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Loh MK, Rosenkranz JA. The medial orbitofrontal cortex governs reward-related circuits in an age-dependent manner. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:1913-1924. [PMID: 35551358 PMCID: PMC9977359 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac182] [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: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 04/19/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Nucleus accumbens (NAc) neurons integrate excitatory inputs from cortical and limbic structures, contributing to critical cognitive functions, including decision-making. As these afferents mature from adolescence through adulthood, incoming signals to the NAc may summate differently between age groups. Decision-making evaluates both reward and risk before action selection, suggesting an interplay between reward- and risk-related circuits. Medial orbitofrontal cortex (MO)-NAc circuits permit risk assessment behaviors and likely underlie risk information incorporation. As adolescents make reward-centric choices regardless of risk, we hypothesized the impact of MO activity alters reward-related NAc circuits in an age-dependent manner. To test this hypothesis, we used single-unit electrophysiology to measure MO train stimulation's effect on reward-related pathways, specifically the basolateral amygdala (BLA)-NAc circuit, in adult and adolescent rats. MO train stimulation altered the strength but not the timing of BLA-NAc interactions in a frequency-dependent manner. In adults, MO train stimulation produced a frequency-dependent, bidirectional effect on BLA-evoked NAc AP probability. Contrastingly, MO train stimulation uniformly attenuated BLA-NAc interactions in adolescents. While the mature MO can govern reward-related circuits in an activity-dependent manner, perhaps to adapt to positive or negative decision-making outcomes, the adolescent MO may be less able to bidirectionally impact reward-related pathways resulting in biased decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxine K Loh
- Department of Foundational Sciences and Humanities, Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA.,Center for Neurobiology of Stress Resilience and Psychiatric Disorders, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA
| | - J Amiel Rosenkranz
- Department of Foundational Sciences and Humanities, Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA.,Center for Neurobiology of Stress Resilience and Psychiatric Disorders, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA
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Christoffel DJ, Walsh JJ, Heifets BD, Hoerbelt P, Neuner S, Sun G, Ravikumar VK, Wu H, Halpern CH, Malenka RC. Input-specific modulation of murine nucleus accumbens differentially regulates hedonic feeding. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2135. [PMID: 33837200 PMCID: PMC8035198 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22430-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2019] [Accepted: 03/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Hedonic feeding is driven by the "pleasure" derived from consuming palatable food and occurs in the absence of metabolic need. It plays a critical role in the excessive feeding that underlies obesity. Compared to other pathological motivated behaviors, little is known about the neural circuit mechanisms mediating excessive hedonic feeding. Here, we show that modulation of prefrontal cortex (PFC) and anterior paraventricular thalamus (aPVT) excitatory inputs to the nucleus accumbens (NAc), a key node of reward circuitry, has opposing effects on high fat intake in mice. Prolonged high fat intake leads to input- and cell type-specific changes in synaptic strength. Modifying synaptic strength via plasticity protocols, either in an input-specific optogenetic or non-specific electrical manner, causes sustained changes in high fat intake. These results demonstrate that input-specific NAc circuit adaptations occur with repeated exposure to a potent natural reward and suggest that neuromodulatory interventions may be therapeutically useful for individuals with pathologic hedonic feeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J Christoffel
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Jessica J Walsh
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Boris D Heifets
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Paul Hoerbelt
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Sophie Neuner
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Gordon Sun
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Vinod K Ravikumar
- Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Hemmings Wu
- Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Casey H Halpern
- Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Robert C Malenka
- Nancy Pritzker Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
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Brodnik ZD, Batra A, Oleson EB, España RA. Local GABA A Receptor-Mediated Suppression of Dopamine Release within the Nucleus Accumbens. ACS Chem Neurosci 2019; 10:1978-1985. [PMID: 30253088 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.8b00268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Benzodiazepines make up a class of psychoactive drugs that act as allosteric co-activators of the inhibitory GABAA receptor. These drugs are useful for the treatment of several psychiatric disorders but also hold considerable abuse liability. Despite the common use and misuse of benzodiazepines, the mechanisms through which these drugs exert their reinforcing effects remain incompletely understood. Transient phasic increases in dopamine levels are believed to play an important role in defining the reinforcing properties of drugs of abuse, and we recently demonstrated that systemic administration of benzodiazepines increased the frequency of these events but concomitantly reduced their amplitude. This observation provides insight into the pharmacological effects of benzodiazepines on dopamine signaling, but the processes through which benzodiazepines drive changes in phasic dopamine signals remain unclear. In these studies, we investigated the mechanisms through which benzodiazepines may reduce the phasic dopamine transient amplitude. We tested the effect of the benzodiazepine diazepam and the GABAA agonist muscimol on evoked dopamine release from nucleus accumbens brain slices using fast scan cyclic voltammetry. We found that both diazepam and muscimol reduce dopamine release and that reductions in dopamine release following GABAA receptor activation can be blocked by co-application of a GABAB receptor antagonist. These results suggest that activation of GABAA receptors in the nucleus accumbens decreases dopamine release by disinhibition of local GABA signaling and subsequent activation of GABAB receptors. Overall, this work provides a putative mechanism through which benzodiazepines reduce the amplitude of phasic dopamine release in vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zachary D. Brodnik
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19129, United States
| | - Aashita Batra
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19129, United States
| | - Erik B. Oleson
- Department of Psychology, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, Colorado 80217-3364, United States
| | - Rodrigo A. España
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19129, United States
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Frontal cortex dysfunction as a target for remediation in opiate use disorder: Role in cognitive dysfunction and disordered reward systems. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2018; 239:179-227. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2018.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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5
