1
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Cole N, Harvey M, Myers-Joseph D, Gilra A, Khan AG. Prediction-error signals in anterior cingulate cortex drive task-switching. Nat Commun 2024; 15:7088. [PMID: 39154045 PMCID: PMC11330528 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51368-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 08/05/2024] [Indexed: 08/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Task-switching is a fundamental cognitive ability that allows animals to update their knowledge of current rules or contexts. Detecting discrepancies between predicted and observed events is essential for this process. However, little is known about how the brain computes cognitive prediction-errors and whether neural prediction-error signals are causally related to task-switching behaviours. Here we trained mice to use a prediction-error to switch, in a single trial, between responding to the same stimuli using two distinct rules. Optogenetic silencing and un-silencing, together with widefield and two-photon calcium imaging revealed that the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) was specifically required for this rapid task-switching, but only when it exhibited neural prediction-error signals. These prediction-error signals were projection-target dependent and were larger preceding successful behavioural transitions. An all-optical approach revealed a disinhibitory interneuron circuit required for successful prediction-error computation. These results reveal a circuit mechanism for computing prediction-errors and transitioning between distinct cognitive states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas Cole
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Matthew Harvey
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Dylan Myers-Joseph
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Aditya Gilra
- Machine Learning Group, Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
- Department of Computer Science, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Adil G Khan
- Centre for Developmental Neurobiology, King's College London, London, UK.
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2
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Panzer E, Guimares-Olmo I, Pereira de Vasconcelos A, Stéphan A, Cassel JC. In relentless pursuit of the white whale: A role for the ventral midline thalamus in behavioral flexibility and adaption? Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 163:105762. [PMID: 38857666 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105762] [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: 04/25/2024] [Revised: 05/27/2024] [Accepted: 06/04/2024] [Indexed: 06/12/2024]
Abstract
The reuniens (Re) nucleus is located in the ventral midline thalamus. It has fostered increasing interest, not only for its participation in a variety of cognitive functions (e.g., spatial working memory, systemic consolidation, reconsolidation, extinction of fear or generalization), but also for its neuroanatomical positioning as a bidirectional relay between the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and the hippocampus (HIP). In this review we compile and discuss recent studies having tackled a possible implication of the Re nucleus in behavioral flexibility, a major PFC-dependent executive function controlling goal-directed behaviors. Experiments considered explored a possible role for the Re nucleus in perseveration, reversal learning, fear extinction, and set-shifting. They point to a contribution of this nucleus to behavioral flexibility, mainly by its connections with the PFC, but possibly also by those with the hippocampus, and even with the amygdala, at least for fear-related behavior. As such, the Re nucleus could be a crucial crossroad supporting a PFC-orchestrated ability to cope with new, potentially unpredictable environmental contingencies, and thus behavioral flexibility and adaption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elodie Panzer
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg F-67000, France; LNCA, UMR 7364 - CNRS, Strasbourg F-67000, France
| | - Isabella Guimares-Olmo
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg F-67000, France; LNCA, UMR 7364 - CNRS, Strasbourg F-67000, France
| | - Anne Pereira de Vasconcelos
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg F-67000, France; LNCA, UMR 7364 - CNRS, Strasbourg F-67000, France
| | - Aline Stéphan
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg F-67000, France; LNCA, UMR 7364 - CNRS, Strasbourg F-67000, France
| | - Jean-Christophe Cassel
- Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Adaptatives, Université de Strasbourg, Strasbourg F-67000, France; LNCA, UMR 7364 - CNRS, Strasbourg F-67000, France.
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3
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Messanvi F, Visocky V, Senneca C, Berkun K, Taori M, Bradley SP, Wang H, Tejeda H, Chudasama Y. Galanin receptor 1 expressing neurons in hippocampal-prefrontal circuitry modulate goal directed attention and impulse control. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.07.29.605653. [PMID: 39131306 PMCID: PMC11312591 DOI: 10.1101/2024.07.29.605653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
While amino acid neurotransmitters are the main chemical messengers in the brain, they are co-expressed with neuropeptides which are increasingly recognized as modulators of cognitive pathways. For example, the neuropeptide galanin has been implicated in a wide range of pathological conditions in which frontal and temporal structures are compromised. In a recent study in rats, we discovered that direct pharmacological stimulation of galanin receptor type 1 (GalR1) in the ventral prefrontal cortex (vPFC) and ventral hippocampus (vHC) led to opposing effects on attention and impulse control behavior. In the present study, we investigate how subtypes of neurons expressing GalR1 in these two areas differentially contribute to these behaviors. We first establish that GalR1 is predominantly expressed in glutamatergic neurons in both the vPFC and HC. We develop a novel viral approach to gain genetic access to GalR1-expressing neurons and demonstrate that optogenetic excitation of GalR1 expressing neurons in the vPFC, but not vHC, selectively disrupts attention in a complex behavioral task. Finally, using fiber photometry, we measure the bulk calcium dynamics in GalR1-expressing neurons during the same task to demonstrate opposing activity in vPFC and vHC. These results are consistent with our previous work demonstrating differential behavioral effects induced by GalR1 activating in vPFC and vHC. These results indicate the distinct neuromodulatory and behavioral contributions of galanin mediated by subclasses of neurons in the hippocampal and prefrontal circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fany Messanvi
- Section on Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Vladimir Visocky
- Section on Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Carolyn Senneca
- Section on Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Kathleen Berkun
- Section on Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Maansi Taori
- Section on Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sean P Bradley
- Rodent Behavioral Core, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Huikun Wang
- Unit on Neuromodulation and Synaptic Integration, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Hugo Tejeda
- Unit on Neuromodulation and Synaptic Integration, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Yogita Chudasama
- Section on Behavioral Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
- Rodent Behavioral Core, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
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4
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Wolff M, Halassa MM. The mediodorsal thalamus in executive control. Neuron 2024; 112:893-908. [PMID: 38295791 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.01.002] [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: 09/01/2023] [Revised: 11/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
Executive control, the ability to organize thoughts and action plans in real time, is a defining feature of higher cognition. Classical theories have emphasized cortical contributions to this process, but recent studies have reinvigorated interest in the role of the thalamus. Although it is well established that local thalamic damage diminishes cognitive capacity, such observations have been difficult to inform functional models. Recent progress in experimental techniques is beginning to enrich our understanding of the anatomical, physiological, and computational substrates underlying thalamic engagement in executive control. In this review, we discuss this progress and particularly focus on the mediodorsal thalamus, which regulates the activity within and across frontal cortical areas. We end with a synthesis that highlights frontal thalamocortical interactions in cognitive computations and discusses its functional implications in normal and pathological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu Wolff
- University of Bordeaux, CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, 33000 Bordeaux, France.
| | - Michael M Halassa
- Department of Neuroscience, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
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5
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Zhou T, Ho YY, Lee RX, Fath AB, He K, Scott J, Bajwa N, Hartley ND, Wilde J, Gao X, Li C, Hong E, Nassar MR, Wimmer RD, Singh T, Halassa MM, Feng G. Enhancement of mediodorsal thalamus rescues aberrant belief dynamics in a mouse model with schizophrenia-associated mutation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.08.574745. [PMID: 38260581 PMCID: PMC10802391 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.08.574745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Optimizing behavioral strategy requires belief updating based on new evidence, a process that engages higher cognition. In schizophrenia, aberrant belief dynamics may lead to psychosis, but the mechanisms underlying this process are unknown, in part, due to lack of appropriate animal models and behavior readouts. Here, we address this challenge by taking two synergistic approaches. First, we generate a mouse model bearing patient-derived point mutation in Grin2a (Grin2aY700X+/-), a gene that confers high-risk for schizophrenia and recently identified by large-scale exome sequencing. Second, we develop a computationally trackable foraging task, in which mice form and update belief-driven strategies in a dynamic environment. We found that Grin2aY700X+/- mice perform less optimally than their wild-type (WT) littermates, showing unstable behavioral states and a slower belief update rate. Using functional ultrasound imaging, we identified the mediodorsal (MD) thalamus as hypofunctional in Grin2aY700X+/- mice, and in vivo task recordings showed that MD neurons encoded dynamic values and behavioral states in WT mice. Optogenetic inhibition of MD neurons in WT mice phenocopied Grin2aY700X+/- mice, and enhancing MD activity rescued task deficits in Grin2aY700X+/- mice. Together, our study identifies the MD thalamus as a key node for schizophrenia-relevant cognitive dysfunction, and a potential target for future therapeutics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Zhou
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Yi-Yun Ho
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Ray X Lee
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Amanda B Fath
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Kathleen He
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Jonathan Scott
- Department of Neuroscience, Tufts University School of Medicine
| | - Navdeep Bajwa
- Department of Neuroscience, Tufts University School of Medicine
| | - Nolan D Hartley
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
| | - Jonathan Wilde
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Xian Gao
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Cui Li
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | - Evan Hong
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
| | | | - Ralf D Wimmer
- Department of Neuroscience, Tufts University School of Medicine
| | - Tarjinder Singh
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
| | | | - Guoping Feng
- Yang Tan Collection and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
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6
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Sohal VS. Neurobiology of schizophrenia. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2024; 84:102820. [PMID: 38091860 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2023.102820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 11/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Vikaas S Sohal
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143-0444, USA.
