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Michel L, Molina P, Mameli M. The behavioral relevance of a modular organization in the lateral habenula. Neuron 2024:S0896-6273(24)00287-3. [PMID: 38772374 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.04.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2024] [Revised: 04/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/23/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024]
Abstract
Behavioral strategies for survival rely on the updates the brain continuously makes based on the surrounding environment. External stimuli-neutral, positive, and negative-relay core information to the brain, where a complex anatomical network rapidly organizes actions, including approach or escape, and regulates emotions. Human neuroimaging and physiology in nonhuman primates, rodents, and teleosts suggest a pivotal role of the lateral habenula in translating external information into survival behaviors. Here, we review the literature describing how discrete habenular modules-reflecting the molecular signatures, anatomical connectivity, and functional components-are recruited by environmental stimuli and cooperate to prompt specific behavioral outcomes. We argue that integration of these findings in the context of valence processing for reinforcing or discouraging behaviors is necessary, offering a compelling model to guide future work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leo Michel
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Patricia Molina
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Manuel Mameli
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland; Inserm, UMR-S 839, 75005 Paris, France.
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2
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Simmons SC, Flerlage WJ, Langlois LD, Shepard RD, Bouslog C, Thomas EH, Gouty KM, Sanderson JL, Gouty S, Cox BM, Dell'Acqua ML, Nugent FS. AKAP150-anchored PKA regulates synaptic transmission and plasticity, neuronal excitability and CRF neuromodulation in the mouse lateral habenula. Commun Biol 2024; 7:345. [PMID: 38509283 PMCID: PMC10954712 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06041-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024] Open
Abstract
The scaffolding A-kinase anchoring protein 150 (AKAP150) is critically involved in kinase and phosphatase regulation of synaptic transmission/plasticity, and neuronal excitability. Emerging evidence also suggests that AKAP150 signaling may play a key role in brain's processing of rewarding/aversive experiences, however its role in the lateral habenula (LHb, as an important brain reward circuitry) is completely unknown. Using whole cell patch clamp recordings in LHb of male wildtype and ΔPKA knockin mice (with deficiency in AKAP-anchoring of PKA), here we show that the genetic disruption of PKA anchoring to AKAP150 significantly reduces AMPA receptor-mediated glutamatergic transmission and prevents the induction of presynaptic endocannabinoid-mediated long-term depression in LHb neurons. Moreover, ΔPKA mutation potentiates GABAA receptor-mediated inhibitory transmission while increasing LHb intrinsic excitability through suppression of medium afterhyperpolarizations. ΔPKA mutation-induced suppression of medium afterhyperpolarizations also blunts the synaptic and neuroexcitatory actions of the stress neuromodulator, corticotropin releasing factor (CRF), in mouse LHb. Altogether, our data suggest that AKAP150 complex signaling plays a critical role in regulation of AMPA and GABAA receptor synaptic strength, glutamatergic plasticity and CRF neuromodulation possibly through AMPA receptor and potassium channel trafficking and endocannabinoid signaling within the LHb.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah C Simmons
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - William J Flerlage
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Ludovic D Langlois
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Ryan D Shepard
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Christopher Bouslog
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Emily H Thomas
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Kaitlyn M Gouty
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Jennifer L Sanderson
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA
| | - Shawn Gouty
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Brian M Cox
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA
| | - Mark L Dell'Acqua
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
| | - Fereshteh S Nugent
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Therapeutics, Bethesda, MD, 20814, USA.
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Cantini D, Choleris E, Kavaliers M. Neurobiology of Pathogen Avoidance and Mate Choice: Current and Future Directions. Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:296. [PMID: 38254465 PMCID: PMC10812398 DOI: 10.3390/ani14020296] [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: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 01/09/2024] [Accepted: 01/13/2024] [Indexed: 01/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Animals are under constant threat of parasitic infection. This has influenced the evolution of social behaviour and has strong implications for sexual selection and mate choice. Animals assess the infection status of conspecifics based on various sensory cues, with odours/chemical signals and the olfactory system playing a particularly important role. The detection of chemical cues and subsequent processing of the infection threat that they pose facilitates the expression of disgust, fear, anxiety, and adaptive avoidance behaviours. In this selective review, drawing primarily from rodent studies, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the detection and assessment of infection status and their relations to mate choice are briefly considered. Firstly, we offer a brief overview of the aspects of mate choice that are relevant to pathogen avoidance. Then, we specifically focus on the olfactory detection of and responses to conspecific cues of parasitic infection, followed by a brief overview of the neurobiological systems underlying the elicitation of disgust and the expression of avoidance of the pathogen threat. Throughout, we focus on current findings and provide suggestions for future directions and research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dante Cantini
- Department of Psychology, College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada;
| | - Elena Choleris
- Department of Psychology, College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada;
| | - Martin Kavaliers
- Department of Psychology, College of Social and Applied Human Sciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada;
- Department of Psychology, Western University, London, ON N6A 3K7, Canada
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Cobb-Lewis D, George A, Hu S, Packard K, Song M, Nguyen-Lopez O, Tesone E, Rowden J, Wang J, Opendak M. The lateral habenula integrates age and experience to promote social transitions in developing rats. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.12.575446. [PMID: 38260652 PMCID: PMC10802604 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.12.575446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Social behavior deficits are an early-emerging marker of psychopathology and are linked with early caregiving quality. However, the infant neural substrates linking early care to social development are poorly understood. Here, we focused on the infant lateral habenula (LHb), a highly-conserved brain region at the nexus between forebrain and monoaminergic circuits. Despite its consistent links to adult psychopathology, this brain region has been understudied in development when the brain is most vulnerable to environmental impacts. In a task combining social and threat cues, suppressing LHb principal neurons had opposing effects in infants versus juveniles, suggesting the LHb promotes a developmental switch in social approach behavior under threat. We observed that early caregiving adversity (ECA) disrupts typical growth curves of LHb baseline structure and function, including volume, firing patterns, neuromodulatory receptor expression, and functional connectivity with cortical regions. Further, we observed that suppressing cortical projections to the LHb rescued social approach deficits following ECA, identifying this microcircuit as a substrate for disrupted social behavior. Together, these results identify immediate biomarkers of ECA in the LHb and highlight this region as a site of early social processing and behavior control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dana Cobb-Lewis
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
- Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Anne George
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Shannon Hu
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | | | - Mingyuan Song
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
- Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Oliver Nguyen-Lopez
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
- Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Emily Tesone
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
- Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Jhanay Rowden
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
- Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Julie Wang
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
| | - Maya Opendak
- Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore MD USA 21205
- Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore MD USA 21205
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Potegal M. How it ends: A review of behavioral and psychological phenomena, physiological processes and neural circuits in the termination of aggression in other animals and anger in people. Behav Brain Res 2024; 456:114676. [PMID: 37739229 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Revised: 08/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/17/2023] [Indexed: 09/24/2023]
Abstract
More is known about aggression initiation and persistence in other animals, and anger in people, than about their cessation. This review summarizes knowledge of relevant factors in aggression, mostly in vertebrates, and anger termination in people. The latency, probability and intensity of offensive aggression in mice is controlled by activity in a neuronal subpopulation in ventromedial hypothalamus [VMH]. This activity instantiates an aggressive state termed angriffsbereitschaft ["attack-readiness"]. Fighting in many species is broken into bouts with interbout breaks due to fatigue and/or signals from dorsal raphe to VMH. Eventually, losers decide durations and outcomes of fighting by transitioning to submission or flight. Factors reducing angriffsbereitschaft and triggering these defeat behaviors could include metabolic costs, e.g., lactate accumulation and glucose depletion detected by the hypothalamus, central fatigue perhaps sensed by the Salience Network [insula and anterior cingulate gyrus] and pain of injuries, the latter insufficiently blunted by opioid and non-opioid stress analgesia and transduced by anterior VMH neurons. Winners' angriffsbereitschaft continue for awhile, as indicated by post-victory attacks and, perhaps, triumph displays of some species, including humans. In longer term situations, sensory and/or response habituation of aggression may explain the "Dear enemy" tolerance of competitive neighbors. Prolonged satiation of predatory behavior could involve habenula-regulated reduction of dopaminergic reward in nucleus accumbens. Termination of human anger involves at least three processes, metaphorically termed decay, quenching and catharsis. Hypothesized neural mechanisms include anger diminution by negative feedback from accumbens to anterior cingulate and/or activity in the Salience Network that controls anger's "accumulation/offset" phase.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Potegal
- University of Minnesota, United States.