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Purgianto A, Weinfeld ME, Wolf ME. Prolonged withdrawal from cocaine self-administration affects prefrontal cortex- and basolateral amygdala-nucleus accumbens core circuits but not accumbens GABAergic local interneurons. Addict Biol 2017; 22:1682-1694. [PMID: 27457780 DOI: 10.1111/adb.12430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2016] [Revised: 05/26/2016] [Accepted: 06/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Withdrawal from extended-access cocaine self-administration leads to progressive intensification ('incubation') of cocaine craving. After prolonged withdrawal (1-2 months), when craving is high, expression of incubation depends on strengthening of excitatory inputs to medium spiny neurons (MSN) of the nucleus accumbens (NAc). These excitatory inputs interact with the intra-NAc GABAergic 'microcircuit', composed of MSN axon collaterals and GABAergic interneurons. Here, we investigated whether the increased glutamatergic neurotransmission observed after prolonged withdrawal is accompanied by altered GABAergic neurotransmission, focusing on NAc core. Rats self-administered cocaine or saline (6 hours/day) and then underwent >40 days of withdrawal. First, we investigated parvalbumin positive (PV+) interneurons, GABAergic fast-spiking interneurons that regulate MSN activity. Immunohistochemical studies revealed no significant change in PV signal intensity or the number of PV+ cells in cocaine rats versus saline controls. We then screened PV and other interneuron markers using immunoblotting. We detected no changes in levels of PV, calretinin, calbindin or neuronal nitric oxide synthase. Because expression of these markers is activity dependent, our results suggest no marked changes in interneuron activity. Finally, we utilized local field potential recording, which can detect GABA-mediated alterations at the circuit level, to investigate potential changes in two circuits implicated in cocaine craving: prelimbic prefrontal cortex to NAc core and basolateral amygdala to NAc core. We detected differential adaptations in these circuits, some of which may involve GABA. Overall, our results suggest that alterations in GABA transmission may accompany incubation of cocaine craving, but they are circuit specific and less pronounced than alterations in glutamate transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Purgianto
- Department of Neuroscience; Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science; USA
| | - Michael E. Weinfeld
- Department of Neuroscience; Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science; USA
| | - Marina E. Wolf
- Department of Neuroscience; Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science; USA
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Chakroborty S, Geisbush TR, Dale E, Pehrson AL, Sánchez C, West AR. Impact of Vortioxetine on Synaptic Integration in Prefrontal-Subcortical Circuits: Comparisons with Escitalopram. Front Pharmacol 2017; 8:764. [PMID: 29123483 PMCID: PMC5662919 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2017.00764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2017] [Accepted: 10/11/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Prefrontal-subcortical circuits support executive functions which often become dysfunctional in psychiatric disorders. Vortioxetine is a multimodal antidepressant that is currently used in the clinic to treat major depressive disorder. Mechanisms of action of vortioxetine include serotonin (5-HT) transporter blockade, 5-HT1A receptor agonism, 5-HT1B receptor partial agonism, and 5-HT1D, 5-HT3, and 5-HT7 receptor antagonism. Vortioxetine facilitates 5-HT transmission in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), however, the impact of this compound on related prefrontal-subcortical circuits is less clear. Thus, the current study examined the impact of systemic vortioxetine administration (0.8 mg/kg, i.v.) on spontaneous spiking and spikes evoked by electrical stimulation of the mPFC in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), medial shell of the nucleus accumbens (msNAc), and lateral septal nucleus (LSN) in urethane-anesthetized rats. We also examined whether vortioxetine modulated afferent drive in the msNAc from hippocampal fimbria (HF) inputs. Similar studies were performed using the selective 5-HT reuptake inhibitor [selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI)] escitalopram (1.6 mg/kg, i.v.) to enable comparisons between the multimodal actions of vortioxetine and SSRI-mediated effects. No significant differences in spontaneous activity were observed in the ACC, msNAc, and LSN across treatment groups. No significant impact of treatment on mPFC-evoked responses was observed in the ACC. In contrast, vortioxetine decreased mPFC-evoked activity recorded in the msNAc as compared to parallel studies in control and escitalopram treated groups. Thus, vortioxetine may reduce mPFC-msNAc afferent drive via a mechanism that, in addition to an SSRI-like effect, requires 5-HT receptor modulation. Recordings in the LSN revealed a significant increase in mPFC-evoked activity following escitalopram administration as compared to control and vortioxetine treated groups, indicating that complex modulation of 5-HT receptors by vortioxetine may offset SSRI-like effects in this region. Lastly, neurons in the msNAc were more responsive to stimulation of the HF following both vortioxetine and escitalopram administration, indicating that elevation of 5-HT tone and 5-HT receptor modulation may facilitate excitatory hippocampal synaptic drive in this region. The above findings point to complex 5-HT receptor-dependent effects of vortioxetine which may contribute to its unique impact on the function of prefrontal-subcortical circuits and the development of novel strategies for treating mood disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shreaya Chakroborty
- Department of Neuroscience, Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Thomas R Geisbush
- Department of Neuroscience, Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Elena Dale
- Department of Neuroscience, Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Alan L Pehrson
- Department of Psychology, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, United States
| | - Connie Sánchez
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Anthony R West
- Department of Neuroscience, Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, United States
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Kappa Opioid Receptors Mediate Heterosynaptic Suppression of Hippocampal Inputs in the Rat Ventral Striatum. J Neurosci 2017. [PMID: 28642282 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0876-17.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Kappa opioid receptors (KORs) are highly enriched within the ventral striatum (VS) and are thought to modulate striatal neurotransmission. This includes presynaptic inhibition of local glutamatergic release from excitatory inputs to the VS. However, it is not known which inputs drive this modulation and what impact they have on the local circuit dynamics within the VS. Individual medium spiny neurons (MSNs) within the VS serve as a site of convergence for glutamatergic inputs arising from the PFC and limbic regions, such as the hippocampus (HP). Recent data suggest that competition can arise between these inputs with robust cortical activation leading to a reduction in ongoing HP-evoked MSN responses. Here, we investigated the contribution of KOR signaling in PFC-driven heterosynaptic suppression of HP inputs onto MSNs using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in slices from adult rats. Optogenetically evoked HP EPSPs were greatly attenuated after a short latency (50 ms) following burst-like PFC electrical stimulation, and the magnitude of this suppression was partially reversed following blockade of GABAARs (GABA Type A receptors), but not GABABRs (GABA Type B receptors). A similar reduction in suppression was observed in the presence of the KOR antagonist, norBNI. Combined blockade of local GABAARs and KORs resulted in complete blockade of PFC-induced heterosynaptic suppression of less salient HP inputs. These findings highlight a mechanism by which strong, transient PFC activity can take precedence over other excitatory inputs to the VS.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Emerging evidence suggests that kappa opioid receptor (KOR) activation can selectively modulate striatal glutamatergic inputs onto medium spiny neurons (MSNs). In this study, we found that robust cortical stimulation leads to a reduction in ongoing hippocampal-evoked MSNs responses through the combined recruitment of local inhibitory mechanisms and activation of presynaptic KORs in the ventral striatum (VS). These processes are likely to facilitate the efficient transfer of cortical information through the VS during critical decision making by dampening competing information from less salient excitatory inputs. These data provide a novel mechanism through which VS information processing could influence decision making, a function thought to occur primarily in the PFC.