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7
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Hirato Y, Seiriki K, Kojima L, Yamada S, Rokujo H, Takemoto T, Nakazawa T, Kasai A, Hashimoto H. Clozapine Induces Neuronal Activation in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex in a Projection Target-Biased Manner. Biol Pharm Bull 2024; 47:478-485. [PMID: 38382927 DOI: 10.1248/bpb.b23-00898] [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] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is associated with various behavioral controls via diverse projections to cortical and subcortical areas of the brain. Dysfunctions and modulations of this circuitry are related to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia and its pharmacotherapy, respectively. Clozapine is an atypical antipsychotic drug used for treatment-resistant schizophrenia and is known to modulate neuronal activity in the mPFC. However, it remains unclear which prefrontal cortical projections are activated by clozapine among the various projection targets. To identify the anatomical characteristics of neurons activated by clozapine at the mesoscale level, we investigated the brain-wide projection patterns of neurons with clozapine-induced c-Fos expression in the mPFC. Using a whole-brain imaging and virus-mediated genetic tagging of activated neurons, we found that clozapine-responsive neurons in the mPFC had a wide range of projections to the mesolimbic, amygdala and thalamic areas, especially the mediodorsal thalamus. These results may provide key insights into the neuronal basis of the therapeutic action of clozapine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yumi Hirato
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Kaoru Seiriki
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Leo Kojima
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Shohei Yamada
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Hiroki Rokujo
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Tomoya Takemoto
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Takanobu Nakazawa
- Department of Bioscience, Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tokyo University of Agriculture
| | - Atsushi Kasai
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
- Systems Brain Science Project, Drug Innovation Center, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
| | - Hitoshi Hashimoto
- Laboratory of Molecular Neuropharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Osaka University
- Institute for Open and Transdisciplinary Research Initiatives, Osaka University
- Molecular Research Center for Children's Mental Development, United Graduate School of Child Development, Osaka University, Kanazawa University, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Chiba University, and University of Fukui
- Institute for Datability Science, Osaka University
- Department of Molecular Pharmaceutical Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka University
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8
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Song Y, Shin W, Kim P, Jeong J. Neural representations for multi-context visuomotor adaptation and the impact of common representation on multi-task performance: a multivariate decoding approach. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1221944. [PMID: 37822708 PMCID: PMC10562562 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1221944] [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: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The human brain's remarkable motor adaptability stems from the formation of context representations and the use of a common context representation (e.g., an invariant task structure across task contexts) derived from structural learning. However, direct evaluation of context representations and structural learning in sensorimotor tasks remains limited. This study aimed to rigorously distinguish neural representations of visual, movement, and context levels crucial for multi-context visuomotor adaptation and investigate the association between representation commonality across task contexts and adaptation performance using multivariate decoding analysis with fMRI data. Here, we focused on three distinct task contexts, two of which share a rotation structure (i.e., visuomotor rotation contexts with -90° and +90° rotations, in which the mouse cursor's movement was rotated 90 degrees counterclockwise and clockwise relative to the hand-movement direction, respectively) and the remaining one does not (i.e., mirror-reversal context where the horizontal movement of the computer mouse was inverted). This study found that visual representations (i.e., visual direction) were decoded in the occipital area, while movement representations (i.e., hand-movement direction) were decoded across various visuomotor-related regions. These findings are consistent with prior research and the widely recognized roles of those areas. Task-context representations (i.e., either -90° rotation, +90° rotation, or mirror-reversal) were also distinguishable in various brain regions. Notably, these regions largely overlapped with those encoding visual and movement representations. This overlap suggests a potential intricate dependency of encoding visual and movement directions on the context information. Moreover, we discovered that higher task performance is associated with task-context representation commonality, as evidenced by negative correlations between task performance and task-context-decoding accuracy in various brain regions, potentially supporting structural learning. Importantly, despite limited similarities between tasks (e.g., rotation and mirror-reversal contexts), such association was still observed, suggesting an efficient mechanism in the brain that extracts commonalities from different task contexts (such as visuomotor rotations or mirror-reversal) at multiple structural levels, from high-level abstractions to lower-level details. In summary, while illuminating the intricate interplay between visuomotor processing and context information, our study highlights the efficiency of learning mechanisms, thereby paving the way for future exploration of the brain's versatile motor ability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Youngjo Song
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, College of Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Wooree Shin
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, College of Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, South Korea
- Program of Brain and Cognitive Engineering, College of Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Pyeongsoo Kim
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, College of Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, South Korea
| | - Jaeseung Jeong
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, College of Life Science and Bioengineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Daejeon, South Korea
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Ulloa Severino FP, Lawal OO, Sakers K, Wang S, Kim N, Friedman AD, Johnson SA, Sriworarat C, Hughes RH, Soderling SH, Kim IH, Yin HH, Eroglu C. Training-induced circuit-specific excitatory synaptogenesis in mice is required for effort control. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5522. [PMID: 37684234 PMCID: PMC10491649 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41078-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Synaptogenesis is essential for circuit development; however, it is unknown whether it is critical for the establishment and performance of goal-directed voluntary behaviors. Here, we show that operant conditioning via lever-press for food reward training in mice induces excitatory synapse formation onto a subset of anterior cingulate cortex neurons projecting to the dorsomedial striatum (ACC→DMS). Training-induced synaptogenesis is controlled by the Gabapentin/Thrombospondin receptor α2δ-1, which is an essential neuronal protein for proper intracortical excitatory synaptogenesis. Using germline and conditional knockout mice, we found that deletion of α2δ-1 in the adult ACC→DMS circuit diminishes training-induced excitatory synaptogenesis. Surprisingly, this manipulation does not impact learning but results in a significant increase in effort exertion without affecting sensitivity to reward value or changing contingencies. Bidirectional optogenetic manipulation of ACC→DMS neurons rescues or phenocopies the behaviors of the α2δ-1 cKO mice, highlighting the importance of synaptogenesis within this cortico-striatal circuit in regulating effort exertion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Paolo Ulloa Severino
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Cajal Institute (CSIC), Madrid, 28001, Spain.
| | | | - Kristina Sakers
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Shiyi Wang
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Namsoo Kim
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | | | - Sarah Anne Johnson
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | | | - Ryan H Hughes
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Scott H Soderling
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
- Duke Institute for Brain Sciences (DIBS), Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Il Hwan Kim
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Tennessee Health and Science Center, Memphis, TN, 38103, USA
| | - Henry H Yin
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Duke Institute for Brain Sciences (DIBS), Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
| | - Cagla Eroglu
- Department of Cell Biology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Duke Institute for Brain Sciences (DIBS), Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
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10
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Heald JB, Wolpert DM, Lengyel M. The Computational and Neural Bases of Context-Dependent Learning. Annu Rev Neurosci 2023; 46:233-258. [PMID: 36972611 PMCID: PMC10348919 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-neuro-092322-100402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
Abstract
Flexible behavior requires the creation, updating, and expression of memories to depend on context. While the neural underpinnings of each of these processes have been intensively studied, recent advances in computational modeling revealed a key challenge in context-dependent learning that had been largely ignored previously: Under naturalistic conditions, context is typically uncertain, necessitating contextual inference. We review a theoretical approach to formalizing context-dependent learning in the face of contextual uncertainty and the core computations it requires. We show how this approach begins to organize a large body of disparate experimental observations, from multiple levels of brain organization (including circuits, systems, and behavior) and multiple brain regions (most prominently the prefrontal cortex, the hippocampus, and motor cortices), into a coherent framework. We argue that contextual inference may also be key to understanding continual learning in the brain. This theory-driven perspective places contextual inference as a core component of learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- James B Heald
- Department of Neuroscience and Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; ,
| | - Daniel M Wolpert
- Department of Neuroscience and Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; ,
- Computational and Biological Learning Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom;
| | - Máté Lengyel
- Computational and Biological Learning Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom;
- Center for Cognitive Computation, Department of Cognitive Science, Central European University, Budapest, Hungary
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11
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Xue X, Wimmer RD, Halassa MM, Chen ZS. Spiking Recurrent Neural Networks Represent Task-Relevant Neural Sequences in Rule-Dependent Computation. Cognit Comput 2023; 15:1167-1189. [PMID: 37771569 PMCID: PMC10530699 DOI: 10.1007/s12559-022-09994-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Background Prefrontal cortical neurons play essential roles in performing rule-dependent tasks and working memory-based decision making. Methods Motivated by PFG recordings of task-performing mice, we developed an excitatory-inhibitory spiking recurrent neural network (SRNN) to perform a rule-dependent two-alternative forced choice (2AFC) task. We imposed several important biological constraints onto the SRNN, and adapted spike frequency adaptation (SFA) and SuperSpike gradient methods to train the SRNN efficiently. Results The trained SRNN produced emergent rule-specific tunings in single-unit representations, showing rule-dependent population dynamics that resembled experimentally observed data. Under varying test conditions, we manipulated the SRNN parameters or configuration in computer simulations, and we investigated the impacts of rule-coding error, delay duration, recurrent weight connectivity and sparsity, and excitation/inhibition (E/I) balance on both task performance and neural representations. Conclusions Overall, our modeling study provides a computational framework to understand neuronal representations at a fine timescale during working memory and cognitive control, and provides new experimentally testable hypotheses in future experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaohe Xue
- Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ralf D. Wimmer
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Michael M. Halassa
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Zhe Sage Chen
- Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
- Neuroscience Institute, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
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12
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Stephenson S, Liu A, Blackwell AA, Britten RA. Multiple decrements in switch task performance in female rats exposed to space radiation. Behav Brain Res 2023; 449:114465. [PMID: 37142163 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114465] [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: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 04/14/2023] [Accepted: 05/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Astronauts on the Artemis missions to the Moon and Mars will be exposed to unavoidable Galactic Cosmic Radiation (GCR). Studies using male rats suggest that GCR exposure impairs several processes required for cognitive flexibility performance, including attention and task switching. Currently no comparable studies have been conducted with female rats. Given that both males and females will travel into deep space, this study determined whether simulated GCR (GCRsim) exposure impairs task switching performance in female rats. Female Wistar rats exposed to 10cGy GCRsim (n = 12) and shams (n=14) were trained to perform a touchscreen-based switch task that mimics a switch task used to evaluate pilots' response times. In comparison to sham rats, three-fold more GCRsim-exposed rats failed to complete the stimulus response stage of training, a high cognitive loading task. In the switch task, 50% of the GCRsim-exposed rats failed to consistently transition between the repeated and switch blocks of stimuli, which they completed during lower cognitive loading training stages. The GCRsim-exposed rats that completed the switch task only performed at 65% of the accuracy of shams. Female rats exposed to GCRsim thus exhibit multiple decrements in the switch task under high, but not low, cognitive loading conditions. While the operational significance of this performance decrement is unknown, if GCRSim exposure was to induce similar effects in astronauts, our data suggests there may be a reduced ability to execute task switching under high cognitive loading situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Stephenson
- School of Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 USA
| | - Aiyi Liu
- EVMS Radiation Oncology, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 USA
| | - Ashley A Blackwell
- EVMS Radiation Oncology, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 USA; Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Inflammatory Diseases, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 USA
| | - Richard A Britten
- EVMS Radiation Oncology, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 USA; Center for Integrative Neuroscience and Inflammatory Diseases, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, Virginia 23507 USA.