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Pereira AR, Alemi M, Cerqueira-Nunes M, Monteiro C, Galhardo V, Cardoso-Cruz H. Dynamics of Lateral Habenula-Ventral Tegmental Area Microcircuit on Pain-Related Cognitive Dysfunctions. Neurol Int 2023; 15:1303-1319. [PMID: 37987455 PMCID: PMC10660716 DOI: 10.3390/neurolint15040082] [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: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 10/20/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Chronic pain is a health problem that affects the ability to work and perform other activities, and it generally worsens over time. Understanding the complex pain interaction with brain circuits could help predict which patients are at risk of developing central dysfunctions. Increasing evidence from preclinical and clinical studies suggests that aberrant activity of the lateral habenula (LHb) is associated with depressive symptoms characterized by excessive negative focus, leading to high-level cognitive dysfunctions. The primary output region of the LHb is the ventral tegmental area (VTA), through a bidirectional connection. Recently, there has been growing interest in the complex interactions between the LHb and VTA, particularly regarding their crucial roles in behavior regulation and their potential involvement in the pathological impact of chronic pain on cognitive functions. In this review, we briefly discuss the structural and functional roles of the LHb-VTA microcircuit and their impact on cognition and mood disorders in order to support future studies addressing brain plasticity during chronic pain conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Raquel Pereira
- Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde—Pain Neurobiology Group, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal; (A.R.P.); (M.A.); (M.C.-N.); (C.M.); (V.G.)
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biomedicina—Unidade de Biologia Experimental, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
| | - Mobina Alemi
- Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde—Pain Neurobiology Group, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal; (A.R.P.); (M.A.); (M.C.-N.); (C.M.); (V.G.)
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biomedicina—Unidade de Biologia Experimental, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
| | - Mariana Cerqueira-Nunes
- Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde—Pain Neurobiology Group, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal; (A.R.P.); (M.A.); (M.C.-N.); (C.M.); (V.G.)
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biomedicina—Unidade de Biologia Experimental, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
- Programa Doutoral em Neurociências, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
| | - Clara Monteiro
- Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde—Pain Neurobiology Group, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal; (A.R.P.); (M.A.); (M.C.-N.); (C.M.); (V.G.)
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biomedicina—Unidade de Biologia Experimental, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
| | - Vasco Galhardo
- Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde—Pain Neurobiology Group, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal; (A.R.P.); (M.A.); (M.C.-N.); (C.M.); (V.G.)
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biomedicina—Unidade de Biologia Experimental, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
| | - Helder Cardoso-Cruz
- Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde—Pain Neurobiology Group, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal; (A.R.P.); (M.A.); (M.C.-N.); (C.M.); (V.G.)
- Instituto de Biologia Molecular e Celular, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
- Departamento de Biomedicina—Unidade de Biologia Experimental, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade do Porto, Rua Doutor Plácido da Costa, 4200-450 Porto, Portugal
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Amohashemi E, Reisi P, Alaei H. The role of NMDA glutamate receptors in the lateral habenula on morphine-induced conditioned place preference in rats. Synapse 2023. [PMID: 37122079 DOI: 10.1002/syn.22273] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Revised: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2023] [Indexed: 05/02/2023]
Abstract
The lateral habenula (LHb) has received special attention due to its role in modulating motivated behavior, stress response, and rewarding and aversive stimuli through monoamine transmission. In the present study, the involvement of the N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) receptors of the LHb in the expression and acquisition phases of morphine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) was studied in male rats. Bilateral injections of agonist/antagonist (MK-801) of NMDA receptor were performed during the conditioning sessions of the acquisition phase. In other separate groups, drugs were also injected into the LHb before the test session during the expression phase of CPP. A 5-day CPP bias paradigm was used to study the effect of injections of NMDA and MK-801 into the LHb on morphine reward-related behavior. Different doses of NMDA plus morphine reduced the CPP score during the acquisition phase, whereas MK-801 significantly increased conditioning scores during the acquisition phase of CPP. The injection of agonists and antagonists of NMDA receptors in LHb had no significant effect on CPP scores and locomotion during the expression phase of CPP, whereas the motor activity in the acquisition phase was affected by the drugs. The reduction effect of NMDA on the CPP scores during the acquisition phase was blocked by pretreatment with MK-801. Our findings also suggest that NMDA receptors in the LHb may be involved in the acquisition phase of morphine-induced CPP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elahe Amohashemi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Parham Reisi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Hojjatallah Alaei
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
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Fritz M, Soravia SM, Dudeck M, Malli L, Fakhoury M. Neurobiology of Aggression-Review of Recent Findings and Relationship with Alcohol and Trauma. BIOLOGY 2023; 12:biology12030469. [PMID: 36979161 PMCID: PMC10044835 DOI: 10.3390/biology12030469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/17/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023]
Abstract
Aggression can be conceptualized as any behavior, physical or verbal, that involves attacking another person or animal with the intent of causing harm, pain or injury. Because of its high prevalence worldwide, aggression has remained a central clinical and public safety issue. Aggression can be caused by several risk factors, including biological and psychological, such as genetics and mental health disorders, and socioeconomic such as education, employment, financial status, and neighborhood. Research over the past few decades has also proposed a link between alcohol consumption and aggressive behaviors. Alcohol consumption can escalate aggressive behavior in humans, often leading to domestic violence or serious crimes. Converging lines of evidence have also shown that trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) could have a tremendous impact on behavior associated with both alcohol use problems and violence. However, although the link between trauma, alcohol, and aggression is well documented, the underlying neurobiological mechanisms and their impact on behavior have not been properly discussed. This article provides an overview of recent advances in understanding the translational neurobiological basis of aggression and its intricate links to alcoholism and trauma, focusing on behavior. It does so by shedding light from several perspectives, including in vivo imaging, genes, receptors, and neurotransmitters and their influence on human and animal behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Fritz
- School of Health and Social Sciences, AKAD University of Applied Sciences, 70191 Stuttgart, Germany
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ulm University, BKH Günzburg, Lindenallee 2, 89312 Günzburg, Germany
| | - Sarah-Maria Soravia
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ulm University, BKH Günzburg, Lindenallee 2, 89312 Günzburg, Germany
| | - Manuela Dudeck
- Department of Forensic Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ulm University, BKH Günzburg, Lindenallee 2, 89312 Günzburg, Germany
| | - Layal Malli
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut P.O. Box 13-5053, Lebanon
| | - Marc Fakhoury
- Department of Natural Sciences, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Beirut P.O. Box 13-5053, Lebanon
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Neural mechanism underlying depressive-like state associated with social status loss. Cell 2023; 186:560-576.e17. [PMID: 36693374 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2022.12.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 27.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Downward social mobility is a well-known mental risk factor for depression, but its neural mechanism remains elusive. Here, by forcing mice to lose against their subordinates in a non-violent social contest, we lower their social ranks stably and induce depressive-like behaviors. These rank-decline-associated depressive-like behaviors can be reversed by regaining social status. In vivo fiber photometry and single-unit electrophysiological recording show that forced loss, but not natural loss, generates negative reward prediction error (RPE). Through the lateral hypothalamus, the RPE strongly activates the brain's anti-reward center, the lateral habenula (LHb). LHb activation inhibits the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) that controls social competitiveness and reinforces retreats in contests. These results reveal the core neural mechanisms mutually promoting social status loss and depressive behaviors. The intertwined neuronal signaling controlling mPFC and LHb activities provides a mechanistic foundation for the crosstalk between social mobility and psychological disorder, unveiling a promising target for intervention.