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8
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Lee JQ, Zelinski EL, McDonald RJ, Sutherland RJ. Heterarchic reinstatement of long-term memory: A concept on hippocampal amnesia in rodent memory research. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2016; 71:154-166. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.08.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2015] [Revised: 08/11/2016] [Accepted: 08/29/2016] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Brooks JM, O'Donnell P, Frost DO. Olanzapine Treatment of Adolescent Rats Alters Adult D2 Modulation of Cortical Inputs to the Ventral Striatum. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2016; 19:pyw034. [PMID: 27207908 PMCID: PMC5091821 DOI: 10.1093/ijnp/pyw034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2016] [Accepted: 04/13/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The striatal dopamine system undergoes vast ontogenetic changes during adolescence, making the brain vulnerable to drug treatments that target this class of neurotransmitters. Atypical antipsychotic drugs are often prescribed to children and adolescents for off-label treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders, yet the long-term impact this treatment has on brain development remains largely unknown. METHODS Adolescent male rats were treated with olanzapine or vehicle for 3 weeks (during postnatal day 28-49) using a dosing condition designed to approximate closely D2 receptor occupancies in the human therapeutic range. We assessed D2 receptor modulation of corticostriatal inputs onto medium spiny neurons in the adult ventral striatum using in vitro whole-cell current clamp recordings. RESULTS The D2/D3 agonist quinpirole (5 µM) enhanced cortically driven medium spiny neuron synaptic responses in slices taken from adult rats treated with vehicle during adolescence, as in untreated adult rats. However, in slices from mature rats treated with olanzapine during adolescence, quinpirole reduced medium spiny neuron activation. The magnitude of decrease was similar to previous observations in untreated, prepubertal rats. These changes may reflect alterations in local inhibitory circuitry, as the GABA-A antagonist picrotoxin (100 µM) reversed the effects of quinpirole in vehicle-treated slices but had no impact on cortically evoked responses in olanzapine-treated slices. CONCLUSIONS These data suggest that adolescent atypical antipsychotic drug treatment leads to enduring changes in dopamine modulation of corticostriatal synaptic function.
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10
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Surface expression of GABAA receptors in the rat nucleus accumbens is increased in early but not late withdrawal from extended-access cocaine self-administration. Brain Res 2016; 1642:336-343. [PMID: 27060767 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2016.04.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2016] [Revised: 04/01/2016] [Accepted: 04/05/2016] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
It is well established that cocaine-induced changes in glutamate receptor expression in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) play a significant role in animal models of cocaine addiction. Far less is known about cocaine-induced changes in GABA transmission, despite its importance in regulating NAc output via local interneurons and medium spiny neuron (MSN) axon collaterals (GABA 'microcircuit'). Here we investigated whether GABAA receptor surface or total expression is altered following an extended-access cocaine self-administration regimen that produces a time-dependent intensification (incubation) of cue-induced cocaine craving in association with strengthening of AMPA receptor (AMPAR) transmission onto MSN. Rats self-administered cocaine or saline (control condition) 6h/day for 10 days. NAc tissue was obtained and surface proteins biotinylated on three withdrawal days (WD) chosen to span incubation of craving and associated AMPAR plasticity: WD2, WD25 and WD48. Immunoblotting was used to measure total and surface expression of three GABAA receptor subunits (α1, α2, and α4) that are strongly expressed in the NAc. We found a transient increase in surface, but not total, expression of the α2 subunit on WD2 from cocaine self-administration, an effect that was no longer observed by WD25. The expression of α1 and α4 subunits was not altered at these withdrawal times. On WD48, when AMPAR transmission is significantly potentiated, we did not find any alteration in GABAA receptor surface or total expression. Our findings suggest that the strengthening of AMPAR-mediated glutamate transmission in the NAc is not accompanied by compensatory strengthening of GABAergic transmission through insertion of additional GABAA receptors.
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Stenner MP, Litvak V, Rutledge RB, Zaehle T, Schmitt FC, Voges J, Heinze HJ, Dolan RJ. Cortical drive of low-frequency oscillations in the human nucleus accumbens during action selection. J Neurophysiol 2015; 114:29-39. [PMID: 25878159 PMCID: PMC4518721 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00988.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2014] [Accepted: 04/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The nucleus accumbens is thought to contribute to action selection by integrating behaviorally relevant information from multiple regions, including prefrontal cortex. Studies in rodents suggest that information flow to the nucleus accumbens may be regulated via task-dependent oscillatory coupling between regions. During instrumental behavior, local field potentials (LFP) in the rat nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex are coupled at delta frequencies (Gruber AJ, Hussain RJ, O'Donnell P. PLoS One 4: e5062, 2009), possibly mediating suppression of afferent input from other areas and thereby supporting cortical control (Calhoon GG, O'Donnell P. Neuron 78: 181–190, 2013). In this report, we demonstrate low-frequency cortico-accumbens coupling in humans, both at rest and during a decision-making task. We recorded LFP from the nucleus accumbens in six epilepsy patients who underwent implantation of deep brain stimulation electrodes. All patients showed significant coherence and phase-synchronization between LFP and surface EEG at delta and low theta frequencies. Although the direction of this coupling as indexed by Granger causality varied between subjects in the resting-state data, all patients showed a cortical drive of the nucleus accumbens during action selection in a decision-making task. In three patients this was accompanied by a significant coherence increase over baseline. Our results suggest that low-frequency cortico-accumbens coupling represents a highly conserved regulatory mechanism for action selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max-Philipp Stenner
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany;
| | - Vladimir Litvak
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Robb B Rutledge
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, London, United Kingdom
| | - Tino Zaehle
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Friedhelm C Schmitt
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Jürgen Voges
- Department of Stereotactic Neurosurgery, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany; Department of Behavioral Neurology, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany; and
| | - Hans-Jochen Heinze
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany; Department of Behavioral Neurology, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany; and
| | - Raymond J Dolan
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Max Planck University College London Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, London, United Kingdom
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12
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Interneurons are necessary for coordinated activity during reversal learning in orbitofrontal cortex. Biol Psychiatry 2015; 77:454-64. [PMID: 25193243 PMCID: PMC4312743 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2014.07.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2014] [Revised: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 07/23/2014] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Cerebral cortical gamma-aminobutyric acidergic interneuron dysfunction is hypothesized to lead to cognitive deficits comorbid with human neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, autism, and epilepsy. We have previously shown that mice that harbor mutations in the Plaur gene, which is associated with schizophrenia, have deficits in frontal cortical parvalbumin-expressing interneurons. Plaur mice have impaired reversal learning, similar to deficits observed in patients with schizophrenia. METHODS We examined the role of parvalbumin interneurons in orbitofrontal cortex during reversal learning by recording single unit activity from 180 control and 224 Plaur mouse neurons during a serial reversal task. Neural activity was analyzed during correct and incorrect decision choices and reward receipt. RESULTS Neurons in control mice exhibited strong phasic responses both during discrimination and reversal learning to decisions and rewards, and the strength of the response was correlated with behavioral performance. Although baseline firing was significantly enhanced in Plaur mice, neural selectivity for correct or erroneous decisions was diminished and not correlated with behavior, and reward encoding was downscaled. In addition, Plaur mice showed a significant reduction in the number of neurons that encoded expected outcomes across task phases during the decision period. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that parvalbumin interneurons are necessary for the representation of outcomes in orbitofrontal cortex. Deficits in inhibition blunt selective neural firing during key decisions, contributing to behavioral inflexibility. These data provide a potential explanation for disorders of cognitive control that accompany the loss of these gamma-aminobutyric acidergic interneurons in human neuropsychiatric disorders, such as autism, epilepsy, and schizophrenia.