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13
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Cho KKA, Shi J, Phensy AJ, Turner ML, Sohal VS. Long-range inhibition synchronizes and updates prefrontal task activity. Nature 2023; 617:548-554. [PMID: 37100905 PMCID: PMC10191848 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06012-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2023]
Abstract
Changes in patterns of activity within the medial prefrontal cortex enable rodents, non-human primates and humans to update their behaviour to adapt to changes in the environment-for example, during cognitive tasks1-5. Parvalbumin-expressing inhibitory neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex are important for learning new strategies during a rule-shift task6-8, but the circuit interactions that switch prefrontal network dynamics from maintaining to updating task-related patterns of activity remain unknown. Here we describe a mechanism that links parvalbumin-expressing neurons, a new callosal inhibitory connection, and changes in task representations. Whereas nonspecifically inhibiting all callosal projections does not prevent mice from learning rule shifts or disrupt the evolution of activity patterns, selectively inhibiting only callosal projections of parvalbumin-expressing neurons impairs rule-shift learning, desynchronizes the gamma-frequency activity that is necessary for learning8 and suppresses the reorganization of prefrontal activity patterns that normally accompanies rule-shift learning. This dissociation reveals how callosal parvalbumin-expressing projections switch the operating mode of prefrontal circuits from maintenance to updating by transmitting gamma synchrony and gating the ability of other callosal inputs to maintain previously established neural representations. Thus, callosal projections originating from parvalbumin-expressing neurons represent a key circuit locus for understanding and correcting the deficits in behavioural flexibility and gamma synchrony that have been implicated in schizophrenia and related conditions9,10.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen K A Cho
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Institut du Cerveau-Paris Brain Institute, Sorbonne Université, Inserm U1127-CNRS UMR 7225, Paris, France.
| | - Jingcheng Shi
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Aarron J Phensy
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Marc L Turner
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Vikaas S Sohal
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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14
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Hanganu-Opatz IL, Klausberger T, Sigurdsson T, Nieder A, Jacob SN, Bartos M, Sauer JF, Durstewitz D, Leibold C, Diester I. Resolving the prefrontal mechanisms of adaptive cognitive behaviors: A cross-species perspective. Neuron 2023; 111:1020-1036. [PMID: 37023708 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2022] [Revised: 02/15/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) enables a staggering variety of complex behaviors, such as planning actions, solving problems, and adapting to new situations according to external information and internal states. These higher-order abilities, collectively defined as adaptive cognitive behavior, require cellular ensembles that coordinate the tradeoff between the stability and flexibility of neural representations. While the mechanisms underlying the function of cellular ensembles are still unclear, recent experimental and theoretical studies suggest that temporal coordination dynamically binds prefrontal neurons into functional ensembles. A so far largely separate stream of research has investigated the prefrontal efferent and afferent connectivity. These two research streams have recently converged on the hypothesis that prefrontal connectivity patterns influence ensemble formation and the function of neurons within ensembles. Here, we propose a unitary concept that, leveraging a cross-species definition of prefrontal regions, explains how prefrontal ensembles adaptively regulate and efficiently coordinate multiple processes in distinct cognitive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ileana L Hanganu-Opatz
- Institute of Developmental Neurophysiology, Center for Molecular Neurobiology, Hamburg Center of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Thomas Klausberger
- Center for Brain Research, Division of Cognitive Neurobiology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Torfi Sigurdsson
- Institute of Neurophysiology, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Andreas Nieder
- Animal Physiology Unit, Institute of Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Simon N Jacob
- Translational Neurotechnology Laboratory, Department of Neurosurgery, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Marlene Bartos
- Institute for Physiology I, Medical Faculty, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Jonas-Frederic Sauer
- Institute for Physiology I, Medical Faculty, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Daniel Durstewitz
- Department of Theoretical Neuroscience, Central Institute of Mental Health & Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Christian Leibold
- Faculty of Biology, Bernstein Center Freiburg, BrainLinks-BrainTools, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Ilka Diester
- Optophysiology - Optogenetics and Neurophysiology, IMBIT // BrainLinks-BrainTools, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.
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15
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Morgan AA, Alves ND, Stevens GS, Yeasmin TT, Mackay A, Power S, Sargin D, Hanna C, Adib AL, Ziolkowski-Blake A, Lambe EK, Ansorge MS. Medial Prefrontal Cortex Serotonin Input Regulates Cognitive Flexibility in Mice. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.30.534775. [PMID: 37034804 PMCID: PMC10081203 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.30.534775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) regulates cognitive flexibility and emotional behavior. Neurons that release serotonin project to the mPFC, and serotonergic drugs influence emotion and cognition. Yet, the specific roles of endogenous serotonin release in the mPFC on neurophysiology and behavior are unknown. We show that axonal serotonin release in the mPFC directly inhibits the major mPFC output neurons. In serotonergic neurons projecting from the dorsal raphe to the mPFC, we find endogenous activity signatures pre-reward retrieval and at reward retrieval during a cognitive flexibility task. In vivo optogenetic activation of this pathway during pre-reward retrieval selectively improved extradimensional rule shift performance while inhibition impaired it, demonstrating sufficiency and necessity for mPFC serotonin release in cognitive flexibility. Locomotor activity and anxiety-like behavior were not affected by either optogenetic manipulation. Collectively, our data reveal a powerful and specific modulatory role of endogenous serotonin release from dorsal raphe-to-mPFC projecting neurons in cognitive flexibility.
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Prefrontal Cortical to Mediodorsal Thalamus Projection Neurons Regulate Posterror Adaptive Control of Behavior. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO.0254-22.2022. [PMID: 36241421 PMCID: PMC9636992 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0254-22.2022] [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: 06/28/2022] [Revised: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive control is the online adjustment of behavior to guide and optimize responses after errors or conflict. The neural circuits involved in monitoring and adapting behavioral performance following error are poorly understood. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) plays a critical role in this form of control. However, these brain areas are densely connected with many other regions, and it is unknown which projections are critical for adaptive behavior. Here, we tested the involvement of four distinct dorsal and ventral prefrontal cortical projections to striatal and thalamic target areas in adaptive control. We re-analyzed data from published experiments, using trial-by-trial analyses of behavior in an operant task for attention and impulsivity. We find that male rats slow their responses and perform worse following errors. Moreover, by combining retrograde labeling and chemogenetic silencing, we find that dorsomedial prefrontal pyramidal neurons that project to the lateral nucleus of the mediodorsal thalamus (MDL) are involved in posterror performance and timing of responses, specifically with unpredictable delays until stimulus presentation. Together, these data show that dorsal medial PFC (mPFC) projection neurons targeting the lateral MDT regulate adaptive control to flexibly optimize behavioral responses in goal-directed behavior.
