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Ledergerber D, Battistin C, Blackstad JS, Gardner RJ, Witter MP, Moser MB, Roudi Y, Moser EI. Task-dependent mixed selectivity in the subiculum. Cell Rep 2021; 35:109175. [PMID: 34038726 PMCID: PMC8170370 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2020] [Revised: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
CA1 and subiculum (SUB) connect the hippocampus to numerous output regions. Cells in both areas have place-specific firing fields, although they are more dispersed in SUB. Weak responses to head direction and running speed have been reported in both regions. However, how such information is encoded in CA1 and SUB and the resulting impact on downstream targets are poorly understood. Here, we estimate the tuning of simultaneously recorded CA1 and SUB cells to position, head direction, and speed. Individual neurons respond conjunctively to these covariates in both regions, but the degree of mixed representation is stronger in SUB, and more so during goal-directed spatial navigation than free foraging. Each navigational variable could be decoded with higher precision, from a similar number of neurons, in SUB than CA1. The findings point to a possible contribution of mixed-selective coding in SUB to efficient transmission of hippocampal representations to widespread brain regions. CA1 and subiculum neurons respond conjunctively to position, head direction, and speed The degree of conjunctive coding (“mixed selectivity”) is stronger in the subiculum Mixed selectivity is stronger during goal-directed navigation than in free foraging Decoding of each navigational covariate is more accurate with mixed selectivity
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Affiliation(s)
- Debora Ledergerber
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Claudia Battistin
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Jan Sigurd Blackstad
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Richard J Gardner
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Menno P Witter
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway
| | - May-Britt Moser
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Yasser Roudi
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Edvard I Moser
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience and Centre for Neural Computation, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Olav Kyrre s gate 9, MTFS, 7489 Trondheim, Norway.
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2
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Taswell CA, Costa VD, Basile BM, Pujara MS, Jones B, Manem N, Murray EA, Averbeck BB. Effects of Amygdala Lesions on Object-Based Versus Action-Based Learning in Macaques. Cereb Cortex 2020; 31:529-546. [PMID: 32954409 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhaa241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2019] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/05/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The neural systems that underlie reinforcement learning (RL) allow animals to adapt to changes in their environment. In the present study, we examined the hypothesis that the amygdala would have a preferential role in learning the values of visual objects. We compared a group of monkeys (Macaca mulatta) with amygdala lesions to a group of unoperated controls on a two-armed bandit reversal learning task. The task had two conditions. In the What condition, the animals had to learn to select a visual object, independent of its location. And in the Where condition, the animals had to learn to saccade to a location, independent of the object at the location. In both conditions choice-outcome mappings reversed in the middle of the block. We found that monkeys with amygdala lesions had learning deficits in both conditions. Monkeys with amygdala lesions did not have deficits in learning to reverse choice-outcome mappings. Rather, amygdala lesions caused the monkeys to become overly sensitive to negative feedback which impaired their ability to consistently select the more highly valued action or object. These results imply that the amygdala is generally necessary for RL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Craig A Taswell
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Vincent D Costa
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Benjamin M Basile
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Maia S Pujara
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Breonda Jones
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Nihita Manem
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Elisabeth A Murray
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
| | - Bruno B Averbeck
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-4415, USA
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Hur J, Stockbridge MD, Fox AS, Shackman AJ. Dispositional negativity, cognition, and anxiety disorders: An integrative translational neuroscience framework. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2019; 247:375-436. [PMID: 31196442 PMCID: PMC6578598 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2019.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
When extreme, anxiety can become debilitating. Anxiety disorders, which often first emerge early in development, are common and challenging to treat, yet the underlying mechanisms have only recently begun to come into focus. Here, we review new insights into the nature and biological bases of dispositional negativity, a fundamental dimension of childhood temperament and adult personality and a prominent risk factor for the development of pediatric and adult anxiety disorders. Converging lines of epidemiological, neurobiological, and mechanistic evidence suggest that dispositional negativity increases the likelihood of psychopathology via specific neurocognitive mechanisms, including attentional biases to threat and deficits in executive control. Collectively, these observations provide an integrative translational framework for understanding the development and maintenance of anxiety disorders in adults and youth and set the stage for developing improved intervention strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juyoen Hur
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United States.
| | | | - Andrew S Fox
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, CA, United States; California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Alexander J Shackman
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United States; Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Program, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United States; Maryland Neuroimaging Center, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, United States.