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13
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McDonald RJ, Hong NS. How does a specific learning and memory system in the mammalian brain gain control of behavior? Hippocampus 2014; 23:1084-102. [PMID: 23929795 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.22177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/17/2013] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
This review addresses a fundamental, yet poorly understood set of issues in systems neuroscience. The issues revolve around conceptualizations of the organization of learning and memory in the mammalian brain. One intriguing, and somewhat popular, conceptualization is the idea that there are multiple learning and memory systems in the mammalian brain and they interact in different ways to influence and/or control behavior. This approach has generated interesting empirical and theoretical work supporting this view. One issue that needs to be addressed is how these systems influence or gain control of voluntary behavior. To address this issue, we clearly specify what we mean by a learning and memory system. We then review two types of processes that might influence which memory system gains control of behavior. One set of processes are external factors that can affect which system controls behavior in a given situation including task parameters like the kind of information available to the subject, types of training experience, and amount of training. The second set of processes are brain mechanisms that might influence what memory system controls behavior in a given situation including executive functions mediated by the prefrontal cortex; switching mechanisms mediated by ascending neurotransmitter systems, the unique role of the hippocampus during learning. The issue of trait differences in control of different learning and memory systems will also be considered in which trait differences in learning and memory function are thought to potentially emerge from differences in level of prefrontal influence, differences in plasticity processes, differences in ascending neurotransmitter control, differential access to effector systems like motivational and motor systems. Finally, we present scenarios in which different mechanisms might interact. This review was conceived to become a jumping off point for new work directed at understanding these issues. The outcome of this work, in combination with other approaches, might improve understanding of the mechanisms of volition in human and non-human animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert J McDonald
- Department of Neuroscience, Canadian Centre for Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
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14
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Counotte DS, Schiefer C, Shaham Y, O'Donnell P. Time-dependent decreases in nucleus accumbens AMPA/NMDA ratio and incubation of sucrose craving in adolescent and adult rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2014; 231:1675-84. [PMID: 24114427 PMCID: PMC3967069 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-013-3294-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2013] [Accepted: 09/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVE There is evidence that cue-induced sucrose seeking progressively increases after cessation of oral sucrose self-administration (incubation of sucrose craving) in both adolescent and adult rats. The synaptic plasticity changes associated with this incubation at different age groups are unknown. We assessed whether incubation of sucrose craving in rats trained to self-administer sucrose as young adolescents, adolescents, or adults is associated with changes in 2-amino-3-(3-hydroxy-5-methyl-isoxazol-4-yl)propanoic acid (AMPA)/N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) ratio (a measure of postsynaptic changes in synaptic strength) in nucleus accumbens. METHODS Three age groups initiated oral sucrose self-administration training (10 days) on postnatal day (P) 35 (young adolescents), P42 (adolescents), or P70 (adults). They were then tested for cue-induced sucrose seeking (assessed in an extinction test) on abstinence days 1 and 21. Separate groups of rats were trained to self-administer sucrose or water (a control condition), and assessed for AMPA/NMDA ratio in nucleus accumbens on abstinence days 1-3 and 21. RESULTS Adult rats earned more sucrose rewards, but sucrose intake per body weight was higher in young adolescent rats. Time-dependent increases in cue-induced sucrose seeking (incubation of sucrose craving) were more pronounced in adult rats, less pronounced in adolescents, and not detected in young adolescents. On abstinence day 21, but not days 1-3, AMPA/NMDA ratio in nucleus accumbens were decreased in rats that self-administered sucrose as adults and adolescents, but not young adolescents. CONCLUSIONS Our data demonstrate age-dependent changes in magnitude of incubation of sucrose craving and nucleus accumbens synaptic plasticity after cessation of sucrose self-administration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Danielle S Counotte
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 20 Penn St, Rm S-251, Baltimore, MD, 21201, USA,
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15
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Russo G, Nieus TR, Maggi S, Taverna S. Dynamics of action potential firing in electrically connected striatal fast-spiking interneurons. Front Cell Neurosci 2013; 7:209. [PMID: 24294191 PMCID: PMC3827583 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2013.00209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2013] [Accepted: 10/21/2013] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs) play a central role in organizing the output of striatal neural circuits, yet functional interactions between these cells are still largely unknown. Here we investigated the interplay of action potential (AP) firing between electrically connected pairs of identified FSIs in mouse striatal slices. In addition to a loose coordination of firing activity mediated by membrane potential coupling, gap junctions (GJ) induced a frequency-dependent inhibition of spike discharge in coupled cells. At relatively low firing rates (2–20 Hz), some APs were tightly synchronized whereas others were inhibited. However, burst firing at intermediate frequencies (25–60 Hz) mostly induced spike inhibition, while at frequencies >50–60 Hz FSI pairs tended to synchronize. Spike silencing occurred even in the absence of GABAergic synapses or persisted after a complete block of GABAA receptors. Pharmacological suppression of presynaptic spike afterhyperpolarization (AHP) caused postsynaptic spikelets to become more prone to trigger spikes at near-threshold potentials, leading to a mostly synchronous firing activity. The complex pattern of functional coordination mediated by GJ endows FSIs with peculiar dynamic properties that may be critical in controlling striatal-dependent behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanni Russo
- Department of Neuroscience and Brain Technologies, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia Genoa, Italy
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16
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An elemental model of retrospective revaluation without within-compound associations. Learn Behav 2013; 42:22-38. [DOI: 10.3758/s13420-013-0112-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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17
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Abstract
How does the ventral striatum (VS) prioritize and process afferent input? In this issue, Calhoon and O'Donnell (2013) demonstrate that cortical projections to the VS can attenuate hippocampal and thalamic VS input, suggesting that the cortex can uniquely control VS circuit dynamics.