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17
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Déli É, Peters JF, Kisvárday Z. How the Brain Becomes the Mind: Can Thermodynamics Explain the Emergence and Nature of Emotions? ENTROPY (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 24:1498. [PMID: 37420518 PMCID: PMC9601684 DOI: 10.3390/e24101498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2022] [Revised: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/11/2022] [Indexed: 07/09/2023]
Abstract
The neural systems' electric activities are fundamental for the phenomenology of consciousness. Sensory perception triggers an information/energy exchange with the environment, but the brain's recurrent activations maintain a resting state with constant parameters. Therefore, perception forms a closed thermodynamic cycle. In physics, the Carnot engine is an ideal thermodynamic cycle that converts heat from a hot reservoir into work, or inversely, requires work to transfer heat from a low- to a high-temperature reservoir (the reversed Carnot cycle). We analyze the high entropy brain by the endothermic reversed Carnot cycle. Its irreversible activations provide temporal directionality for future orientation. A flexible transfer between neural states inspires openness and creativity. In contrast, the low entropy resting state parallels reversible activations, which impose past focus via repetitive thinking, remorse, and regret. The exothermic Carnot cycle degrades mental energy. Therefore, the brain's energy/information balance formulates motivation, sensed as position or negative emotions. Our work provides an analytical perspective of positive and negative emotions and spontaneous behavior from the free energy principle. Furthermore, electrical activities, thoughts, and beliefs lend themselves to a temporal organization, an orthogonal condition to physical systems. Here, we suggest that an experimental validation of the thermodynamic origin of emotions might inspire better treatment options for mental diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Éva Déli
- Department of Anatomy, Histology, and Embryology, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - James F. Peters
- Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2, Canada
- Department of Mathematics, Adiyaman University, Adiyaman 02040, Turkey
| | - Zoltán Kisvárday
- Department of Anatomy, Histology, and Embryology, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
- ELKH Neuroscience Research Group, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
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18
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Wang MB, Halassa MM. Thalamocortical contribution to flexible learning in neural systems. Netw Neurosci 2022; 6:980-997. [PMID: 36875011 PMCID: PMC9976647 DOI: 10.1162/netn_a_00235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal brains evolved to optimize behavior in dynamic environments, flexibly selecting actions that maximize future rewards in different contexts. A large body of experimental work indicates that such optimization changes the wiring of neural circuits, appropriately mapping environmental input onto behavioral outputs. A major unsolved scientific question is how optimal wiring adjustments, which must target the connections responsible for rewards, can be accomplished when the relation between sensory inputs, action taken, and environmental context with rewards is ambiguous. The credit assignment problem can be categorized into context-independent structural credit assignment and context-dependent continual learning. In this perspective, we survey prior approaches to these two problems and advance the notion that the brain's specialized neural architectures provide efficient solutions. Within this framework, the thalamus with its cortical and basal ganglia interactions serves as a systems-level solution to credit assignment. Specifically, we propose that thalamocortical interaction is the locus of meta-learning where the thalamus provides cortical control functions that parametrize the cortical activity association space. By selecting among these control functions, the basal ganglia hierarchically guide thalamocortical plasticity across two timescales to enable meta-learning. The faster timescale establishes contextual associations to enable behavioral flexibility, while the slower one enables generalization to new contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mien Brabeeba Wang
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Michael M. Halassa
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
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19
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Benoit LJ, Canetta S, Kellendonk C. Thalamocortical Development: A Neurodevelopmental Framework for Schizophrenia. Biol Psychiatry 2022; 92:491-500. [PMID: 35550792 PMCID: PMC9999366 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2022.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Adolescence is a period of increased vulnerability for the development of psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) undergoes substantial maturation during this period, and PFC dysfunction is central to cognitive impairments in schizophrenia. As a result, impaired adolescent maturation of the PFC has been proposed as a mechanism in the etiology of the disorder and its cognitive symptoms. In adulthood, PFC function is tightly linked to its reciprocal connections with the thalamus, and acutely inhibiting thalamic inputs to the PFC produces impairments in PFC function and cognitive deficits. Here, we propose that thalamic activity is equally important during adolescence because it is required for proper PFC circuit development. Because thalamic abnormalities have been observed early in the progression of schizophrenia, we further postulate that adolescent thalamic dysfunction can have long-lasting consequences for PFC function and cognition in patients with schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura J Benoit
- Graduate Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York
| | - Sarah Canetta
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York; Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York
| | - Christoph Kellendonk
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York; Department of Pharmacology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, New York; Division of Molecular Therapeutics, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York.
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20
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Yu X, Jembere F, Takehara-Nishiuchi K. Prefrontal projections to the nucleus reuniens signal behavioral relevance of stimuli during associative learning. Sci Rep 2022; 12:11995. [PMID: 35835794 PMCID: PMC9283438 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-15886-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The nucleus reuniens (RE) is necessary for memories dependent on the interaction between the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and hippocampus (HPC). One example is trace eyeblink conditioning, in which the mPFC exhibits differential activity to neutral conditioned stimuli (CS) depending on their contingency with an aversive unconditioned stimulus (US). To test if this relevancy signal is routed to the RE, we photometrically recorded mPFC axon terminals within the RE and tracked their changes with learning. As a comparison, we measured prefrontal terminal activity in the mediodorsal thalamus (MD), which lacks connectivity with the HPC. In naïve male rats, prefrontal terminals within the RE were not strongly activated by tone or light. As the rats associated one of the stimuli (CS+) with the US, terminals gradually increased their response to the CS+ but not the other stimulus (CS-). In contrast, stimulus-evoked responses of prefrontal terminals within the MD were strong even before conditioning. They also became augmented only to the CS+ in the first conditioning session; however, the degree of activity differentiation did not improve with learning. These findings suggest that associative learning selectively increased mPFC output to the RE, signaling the behavioral relevance of sensory stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaotian Yu
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.,Collaborative Program in Neuroscience, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Fasika Jembere
- Human Biology Program, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Kaori Takehara-Nishiuchi
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. .,Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada. .,Collaborative Program in Neuroscience, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
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21
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Optogenetic stimulation of medial prefrontal cortex excites GABAergic cells in the nucleus accumbens and hippocampus of Wistar-Kyoto rats exposed to chronic mild stress. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:2299-2307. [PMID: 35292832 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06116-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND High frequency optogenetic stimulation (OGS) of prelimbic cortex (PLC) has been reported to exert antidepressant-like effects in the chronic mild stress model of depression in Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats, which are non-responsive to antidepressant drugs. Here we have examined the effect of OGS on activity in the PLC and in two other regions implicated in depression, the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and hippocampus (HPC). METHOD OGS was applied to the PLC of WKY rats using the same stress schedule, and the identical placement, virus infection and stimulation parameters, used in the earlier behavioural experiments. Confocal microscopy was used to identify cells co-expressing the immediate early gene c-Fos and markers of GABAergic (GAD) and glutamatergic (CaMKII) neurons. RESULTS Stress decreased sucrose intake, which was restored by OGS. Stress also caused an overall decrease in Fos expression in the structures examined. In stressed animals, but not in non-stressed controls, OGS in mPFC increased the number of Fos+ cells in both the core and shell of the NAc (where the vast majority of cells are GABAergic), and increased the number and proportion of active GABAergic, but not glutamatergic, cells in dorsal and ventral HPC and dentate gyrus. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that OGS of PLC has a net excitatory effect on outputs from the PLC, leading to an overall inhibitory effect in structures innervated (NAc and HPC).
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22
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Ouhaz Z, Perry BAL, Nakamura K, Mitchell AS. Mediodorsal Thalamus Is Critical for Updating during Extradimensional Shifts But Not Reversals in the Attentional Set-Shifting Task. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO.0162-21.2022. [PMID: 35105661 PMCID: PMC8906789 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0162-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2021] [Revised: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Cognitive flexibility, attributed to frontal cortex, is vital for navigating the complexities of everyday life. The mediodorsal thalamus (MD), interconnected to frontal cortex, may influence cognitive flexibility. Here, male rats performed an attentional set-shifting task measuring intradimensional (ID) and extradimensional (ED) shifts in sensory discriminations. MD lesion rats needed more trials to learn the rewarded sensory dimension. However, once the choice response strategy was established, learning further two-choice discriminations in the same sensory dimension, and reversals of the reward contingencies in the same dimension, were unimpaired. Critically though, MD lesion rats were impaired during the ED shift, when they must rapidly update the optimal choice response strategy. Behavioral analyses showed MD lesion rats had significantly reduced correct within-trial second choice responses. This evidence shows that transfer of information via the MD is critical when rapid within-trial updates in established choice response strategies are required after a rule change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zakaria Ouhaz
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
- Institut Supérieur des Professions Infirmières et Techniques de la Santé, Marrakech 40000, Morocco
| | - Brook A L Perry
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
| | - Kouichi Nakamura
- Medical Research Council Brain Network Dynamics Unit, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3TH, United Kingdom
| | - Anna S Mitchell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
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23
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Anderson EM, Demis S, Wrucke B, Engelhardt A, Hearing MC. Infralimbic cortex pyramidal neuron GIRK signaling contributes to regulation of cognitive flexibility but not affect-related behavior in male mice. Physiol Behav 2021; 242:113597. [PMID: 34536435 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2021.113597] [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: 07/20/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Dysfunction of the infralimbic cortical (ILC) region of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is thought to be an underlying factor in both affect- and cognition-related behavioral deficits that co-occur across neuropsychiatric disorders. Increasing evidence highlights pathological imbalances in prefrontal pyramidal neuron excitability and associated aberrant firing as an underlying factor in this dysfunction. G protein-gated inwardly rectifying K+ (GIRK/Kir3) channels mediate excitability of mPFC pyramidal neurons, however the functional role of these channels in ILC-dependent regulation of behavior and pyramidal neuron excitation is unknown. The present study used a viral-cre approach in male mice harboring a 'floxed' version of the kcnj3 (Girk1) gene, to disrupt GIRK1-containing channel expression in pyramidal neurons within the ILC. Loss of GIRK1-dependent signaling increased excitability and spike firing of pyramidal neurons but did not alter affective behavior measured in an elevated plus maze, forced swim test, or progressive ratio test of motivation. Alternatively, ablation of GIRK1 impaired performance in an operant-based attentional set-shifting task designed to assess cognitive flexibility. These data highlight a unique role for GIRK1 signaling in ILC pyramidal neurons in the regulation of strategy shifting but not affect and suggest that these channels may represent a therapeutic target for treatment of cognitive deficits in neuropsychiatric disease.
