-type eating in male mice, and enhanced PVT PACAP+ cell activity suppressing binge-type eating in male mice. Together, these results suggest that the PACAP system could be targeted in specific patient populations to help treat binge eating disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Genevieve R. Curtis
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, P.A. 19129
| | - Brody A. Carpenter
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, P.A. 19129
| | - Breanne E. Pirino
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, P.A. 19129
| | - Annie Hawks
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, P.A. 19129
| | - George Li
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, P.A. 19129
| | - Jessica R. Barson
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, P.A. 19129
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Ye Q, Nunez J, Zhang X. Zona incerta dopamine neurons encode motivational vigor in food seeking. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadi5326. [PMID: 37976360 PMCID: PMC10656063 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adi5326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 10/18/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Energy deprivation triggers food seeking to ensure homeostatic consumption, but the neural coding of motivational vigor in food seeking during physical hunger remains unknown. Here, we report that ablation of dopamine (DA) neurons in zona incerta (ZI) but not ventral tegmental area potently impaired food seeking after fasting. ZI DA neurons and their projections to paraventricular thalamus (PVT) were quickly activated for food approach but inhibited during food consumption. Chemogenetic manipulation of ZI DA neurons bidirectionally regulated feeding motivation to control meal frequency but not meal size for food intake. Activation of ZI DA neurons promoted, but silencing of these neurons blocked, contextual memory associate with food reward. In addition, selective activation of ZI DA projections to PVT promoted food seeking for food consumption and transited positive-valence signals. Together, these findings reveal that ZI DA neurons encode motivational vigor in food seeking for food consumption through their projections to PVT.
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Yates JR. Quantifying conditioned place preference: a review of current analyses and a proposal for a novel approach. Front Behav Neurosci 2023; 17:1256764. [PMID: 37693282 PMCID: PMC10484009 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2023.1256764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 08/02/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Conditioned place preference (CPP) is used to measure the conditioned rewarding effects of a stimulus, including food, drugs, and social interaction. Because various analytic approaches can be used to quantify CPP, this can make direct comparisons across studies difficult. Common methods for analyzing CPP involve comparing the time spent in the CS+ compartment (e.g., compartment paired with drug) at posttest to the time spent in the CS+ compartment at pretest or to the CS- compartment (e.g., compartment paired with saline) at posttest. Researchers can analyze the time spent in the compartment(s), or they can calculate a difference score [(CS+post - CS+pre) or (CS+post - CS-post)] or a preference ratio (e.g., CS+post/(CS+post + CS-post)). While each analysis yields results that are, overall, highly correlated, there are situations in which different analyses can lead to discrepant interpretations. The current paper discusses some of the limitations associated with current analytic approaches and proposes a novel method for quantifying CPP, the adjusted CPP score, which can help resolve the limitations associated with current approaches. The adjusted CPP score is applied to both hypothetical and previously published data. Another major topic covered in this paper is methodologies for determining if individual subjects have met criteria for CPP. The paper concludes by highlighting ways in which researchers can increase transparency and replicability in CPP studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin R. Yates
- Department of Psychological Science, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, KY, United States
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Ye Q, Nunez J, Zhang X. Zona incerta dopamine neurons encode motivational vigor in food seeking. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.06.29.547060. [PMID: 37425830 PMCID: PMC10327402 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.29.547060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/11/2023]
Abstract
Energy deprivation triggers food seeking to ensure homeostatic consumption, but the neural coding of motivational vigor in food seeking during physical hunger remains unknown. Here, we report that ablation of dopamine (DA) neurons in zona incerta (ZI) but not ventral tegmental area potently impaired food seeking after fasting. ZI DA neurons were quickly activated for food approach but inhibited during food consumption. Chemogenetic manipulation of ZI DA neurons bidirectionally regulated feeding motivation to control meal frequency but not meal size for food intake. In addition, activation of ZI DA neurons and their projections to paraventricular thalamus transited positive-valence signals to promote acquisition and expression of contextual food memory. Together, these findings reveal that ZI DA neurons encode motivational vigor in food seeking for homeostatic eating. One Sentence Summary Activation of ZI DA neurons vigorously drives and maintains food-seeking behaviors to ensure food consumption triggered by energy deprivation through inhibitory DA ZI-PVT transmissions that transit positive-valence signals associated with contextual food memory.
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