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18
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Calhoon GG, O'Donnell P. Closing the gate in the limbic striatum: prefrontal suppression of hippocampal and thalamic inputs. Neuron 2013; 78:181-90. [PMID: 23583113 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2013.01.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/23/2013] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Many brain circuits control behavior by integrating information arising from separate inputs onto a common target neuron. Neurons in the ventral striatum (VS) receive converging excitatory afferents from the prefrontal cortex (PFC), hippocampus (HP), and thalamus, among other structures, and the integration of these inputs is critical for goal-directed behaviors. Although HP inputs have been described as gating PFC throughput in the VS, recent data reveal that the VS desynchronizes from the HP during epochs of burst-like PFC activity related to decision making. It is therefore possible that PFC inputs locally attenuate responses to other glutamatergic inputs to the VS. Here, we found that delivering trains of stimuli to the PFC suppresses HP- and thalamus-evoked synaptic responses in the VS, in part through activation of inhibitory processes. This interaction may enable the PFC to exert influence on basal ganglia loops during decision-making instances with minimal disturbance from ongoing contextual inputs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gwendolyn G Calhoon
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA
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19
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Llano López LH, Caif F, Fraile M, Tinnirello B, Landa de Gargiulo AI, Lafuente JV, Baiardi GC, Gargiulo PA. Differential behavioral profile induced by the injection of dipotassium chlorazepate within brain areas that project to the nucleus accumbens septi. Pharmacol Rep 2013; 65:566-78. [DOI: 10.1016/s1734-1140(13)71034-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2012] [Revised: 02/01/2013] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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20
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Distinct prefrontal cortical regions negatively regulate evoked activity in nucleus accumbens subregions. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2012; 15:1287-94. [PMID: 22008178 PMCID: PMC3419342 DOI: 10.1017/s146114571100143x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Deficits in prefrontal cortical activity are consistent observations in a number of psychiatric diseases with two major regions consistently implicated being the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), regions that carry out independent, but complementary forms of cognitive processing in changing environmental conditions. Information from the prefrontal cortex is integrated in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) to guide goal-directed behaviour. Anatomical studies have demonstrated that distinct prefrontal cortical regions provide an overlapping but distinct innervation of NAc subregions; however, how information from these distinct regions regulates NAc output has not been conclusively demonstrated. Here we demonstrate that, while neurons receiving convergent glutamatergic inputs from the mPFC and OFC have a synergistic effect on single-spike firing, medium spiny neurons that receive a monosynaptic input from only one region are actually inhibited by activation of the complementary region. Therefore, the mPFC and OFC negatively regulate evoked activity within the lateral and medial regions of the NAc, respectively, and exist in a state of balance with respect to their influence on information processing within ventral striatal circuits.
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21
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Cannabinoid receptor 1-expressing neurons in the nucleus accumbens. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2012; 109:E2717-25. [PMID: 23012412 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1206303109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Endocannabinoid signaling critically regulates emotional and motivational states via activation of cannabinoid receptor 1 (CB1) in the brain. The nucleus accumbens (NAc) functions to gate emotional and motivational responses. Although expression of CB1 in the NAc is low, manipulation of CB1 signaling within the NAc triggers robust emotional/motivational alterations related to drug addiction and other psychiatric disorders, and these effects cannot be exclusively attributed to CB1 located at afferents to the NAc. Rather, CB1-expressing neurons in the NAc, although sparse, appear to be critical for emotional and motivational responses. However, the cellular properties of these neurons remain largely unknown. Here, we generated a knock-in mouse line in which CB1-expressing neurons expressed the fluorescent protein td-Tomato (tdT). Using these mice, we demonstrated that tdT-positive neurons within the NAc were exclusively fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs). These FSIs were electrically coupled with each other, and thus may help synchronize populations/ensembles of NAc neurons. CB1-expressing FSIs also form GABAergic synapses on adjacent medium spiny neurons (MSNs), providing feed-forward inhibition of NAc output. Furthermore, the membrane excitability of tdT-positive FSIs in the NAc was up-regulated after withdrawal from cocaine exposure, an effect that might increase FSI-to-MSN inhibition. Taken together with our previous findings that the membrane excitability of NAc MSNs is decreased during cocaine withdrawal, the present findings suggest that the basal functional output of the NAc is inhibited during cocaine withdrawal by multiple mechanisms. As such, CB1-expressing FSIs are targeted by cocaine exposure to influence the overall functional output of the NAc.