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24
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Mathis VP, Williams M, Fillinger C, Kenny PJ. Networks of habenula-projecting cortical neurons regulate cocaine seeking. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2021; 7:eabj2225. [PMID: 34739312 PMCID: PMC8570600 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abj2225] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
How neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex broadcast stress-relevant information to subcortical brain sites to regulate cocaine relapse remains unclear. The lateral habenula (LHb) serves as a “hub” to filter and propagate stress- and aversion-relevant information in the brain. Here, we show that chemogenetic inhibition of cortical inputs to LHb attenuates relapse-like reinstatement of extinguished cocaine seeking in mice. Using an RNA sequencing–based brain mapping procedure with single-cell resolution, we identify networks of cortical neurons that project to LHb and then preferentially innervate different downstream brain sites, including the ventral tegmental area, median raphe nucleus, and locus coeruleus (LC). By using an intersectional chemogenetics approach, we show that inhibition of cortico-habenular neurons that project to LC, but not to other sites, blocks reinstatement of cocaine seeking. These findings highlight the remarkable complexity of descending cortical inputs to the habenula and identify a cortico-habenulo-hindbrain circuit that regulates cocaine seeking.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Maya Williams
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
| | - Clementine Fillinger
- Nash Family Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
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25
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Homologous organization of cerebellar pathways to sensory, motor, and associative forebrain. Cell Rep 2021; 36:109721. [PMID: 34551311 PMCID: PMC8506234 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2021] [Revised: 06/06/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Cerebellar outputs take polysynaptic routes to reach the rest of the brain, impeding conventional tracing. Here, we quantify pathways between the cerebellum and forebrain by using transsynaptic tracing viruses and a whole-brain analysis pipeline. With retrograde tracing, we find that most descending paths originate from the somatomotor cortex. Anterograde tracing of ascending paths encompasses most thalamic nuclei, especially ventral posteromedial, lateral posterior, mediodorsal, and reticular nuclei. In the neocortex, sensorimotor regions contain the most labeled neurons, but we find higher densities in associative areas, including orbital, anterior cingulate, prelimbic, and infralimbic cortex. Patterns of ascending expression correlate with c-Fos expression after optogenetic inhibition of Purkinje cells. Our results reveal homologous networks linking single areas of the cerebellar cortex to diverse forebrain targets. We conclude that shared areas of the cerebellum are positioned to provide sensory-motor information to regions implicated in both movement and nonmotor function. Pisano et al. use transsynaptic tracing and whole-brain light-sheet microscopy to quantitatively map cerebellar paths to and from the forebrain, including relatively dense projections to the prefrontal neocortex. Divergence of paths from single injection sites suggests that a single cerebellar region can influence multiple thalamic and neocortical targets at once.
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Perry BAL, Lomi E, Mitchell AS. Thalamocortical interactions in cognition and disease: the mediodorsal and anterior thalamic nuclei. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 130:162-177. [PMID: 34216651 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.05.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2020] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
The mediodorsal thalamus (MD) and anterior thalamic nuclei (ATN) are two adjacent brain nodes that support our ability to make decisions, learn, update information, form and retrieve memories, and find our way around. The MD and PFC work in partnerships to support cognitive processes linked to successful learning and decision-making, while the ATN and extended hippocampal system together coordinate the encoding and retrieval of memories and successful spatial navigation. Yet, while these distinctions may appear to be segregated, both the MD and ATN together support our higher cognitive functions as they regulate and are influenced by interconnected fronto-temporal neural networks and subcortical inputs. Our review focuses on recent studies in animal models and in humans. This evidence is re-shaping our understanding of the importance of MD and ATN cortico-thalamocortical pathways in influencing complex cognitive functions. Given the evidence from clinical settings and neuroscience research labs, the MD and ATN should be considered targets for effective treatments in neuropsychiatric diseases and disorders and neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brook A L Perry
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
| | - Eleonora Lomi
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
| | - Anna S Mitchell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR, United Kingdom.
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27
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Schiereck SS, Constantinople CM. Tracking self-performance in the prefrontal cortex: It's layered. Cell 2021; 184:2534-2536. [PMID: 33989547 PMCID: PMC10072337 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.04.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
In this issue of Cell, Spellman and colleagues record and manipulate the activity of neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex of mice performing a task in which they must pay attention to different stimuli. They show that this brain region is important for monitoring the animals' performance, and neurons that appear to contribute to behavior reside in deep cortical layers.
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28
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Le Merre P, Ährlund-Richter S, Carlén M. The mouse prefrontal cortex: Unity in diversity. Neuron 2021; 109:1925-1944. [PMID: 33894133 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.03.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Revised: 01/28/2021] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is considered to constitute the highest stage of neural integration and to be devoted to representation and production of actions. Studies in primates have laid the foundation for theories regarding the principles of prefrontal function and provided mechanistic insights. The recent surge of studies of the PFC in mice holds promise for evolvement of present theories and development of novel concepts, particularly regarding principles shared across mammals. Here we review recent empirical work on the mouse PFC capitalizing on the experimental toolbox currently privileged to studies in this species. We conclude that this line of research has revealed cellular and structural distinctions of the PFC and neuronal activity with direct relevance to theories regarding the functions of the PFC. We foresee that data-rich mouse studies will be key to shed light on the general prefrontal architecture and mechanisms underlying cognitive aspects of organized actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pierre Le Merre
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Marie Carlén
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, 171 77 Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, 141 83 Huddinge, Sweden.
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29
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Kosciessa JQ, Lindenberger U, Garrett DD. Thalamocortical excitability modulation guides human perception under uncertainty. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2430. [PMID: 33893294 PMCID: PMC8065126 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22511-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2020] [Accepted: 03/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Knowledge about the relevance of environmental features can guide stimulus processing. However, it remains unclear how processing is adjusted when feature relevance is uncertain. We hypothesized that (a) heightened uncertainty would shift cortical networks from a rhythmic, selective processing-oriented state toward an asynchronous ("excited") state that boosts sensitivity to all stimulus features, and that (b) the thalamus provides a subcortical nexus for such uncertainty-related shifts. Here, we had young adults attend to varying numbers of task-relevant features during EEG and fMRI acquisition to test these hypotheses. Behavioral modeling and electrophysiological signatures revealed that greater uncertainty lowered the rate of evidence accumulation for individual stimulus features, shifted the cortex from a rhythmic to an asynchronous/excited regime, and heightened neuromodulatory arousal. Crucially, this unified constellation of within-person effects was dominantly reflected in the uncertainty-driven upregulation of thalamic activity. We argue that neuromodulatory processes involving the thalamus play a central role in how the brain modulates neural excitability in the face of momentary uncertainty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian Q Kosciessa
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Berlin, Germany.
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany.
- Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Ulman Lindenberger
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Berlin, Germany
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | - Douglas D Garrett
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Berlin, Germany.
- Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany.
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30
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Spellman T, Svei M, Kaminsky J, Manzano-Nieves G, Liston C. Prefrontal deep projection neurons enable cognitive flexibility via persistent feedback monitoring. Cell 2021; 184:2750-2766.e17. [PMID: 33861951 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2021.03.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2020] [Revised: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Cognitive flexibility, the ability to alter strategy according to changing stimulus-response-reward relationships, is critical for updating learned behavior. Attentional set-shifting, a test of cognitive flexibility, depends on the activity of prefrontal cortex (PFC). It remains unclear, however, what role PFC neurons play to support set-shifting. Using optogenetics and two-photon calcium imaging, we demonstrate that medial PFC activity does not bias sensorimotor responses during set-shifting, but rather enables set-shifting by encoding trial feedback information, a role it has been known to play in other contexts. Unexpectedly, the functional properties of PFC cells did not vary with their efferent projection targets. Instead, representations of trial feedback formed a topological gradient, with cells more strongly selective for feedback information located further from the pial surface, where afferent input from the anterior cingulate cortex was denser. These findings identify a critical role for deep PFC projection neurons in enabling set-shifting through behavioral feedback monitoring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy Spellman
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA.
| | - Malka Svei
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA
| | - Jesse Kaminsky
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA
| | - Gabriela Manzano-Nieves
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA
| | - Conor Liston
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA.