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4
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Grunfeld IS, Likhtik E. Mixed selectivity encoding and action selection in the prefrontal cortex during threat assessment. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2018; 49:108-115. [PMID: 29454957 PMCID: PMC5889962 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2018.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2017] [Revised: 12/27/2017] [Accepted: 01/17/2018] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) regulates expression of emotional behavior. The mPFC combines multivariate information from its inputs, and depending on the imminence of threat, activates downstream networks that either increase or decrease the expression of anxiety-related motor behavior and autonomic activation. Here, we selectively highlight how subcortical input to the mPFC from two example structures, the amygdala and ventral hippocampus, help shape mixed selectivity encoding and action selection during emotional processing. We outline a model where prefrontal subregions modulate behavior along orthogonal motor dimensions, and exhibit connectivity that selects for expression of one behavioral strategy while inhibiting the other.
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Affiliation(s)
- Itamar S Grunfeld
- Biology Department, Hunter College, CUNY, United States; Neuroscience Collaborative, The Graduate Center, CUNY, United States
| | - Ekaterina Likhtik
- Biology Department, Hunter College, CUNY, United States; Neuroscience Collaborative, The Graduate Center, CUNY, United States.
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Integrating Spatial Working Memory and Remote Memory: Interactions between the Medial Prefrontal Cortex and Hippocampus. Brain Sci 2017; 7:brainsci7040043. [PMID: 28420200 PMCID: PMC5406700 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci7040043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2017] [Revised: 04/11/2017] [Accepted: 04/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years, two separate research streams have focused on information sharing between the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and hippocampus (HC). Research into spatial working memory has shown that successful execution of many types of behaviors requires synchronous activity in the theta range between the mPFC and HC, whereas studies of memory consolidation have shown that shifts in area dependency may be temporally modulated. While the nature of information that is being communicated is still unclear, spatial working memory and remote memory recall is reliant on interactions between these two areas. This review will present recent evidence that shows that these two processes are not as separate as they first appeared. We will also present a novel conceptualization of the nature of the medial prefrontal representation and how this might help explain this area’s role in spatial working memory and remote memory recall.
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Leathers ML, Olson CR. In monkeys making value-based decisions, amygdala neurons are sensitive to cue value as distinct from cue salience. J Neurophysiol 2017; 117:1499-1511. [PMID: 28077664 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00564.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2016] [Revised: 01/05/2017] [Accepted: 01/05/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurons in the lateral intraparietal (LIP) area of macaque monkey parietal cortex respond to cues predicting rewards and penalties of variable size in a manner that depends on the motivational salience of the predicted outcome (strong for both large reward and large penalty) rather than on its value (positive for large reward and negative for large penalty). This finding suggests that LIP mediates the capture of attention by salient events and does not encode value in the service of value-based decision making. It leaves open the question whether neurons elsewhere in the brain encode value in the identical task. To resolve this issue, we recorded neuronal activity in the amygdala in the context of the task employed in the LIP study. We found that responses to reward-predicting cues were similar between areas, with the majority of reward-sensitive neurons responding more strongly to cues that predicted large reward than to those that predicted small reward. Responses to penalty-predicting cues were, however, markedly different. In the amygdala, unlike LIP, few neurons were sensitive to penalty size, few penalty-sensitive neurons favored large over small penalty, and the dependence of firing rate on penalty size was negatively correlated with its dependence on reward size. These results indicate that amygdala neurons encoded cue value under circumstances in which LIP neurons exhibited sensitivity to motivational salience. However, the representation of negative value, as reflected in sensitivity to penalty size, was weaker than the representation of positive value, as reflected in sensitivity to reward size.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This is the first study to characterize amygdala neuronal responses to cues predicting rewards and penalties of variable size in monkeys making value-based choices. Manipulating reward and penalty size allowed distinguishing activity dependent on motivational salience from activity dependent on value. This approach revealed in a previous study that neurons of the lateral intraparietal (LIP) area encode motivational salience. Here, it reveals that amygdala neurons encode value. The results establish a sharp functional distinction between the two areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marvin L Leathers
- Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and .,Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - Carl R Olson
- Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and.,Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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Montes-Lourido P, Bermudez MA, Romero MC, Vicente AF, Gonzalez F. Spatial Frequency Components of Images Modulate Neuronal Activity in Monkey Amygdala. Perception 2015; 45:375-85. [PMID: 26562878 DOI: 10.1177/0301006615614458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Processing the spatial frequency components of an image is a crucial feature for visual perception, especially in recognition of faces. Here, we study the correlation between spatial frequency components of images of faces and neuronal activity in monkey amygdala while performing a visual recognition task. The frequency components of the images were analyzed using a fast Fourier transform for 40 spatial frequency ranges. We recorded 65 neurons showing statistically significant responses to at least one of the images used as a stimulus. A total of 37 of these neurons (n = 37) showed significant responses to at least three images, and in eight of them (8/37, 22%), we found a statistically significant correlation between neuron response and the modulus amplitude of at least one frequency range present in the images. Our results indicate that high spatial frequency and low spatial frequency components of images influence the activity of amygdala neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pilar Montes-Lourido
- Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - M A Bermudez
- Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - M C Romero
- Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - A F Vicente
- Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - F Gonzalez
- Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases (CIMUS), University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, SpainDepartment of Surgery, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, SpainOphthalmology Service and IDIS, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
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Gründemann J, Lüthi A. Ensemble coding in amygdala circuits for associative learning. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2015; 35:200-6. [PMID: 26531780 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2015.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2015] [Revised: 10/06/2015] [Accepted: 10/07/2015] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
Associative fear learning in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) is crucial for an animal's survival upon environmental threats. BLA neurons are defined on the basis of their projection target, genetic markers, and associated function. BLA principal neuron responses to threat signaling stimuli are potentiated upon associative fear learning, which is tightly controlled by defined interneuron subpopulations. In addition, BLA population activity correlates with behavioral states and threat or safety signals. BLA neuronal ensembles activated by different behavioral signals can be identified using immediate early gene markers. The next challenge will be to determine the activity patterns and coding properties of defined BLA ensembles in relation to the whole neuronal population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan Gründemann
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Andreas Lüthi
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland.
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9
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Rutishauser U, Mamelak AN, Adolphs R. The primate amygdala in social perception - insights from electrophysiological recordings and stimulation. Trends Neurosci 2015; 38:295-306. [PMID: 25847686 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2015.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2014] [Revised: 03/05/2015] [Accepted: 03/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The role of the amygdala in emotion and social perception has been intensively investigated primarily through studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Recently, this topic has been examined using single-unit recordings in both humans and monkeys, with a focus on face processing. The findings provide novel insights, including several surprises: amygdala neurons have very long response latencies, show highly nonlinear responses to whole faces, and can be exquisitely selective for very specific parts of faces such as the eyes. In humans, the responses of amygdala neurons correlate with internal states evoked by faces, rather than with their objective features. Current and future studies extend the investigations to psychiatric illnesses such as autism, in which atypical face processing is a hallmark of social dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ueli Rutishauser
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Neurology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Adam N Mamelak
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ralph Adolphs
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
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Peck CJ, Salzman CD. Amygdala neural activity reflects spatial attention towards stimuli promising reward or threatening punishment. eLife 2014; 3. [PMID: 25358090 PMCID: PMC4238057 DOI: 10.7554/elife.04478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2014] [Accepted: 10/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans and other animals routinely identify and attend to sensory stimuli so as to rapidly acquire rewards or avoid aversive experiences. Emotional arousal, a process mediated by the amygdala, can enhance attention to stimuli in a non-spatial manner. However, amygdala neural activity was recently shown to encode spatial information about reward-predictive stimuli, and to correlate with spatial attention allocation. If representing the motivational significance of sensory stimuli within a spatial framework reflects a general principle of amygdala function, then spatially selective neural responses should also be elicited by sensory stimuli threatening aversive events. Recordings from amygdala neurons were therefore obtained while monkeys directed spatial attention towards stimuli promising reward or threatening punishment. Neural responses encoded spatial information similarly for stimuli associated with both valences of reinforcement, and responses reflected spatial attention allocation. The amygdala therefore may act to enhance spatial attention to sensory stimuli associated with rewarding or aversive experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher J Peck
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, United States
| | - C Daniel Salzman
- Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, United States
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