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22
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Gruber AJ, McDonald RJ. Context, emotion, and the strategic pursuit of goals: interactions among multiple brain systems controlling motivated behavior. Front Behav Neurosci 2012; 6:50. [PMID: 22876225 PMCID: PMC3411069 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2012.00050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 108] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2012] [Accepted: 07/19/2012] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Motivated behavior exhibits properties that change with experience and partially dissociate among a number of brain structures. Here, we review evidence from rodent experiments demonstrating that multiple brain systems acquire information in parallel and either cooperate or compete for behavioral control. We propose a conceptual model of systems interaction wherein a ventral emotional memory network involving ventral striatum (VS), amygdala, ventral hippocampus, and ventromedial prefrontal cortex triages behavioral responding to stimuli according to their associated affective outcomes. This system engages autonomic and postural responding (avoiding, ignoring, approaching) in accordance with associated stimulus valence (negative, neutral, positive), but does not engage particular operant responses. Rather, this emotional system suppresses or invigorates actions that are selected through competition between goal-directed control involving dorsomedial striatum (DMS) and habitual control involving dorsolateral striatum (DLS). The hippocampus provides contextual specificity to the emotional system, and provides an information rich input to the goal-directed system for navigation and discriminations involving ambiguous contexts, complex sensory configurations, or temporal ordering. The rapid acquisition and high capacity for episodic associations in the emotional system may unburden the more complex goal-directed system and reduce interference in the habit system from processing contingencies of neutral stimuli. Interactions among these systems likely involve inhibitory mechanisms and neuromodulation in the striatum to form a dominant response strategy. Innate traits, training methods, and task demands contribute to the nature of these interactions, which can include incidental learning in non-dominant systems. Addition of these features to reinforcement learning models of decision-making may better align theoretical predictions with behavioral and neural correlates in animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron J Gruber
- Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge AB, Canada
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23
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Abstract
Systemic administration of amphetamine (AMPH) induces phosphorylation of MeCP2 at Ser421 (pMeCP2) in select populations of neurons in the mesolimbocortical brain regions. Because AMPH simultaneously activates multiple monoamine neurotransmitter systems, here we examined the ability of dopamine (DA), serotonin (5-HT), and norepinephrine (NE) to induce pMeCP2. Selective blockade of the DA transporter (DAT) or the 5-HT transporter (SERT), but not the NE transporter (NET), was sufficient to induce pMeCP2 in the CNS. DAT blockade induced pMeCP2 in the prelimbic cortex (PLC) and nucleus accumbens (NAc), whereas SERT blockade induced pMeCP2 only in the NAc. Administration of selective DA and 5-HT receptor agonists was also sufficient to induce pMeCP2; however, the specific combination of DA and 5-HT receptors activated determined the regional- and cell-type specificity of pMeCP2 induction. The D(1)-class DA receptor agonist SKF81297 induced pMeCP2 widely; however, coadministration of the D(2)-class agonist quinpirole restricted the induction of pMeCP2 to GABAergic interneurons of the NAc. Intra-striatal injection of the adenylate cyclase activator forskolin was sufficient to induce pMeCP2 in medium-spiny neurons, suggesting that the combinatorial regulation of cAMP by different classes of DA and 5-HT receptors may contribute to the cell-type specificity of pMeCP2 induction. Consistent with the regulation of pMeCP2 by multiple monoamine neurotransmitters, genetic disruption of any single monoamine transporter in DAT-, SERT-, and NET-knockout mice failed to eliminate AMPH-induced pMeCP2 in the NAc. Together, these studies indicate that combinatorial signaling through DA and 5-HT receptors can regulate the brain region- and cell-type specific pMeCP2 in the CNS.
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24
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Galiñanes GL, Braz BY, Murer MG. Origin and properties of striatal local field potential responses to cortical stimulation: temporal regulation by fast inhibitory connections. PLoS One 2011; 6:e28473. [PMID: 22163020 PMCID: PMC3232222 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0028473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2011] [Accepted: 11/08/2011] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Evoked striatal field potentials are seldom used to study corticostriatal communication in vivo because little is known about their origin and significance. Here we show that striatal field responses evoked by stimulating the prelimbic cortex in mice are reduced by more than 90% after infusing the AMPA receptor antagonist CNQX close to the recording electrode. Moreover, the amplitude of local field responses and dPSPs recorded in striatal medium spiny neurons increase in parallel with increasing stimulating current intensity. Finally, the evoked striatal fields show several of the basic known properties of corticostriatal transmission, including paired pulse facilitation and topographical organization. As a case study, we characterized the effect of local GABAA receptor blockade on striatal field and multiunitary action potential responses to prelimbic cortex stimulation. Striatal activity was recorded through a 24 channel silicon probe at about 600 µm from a microdialysis probe. Intrastriatal administration of the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline increased by 65±7% the duration of the evoked field responses. Moreover, the associated action potential responses were markedly enhanced during bicuculline infusion. Bicuculline enhancement took place at all the striatal sites that showed a response to cortical stimulation before drug infusion, but sites showing no field response before bicuculline remained unresponsive during GABAA receptor blockade. Thus, the data demonstrate that fast inhibitory connections exert a marked temporal regulation of input-output transformations within spatially delimited striatal networks responding to a cortical input. Overall, we propose that evoked striatal fields may be a useful tool to study corticostriatal synaptic connectivity in relation to behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregorio L Galiñanes
- Neural Circuit Physiology Lab, Systems Neuroscience Group, Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Buenos Aires School of Medicine, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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25
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Schulz JM, Pitcher TL, Savanthrapadian S, Wickens JR, Oswald MJ, Reynolds JNJ. Enhanced high-frequency membrane potential fluctuations control spike output in striatal fast-spiking interneurones in vivo. J Physiol 2011; 589:4365-81. [PMID: 21746788 DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2011.212944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Fast-spiking interneurones (FSIs) constitute a prominent part of the inhibitory microcircuitry of the striatum; however, little is known about their recruitment by synaptic inputs in vivo. Here, we report that, in contrast to cholinergic interneurones (CINs), FSIs (n = 9) recorded in urethane-anaesthetized rats exhibit Down-to-Up state transitions very similar to spiny projection neurones (SPNs). Compared to SPNs, the FSI Up state membrane potential was noisier and power spectra exhibited significantly larger power at frequencies in the gamma range (55-95 Hz). The membrane potential exhibited short and steep trajectories preceding spontaneous spike discharge, suggesting that fast input components controlled spike output in FSIs. Spontaneous spike data contained a high proportion (43.6 ± 32.8%) of small inter-spike intervals (ISIs) of <30 ms, setting FSIs clearly apart from SPNs and CINs. Cortical-evoked inputs had slower dynamics in SPNs than FSIs, and repetitive stimulation entrained SPN spike output only if the stimulation was delivered at an intermediate frequency (20 Hz), but not at a high frequency (100 Hz). Pharmacological induction of an activated ECoG state, known to promote rapid FSI spiking, mildly increased the power (by 43 ± 55%, n = 13) at gamma frequencies in the membrane potential of SPNs, but resulted in few small ISIs (<30 ms; 4.3 ± 6.4%, n = 8). The gamma frequency content did not change in CINs (n = 8). These results indicate that FSIs are uniquely responsive to high-frequency input sequences. By controlling the spike output of SPNs, FSIs could serve gating of top-down signals and long-range synchronisation of gamma-oscillations during behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan M Schulz
- J. M. Schulz: Department of Physiology, University of Bern, Bühlplatz 5, 3012 Bern, Switzerland.