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31
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van Heukelum S, Tulva K, Geers FE, van Dulm S, Ruisch IH, Mill J, Viana JF, Beckmann CF, Buitelaar JK, Poelmans G, Glennon JC, Vogt BA, Havenith MN, França ASC. A central role for anterior cingulate cortex in the control of pathological aggression. Curr Biol 2021; 31:2321-2333.e5. [PMID: 33857429 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2020] [Revised: 02/17/2021] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Controlling aggression is a crucial skill in social species like rodents and humans and has been associated with anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Here, we directly link the failed regulation of aggression in BALB/cJ mice to ACC hypofunction. We first show that ACC in BALB/cJ mice is structurally degraded: neuron density is decreased, with pervasive neuron death and reactive astroglia. Gene-set enrichment analysis suggested that this process is driven by neuronal degeneration, which then triggers toxic astrogliosis. cFos expression across ACC indicated functional consequences: during aggressive encounters, ACC was engaged in control mice, but not BALB/cJ mice. Chemogenetically activating ACC during aggressive encounters drastically suppressed pathological aggression but left species-typical aggression intact. The network effects of our chemogenetic perturbation suggest that this behavioral rescue is mediated by suppression of amygdala and hypothalamus and activation of mediodorsal thalamus. Together, these findings highlight the central role of ACC in curbing pathological aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina van Heukelum
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | - Kerli Tulva
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Femke E Geers
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Sanne van Dulm
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - I Hyun Ruisch
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Jonathan Mill
- University of Exeter Medical School, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Joana F Viana
- The Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research (IMSR), University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
| | - Christian F Beckmann
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Jan K Buitelaar
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Geert Poelmans
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Human Genetics, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Jeffrey C Glennon
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, School of Medicine, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Brent A Vogt
- Cingulum Neurosciences Institute, Manlius, NY, USA; Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Martha N Havenith
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Zero-Noise Lab, Ernst Strüngmann Institute for Neuroscience, 60528 Frankfurt a.M., Germany
| | - Arthur S C França
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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32
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Mair RG, Francoeur MJ, Gibson BM. Central Thalamic-Medial Prefrontal Control of Adaptive Responding in the Rat: Many Players in the Chamber. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:642204. [PMID: 33897387 PMCID: PMC8060444 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.642204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has robust afferent and efferent connections with multiple nuclei clustered in the central thalamus. These nuclei are elements in large-scale networks linking mPFC with the hippocampus, basal ganglia, amygdala, other cortical areas, and visceral and arousal systems in the brainstem that give rise to adaptive goal-directed behavior. Lesions of the mediodorsal nucleus (MD), the main source of thalamic input to middle layers of PFC, have limited effects on delayed conditional discriminations, like DMTP and DNMTP, that depend on mPFC. Recent evidence suggests that MD sustains and amplifies neuronal responses in mPFC that represent salient task-related information and is important for detecting and encoding contingencies between actions and their consequences. Lesions of rostral intralaminar (rIL) and ventromedial (VM) nuclei produce delay-independent impairments of egocentric DMTP and DNMTP that resemble effects of mPFC lesions on response speed and accuracy: results consistent with projections of rIL to striatum and VM to motor cortices. The ventral midline and anterior thalamic nuclei affect allocentric spatial cognition and memory consistent with their connections to mPFC and hippocampus. The dorsal midline nuclei spare DMTP and DNMTP. They have been implicated in behavioral-state control and response to salient stimuli in associative learning. mPFC functions are served during DNMTP by discrete populations of neurons with responses related to motor preparation, movements, lever press responses, reinforcement anticipation, reinforcement delivery, and memory delay. Population analyses show that different responses are timed so that they effectively tile the temporal interval from when DNMTP trials are initiated until the end. Event-related responses of MD neurons during DNMTP are predominantly related to movement and reinforcement, information important for DNMTP choice. These responses closely mirror the activity of mPFC neurons with similar responses. Pharmacological inactivation of MD and adjacent rIL affects the expression of diverse action- and outcome-related responses of mPFC neurons. Lesions of MD before training are associated with a shift away from movement-related responses in mPFC important for DNMTP choice. These results suggest that MD has short-term effects on the expression of event-related activity in mPFC and long-term effects that tune mPFC neurons to respond to task-specific information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert G Mair
- Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, United States
| | - Miranda J Francoeur
- Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, United States.,Neural Engineering and Translation Lab, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Brett M Gibson
- Department of Psychology, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH, United States
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33
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de Kloet SF, Bruinsma B, Terra H, Heistek TS, Passchier EMJ, van den Berg AR, Luchicchi A, Min R, Pattij T, Mansvelder HD. Bi-directional regulation of cognitive control by distinct prefrontal cortical output neurons to thalamus and striatum. Nat Commun 2021; 12:1994. [PMID: 33790281 PMCID: PMC8012364 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-22260-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) steers goal-directed actions and withholds inappropriate behavior. Dorsal and ventral mPFC (dmPFC/vmPFC) circuits have distinct roles in cognitive control, but underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Here we use neuroanatomical tracing techniques, in vitro electrophysiology, chemogenetics and fiber photometry in rats engaged in a 5-choice serial reaction time task to characterize dmPFC and vmPFC outputs to distinct thalamic and striatal subdomains. We identify four spatially segregated projection neuron populations in the mPFC. Using fiber photometry we show that these projections distinctly encode behavior. Postsynaptic striatal and thalamic neurons differentially process synaptic inputs from dmPFC and vmPFC, highlighting mechanisms that potentially amplify distinct pathways underlying cognitive control of behavior. Chemogenetic silencing of dmPFC and vmPFC projections to lateral and medial mediodorsal thalamus subregions oppositely regulate cognitive control. In addition, dmPFC neurons projecting to striatum and thalamus divergently regulate cognitive control. Collectively, we show that mPFC output pathways targeting anatomically and functionally distinct striatal and thalamic subregions encode bi-directional command of cognitive control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sybren F de Kloet
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Bastiaan Bruinsma
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Huub Terra
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Tim S Heistek
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Emma M J Passchier
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Child Neurology, Emma Children's Hospital, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Alexandra R van den Berg
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Antonio Luchicchi
- Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Rogier Min
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Child Neurology, Emma Children's Hospital, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Tommy Pattij
- Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Huibert D Mansvelder
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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34
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Worden R, Bennett MS, Neacsu V. The Thalamus as a Blackboard for Perception and Planning. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:633872. [PMID: 33732119 PMCID: PMC7956969 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.633872] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been suggested that the thalamus acts as a blackboard, on which the computations of different cortical modules are composed, coordinated, and integrated. This article asks what blackboard role the thalamus might play, and whether that role is consistent with the neuroanatomy of the thalamus. It does so in a context of Bayesian belief updating, expressed as a Free Energy Principle. We suggest that the thalamus-as-a-blackboard offers important questions for research in spatial cognition. Several prominent features of the thalamus-including its lack of olfactory relay function, its lack of internal excitatory connections, its regular and conserved shape, its inhibitory interneurons, triadic synapses, and diffuse cortical connectivity-are consistent with a blackboard role.Different thalamic nuclei may play different blackboard roles: (1) the Pulvinar, through its reciprocal connections to posterior cortical regions, coordinates perceptual inference about "what is where" from multi-sense-data. (2) The Mediodorsal (MD) nucleus, through its connections to the prefrontal cortex, and the other thalamic nuclei linked to the motor cortex, uses the same generative model for planning and learning novel spatial movements. (3) The paraventricular nucleus may compute risk-reward trade-offs. We also propose that as any new movement is practiced a few times, cortico-thalamocortical (CTC) links entrain the corresponding cortico-cortical links, through a process akin to supervised learning. Subsequently, the movement becomes a fast unconscious habit, not requiring the MD nucleus or other thalamic nuclei, and bypassing the thalamic bottleneck.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert Worden
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Max S. Bennett
- Independent Researcher, New York, NY, United States
- Bluecore, New York, NY, United States
| | - Victorita Neacsu
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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35
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Waschke L, Kloosterman NA, Obleser J, Garrett DD. Behavior needs neural variability. Neuron 2021; 109:751-766. [PMID: 33596406 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.01.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 109] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2020] [Revised: 11/16/2020] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Human and non-human animal behavior is highly malleable and adapts successfully to internal and external demands. Such behavioral success stands in striking contrast to the apparent instability in neural activity (i.e., variability) from which it arises. Here, we summon the considerable evidence across scales, species, and imaging modalities that neural variability represents a key, undervalued dimension for understanding brain-behavior relationships at inter- and intra-individual levels. We believe that only by incorporating a specific focus on variability will the neural foundation of behavior be comprehensively understood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonhard Waschke
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany; Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Niels A Kloosterman
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany; Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Jonas Obleser
- Department of Psychology, University of Lübeck, 23562 Lübeck, Germany; Center of Brain, Behavior, and Metabolism, University of Lübeck, 23562 Lübeck, Germany
| | - Douglas D Garrett
- Max Planck UCL Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany; Center for Lifespan Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, 14195 Berlin, Germany
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36
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Bengoetxea X, Goedecke L, Blaesse P, Pape HC, Jüngling K. The µ-opioid system in midline thalamic nuclei modulates defence strategies towards a conditioned fear stimulus in male mice. J Psychopharmacol 2020; 34:1280-1288. [PMID: 32684084 PMCID: PMC7604929 DOI: 10.1177/0269881120940919] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Nuclei located in the dorsal midline thalamus, such as the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT), are crucial to modulate fear and aversive behaviour. In addition, the PVT shows a dense expression of µ-opioid receptors (MORs) and could mediate the anxiolytic effects of opioids. METHODS We analysed the contribution of MORs in the dorsal midline thalamus (i.e. the PVT) to the performance of mice in a classical fear conditioning paradigm. We locally injected a specific agonist (DAMGO), an antagonist (CTAP) of MOR or saline as a control into the dorsal midline thalamus of male mice, prior to fear extinction training. We assessed freezing as a typical measure of fear and extended our analysis by evaluation of aversive, non-aversive and neutral behavioural features using compositional data analysis. RESULTS Pharmacological blockade of MORs through CTAP in the dorsal midline thalamus induced a fear memory extinction deficit, as evidenced by maintained freezing during extinction sessions. Stimulation of MORs by DAMGO resulted in an overall increase in locomotor activity, associated with decreased freezing during recall of extinction. Compositional data analysis confirmed the freezing-related pharmacological effects and revealed specific differences in basic behavioural states. CTAP-treated mice remained in an aversive state, whereas DAMGO-treated mice displayed predominantly neutral behaviour. CONCLUSIONS Fear extinction requires the integrity of the µ-opioid system in the dorsal midline thalamus. Pharmacological stimulation of MOR and associated facilitation of fear extinction recall suggest a potential therapeutic avenue for stress-related or anxiety disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xabier Bengoetxea
- Xabier Bengoetxea, Institute of Physiology I, University of Münster, Robert-Koch-Str. 27a, Münster, 48149, Germany.