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Zhang WW, Chen T, Li SY, Wang XY, Liu WB, Wang YQ, Mi WL, Mao-Ying QL, Wang YQ, Chu YX. Tachykinin receptor 3 in the lateral habenula alleviates pain and anxiety comorbidity in mice. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1049739. [PMID: 36756128 PMCID: PMC9900122 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1049739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The coexistence of chronic pain and anxiety is a common clinical phenomenon. Here, the role of tachykinin receptor 3 (NK3R) in the lateral habenula (LHb) in trigeminal neuralgia and in pain-associated anxiety was systematically investigated. First, electrophysiological recording showed that bilateral LHb neurons are hyperactive in a mouse model of trigeminal neuralgia made by partial transection of the infraorbital nerve (pT-ION). Chemicogenetic activation of bilateral LHb glutamatergic neurons in naive mice induced orofacial allodynia and anxiety-like behaviors, and pharmacological activation of NK3R in the LHb attenuated allodynia and anxiety-like behaviors induced by pT-ION. Electrophysiological recording showed that pharmacological activation of NK3R suppressed the abnormal excitation of LHb neurons. In parallel, pharmacological inhibition of NK3R induced orofacial allodynia and anxiety-like behavior in naive mice. The electrophysiological recording showed that pharmacological inhibition of NK3R activates LHb neurons. Neurokinin B (NKB) is an endogenous high-affinity ligand of NK3R, which binds NK3R and activates it to perform physiological functions, and further neuron projection tracing showed that the front section of the periaqueductal gray (fPAG) projects NKB-positive nerve fibers to the LHb. Optogenetics combined with electrophysiology recordings characterize the functional connections in this fPAG NKB → LHb pathway. In addition, electrophysiological recording showed that NKB-positive neurons in the fPAG were more active than NKB-negative neurons in pT-ION mice. Finally, inhibition of NKB release from the fPAG reversed the analgesic and anxiolytic effects of LHb Tacr3 overexpression in pT-ION mice, indicating that fPAG NKB → LHb regulates orofacial allodynia and pain-induced anxious behaviors. These findings for NK3R suggest the cellular mechanism behind pT-ION in the LHb and suggest that the fPAG NKB → LHb circuit is involved in pain and anxiety comorbidity. This previously unrecognized pathway might provide a potential approach for relieving the pain and anxiety associated with trigeminal neuralgia by targeting NK3R.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen-Wen Zhang
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Teng Chen
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Shi-Yi Li
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xin-Yue Wang
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wen-Bo Liu
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yu-Quan Wang
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Wen-Li Mi
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,Shanghai Key Laboratory of Acupuncture Mechanism and Acupoint Function, Institute of Acupuncture Research, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Qi-Liang Mao-Ying
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,Shanghai Key Laboratory of Acupuncture Mechanism and Acupoint Function, Institute of Acupuncture Research, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yan-Qing Wang
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,Shanghai Key Laboratory of Acupuncture Mechanism and Acupoint Function, Institute of Acupuncture Research, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,*Correspondence: Yu-Xia Chu, ; Yan-Qing Wang,
| | - Yu-Xia Chu
- Department of Integrative Medicine and Neurobiology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College, Institutes of Integrative Medicine, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,Shanghai Key Laboratory of Acupuncture Mechanism and Acupoint Function, Institute of Acupuncture Research, Fudan University, Shanghai, China,*Correspondence: Yu-Xia Chu, ; Yan-Qing Wang,
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11
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Amohashemi E, Alaei H, Reisi P. Effects of GABA B receptor blockade on lateral habenula glutamatergic neuron activity following morphine injection in the rat: an electrophysiological study. Res Pharm Sci 2022; 18:16-23. [PMID: 36846735 PMCID: PMC9951782 DOI: 10.4103/1735-5362.363592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 08/22/2022] [Accepted: 11/15/2022] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and purpose The lateral habenula (LHb), a key area in the regulation of the reward system, exerts a major influence on midbrain neurons. It has been shown that the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)- ergic system plays the main role in morphine dependency. The role of GABA type B receptors (GABABRs) in the regulation of LHb neural activity in response to morphine, remains unknown. In this study, the effect of GABABRs blockade in response to morphine was assessed on the neuronal activity in the LHb. Experimental approach The baseline firing rate was recorded for 15 min, then morphine (5 mg/kg; s.c) and phaclofen (0, 0.5, 1, and 2 μg/rat), a GABABRs' antagonist, were microinjected into the LHb. Their effects on firing LHb neurons were investigated using an extracellular single-unit recording in male rats. Findings/Results The results revealed that morphine decreased neuronal activity, and GABABRs blockade alone did not have any effect on the neuronal activity of the LHb. A low dose of the antagonist had no significant effect on neuronal firing rate, while blockade with doses of 1 and 2 μg/rat of the antagonist could significantly prevent the inhibitory effects of morphine on the LHb neuronal activity. Conclusion and implications This result indicated that GABABRs have a potential modulator effect, in response to morphine in the LHb.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elahe Amohashemi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, I.R. Iran
| | - Hojjatallah Alaei
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, I.R. Iran
| | - Parham Reisi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, I.R. Iran,Corresponding author: P. Reisi Tel.: +98-3137929033; Fax: +98-3136688597
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12
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Involvement of AMPA receptors of lateral habenula in the expression and acquisition phases of morphine-induced place preference. Brain Res 2022; 1798:148150. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2022.148150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2022] [Revised: 10/23/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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13
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Involvement of GABAA receptors of lateral habenula in the acquisition and expression phases of morphine-induced place preference in male rats. Behav Pharmacol 2022; 33:452-465. [PMID: 36148835 DOI: 10.1097/fbp.0000000000000695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The lateral habenula (LHb) is a critical brain structure involved in the aversive response to drug abuse. It has been determined that the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic system plays the main role in morphine dependency. The role of GABA type A receptors (GABAARs) in LHb on morphine-induced conditioned place preference (CPP) remains unknown. In this study, the effect of bilateral intra-LHb microinjection of GABAAR agonist and antagonist on the acquisition and expression phases of CPP, utilizing a 5-day CPP paradigm in male rats, was evaluated. Subcutaneous administration of different doses of morphine caused a dose-dependent CPP. Intra-LHb microinjection of the GABAAR agonist, muscimol, in combination with morphine (5 mg/kg; subcutaneously) enhanced CPP scores in the acquisition phase of morphine CPP, whereas the GABAAR antagonist, bicuculline, significantly reduced the conditioning scores in the acquisition phase. Furthermore, pretreatment with a high dose of bicuculline reversed the additive effect of muscimol during the acquisition phase, yet the low dose of antagonist had no significant effect on agonist-induced CPP scores. On the other hand, muscimol (3 µg/rat) significantly increased CPP scores in the expression phase but bicuculline did not induce a significant effect on CPP scores. Bicuculline and muscimol microinjections did not affect locomotor activity in the testing sessions. Our results confirm that GABAARs in LHb play an active role in morphine reward. In addition, microinjections of bicuculline/muscimol may alter the morphine response through the GABAergic system.
