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Long JH, Wang PJ, Li ZF, Yao J, Li X, Wu B, Sui JF, Liao J, Wang P, Li XF, Liu SL. Dysgranular retrosplenial cortex modulates histaminergic and nonhistaminergic itch processing. Behav Brain Res 2023; 443:114306. [PMID: 36682500 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114306] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2022] [Revised: 01/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Itch is an unpleasant sensation followed by an intense desire to scratch. Previous researches have advanced our understanding about the role of anterior cingulate cortex and prelimbic cortex in itch modulation, whereas little is known about the effects of retrosplenial cortex (RSC) during this process. Here we firstly confirmed that the neuronal activity of dysgranular RSC (RSCd) is significantly elevated during itch-scratching processing through c-Fos immunohistochemistry and fiber photometry recording. Then with designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs approaches, we found that pharmacogenetic inhibition of global RSCd neurons attenuated the number of scratching bouts as well as the cumulative duration of scratching bouts elicited by both 5-HT or compound 48/80 injection into rats' nape or cheek; selective inhibition of the pyramidal neurons in RSCd, or of the excitatory projections from caudal anterior cingulate cortex (cACC) to RSCd, demonstrated the similar effects of decreasing itch-related scratching induced by both 5-HT or compound 48/80. Pharmacogenetic intervention of the neuronal or circuitry activities did not affect rats' motor ability. This study presents direct evidence that pyramidal neurons in RSCd, and the excitatory projection from cACC to RSCd are critically involved in central regulation of both histaminergic and nonhistaminergic itch.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun-Hui Long
- Department of Dermatology, The 958th Army Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, China
| | - Pu-Jun Wang
- Department of Dermatology, The 958th Army Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, China
| | - Zhi-Fang Li
- Department of Foreign Languages, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Juan Yao
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Xuan Li
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Bing Wu
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Jian-Feng Sui
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Jun Liao
- Department of Dermatology, The 958th Army Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, China
| | - Ping Wang
- Department of Dermatology, The 958th Army Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, China
| | - Xiao-Feng Li
- Department of Radiology, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 401120, China.
| | - Shu-Lei Liu
- Department of Dermatology, The 958th Army Hospital of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, China.
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Wu GY, Zheng XX, Zhao SL, Wang Y, Jiang S, Wang YS, Yi YL, Yao J, Wen HZ, Liu J, Li HL, Sui JF. The prelimbic cortex regulates itch processing by controlling attentional bias. iScience 2022; 26:105829. [PMID: 36619983 PMCID: PMC9816985 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.105829] [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: 04/04/2022] [Revised: 10/31/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Itch is a complex and unpleasant sensory experience. Recent studies have begun to investigate the neural mechanisms underlying the modulation of sensory and emotional components of itch in the brain. However, the key brain regions and neural mechanism involved in modulating the attentional processing of itch remain elusive. Here, we showed that the prelimbic cortex (PrL) is associated with itch processing and that the manipulation of itch-responsive neurons in the PrL significantly disrupted itch-induced scratching. Interestingly, we found that increasing attentional bias toward a distracting stimulus could disturb itch processing. We also demonstrated the existence of a population of attention-related neurons in the PrL that drive attentional bias to regulate itch processing. Importantly, itch-responsive neurons and attention-related neurons significantly overlapped in the PrL and were mutually interchangeable in the regulation of itch processing at the cellular activity level. Our results revealed that the PrL regulates itch processing by controlling attentional bias.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guang-Yan Wu
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China,Department of Physiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China,Corresponding author
| | - Xiao-Xia Zheng
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Shan-Lan Zhao
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yi Wang
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Shan Jiang
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yi-Song Wang
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yi-Lun Yi
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Juan Yao
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Hui-Zhong Wen
- Department of Neurobiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Neurobiology, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Ju Liu
- Department of Foreign Languages, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Hong-Li Li
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China,Corresponding author
| | - Jian-Feng Sui
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China,Department of Physiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China,Corresponding author