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37
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Sami M, Cole JH, Kempton MJ, Annibale L, Das D, Kelbrick M, Eranti S, Collier T, Onyejiaka C, O'Neill A, Lythgoe DJ, McGuire P, Williams SCR, Bhattacharyya S. Cannabis use in patients with early psychosis is associated with alterations in putamen and thalamic shape. Hum Brain Mapp 2020; 41:4386-4396. [PMID: 32687254 PMCID: PMC7502838 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2019] [Revised: 03/06/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Around half of patients with early psychosis have a history of cannabis use. We aimed to determine if there are neurobiological differences in these the subgroups of persons with psychosis with and without a history of cannabis use. We expected to see regional deflations in hippocampus as a neurotoxic effect and regional inflations in striatal regions implicated in addictive processes. Volumetric, T1w MRIs were acquired from people with a diagnosis psychosis with (PwP + C = 28) or without (PwP - C = 26) a history of cannabis use; and Controls with (C + C = 16) or without (C - C = 22) cannabis use. We undertook vertex-based shape analysis of the brainstem, amygdala, hippocampus, globus pallidus, nucleus accumbens, caudate, putamen, thalamus using FSL FIRST. Clusters were defined through Threshold Free Cluster Enhancement and Family Wise Error was set at p < .05. We adjusted analyses for age, sex, tobacco and alcohol use. The putamen (bilaterally) and the right thalamus showed regional enlargement in PwP + C versus PwP - C. There were no areas of regional deflation. There were no significant differences between C + C and C - C. Cannabis use in participants with psychosis is associated with morphological alterations in subcortical structures. Putamen and thalamic enlargement may be related to compulsivity in patients with a history of cannabis use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Musa Sami
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - James H. Cole
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Matthew J. Kempton
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Luciano Annibale
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Debasis Das
- Leicestershire Partnership NHS TrustLondonUK
| | | | | | - Tracy Collier
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | | | - Aisling O'Neill
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - David J. Lythgoe
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Philip McGuire
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Steve C. R. Williams
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Sagnik Bhattacharyya
- Institute of PsychiatryPsychology and Neurosciences King's College LondonLondonUK
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38
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Cho KKA, Davidson TJ, Bouvier G, Marshall JD, Schnitzer MJ, Sohal VS. Cross-hemispheric gamma synchrony between prefrontal parvalbumin interneurons supports behavioral adaptation during rule shift learning. Nat Neurosci 2020; 23:892-902. [PMID: 32451483 PMCID: PMC7347248 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-020-0647-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2019] [Accepted: 04/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Organisms must learn new strategies to adapt to changing environments. Activity in different neurons often exhibits synchronization that can dynamically enhance their communication and might create flexible brain states that facilitate changes in behavior. We studied the role of gamma-frequency (~40 Hz) synchrony between prefrontal parvalbumin (PV) interneurons in mice learning multiple new cue-reward associations. Voltage indicators revealed cell-type-specific increases of cross-hemispheric gamma synchrony between PV interneurons when mice received feedback that previously learned associations were no longer valid. Disrupting this synchronization by delivering out-of-phase optogenetic stimulation caused mice to perseverate on outdated associations, an effect not reproduced by in-phase stimulation or out-of-phase stimulation at other frequencies. Gamma synchrony was specifically required when new associations used familiar cues that were previously irrelevant to behavioral outcomes, not when associations involved new cues or for reversing previously learned associations. Thus, gamma synchrony is indispensable for reappraising the behavioral salience of external cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen K A Cho
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Weill Institute for Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Thomas J Davidson
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Guy Bouvier
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Jesse D Marshall
- Department of Organismic & Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Mark J Schnitzer
- Departments of Biology and Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Vikaas S Sohal
- Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Weill Institute for Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
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39
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Abou-Ghazaleh A, Khateb A, Kroll JF. New insights into the neural basis of cognitive control: An event-related fMRI study of task selection processes. Int J Psychophysiol 2020; 153:80-90. [PMID: 32360750 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2020.04.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Revised: 04/22/2020] [Accepted: 04/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
To investigate cognitive control, researchers have repeatedly employed task switching paradigms. The comparison of switch relative to repeat trials reveals longer response times and higher error rates, a pattern that has been interpreted as switching costs. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have shown the involvement of different brain modules in switching conditions, including prefrontal and parietal regions together with other sub-cortical structures. In this study, the aim was to shed light on the brain basis of cognitive control using an approach that proved useful in previous studies investigating language control in bilinguals. We examined adult participants in one simple color naming context and two task selection mixed contexts. In the first mixed selection context, participants named the color or the shape of the stimulus based on a cue word. In the second, they named the color or the size of the stimulus. It was assumed that the comparison of brain responses to the same color naming in mixed selection contexts vs. in non-selection context will reveal the of engagement of cognitive control/task selection processes. Whole brain analysis of color naming in the different contexts showed a significant main effect of context. The comparison of brain responses in several frontal, parietal and sub-cortical regions, of which some are supposedly involved in cognitive control, demonstrated an increased activation during color naming in mixed relative the simple non-mixed context. The different cognitive control modules described in this study fit with recent bilingual language control and domain general cognitive models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Afaf Abou-Ghazaleh
- The Unit for the Study of Arabic Language, Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel; Dept of Learning Disabilities, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Asaid Khateb
- The Unit for the Study of Arabic Language, Edmond J. Safra Brain Research Center for the Study of Learning Disabilities, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel; Dept of Learning Disabilities, Faculty of Education, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel.
| | - Judith F Kroll
- Dept of Language Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
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40
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Ramsay IS, Roach BJ, Fryer S, Fisher M, Loewy R, Ford J, Vinogradov S, Mathalon D. Increased global cognition correlates with increased thalamo-temporal connectivity in response to targeted cognitive training for recent onset schizophrenia. Schizophr Res 2020; 218:131-137. [PMID: 32007346 PMCID: PMC7299776 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2020.01.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Revised: 01/10/2020] [Accepted: 01/19/2020] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Patients with schizophrenia exhibit disrupted thalamocortical connections that relate to aspects of symptoms and deficits in cognition. Targeted cognitive training (TCT) of the auditory system in schizophrenia has been shown to improve cognition, but its impact on thalamocortical connectivity is not known. Here we examined thalamocortical connections that may be neuroplastic in response to TCT using a region of interest (ROI) approach. Participants were randomly assigned to either 40 h of TCT (N = 24) or an active control condition (CG; N = 20). Participants underwent resting state fMRI and cognitive testing both before and after training. Changes in thalamocortical connectivity were measured in 15 ROIs derived from a previous study comparing a large sample of schizophrenia subjects with healthy controls. A significant group by time interaction was observed in a left superior temporal ROI which was previously found to exhibit thalamocortical hyper-connectivity in patients with schizophrenia. Changes in this ROI reflected thalamic connectivity increases in the TCT group, while the CG group showed decreases. Additionally, the relationship between connectivity change and change in global cognition showed a slope difference between groups, with increases in thalamo-temporal connectivity correlating with improvements in global cognition in TCT. No significant relationships were observed with changes in clinical symptoms or functioning. These findings demonstrate that TCT may influence intrinsic functional connections in young individuals with schizophrenia, such that improvements in cognition correspond to compensatory increases in connectivity in a temporal region previously shown to exhibit thalamic hyper-connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Susanna Fryer
- University of California, San Francisco Department of Psychiatry,Veterans Affairs Medical Center San Francisco
| | | | - Rachel Loewy
- University of California, San Francisco Department of Psychiatry
| | - Judith Ford
- University of California, San Francisco Department of Psychiatry,Veterans Affairs Medical Center San Francisco
| | | | - Daniel Mathalon
- University of California, San Francisco Department of Psychiatry,Veterans Affairs Medical Center San Francisco
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41
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Wang BA, Pleger B. Confidence in Decision-Making during Probabilistic Tactile Learning Related to Distinct Thalamo–Prefrontal Pathways. Cereb Cortex 2020; 30:4677-4688. [DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhaa073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2019] [Revised: 03/03/2020] [Accepted: 03/07/2020] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Abstract
The flexibility in adjusting the decision strategy from trial to trial is a prerequisite for learning in a probabilistic environment. Corresponding neural underpinnings remain largely unexplored. In the present study, 28 male humans were engaged in an associative learning task, in which they had to learn the changing probabilistic strengths of tactile sample stimuli. Combining functional magnetic resonance imaging with computational modeling, we show that an unchanged decision strategy over successively presented trials related to weakened functional connectivity between ventralmedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) and left secondary somatosensory cortex. The weaker the connection strength, the faster participants indicated their choice. If the decision strategy remained unchanged, participant’s decision confidence (i.e., prior belief) was related to functional connectivity between vmPFC and right pulvinar. While adjusting the decision strategy, we instead found confidence-related connections between left orbitofrontal cortex and left thalamic mediodorsal nucleus. The stronger the participant’s prior belief, the weaker the connection strengths. Together, these findings suggest that distinct thalamo–prefrontal pathways encode the confidence in keeping or changing the decision strategy during probabilistic learning. Low confidence in the decision strategy demands more thalamo–prefrontal processing resources, which is in-line with the theoretical accounts of the free-energy principle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin A Wang
- Department of Neurology, BG University Hospital Bergmannsheil, Ruhr University Bochum, 44789 Bochum, Germany
- Collaborative Research Centre 874 "Integration and Representation of Sensory Processes", Ruhr University Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
| | - Burkhard Pleger
- Department of Neurology, BG University Hospital Bergmannsheil, Ruhr University Bochum, 44789 Bochum, Germany
- Collaborative Research Centre 874 "Integration and Representation of Sensory Processes", Ruhr University Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
- Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
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42
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Yoon JY, Lee HR, Ho WK, Lee SH. Disparities in Short-Term Depression Among Prefrontal Cortex Synapses Sustain Persistent Activity in a Balanced Network. Cereb Cortex 2020; 30:113-134. [PMID: 31220212 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhz076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Persistent activity of cue-representing neurons in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) is regarded as a neural basis for working memory. The contribution of short-term synaptic plasticity (STP) at different types of synapses comprising the cortical network to persistent activity, however, remains unclear. Characterizing STP at synapses of the rat PFC layer 5 network, we found that PFC synapses exhibit distinct STP patterns according to presynaptic and postsynaptic identities. Excitatory postsynaptic currents (EPSCs) from corticopontine (Cpn) neurons were well sustained throughout continued activity, with stronger depression at synapses onto fast-spiking interneurons than those onto pyramidal cells. Inhibitory postsynaptic currents (IPSCs) were sustained at a weaker level compared with EPSC from Cpn synapses. Computational modeling of a balanced network incorporating empirically observed STP revealed that little depression at recurrent excitatory synapses, combined with stronger depression at other synapses, could provide the PFC with a unique synaptic mechanism for the generation and maintenance of persistent activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jae Young Yoon
- Department of Physiology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.,Neuroscience Research Institute, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea.,School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyoung Ro Lee
- Department of Physiology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.,Neuroscience Research Institute, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Won-Kyung Ho