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26
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Rutishauser U, Douglas RJ, Slotine JJ. Collective stability of networks of winner-take-all circuits. Neural Comput 2010; 23:735-73. [PMID: 21162667 DOI: 10.1162/neco_a_00091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
The neocortex has a remarkably uniform neuronal organization, suggesting that common principles of processing are employed throughout its extent. In particular, the patterns of connectivity observed in the superficial layers of the visual cortex are consistent with the recurrent excitation and inhibitory feedback required for cooperative-competitive circuits such as the soft winner-take-all (WTA). WTA circuits offer interesting computational properties such as selective amplification, signal restoration, and decision making. But these properties depend on the signal gain derived from positive feedback, and so there is a critical trade-off between providing feedback strong enough to support the sophisticated computations while maintaining overall circuit stability. The issue of stability is all the more intriguing when one considers that the WTAs are expected to be densely distributed through the superficial layers and that they are at least partially interconnected. We consider how to reason about stability in very large distributed networks of such circuits. We approach this problem by approximating the regular cortical architecture as many interconnected cooperative-competitive modules. We demonstrate that by properly understanding the behavior of this small computational module, one can reason over the stability and convergence of very large networks composed of these modules. We obtain parameter ranges in which the WTA circuit operates in a high-gain regime, is stable, and can be aggregated arbitrarily to form large, stable networks. We use nonlinear contraction theory to establish conditions for stability in the fully nonlinear case and verify these solutions using numerical simulations. The derived bounds allow modes of operation in which the WTA network is multistable and exhibits state-dependent persistent activities. Our approach is sufficiently general to reason systematically about the stability of any network, biological or technological, composed of networks of small modules that express competition through shared inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ueli Rutishauser
- Department of Neural Systems and Coding, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, Frankfurt am Main, Hessen 60528, Germany
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27
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Lansink CS, Goltstein PM, Lankelma JV, Pennartz CMA. Fast-spiking interneurons of the rat ventral striatum: temporal coordination of activity with principal cells and responsiveness to reward. Eur J Neurosci 2010; 32:494-508. [PMID: 20704595 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2010.07293.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Although previous in vitro studies revealed inhibitory synaptic connections of fast-spiking interneurons to principal cells in the striatum, uncertainty remains about the nature of the behavioural events that correlate with changes in interneuron activity and about the temporal coordination of interneuron firing with spiking of principal cells under natural conditions. Using in vivo tetrode recordings from the ventral striatum in freely moving rats, fast-spiking neurons were distinguished from putative medium-sized spiny neurons on the basis of their spike waveforms and rates. Cross-correlograms of fast-spiking and putative medium-sized spiny neuron firing patterns revealed a variety of temporal relationships, including peaks of concurrent firing and transient decrements in medium-sized spiny neuron spiking around fast-spiking unit activity. Notably, the onset of these decrements was mostly in advance of the fast-spiking unit firing. Many of these temporal relationships were dependent on the sleep-wake state. Coordinated activity was also found amongst pairs of the same phenotype, both fast-spiking units and putative medium-sized spiny neurons, which was often marked by a broad peak of concurrent firing. When studying fast-spiking neurons in a reward-searching task, they generally showed a pre-reward ramping increment in firing rate but a decrement specifically when the rat received reward. In conclusion, our data indicate that various forms of temporally coordinated activity exist amongst ventral striatal interneurons and principal cells, which cannot be explained by feed-forward inhibitory circuits alone. Furthermore, firing patterns of ventral striatal fast-spiking interneurons do not merely correlate with the general arousal state of the animal but display distinct reward-related changes in firing rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carien S Lansink
- Graduate School of Neurosciences Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
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28
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Deng JV, Rodriguiz RM, Hutchinson AN, Kim IH, Wetsel WC, West AE. MeCP2 in the nucleus accumbens contributes to neural and behavioral responses to psychostimulants. Nat Neurosci 2010; 13:1128-36. [PMID: 20711186 PMCID: PMC2928851 DOI: 10.1038/nn.2614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 156] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2010] [Accepted: 07/15/2010] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
MeCP2 is a methyl DNA-binding transcriptional regulator that contributes to the development and function of CNS synapses; however, the requirement for MeCP2 in stimulus-regulated behavioral plasticity is not fully understood. Here we show that acute viral manipulation of MeCP2 expression in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) bidirectionally modulates amphetamine (AMPH)-induced conditioned place preference. Mecp2 hypomorphic mutant mice have more NAc GABAergic synapses and show deficient AMPH-induced structural plasticity of NAc dendritic spines. Furthermore, these mice show deficient plasticity of striatal immediate early gene inducibility after repeated AMPH administration. Notably, psychostimulants induce phosphorylation of MeCP2 at Ser421, a site that regulates MeCP2's function as a repressor. Phosphorylation is selectively induced in GABAergic interneurons of the NAc, and its extent strongly predicts the degree of behavioral sensitization. These data reveal new roles for MeCP2 both in mesolimbocortical circuit development and in the regulation of psychostimulant-induced behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie V Deng
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA
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29
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Sesack SR, Grace AA. Cortico-Basal Ganglia reward network: microcircuitry. Neuropsychopharmacology 2010; 35:27-47. [PMID: 19675534 PMCID: PMC2879005 DOI: 10.1038/npp.2009.93] [Citation(s) in RCA: 721] [Impact Index Per Article: 51.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2009] [Revised: 06/16/2009] [Accepted: 07/01/2009] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Many of the brain's reward systems converge on the nucleus accumbens, a region richly innervated by excitatory, inhibitory, and modulatory afferents representing the circuitry necessary for selecting adaptive motivated behaviors. The ventral subiculum of the hippocampus provides contextual and spatial information, the basolateral amygdala conveys affective influence, and the prefrontal cortex provides an integrative impact on goal-directed behavior. The balance of these afferents is under the modulatory influence of dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area. This midbrain region receives its own complex mix of excitatory and inhibitory inputs, some of which have only recently been identified. Such afferent regulation positions the dopamine system to bias goal-directed behavior based on internal drives and environmental contingencies. Conditions that result in reward promote phasic dopamine release, which serves to maintain ongoing behavior by selectively potentiating ventral subicular drive to the accumbens. Behaviors that fail to produce an expected reward decrease dopamine transmission, which favors prefrontal cortical-driven switching to new behavioral strategies. As such, the limbic reward system is designed to optimize action plans for maximizing reward outcomes. This system can be commandeered by drugs of abuse or psychiatric disorders, resulting in inappropriate behaviors that sustain failed reward strategies. A fuller appreciation of the circuitry interconnecting the nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area should serve to advance discovery of new treatment options for these conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susan R Sesack