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Jiang S, Wang YS, Zheng XX, Zhao SL, Wang Y, Sun L, Chen PH, Zhou Y, Tin C, Li HL, Sui JF, Wu GY. Itch-specific neurons in the ventrolateral orbital cortex selectively modulate the itch processing. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabn4408. [PMID: 35905177 PMCID: PMC9337765 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn4408] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Itch is a cutaneous sensation that is critical in driving scratching behavior. The long-standing question of whether there are specific neurons for itch modulation inside the brain remains unanswered. Here, we report a subpopulation of itch-specific neurons in the ventrolateral orbital cortex (VLO) that is distinct from the pain-related neurons. Using a Tet-Off cellular labeling system, we showed that local inhibition or activation of these itch-specific neurons in the VLO significantly suppressed or enhanced itch-induced scratching, respectively, whereas the intervention did not significantly affect pain. Conversely, suppression or activation of pain-specific neurons in the VLO significantly affected pain but not itch. Moreover, fiber photometry and immunofluorescence verified that these itch- and pain-specific neurons are distinct in their functional activity and histological location. In addition, the downstream targets of itch- and pain-specific neurons were different. Together, the present study uncovers an important subpopulation of neurons in the VLO that specifically modulates itch processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shan Jiang
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yi-Song Wang
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Xiao-Xia Zheng
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Shan-Lan Zhao
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yi Wang
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Lin Sun
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Peng-Hui Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Yi Zhou
- Department of Neurobiology, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Chung Tin
- Department of Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, SAR, People’s Republic of China
| | - Hong-Li Li
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Jian-Feng Sui
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
- Department of Physiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
| | - Guang-Yan Wu
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
- Department of Physiology, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing 400038, China
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Chen M, He T, Yi XH, Tang MC, Long JH, Wang PJ, Liu J, Yao J, Li HL, Sui JF, Wu GY. Infralimbic cortex–medial striatum projections modulate the itch processing. Exp Neurol 2022; 354:114101. [DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2022.114101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2021] [Revised: 03/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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Li X, Yao J, Hu KH, Wu B, Sui JF, Gao J, Wu GY, Liu SL. Differential roles of prelimbic and anterior cingulate cortical region in the modulation of histaminergic and non-histaminergic itch. Behav Brain Res 2021; 411:113388. [PMID: 34052263 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Revised: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Itch is an unpleasant sensation that evokes a desire to scratch. Itch processing in the peripheral and spinal cord has been studied extensively, but the mechanism of itch in the central nervous system is still unclear. Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and prelimbic cortex (Prl), two subregions of the prefrontal cortex closely related to emotion and motivation, have been reported to be activated during itching in a series of functional imaging studies. However, the exact role of Prl and the differences between ACC and Prl in itch modulation remains unknown. To directly test the differential roles of ACC and Prl in itch processing, we chemogeneticlly inhibited the caudal ACC and Prl, respectively. We found that inhibition of caudal ACC reduced histaminergic but not non-histaminergic itch-induced scratching behaviors. In contrast, inhibition of Prl reduced both histaminergic and non-histaminergic itch-induced scratching behaviors. Our study provided direct evidence of Prl involvement in itch modulation and revealed the differential roles of caudal ACC and Prl in regulating histaminergic and non-histaminergic itch.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuan Li
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China
| | - Juan Yao
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China
| | - Ke-Hui Hu
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Suining Central Hospital, Suining, 629000, China
| | - Bing Wu
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China
| | - Jian-Feng Sui
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China
| | - Jie Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Institute of Surgery Research, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
| | - Guang-Yan Wu
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China.
| | - Shu-Lei Liu
- Experimental Center of Basic Medicine, College of Basic Medical Sciences, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400038, China.
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Optogenetic inhibition of ventral hippocampal neurons alleviates associative motor learning dysfunction in a rodent model of schizophrenia. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0227200. [PMID: 31891640 PMCID: PMC6938361 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0227200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2019] [Accepted: 12/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SZ) is a serious and incurable mental disorder characterized by clinical manifestations of positive and negative symptoms and cognitive dysfunction. High-frequency deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the ventral hippocampus (VHP) has been recently applied as a therapeutic approach for SZ in both experimental and clinical studies. However, little is known about the precise mechanism of VHP-DBS treatment for SZ and the role of hippocampal cell activation in the pathogenesis of SZ. With optogenetic technology in this study, we tried to inhibit neuronal activity in the VHP which has dense projections to the prefrontal cortex, before measuring long stumulus-induced delay eyeblink conditioning (long-dEBC) in a rodent model of SZ. Rats were administrated with phencyclidine (PCP, 3 mg/kg, 1/d, ip) for successive 7 days before optogenetic intervention. The current data show that PCP administration causes significant impairment in the acquisition and timing of long-dEBC; the inhibition of bilateral VHP neurons alleviates the decreased acquisition and impaired timing of longd-dEBC in PCP-administered rats. The results provide direct evidence at the cellular level that the inhibition of VHP neuronal cells may be a prominent effect of hippocampal DBS intervention, and increased activity in the hippocampal network play a pivotal role in SZ.