- Department of Physiology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.,Neuroscience Research Institute, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Suk-Ho Lee
- Department of Physiology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea.,Neuroscience Research Institute, Seoul National University Medical Research Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
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43
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Shaw GA, Dupree JL, Neigh GN. Adolescent maturation of the prefrontal cortex: Role of stress and sex in shaping adult risk for compromise. GENES BRAIN AND BEHAVIOR 2019; 19:e12626. [DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2019] [Revised: 11/15/2019] [Accepted: 11/15/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Gladys A. Shaw
- Department of Anatomy and NeurobiologyVirginia Commonwealth University Richmond Virginia
| | - Jeffrey L. Dupree
- Department of Anatomy and NeurobiologyVirginia Commonwealth University Richmond Virginia
- Research ServiceHunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center Richmond Virginia
| | - Gretchen N. Neigh
- Department of Anatomy and NeurobiologyVirginia Commonwealth University Richmond Virginia
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44
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Zheng C, Huang Y, Bo B, Wei L, Liang Z, Wang Z. Projection from the Anterior Cingulate Cortex to the Lateral Part of Mediodorsal Thalamus Modulates Vicarious Freezing Behavior. Neurosci Bull 2019; 36:217-229. [PMID: 31531804 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-019-00427-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2019] [Accepted: 05/26/2019] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Emotional contagion, a primary form of empathy, is present in rodents. Among emotional contagion behaviors, social transmission of fear is the most studied. Here, we modified a paradigm used in previous studies to more robustly assess the social transmission of fear in rats that experienced foot-shock. We used resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging to show that foot-shock experience enhances the regional connectivity of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). We found that lesioning the ACC specifically attenuated the vicarious freezing behavior of foot-shock-experienced observer rats. Furthermore, ablation of projections from the ACC to the mediodorsal thalamus (MDL) bilaterally delayed the vicarious freezing responses, and activation of these projections decreased the vicarious freezing responses. Overall, our results demonstrate that, in rats, the ACC modulates vicarious freezing behavior via a projection to the MDL and provide clues to understanding the mechanisms underlying empathic behavior in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chaowen Zheng
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yanwang Huang
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Binshi Bo
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Lei Wei
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Zhifeng Liang
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China
| | - Zuoren Wang
- Institute of Neuroscience, State Key Laboratory of Neuroscience, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031, China. .,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China. .,School of Future Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
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45
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Fresno V, Parkes SL, Faugère A, Coutureau E, Wolff M. A thalamocortical circuit for updating action-outcome associations. eLife 2019; 8:46187. [PMID: 31012845 PMCID: PMC6478430 DOI: 10.7554/elife.46187] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2019] [Accepted: 04/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to flexibly use knowledge is one cardinal feature of goal-directed behaviors. We recently showed that thalamocortical and corticothalamic pathways connecting the medial prefrontal cortex and the mediodorsal thalamus (MD) contribute to adaptive decision-making (Alcaraz et al., 2018). In this study, we examined the impact of disconnecting the MD from its other main cortical target, the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) in a task assessing outcome devaluation after initial instrumental training and after reversal of action-outcome contingencies. Crossed MD and OFC lesions did not impair instrumental performance. Using the same approach, we found however that disconnecting the OFC from its other main thalamic afferent, the submedius nucleus, produced a specific impairment in adaptive responding following action-outcome reversal. Altogether, this suggests that multiple thalamocortical circuits may act synergistically to achieve behaviorally relevant functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginie Fresno
- CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France.,Université de Bordeaux, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | - Shauna L Parkes
- CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France.,Université de Bordeaux, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | - Angélique Faugère
- CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France.,Université de Bordeaux, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | | | - Mathieu Wolff
- Université de Bordeaux, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
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46
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Havenith MN, Zijderveld PM, van Heukelum S, Abghari S, Tiesinga P, Glennon JC. The Virtual-Environment-Foraging Task enables rapid training and single-trial metrics of rule acquisition and reversal in head-fixed mice. Sci Rep 2019; 9:4790. [PMID: 30886236 PMCID: PMC6423024 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41250-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2018] [Accepted: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Behavioural flexibility is an essential survival skill, yet our understanding of its neuronal substrates is still limited. While mouse research offers unique tools to dissect the neuronal circuits involved, the measurement of flexible behaviour in mice often suffers from long training times, poor experimental control, and temporally imprecise binary (hit/miss) performance readouts. Here we present a virtual-environment task for mice that tackles these limitations. It offers fast training of vision-based rule reversals (~100 trials per reversal) with full stimulus control and continuous behavioural readouts. By generating multiple non-binary performance metrics per trial, it provides single-trial estimates not only of response accuracy and speed, but also of underlying processes like choice certainty and alertness (discussed in detail in a companion paper). Based on these metrics, we show that mice can predict new task rules long before they are able to execute them, and that this delay varies across animals. We also provide and validate single-trial estimates of whether an error was committed with or without awareness of the task rule. By tracking in unprecedented detail the cognitive dynamics underlying flexible behaviour, this task enables new investigations into the neuronal interactions that shape behavioural flexibility moment by moment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martha N Havenith
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Kapittelweg, 29 6525EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| | - Peter M Zijderveld
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Kapittelweg, 29 6525EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Sabrina van Heukelum
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Kapittelweg, 29 6525EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Shaghayegh Abghari
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Kapittelweg, 29 6525EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Paul Tiesinga
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Kapittelweg, 29 6525EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Jeffrey C Glennon
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Kapittelweg, 29 6525EN, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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47
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Bonnavion P, Fernández EP, Varin C, de Kerchove d’Exaerde A. It takes two to tango: Dorsal direct and indirect pathways orchestration of motor learning and behavioral flexibility. Neurochem Int 2019; 124:200-214. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuint.2019.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2018] [Revised: 12/12/2018] [Accepted: 01/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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48
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Wolff M, Vann SD. The Cognitive Thalamus as a Gateway to Mental Representations. J Neurosci 2019; 39:3-14. [PMID: 30389839 PMCID: PMC6325267 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0479-18.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 203] [Impact Index Per Article: 40.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2018] [Revised: 10/24/2018] [Accepted: 10/28/2018] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Historically, the thalamus has been viewed as little more than a relay, simply transferring information to key players of the cast, the cortex and hippocampus, without providing any unique functional contribution. In recent years, evidence from multiple laboratories researching different thalamic nuclei has contradicted this idea of the thalamus as a passive structure. Dated models of thalamic functions are being pushed aside, revealing a greater and far more complex contribution of the thalamus for cognition. In this Viewpoints article, we show how recent data support novel views of thalamic functions that emphasize integrative roles in cognition, ranging from learning and memory to flexible adaption. We propose that these apparently separate cognitive functions may indeed be supported by a more general role in shaping mental representations. Several features of thalamocortical circuits are consistent with this suggested role, and we highlight how divergent and convergent thalamocortical and corticothalamic pathways may complement each other to support these functions. Furthermore, the role of the thalamus for subcortical integration is highlighted as a key mechanism for maintaining and updating representations. Finally, we discuss future areas of research and stress the importance of incorporating new experimental findings into existing knowledge to continue developing thalamic models. The presence of thalamic pathology in a number of neurological conditions reinforces the need to better understand the role of this region in cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu Wolff
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, INCIA, Unité Mixte de Recherche 5287, Bordeaux, France,
- University of Bordeaux, INCIA, Unité Mixte de Recherche 5287, Bordeaux, France, and
| | - Seralynne D Vann
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF10 3AT, United Kingdom
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49
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Weele CMV, Siciliano CA, Tye KM. Dopamine tunes prefrontal outputs to orchestrate aversive processing. Brain Res 2018; 1713:16-31. [PMID: 30513287 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2018.11.044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2018] [Revised: 11/25/2018] [Accepted: 11/30/2018] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Decades of research suggest that the mesocortical dopamine system exerts powerful control over mPFC physiology and function. Indeed, dopamine signaling in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is implicated in a vast array of processes, including working memory, stimulus discrimination, stress responses, and emotional and behavioral control. Consequently, even slight perturbations within this delicate system result in profound disruptions of mPFC-mediated processes. Many neuropsychiatric disorders are associated with dysregulation of mesocortical dopamine, including schizophrenia, depression, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, among others. Here, we review the anatomy and functions of the mesocortical dopamine system. In contrast to the canonical role of striatal dopamine in reward-related functions, recent work has revealed that mesocortical dopamine fine-tunes distinct efferent projection populations in a manner that biases subsequent behavior towards responding to stimuli associated with potentially aversive outcomes. We propose a framework wherein dopamine can serve as a signal for switching mPFC states by orchestrating how information is routed to the rest of the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin M Vander Weele
- The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Cody A Siciliano
- The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Kay M Tye
- The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
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50
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Rikhye RV, Gilra A, Halassa MM. Thalamic regulation of switching between cortical representations enables cognitive flexibility. Nat Neurosci 2018; 21:1753-1763. [PMID: 30455456 PMCID: PMC7225728 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-018-0269-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 136] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2018] [Accepted: 10/03/2018] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Interactions between the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and mediodorsal thalamus (MD) are critical for cognitive flexibility, yet the underlying computations are unknown. To investigate fronto-thalamic substrates of cognitive flexibility, we developed a behavioral task, where mice switched between different sets of learned cues that guided attention towards either visual or auditory targets. We found that PFC responses reflected both the individual cues and their meaning as task rules, indicating a hierarchical cue-to-rule transformation. Conversely, MD responses reflected the statistical regularity of cue presentation, and were required for switching between such experimentally-specified cueing contexts. A subset of these thalamic responses sustained context-relevant PFC representations, while another suppressed the context-irrelevant ones. Through modeling and experimental validation, we find that thalamic-mediated suppression may not only reduce PFC representational interference but could also preserve unused cortical traces for future use. Overall, our study provides a computational foundation for thalamic engagement in cognitive flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajeev V Rikhye
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.,Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Aditya Gilra
- Neural Network Dynamics and Computation Group, Institute for Genetics, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Michael M Halassa
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA. .,Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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