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14
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Circuits regulating pleasure and happiness - focus on potential biomarkers for circuitry including the habenuloid complex. Acta Neuropsychiatr 2022; 34:229-239. [PMID: 35587050 DOI: 10.1017/neu.2022.15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The multiplicity and complexity of the neuronal connections in the central nervous system make it difficult to disentangle circuits that play an essential role in the development or treatment of (neuro)psychiatric disorders. By choosing the evolutionary development of the forebrain as a starting point, a certain order in the connections can be created. The dorsal diencephalic connection (DDC) system can be applied for the development of biomarkers that can predict treatment response. MATERIALS AND METHODS After providing a brief introduction to the theory, we examined neuroanatomical publications on the connectivity of the DDC system. We then searched for neurochemical components that are specific for the habenula. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The best strategy to find biomarkers that reflect the function of the habenular connection is to use genetic variants of receptors, transporters or enzymes specific to this complex. By activating these with probes and measuring the response in people with different functional genotypes, the usefulness of biomarkers can be assessed. CONCLUSIONS The most promising biomarkers in this respect are those linked to activation or inhibition of the nicotine receptor, dopamine D4 receptor, μ-opioid receptor and also those of the functioning of habenular glia cells (astrocytes and microglia).
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15
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Hoops D, Whiting MJ, Keogh JS. A Smaller Habenula is Associated with Increasing Intensity of Sexual Selection. BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2022; 97:265-273. [PMID: 34983044 DOI: 10.1159/000521750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The habenula is a small structure in the brain that acts as a relay station for neural information, helping to modulate behaviour in response to variable and unpredictable stimuli. Broadly, it is evolutionarily conserved in structure and connectivity across vertebrates and is the most prominent bilaterally asymmetric structure in the brain. Nonetheless, comparative evolutionary studies of the habenula are virtually non-existent. Here, we examine the volumes of the medial and lateral habenular subregions, in both hemispheres, across a group of Australian agamid lizards in the genus Ctenophorus. In males, we found bilaterally asymmetrical selection on the lateral habenula to become smaller with increasing intensity of sexual selection, possibly as a mechanism to increase aggressive responses. In females, we found bilaterally symmetrical selection on both the medial and lateral subregions to become smaller with increasing sexual selection. This is consistent with sexual selection increasing motivation to reproduce and the habenula's well-characterized role in controlling and modifying responses to rewarding stimuli. However, as there are currently no studies addressing habenular function in reptiles, it is difficult to draw more precise conclusions. As has happened recently in biomedical neuroscience, it is time for the habenula to receive greater attention in evolutionary neuroscience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Hoops
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.,Mouse Imaging Centre, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Martin J Whiting
- Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - J Scott Keogh
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
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16
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Muroi Y, Ishii T. Glutamatergic neurons from the medial prefrontal cortex to the dorsal raphe nucleus regulate maternal aggression in lactating mice. Neurosci Res 2022; 183:50-60. [PMID: 35817229 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2022.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2022] [Revised: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Glutamatergic signals in the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) regulate maternal aggression and care in mice. We examined whether glutamatergic input from the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) to the DRN might regulate maternal aggression and care in mice. In the maternal aggression test, each dam was exposed to an identical intruder male twice for 5 min, 60 min apart. During the latter trial (opt trial), the terminals of glutamatergic neurons from the mPFC to the DRN were manipulated using optogenetic techniques. Compared to the former trial (pre-opt trial), the inhibition of glutamatergic input in the opt trial decreased bite frequency and prevented the shortening of biting latency. In contrast, the activation of glutamatergic input at 5 Hz increased the biting frequency. Meanwhile, the activation of glutamatergic input at 1, 10, and 20 Hz prevented the shortening of biting latency without affecting biting frequency. In the maternal care test, activation of glutamatergic input at 5 Hz did not affect maternal care. Our results suggest that glutamatergic neurons from the mPFC to the DRN differently regulate maternal aggression, depending on temporal patterns of their activation, and that the glutamatergic signals that enhance maternal aggression are not involved in the regulation of maternal care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshikage Muroi
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Hokkaido, 080-8555, Japan.
| | - Toshiaki Ishii
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Hokkaido, 080-8555, Japan
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17
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Gouveia FV, Baker PM, Mameli M, Germann J. Editorial: The Habenula and Its Role in Neuropsychiatric Symptoms. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:929507. [PMID: 35685273 PMCID: PMC9172991 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.929507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Accepted: 05/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Flavia Venetucci Gouveia
- Neuroscience and Mental Health, The Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
- *Correspondence: Flavia Venetucci Gouveia
| | | | - Manuel Mameli
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
- INSERM, UMR-S 839, Paris, France
| | - Jurgen Germann
- Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, University Health Network and University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Jurgen Germann
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18
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Dai D, Li W, Chen A, Gao XF, Xiong L. Lateral Habenula and Its Potential Roles in Pain and Related Behaviors. ACS Chem Neurosci 2022; 13:1108-1118. [PMID: 35412792 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.2c00067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The lateral habenula (LHb) is a tiny structure that acts as a hub, relaying signals from the limbic forebrain structures and basal ganglia to the brainstem modulatory area. Facilitated by updated knowledge and more precise manipulation of circuits, the progress in figuring out the neural circuits and functions of the LHb has increased dramatically over the past decade. Importantly, LHb is found to play an integrative role and has profound effects on a variety of behaviors associated with pain, including depression-like and anxiety-like behaviors, antireward or aversion, aggression, defensive behavior, and substance use disorder. Thus, LHb is a potential target for improving pain management and related disorders. In this review, we focused on the functions, related circuits, and neurotransmissions of the LHb in pain processing and related behaviors. A comprehensive understanding of the relationship between the LHb and pain will help to find new pain treatments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danqing Dai
- Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1481, Xinshi North Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
| | - Wanrong Li
- Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1481, Xinshi North Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
| | - Aiwen Chen
- Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1481, Xinshi North Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
| | - Xiao-Fei Gao
- Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1481, Xinshi North Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
| | - Lize Xiong
- Translational Research Institute of Brain and Brain-Like Intelligence, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1481, Xinshi North Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Clinical Research Center for Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
- Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Shanghai Fourth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, No. 1279, Sanmen Road, Shanghai 200434, China
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19
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Ogawa S, Parhar IS. Role of Habenula in Social and Reproductive Behaviors in Fish: Comparison With Mammals. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 15:818782. [PMID: 35221943 PMCID: PMC8867168 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.818782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/27/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Social behaviors such as mating, parenting, fighting, and avoiding are essential functions as a communication tool in social animals, and are critical for the survival of individuals and species. Social behaviors are controlled by a complex circuitry that comprises several key social brain regions, which is called the social behavior network (SBN). The SBN further integrates social information with external and internal factors to select appropriate behavioral responses to social circumstances, called social decision-making. The social decision-making network (SDMN) and SBN are structurally, neurochemically and functionally conserved in vertebrates. The social decision-making process is also closely influenced by emotional assessment. The habenula has recently been recognized as a crucial center for emotion-associated adaptation behaviors. Here we review the potential role of the habenula in social function with a special emphasis on fish studies. Further, based on evolutional, molecular, morphological, and behavioral perspectives, we discuss the crucial role of the habenula in the vertebrate SDMN.
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20
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Ogawa S, Parhar IS. Functions of habenula in reproduction and socio-reproductive behaviours. Front Neuroendocrinol 2022; 64:100964. [PMID: 34793817 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2021.100964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Revised: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Habenula is an evolutionarily conserved structure in the brain of vertebrates. Recent reports have drawn attention to the habenula as a processing centre for emotional decision-making and its role in psychiatric disorders. Emotional decision-making process is also known to be closely associated with reproductive conditions. The habenula receives innervations from reproductive centres within the brain and signals from key reproductive neuroendocrine regulators such as gonadal sex steroids, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), and kisspeptin. In this review, based on morphological, biochemical, physiological, and pharmacological evidence we discuss an emerging role of the habenula in reproduction. Further, we discuss the modulatory role of reproductive endocrine factors in the habenula and their association with socio-reproductive behaviours such as mating, anxiety and aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoshi Ogawa
- Brain Research Institute, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, 47500 Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia
| | - Ishwar S Parhar
- Brain Research Institute, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, 47500 Bandar Sunway, Selangor, Malaysia.