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Reevaluating the ability of cerebellum in associative motor learning. Sci Rep 2019; 9:6029. [PMID: 30988338 PMCID: PMC6465343 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-42413-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2019] [Accepted: 03/29/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been well established that the cerebellum and its associated circuitry constitute the essential neuronal system for both delay and trace classical eyeblink conditioning (DEC and TEC). However, whether the cerebellum is sufficient to independently modulate the DEC, and TEC with a shorter trace interval remained controversial. Here, we used direct optogenetic stimulation of mossy fibers in the middle cerebellar peduncle (MCP) as a conditioned stimulus (CS) replacement for the peripheral CS (eg, a tone CS or a light CS) paired with a periorbital shock unconditioned stimulus (US) to examine the ability of the cerebellum to learn the DEC and the TEC with various trace intervals. Moreover, neural inputs to the pontine nucleus (PN) were pharmacological blocked to limit the associative motor learning inside the cerebellum. We show that all rats quickly acquired the DEC, indicating that direct optogenetic stimulation of mossy fibers in the left MCP is a very effective and sufficient CS to establish DEC and to limit the motor learning process inside the cerebellum. However, only five out of seven rats acquired the TEC with a 150-ms trace interval, three out of nine rats acquired the TEC with a 350-ms trace interval, and none of the rats acquired the TEC with a 500-ms trace interval. Moreover, pharmacological blocking glutamatergic and GABAergic inputs to the PN from the extra-cerebellar and cerebellar regions has no significant effect on the DEC and TEC learning with the optogenetic CS. These results indicate that the cerebellum has the ability to independently support both the simple DEC, and the TEC with a trace interval of 150 or 350 ms, but not the TEC with a trace interval of 500 ms. The present results are of great importance in our understanding of the mechanisms and ability of the cerebellum in associative motor learning and memory.
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A method for combining multiple-units readout of optogenetic control with natural stimulation-evoked eyeblink conditioning in freely-moving mice. Sci Rep 2019; 9:1857. [PMID: 30755637 PMCID: PMC6372581 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37885-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2018] [Accepted: 12/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
A growing pool of transgenic mice expressing Cre-recombinases, together with Cre-dependent opsin viruses, provide good tools to manipulate specific neural circuits related to eyeblink conditioning (EBC). However, currently available methods do not enable to get fast and precise readout of optogenetic control when the freely-moving mice are receiving EBC training. In the current study, we describe a laser diode (LD)-optical fiber (OF)-Tetrode assembly that allows for simultaneous multiple units recording and optical stimulation. Since the numbers of various cables that require to be connected are minimized, the LD-OF-Tetrode assembly can be combined with CS-US delivery apparatus for revealing the effects of optical stimulation on EBC in freely- moving mice. Moreover, this combination of techniques can be utilized to optogenetically intervene in hippocampal neuronal activities during the post-conditioning sleep in a closed-loop manner. This novel device thus enhances our ability to explore how specific neuronal assembly contributes to associative motor memory in vivo.
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Burhans LB, Schreurs BG. Inactivation of the interpositus nucleus blocks the acquisition of conditioned responses and timing changes in conditioning-specific reflex modification of the rabbit eyeblink response. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2018; 155:143-156. [PMID: 30053576 PMCID: PMC6731038 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2018.07.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2018] [Revised: 07/20/2018] [Accepted: 07/23/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Conditioning-specific reflex modification (CRM) of the rabbit eyeblink response is an associative phenomenon characterized by increases in the frequency, size, and peak latency of the reflexive unconditioned eyeblink response (UR) when the periorbital shock unconditioned stimulus (US) is presented alone following conditioning, particularly to lower intensity USs that produced minimal responding prior to conditioning. Previous work has shown that CRM shares many commonalities with the conditioned eyeblink response (CR) including a similar response topography, suggesting the two may share similar neural substrates. The following study examined the hypothesis that the interpositus nucleus (IP) of the cerebellum, an essential part of the neural circuitry of eyeblink conditioning, is also required for the acquisition of CRM. Tests for CRM occurred following delay conditioning under muscimol inactivation of the IP and also after additional conditioning without IP inactivation. Results showed that IP inactivation blocked acquisition of CRs and the timing aspect of CRM but did not prevent increases in UR amplitude and area. Following the cessation of inactivation, CRs and CRM latency changes developed similarly to controls with intact IP functioning, but with some indication that CRs may have been facilitated in muscimol rabbits. In conclusion, CRM timing and CRs both likely require the development of plasticity in the IP, but other associative UR changes may involve non-cerebellar structures interacting with the eyeblink conditioning circuitry, a strong candidate being the amygdala, which is also likely involved in the facilitation of conditioning. Other candidates worth consideration include the cerebellar cortex, prefrontal and motor cortices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren B Burhans
- Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute and Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA.
| | - Bernard G Schreurs
- Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute and Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA
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