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Anthony A Grace
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
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30
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Humphries MD, Prescott TJ. The ventral basal ganglia, a selection mechanism at the crossroads of space, strategy, and reward. Prog Neurobiol 2009; 90:385-417. [PMID: 19941931 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2009.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 243] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2009] [Revised: 11/12/2009] [Accepted: 11/16/2009] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The basal ganglia are often conceptualised as three parallel domains that include all the constituent nuclei. The 'ventral domain' appears to be critical for learning flexible behaviours for exploration and foraging, as it is the recipient of converging inputs from amygdala, hippocampal formation and prefrontal cortex, putatively centres for stimulus evaluation, spatial navigation, and planning/contingency, respectively. However, compared to work on the dorsal domains, the rich potential for quantitative theories and models of the ventral domain remains largely untapped, and the purpose of this review is to provide the stimulus for this work. We systematically review the ventral domain's structures and internal organisation, and propose a functional architecture as the basis for computational models. Using a full schematic of the structure of inputs to the ventral striatum (nucleus accumbens core and shell), we argue for the existence of many identifiable processing channels on the basis of unique combinations of afferent inputs. We then identify the potential information represented in these channels by reconciling a broad range of studies from the hippocampal, amygdala and prefrontal cortex literatures with known properties of the ventral striatum from lesion, pharmacological, and electrophysiological studies. Dopamine's key role in learning is reviewed within the three current major computational frameworks; we also show that the shell-based basal ganglia sub-circuits are well placed to generate the phasic burst and dip responses of dopaminergic neurons. We detail dopamine's modulation of ventral basal ganglia's inputs by its actions on pre-synaptic terminals and post-synaptic membranes in the striatum, arguing that the complexity of these effects hint at computational roles for dopamine beyond current ideas. The ventral basal ganglia are revealed as a constellation of multiple functional systems for the learning and selection of flexible behaviours and of behavioural strategies, sharing the common operations of selection-by-disinhibition and of dopaminergic modulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark D Humphries
- Adaptive Behaviour Research Group, Department of Psychology, University of Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK.
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31
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Inhibitory contribution to suprathreshold corticostriatal responses: an experimental and modeling study. Cell Mol Neurobiol 2009; 29:719-31. [PMID: 19350384 DOI: 10.1007/s10571-009-9394-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2009] [Accepted: 03/12/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Neostriatal neurons may undergo events of spontaneous synchronization as those observed in recurrent networks of excitatory neurons, even when cortical afferents are transected. It is necessary to explain these events because the neostriatum is a recurrent network of inhibitory neurons. Synchronization of neuronal activity may be caused by plateau-like depolarizations. Plateau-like orthodromic depolarizations that resemble up-states in medium spiny neostriatal neurons (MSNs) may be induced by a single corticostriatal suprathreshold stimulus. Slow synaptic depolarizations may last hundreds of milliseconds, decay slower than the monosynaptic glutamatergic synaptic potentials that induce them, and sustain repetitive firing. Because inhibitory inputs impinging onto MSNs have a reversal potential above the resting membrane potential but below the threshold for firing, they conform a type of "shunting inhibition". This work asks if shunting GABAergic inputs onto MSNs arrive asynchronously enough as to help in sustaining the plateau-like corticostriatal response after a single cortical stimulus. This may help to begin explaining autonomous processing in the striatal micro-circuitry in the presence of a tonic excitatory drive and independently of spatio-temporally organized inputs. It is shown here that besides synaptic currents from AMPA/KA- and NMDA-receptors, as well as L-type intrinsic Ca(2+)- currents, inhibitory synapses help in maintaining the slow depolarization, although they accomplish the role of depressing firing at the beginning of the response. We then used a NEURON model of spiny cells to show that inhibitory synapses arriving asynchronously on the dendrites can help to simulate a plateau potential similar to that observed experimentally.
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Wolf JA, Finkel LH, Contreras D. Sublinear summation of afferent inputs to the nucleus accumbens in the awake rat. J Physiol 2009; 587:1695-704. [PMID: 19221123 DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2008.168369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The mechanisms by which the nucleus accumbens integrates afferent input from limbic and cortical structures have been influential in the development of models of psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia. Previous studies of the response of nucleus accumbens (Nacb) cells to the stimulation of afferent inputs from hippocampus (HC) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) have demonstrated that PFC throughput can be modulated by preceding HC input. Examination of the post-synaptic potential size has suggested, however, that summation of these inputs is sublinear. All studies to date examining Nacb integration of inputs via stimulation of afferents have been performed in the anaesthetized rat. The present experiments compare the response of Nacb cells to different combinations of PFC and HC stimulation in awake and isoflurane-anaesthetized rats that were chronically implanted with both stimulating and recording electrodes. The results of these experiments suggest that summation of afferent input in the Nacb of the awake rat is predominantly sublinear, with only a minority of neurons demonstrating modulation of PFC inputs by the HC in the awake or the anaesthetized animal. The response profile of many cells changed during anaesthesia when compared to the awake condition, and on average showed suppression to PFC input 50 and 150 ms following HC stimulation while under deep isoflurane anaesthesia. These results suggest that sublinear integration of afferent input from the PFC and HC is the dominant mode of integration of Nacb cells in the awake animal, which has implications for corticostriatal models of psychiatric dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- John A Wolf
- Dept. of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, Rm 215, Stemmler Hall, 3450 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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