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21
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Gouveia FV, Ibrahim GM. Habenula as a Neural Substrate for Aggressive Behavior. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:817302. [PMID: 35250669 PMCID: PMC8891498 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.817302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the past decades, an ever growing body of literature has explored the anatomy, connections, and functions of the habenula (Hb). It has been postulated that the Hb plays a central role in the control of the monoaminergic system, thus influencing a wide range of behavioral responses, and participating in the pathophysiology of a number of psychiatric disorders and neuropsychiatric symptoms, such as aggressive behaviors. Aggressive behaviors are frequently accompanied by restlessness and agitation, and are commonly observed in patients with psychiatric disorders, intellectual disabilities, and neurodegenerative diseases of aging. Recently, the Hb has been explored as a new target for neuromodulation therapies, such as deep brain stimulation, with promising results. Here we review the anatomical organization of the habenula and discuss several distinct mechanisms by which the Hb is involved in the modulation of aggressive behaviors, and propose new investigations for the development of novel treatments targeting the habenula to reduce aggressive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavia Venetucci Gouveia
- Neuroscience and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - George M Ibrahim
- Neuroscience and Mental Health, Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Division of Neurosurgery, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Institute of Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.,Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
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22
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Zha X, Xu XH. Neural circuit mechanisms that govern inter-male attack in mice. Cell Mol Life Sci 2021; 78:7289-7307. [PMID: 34687319 PMCID: PMC11072497 DOI: 10.1007/s00018-021-03956-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Individuals of many species fight with conspecifics to gain access to or defend critical resources essential for survival and reproduction. Such intraspecific fighting is evolutionarily selected for in a species-, sex-, and environment-dependent manner when the value of resources secured exceeds the cost of fighting. One such example is males fighting for chances to mate with females. Recent advances in new tools open up ways to dissect the detailed neural circuit mechanisms that govern intraspecific, particularly inter-male, aggression in the model organism Mus musculus (house mouse). By targeting and functional manipulating genetically defined populations of neurons and their projections, these studies reveal a core neural circuit that controls the display of reactive male-male attacks in mice, from sensory detection to decision making and action selection. Here, we summarize these critical results. We then describe various modulatory inputs that route into the core circuit to afford state-dependent and top-down modulation of inter-male attacks. While reviewing these exciting developments, we note that how the inter-male attack circuit converges or diverges with neural circuits that mediate other forms of social interactions remain not fully understood. Finally, we emphasize the importance of combining circuit, pharmacological, and genetic analysis when studying the neural control of aggression in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Zha
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Xiao-Hong Xu
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.
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23
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Dopamine promotes aggression in mice via ventral tegmental area to lateral septum projections. Nat Commun 2021; 12:6796. [PMID: 34815379 PMCID: PMC8610979 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-27092-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Septal-hypothalamic neuronal activity centrally mediates aggressive behavior and dopamine system hyperactivity is associated with elevated aggression. However, the causal role of dopamine in aggression and its target circuit mechanisms are largely unknown. To address this knowledge gap, we studied the modulatory role of the population- and projection-specific dopamine function in a murine model of aggressive behavior. We find that terminal activity of ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopaminergic neurons selectively projecting to the lateral septum (LS) is sufficient for promoting aggression and necessary for establishing baseline aggression. Within the LS, dopamine acts on D2-receptors to inhibit GABAergic neurons, and septal D2-signaling is necessary for VTA dopaminergic activity to promote aggression. Collectively, our data reveal a powerful modulatory influence of dopaminergic synaptic input on LS function and aggression, effectively linking the clinically pertinent hyper-dopaminergic model of aggression with the classic septal-hypothalamic aggression axis. The authors show that terminal activity of dopaminergic neurons selectively projecting from the ventral tegmental area to the lateral septum is sufficient for promoting aggression and necessary for establishing baseline aggression in mice.
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24
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Sevigny JP, Bryant EN, Encarnacion É, Smith DF, Acosta R, Baker PM. Lateral Habenula Inactivation Alters Willingness to Exert Physical Effort Using a Maze Task in Rats. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:652793. [PMID: 34447300 PMCID: PMC8382800 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.652793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
An impairment in willingness to exert physical effort in daily activities is a noted aspect of several psychiatric conditions. Previous studies have supported an important role for the lateral habenula (LHb) in dynamic decision-making, including decisions associated with discounting costly high value rewards. It is unknown whether a willingness to exert physical effort to obtain higher rewards is also mediated by the LHb. It also remains unclear whether the LHb is critical to monitoring the task contingencies generally as they change, or whether it also mediates choices in otherwise static reward environments. The present study indicates that the LHb might have an integrative role in effort-based decision-making even when no alterations in choice contingencies occur. Specifically, pharmacological inactivation of the LHb showed differences in motivational behavior by reducing choices for the high effort (30cm barrier) high reward (2 pellets) choice versus the low effort (0 cm) low reward (1 pellet) choice. In sessions where the barrier was removed, rats demonstrated a similar preference for the high reward arm under both control and LHb inactivation. Further, no differences were observed when accounting for sex as a biological variable. These results support that effort to receive a high-value reward is considered on a trial-by-trial basis and the LHb is part of the circuit responsible for integrating this information during decision-making. Therefore, it is likely that previously observed changes in the LHb may be a key contributor to changes in a willingness to exert effort in psychiatric conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua P Sevigny
- Department of Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Emily N Bryant
- Department of Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Érica Encarnacion
- Department of Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Dylan F Smith
- Department of Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Rudith Acosta
- Department of Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Phillip M Baker
- Department of Psychology, Seattle Pacific University, Seattle, WA, United States
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25
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Amohashemi E, Reisi P, Alaei H. Lateral habenula electrical stimulation with different intensities in combination with GABA B receptor antagonist reduces acquisition and expression phases of morphine-induced CPP. Neurosci Lett 2021; 759:135996. [PMID: 34062194 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2021.135996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2021] [Revised: 05/21/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The lateral habenula (LHb) plays a principal role in response to aversive stimuli and negative emotional states. In this study, we have evaluated the effects of unilateral electrical stimulation (e-stim) of the LHb on morphine-conditioned place preference (CPP), before or after bilateral injections of Gamma-aminobutyric acid-B receptor (GABABR) antagonist, phaclofen, in male rats. Morphine (5 mg/kg; s.c.) induced a significant CPP, using a 5-day CPP paradigm. Intra-LHb microinjection of phaclofen or the LHb e-stim decreased only the acquisition of CPP. The 150 μA stimulation plus phaclofen significantly suppressed the expression phase but induced aversion in the acquisition of CPP, and an e-stim of 25 μA in combination with the antagonist, significantly prevented only the acquisition phase. The findings of this study confirm the possible role of GABABRs in the LHb on the acquisition and the expression of CPP. These results show that e-stim of LHb alone or plus phaclofen may change the GABA transmission, involving into CPP. Therefore, the GABAergic system, especially through GABABRs, may play a prominent role in the behavioral responses to morphine-induced CPP by LHb stimulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elahe Amohashemi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Parham Reisi
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
| | - Hojjatallah Alaei
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
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26
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Ogawa S, Pfaff DW, Parhar IS. Fish as a model in social neuroscience: conservation and diversity in the social brain network. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 96:999-1020. [PMID: 33559323 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2019] [Revised: 01/19/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Mechanisms for fish social behaviours involve a social brain network (SBN) which is evolutionarily conserved among vertebrates. However, considerable diversity is observed in the actual behaviour patterns amongst nearly 30000 fish species. The huge variation found in socio-sexual behaviours and strategies is likely generated by a morphologically and genetically well-conserved small forebrain system. Hence, teleost fish provide a useful model to study the fundamental mechanisms underlying social brain functions. Herein we review the foundations underlying fish social behaviours including sensory, hormonal, molecular and neuroanatomical features. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons clearly play important roles, but the participation of vasotocin and isotocin is also highlighted. Genetic investigations of developing fish brain have revealed the molecular complexity of neural development of the SBN. In addition to straightforward social behaviours such as sex and aggression, new experiments have revealed higher order and unique phenomena such as social eavesdropping and social buffering in fish. Finally, observations interpreted as 'collective cognition' in fish can likely be explained by careful observation of sensory determinants and analyses using the dynamics of quantitative scaling. Understanding of the functions of the SBN in fish provide clues for understanding the origin and evolution of higher social functions in vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoshi Ogawa
- Brain Research Institute, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia
| | - Donald W Pfaff
- Laboratory of Neurobiology and Behavior, Rockefeller University, New York, NY, 10065, U.S.A
| | - Ishwar S Parhar
- Brain Research Institute, Jeffrey Cheah School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Monash University Malaysia, Bandar Sunway, Selangor, 47500, Malaysia
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Okamoto H, Cherng BW, Nakajo H, Chou MY, Kinoshita M. Habenula as the experience-dependent controlling switchboard of behavior and attention in social conflict and learning. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2021; 68:36-43. [PMID: 33421772 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2020.12.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2020] [Revised: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The habenula is among the evolutionarily most conserved parts of the brain and has been known for its role in the control of behavior to cope with aversive stimuli. Recent studies in zebrafish have revealed the novel roles of the two parallel neural pathways from the dorsal habenula to its target, the interpeduncular nucleus, in the control of behavioral choice whether to behave dominantly or submissively in the social conflict. They are modifiable depending on the internal state of the fish such as hunger and play another important role in orientation of attention whether to direct it internally to oneself or externally to others. These studies, therefore, are revealing a novel role for the habenula as the integrated switchboard for concertedly controlling behavior either as a winner with self-centered (idiothetic) attention or a loser with others-oriented (allothetic) attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hitoshi Okamoto
- Laboratory for Neural Circuit Dynamics of Decision Making, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama 351-0198 Japan; RIKEN CBS-Kao Collaboration Center, Saitama, 351-0198, Japan.
| | - Bor-Wei Cherng
- Laboratory for Neural Circuit Dynamics of Decision Making, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama 351-0198 Japan
| | - Haruna Nakajo
- Laboratory for Neural Circuit Dynamics of Decision Making, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama 351-0198 Japan
| | - Ming-Yi Chou
- Department of Life Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, 10617, Taiwan
| | - Masae Kinoshita
- Laboratory for Neural Circuit Dynamics of Decision Making, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama 351-0198 Japan
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Flanigan ME, Aleyasin H, Li L, Burnett CJ, Chan KL, LeClair KB, Lucas EK, Matikainen-Ankney B, Durand-de Cuttoli R, Takahashi A, Menard C, Pfau ML, Golden SA, Bouchard S, Calipari ES, Nestler EJ, DiLeone RJ, Yamanaka A, Huntley GW, Clem RL, Russo SJ. Orexin signaling in GABAergic lateral habenula neurons modulates aggressive behavior in male mice. Nat Neurosci 2020; 23:638-650. [PMID: 32284606 PMCID: PMC7195257 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-020-0617-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2018] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Heightened aggression is characteristic of multiple neuropsychiatric disorders and can have various negative effects on patients, their families and the public. Recent studies in humans and animals have implicated brain reward circuits in aggression and suggest that, in subsets of aggressive individuals, domination of subordinate social targets is reinforcing. In this study, we showed that, in male mice, orexin neurons in the lateral hypothalamus activated a small population of glutamic acid decarboxylase 2 (GAD2)-expressing neurons in the lateral habenula (LHb) via orexin receptor 2 (OxR2) and that activation of these GAD2 neurons promoted male-male aggression and conditioned place preference for aggression-paired contexts. Moreover, LHb GAD2 neurons were inhibitory within the LHb and dampened the activity of the LHb as a whole. These results suggest that the orexin system is important for the regulation of inter-male aggressive behavior and provide the first functional evidence of a local inhibitory circuit within the LHb.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meghan E Flanigan
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Hossein Aleyasin
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Long Li
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - C Joseph Burnett
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kenny L Chan
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Katherine B LeClair
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Elizabeth K Lucas
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA
| | - Bridget Matikainen-Ankney
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Romain Durand-de Cuttoli
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Aki Takahashi
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan
| | - Caroline Menard
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine and CERVO Brain Research Center, Université Laval, Ville de Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Madeline L Pfau
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sam A Golden
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Sylvain Bouchard
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Erin S Calipari
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Eric J Nestler
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ralph J DiLeone
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Akihiro Yamanaka
- Department of Neuroscience II, Research Institute of Environmental Medicine, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Japan
| | - George W Huntley
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Roger L Clem
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Scott J Russo
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
- Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
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Hui K, Katayama Y, Nakayama KI, Nomura J, Sakurai T. Characterizing vulnerable brain areas and circuits in mouse models of autism: Towards understanding pathogenesis and new therapeutic approaches. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 110:77-91. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2018] [Revised: 07/30/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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Cho C, Lee S, Kim A, Yarishkin O, Ryoo K, Lee Y, Jung H, Yang E, Lee DY, Lee B, Kim H, Oh U, Im H, Hwang EM, Park J. TMEM16A expression in cholinergic neurons of the medial habenula mediates anxiety-related behaviors. EMBO Rep 2020; 21:e48097. [PMID: 31782602 PMCID: PMC7001509 DOI: 10.15252/embr.201948097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2019] [Revised: 11/13/2019] [Accepted: 11/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
TMEM16A, a Ca2+ -activated Cl- channel, is known to modulate the excitability of various types of cells; however, its function in central neurons is largely unknown. Here, we show the specific expression of TMEM16A in the medial habenula (mHb) via RNAscope in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and electrophysiology. When TMEM16A is ablated in the mHb cholinergic neurons (TMEM16A cKO mice), the slope of after-hyperpolarization of spontaneous action potentials decreases and the firing frequency is reduced. Reduced mHb activity also decreases the activity of the interpeduncular nucleus (IPN). Moreover, TMEM16A cKO mice display anxiogenic behaviors and deficits in social interaction without despair-like phenotypes or cognitive dysfunctions. Finally, chemogenetic inhibition of mHb cholinergic neurons using the DREADD (Designer Receptors Exclusively Activated by Designer Drugs) approach reveals similar behavioral phenotypes to those of TMEM16A cKO mice. We conclude that TMEM16A plays a key role in anxiety-related behaviors regulated by mHb cholinergic neurons and could be a potential therapeutic target against anxiety-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang‐Hoon Cho
- School of Biosystems and Biomedical SciencesCollege of Health SciencesKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
| | - Sangjoon Lee
- Convergence Research Center for Diagnosis, Treatment and Care System of DementiaKISTSeoulKorea
- Department of Pharmacology and Biomedical SciencesSeoul National University College of MedicineSeoulKorea
- Center for NeuroscienceBrain Science InstituteKorea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST)SeoulKorea
| | - Ajung Kim
- Center for Functional ConnectomicsKISTSeoulKorea
- KHU‐KIST Department of Converging Science and TechnologyGraduate SchoolKyung Hee UniversitySeoulKorea
| | | | - Kanghyun Ryoo
- School of Biosystems and Biomedical SciencesCollege of Health SciencesKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
| | - Young‐Sun Lee
- School of Biosystems and Biomedical SciencesCollege of Health SciencesKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
| | - Hyun‐Gug Jung
- School of Biosystems and Biomedical SciencesCollege of Health SciencesKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
- Center for Functional ConnectomicsKISTSeoulKorea
| | - Esther Yang
- Department of AnatomyCollege of MedicineKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
| | - Da Yong Lee
- Center for Functional ConnectomicsKISTSeoulKorea
| | - Byeongjun Lee
- Sensory Research CenterCRIBrain Science InstituteKorea Institute of Science and TechnologySeoulKorea
| | - Hyun Kim
- Department of AnatomyCollege of MedicineKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
| | - Uhtaek Oh
- Sensory Research CenterCRIBrain Science InstituteKorea Institute of Science and TechnologySeoulKorea
| | - Heh‐In Im
- Convergence Research Center for Diagnosis, Treatment and Care System of DementiaKISTSeoulKorea
- Center for NeuroscienceBrain Science InstituteKorea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST)SeoulKorea
- Division of Bio‐Medical Science & TechnologyKIST SchoolKorea University of Science and TechnologySeoulKorea
| | - Eun Mi Hwang
- Center for Functional ConnectomicsKISTSeoulKorea
- KHU‐KIST Department of Converging Science and TechnologyGraduate SchoolKyung Hee UniversitySeoulKorea
- Division of Bio‐Medical Science & TechnologyKIST SchoolKorea University of Science and TechnologySeoulKorea
| | - Jae‐Yong Park
- School of Biosystems and Biomedical SciencesCollege of Health SciencesKorea UniversitySeoulKorea
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Geng Y, Peterson RT. The zebrafish subcortical social brain as a model for studying social behavior disorders. Dis Model Mech 2019; 12:dmm039446. [PMID: 31413047 PMCID: PMC6737945 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.039446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Social behaviors are essential for the survival and reproduction of social species. Many, if not most, neuropsychiatric disorders in humans are either associated with underlying social deficits or are accompanied by social dysfunctions. Traditionally, rodent models have been used to model these behavioral impairments. However, rodent assays are often difficult to scale up and adapt to high-throughput formats, which severely limits their use for systems-level science. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have used zebrafish (Danio rerio) as a model system to study social behavior. These studies have demonstrated clear potential in overcoming some of the limitations of rodent models. In this Review, we explore the evolutionary conservation of a subcortical social brain between teleosts and mammals as the biological basis for using zebrafish to model human social behavior disorders, while summarizing relevant experimental tools and assays. We then discuss the recent advances gleaned from zebrafish social behavior assays, the applications of these assays to studying related disorders, and the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yijie Geng
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Utah, 30 S. 2000 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Randall T Peterson
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Utah, 30 S. 2000 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
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Animal Models of (or for) Aggression Reward, Addiction, and Relapse: Behavior and Circuits. J Neurosci 2019; 39:3996-4008. [PMID: 30833504 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0151-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2019] [Revised: 02/18/2019] [Accepted: 02/25/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Inappropriate and pathological aggression plays a leading role in the suffering and death of millions of people, and further places an untenable strain on the caregivers and families of those afflicted. In some cases, such as addictive drugs, aggression can be highly rewarding (appetitive) and continually pursued despite short- and long-term negative consequences. Similarly, recidivism (relapse) rates for repeat violent offenders are as high as relapse rates for drug addicts. Appetitive aggression and relapse to aggression seeking can be modeled in mice studies using conditioned place preference and self-administration procedures followed by a period of abstinence and subsequent tests for relapse to aggression preference and aggression seeking. These procedures allow for the study of the mechanisms that control the appetitive versus the consummatory (attack) phases of aggressive behavior. In this review, we first discuss the behavioral procedures developed to probe appetitive aggression in mouse models, spanning from Pavlovian to operant tasks, and we also describe the recently proposed phenomenon of "aggression addiction." Next, we discuss the pharmacological and circuit mechanisms of aggression conditioned place preference and aggression self-administration, seeking, and relapse, highlighting mechanistic congruence and divergence between appetitive and consummatory phases of aggression. We conclude by discussing clinical implications of the studies reviewed.
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Nucleus Accumbens Drd1-Expressing Neurons Control Aggression Self-Administration and Aggression Seeking in Mice. J Neurosci 2019; 39:2482-2496. [PMID: 30655356 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2409-18.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2018] [Revised: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 01/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
We recently developed a mouse model of appetitive operant aggression and reported that adult male outbred CD-1 mice lever-press for the opportunity to attack subordinate male mice and relapse to aggression seeking during abstinence. Here we studied the role of nucleus accumbens (NAc) dopamine receptor (Drd)1- and Drd2-expressing neurons in aggression self-administration and aggression seeking. We trained CD-1 mice to self-administer intruders (9 d, 12 trials/d) and tested them for aggression self-administration and aggression seeking on abstinence Day 1. We used immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization to measure the neuronal activity marker Fos in the NAc, and cell-type-specific colocalization of Fos with Drd1- and Drd2-expressing neurons. To test the causal role of Drd1- and Drd2-expressing neurons, we validated a transgenic hybrid breeding strategy crossing inbred Drd1-Cre and Drd2-Cre transgenic mice with outbred CD-1 mice and used cell-type-specific Cre-DREADD (hM4Di) to inhibit NAc Drd1- and Drd2-expressing neuron activity. We found that aggression self-administration and aggression seeking induced higher Fos expression in NAc shell than in core, that Fos colocalized with Drd1 and Drd2 in both subregions, and that chemogenetic inhibition of Drd1-, but not Drd2-, expressing neurons decreased aggression self-administration and aggression seeking. Results indicate a cell-type-specific role of Drd1-expressing neurons that is critical for both aggression self-administration and aggression seeking. Our study also validates a simple breeding strategy between outbred CD-1 mice and inbred C57-based Cre lines that can be used to study cell-type and circuit mechanisms of aggression reward and relapse.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Aggression is often comorbid with neuropsychiatric diseases, including drug addiction. One form, appetitive aggression, exhibits symptomatology that mimics that of drug addiction and is hypothesized to be due to dysregulation of addiction-related reward circuits. However, our mechanistic understanding of the circuitry modulating appetitive operant aggression is limited. Here we used a novel mouse model of aggression self-administration and relapse, in combination with immunohistochemistry, in situ hybridization, and chemogenetic manipulations to examine how cell types in the nucleus accumbens are recruited for, and control, operant aggression self-administration and aggression seeking on abstinence Day 1. We found that one population, dopamine receptor 1-expressing neurons, act as a critical modulator of operant aggression reward and aggression seeking.
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Muroi Y, Ishii T. Glutamatergic Signals in the Dorsal Raphe Nucleus Regulate Maternal Aggression and Care in an Opposing Manner in Mice. Neuroscience 2018; 400:33-47. [PMID: 30605702 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2018.12.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2018] [Revised: 11/01/2018] [Accepted: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Lactating female mice nurture their pups and attack intruders in their territory. When an intruder invades a dam's territory, she needs to switch her behavior from care to aggression to protect her pups and territory. Although the neuronal mechanisms underlying each distinct behavior have been studied, it is unclear how these behaviors are displayed alternatively. The dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) regulates both nurturing and aggressive behaviors. In the present study, we examined whether the DRN is involved in regulating alternative display of maternal care and aggression. We first examined neuronal activity in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and lateral habenula (LHb), which send glutamatergic input to the DRN, in dams by injecting Fluorogold, a retrograde tracer, into the DRN. The number of c-Fos- and Fluorogold-positive neurons in the mPFC and LHb increased in the dams that displayed biting behavior in response to an intruder, but remained unchanged in the dams that displayed nurturing behavior. Injections of N-methyl-d-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor antagonists or α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA)/kainate receptor antagonists into the DRN inhibited biting behavior but not nurturing behavior. In contrast, injections of NMDA or AMPA into the DRN inhibited nurturing behavior. These results suggest that glutamatergic signals in the DRN, which may originate from the mPFC and/or LHb, regulate the preferential display of biting behavior over nurturing behavior in dams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshikage Muroi
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan.
| | - Toshiaki Ishii
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro, Hokkaido 080-8555, Japan
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Gan G, Zilverstand A, Parvaz MA, Preston-Campbell RN, d'Oleire Uquillas F, Moeller SJ, Tomasi D, Goldstein RZ, Alia-Klein N. Habenula-prefrontal resting-state connectivity in reactive aggressive men - A pilot study. Neuropharmacology 2018; 156:107396. [PMID: 30366001 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2018.10.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2018] [Revised: 09/25/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Disproportionate anger and reactive aggression in response to provocation are core symptoms of intermittent-explosive disorder (IED). Previous research shows a link between the propensity for aggression in healthy individuals and altered functioning of prefrontal-limbic and default-mode networks (DMN) at rest when no provocation is present. In a pilot study, we used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the effects of pronounced reactive aggression in men, exemplified by IED, on the functional organization of resting-state brain networks including subcortical nodes such as the habenula previously implicated in aggression in preclinical models. Graph theory was applied to resting-state networks to determine alterations in global efficiency and clustering in high reactive aggressive men compared to low reactive aggressive men (controls). Further, we computed within-group correlations between trait aggression and graph measures, as well as within-group whole-brain seed-to-voxel regression analyses between trait aggression and habenula resting-state functional connectivity (rsFC). Reactive aggressive men compared to controls showed higher global efficiency in the left habenula, the left pulvinar in the thalamus, the left dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex, and the right temporal pole, as well as a trend for decreased clustering in DMN nodes. In the reactive aggressive group, high levels of trait aggression were linked to lower global efficiency of the left habenula, and to lower rsFC between the left habenula and the left ventro-lateral prefrontal cortex, a core region involved in inhibitory control. Together with preclinical evidence, our findings in men underline the relevance of aberrant habenula-prefrontal connectivity for the severity of aggressive behavior. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled 'Current status of the neurobiology of aggression and impulsivity'.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Gan
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
| | - A Zilverstand
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA
| | - M A Parvaz
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA
| | - R N Preston-Campbell
- Missouri Institute of Mental Health, University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - F d'Oleire Uquillas
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA
| | - S J Moeller
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA; Psychiatry, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - D Tomasi
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - R Z Goldstein
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA
| | - N Alia-Klein
- Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY, USA.
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Aleyasin H, Flanigan ME, Russo SJ. Neurocircuitry of aggression and aggression seeking behavior: nose poking into brain circuitry controlling aggression. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2018; 49:184-191. [PMID: 29524848 PMCID: PMC5935264 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2018.02.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2017] [Revised: 12/21/2017] [Accepted: 02/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Aggression is an innate behavior that helps individuals succeed in environments with limited resources. Over the past few decades, neurobiologists have identified neural circuits that promote and modulate aggression; however, far less is known regarding the motivational processes that drive aggression. Recent research suggests that aggression can activate reward centers in the brain to promote positive valence. Here, we review major recent findings regarding neural circuits that regulate aggression, with an emphasis on those regions involved in the rewarding or reinforcing properties of aggressive behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hossein Aleyasin
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States
| | - Meghan E Flanigan
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States
| | - Scott J Russo
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, United States.
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38
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Soutschek A. Neural Circuits Regulating Social Behavior: Highlighting the Causal Contribution of the Lateral Habenula. Biol Psychiatry 2018; 83:546-547. [PMID: 29506654 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2018.01.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2018] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Soutschek
- Laboratory for Social and Neural Systems Research, Department of Economics, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
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Zhang L, Hernández VS, Swinny JD, Verma AK, Giesecke T, Emery AC, Mutig K, Garcia-Segura LM, Eiden LE. A GABAergic cell type in the lateral habenula links hypothalamic homeostatic and midbrain motivation circuits with sex steroid signaling. Transl Psychiatry 2018; 8:50. [PMID: 29479060 PMCID: PMC5865187 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-018-0099-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2017] [Accepted: 01/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The lateral habenula (LHb) has a key role in integrating a variety of neural circuits associated with reward and aversive behaviors. There is limited information about how the different cell types and neuronal circuits within the LHb coordinate physiological and motivational states. Here, we report a cell type in the medial division of the LHb (LHbM) in male rats that is distinguished by: (1) a molecular signature for GABAergic neurotransmission (Slc32a1/VGAT) and estrogen receptor (Esr1/ERα) expression, at both mRNA and protein levels, as well as the mRNA for vesicular glutamate transporter Slc17a6/VGLUT2, which we term the GABAergic estrogen-receptive neuron (GERN); (2) its axonal projection patterns, identified by in vivo juxtacellular labeling, to both local LHb and to midbrain modulatory systems; and (3) its somatic expression of receptors for vasopressin, serotonin and dopamine, and mRNA for orexin receptor 2. This cell type is anatomically located to receive afferents from midbrain reward (dopamine and serotonin) and hypothalamic water and energy homeostasis (vasopressin and orexin) circuits. These afferents shared the expression of estrogen synthase (aromatase) and VGLUT2, both in their somata and axon terminals. We demonstrate dynamic changes in LHbM VGAT+ cell density, dependent upon gonadal functional status, that closely correlate with motivational behavior in response to predator and forced swim stressors. The findings suggest that the homeostasis and reward-related glutamatergic convergent projecting pathways to LHbMC employ a localized neurosteroid signaling mechanism via axonal expression of aromatase, to act as a switch for GERN excitation/inhibition output prevalence, influencing depressive or motivated behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Limei Zhang
- Departmento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico. .,Section on Molecular Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health (NIH), Bethesda, USA.
| | - Vito S. Hernández
- 0000 0001 2159 0001grid.9486.3Departmento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Jerome D. Swinny
- 0000 0001 0728 6636grid.4701.2Institute for Biomedical and Biomolecular Sciences, School of Pharmacy & Biomedical Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK
| | - Anil K. Verma
- 0000 0001 2159 0001grid.9486.3Departmento de Fisiología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Torsten Giesecke
- 0000 0001 2218 4662grid.6363.0Department of Anatomy, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Andrew C. Emery
- 0000 0004 0464 0574grid.416868.5Section on Molecular Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health (NIH), Bethesda, USA
| | - Kerim Mutig
- 0000 0001 2218 4662grid.6363.0Department of Anatomy, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Luis M. Garcia-Segura
- 0000 0001 2177 5516grid.419043.bInstituto Cajal, C.S.I.C., Madrid, Spain ,0000 0000 9314 1427grid.413448.eCIBERFES, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | - Lee E. Eiden
- 0000 0004 0464 0574grid.416868.5Section on Molecular Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health (NIH), Bethesda, USA
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Roberson S, Halpern ME. Development and connectivity of the habenular nuclei. Semin Cell Dev Biol 2017; 78:107-115. [PMID: 29107475 PMCID: PMC5920772 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcdb.2017.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2017] [Accepted: 10/09/2017] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Accumulating evidence has reinforced that the habenular region of the vertebrate dorsal forebrain is an essential integrating center, and a region strongly implicated in neurological disorders and addiction. Despite the important and diverse neuromodulatory roles the habenular nuclei play, their development has been understudied. The emphasis of this review is on the dorsal habenular nuclei of zebrafish, homologous to the medial nuclei of mammals, as recent work has revealed new information about the signaling pathways that regulate their formation. Additionally, the zebrafish dorsal habenulae have become a valuable model for probing how left-right differences are established in a vertebrate brain. Sonic hedgehog, fibroblast growth factors and Wingless-INT proteins are all involved in the generation of progenitor cells and ultimately, along with Notch signaling, influence habenular neurogenesis and left-right asymmetry. Intriguingly, a genetic network has emerged that leads to the differentiation of dorsal habenular neurons and, through localized chemokine signaling, directs the posterior outgrowth of their newly emerging axons towards their postsynaptic target, the midbrain interpeduncular nucleus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Roberson
- Carnegie Institution for Science, Department of Embryology, 3520 San Martin Drive Baltimore, MD 21218, USA; Department of Biology, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Marnie E Halpern
- Carnegie Institution for Science, Department of Embryology, 3520 San Martin Drive Baltimore, MD 21218, USA; Department of Biology, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA.
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