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Saeedi A, Wang K, Nikpourian G, Bartels A, Logothetis NK, Totah NK, Watanabe M. Brightness illusions drive a neuronal response in the primary visual cortex under top-down modulation. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3141. [PMID: 38653975 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46885-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Brightness illusions are a powerful tool in studying vision, yet their neural correlates are poorly understood. Based on a human paradigm, we presented illusory drifting gratings to mice. Primary visual cortex (V1) neurons responded to illusory gratings, matching their direction selectivity for real gratings, and they tracked the spatial phase offset between illusory and real gratings. Illusion responses were delayed compared to real gratings, in line with the theory that processing illusions requires feedback from higher visual areas (HVAs). We provide support for this theory by showing a reduced V1 response to illusions, but not real gratings, following HVAs optogenetic inhibition. Finally, we used the pupil response (PR) as an indirect perceptual report and showed that the mouse PR matches the human PR to perceived luminance changes. Our findings resolve debates over whether V1 neurons are involved in processing illusions and highlight the involvement of feedback from HVAs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alireza Saeedi
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
- Research Group Neurobiology of Magnetoreception, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior - caesar, 53175, Bonn, Germany
| | - Kun Wang
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, International Center for Primate Brain Research, Songjiang District, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Ghazaleh Nikpourian
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andreas Bartels
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Psychology, Vision and Cognition Lab, Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Nikos K Logothetis
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, International Center for Primate Brain Research, Songjiang District, Shanghai, 201602, China
- Centre for Imaging Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, M139PT, UK
| | - Nelson K Totah
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany.
- Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HILIFE), University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland.
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland.
- Neuroscience Center, University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Masataka Watanabe
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076, Tübingen, Germany.
- Department of Systems Innovation, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
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Vasilev D, Raposo I, Totah NK. Brightness illusions evoke pupil constriction preceded by a primary visual cortex response in rats. Cereb Cortex 2023:7084649. [PMID: 36958811 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 02/25/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The mind affects the body via central nervous system (CNS) control of the autonomic nervous system (ANS). In humans, one striking illustration of the "mind-body" connection is that illusions, subjectively perceived as bright, drive pupil constriction. The CNS network driving this pupil response is unknown and requires an animal model for investigation. However, the pupil response to this illusion has long been thought to occur only in humans. Here, we report that the same brightness illusion that evokes pupil constriction in humans also does so in rats. We surveyed the role of most of rat cortex in this "mind-body" connection by recording cortex-wide EEG. These recordings revealed that, compared to a luminance-matched control stimulus, the illusion of brightness for a specific stimulus color and size, evoked a larger response in primary visual cortex (V1) and not in secondary visual, parietal, or frontal cortex. The response preceded pupil constriction suggesting a potential causal role of V1 on the pupil. Our results provide evidence that this "mind-body" connection is not confined to humans and that V1 may be part of a mammalian CNS network for bodily reactions to illusions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dmitrii Vasilev
- Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HILIFE), University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Isabel Raposo
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Nelson K Totah
- Helsinki Institute of Life Science (HILIFE), University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
- Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany
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Totah NK, Logothetis NK, Eschenko O. Synchronous spiking associated with prefrontal high γ oscillations evokes a 5-Hz rhythmic modulation of spiking in locus coeruleus. J Neurophysiol 2021; 125:1191-1201. [PMID: 33566743 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00677.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The brainstem noradrenergic locus coeruleus (LC) is reciprocally connected with the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Coupling between LC spiking and the depolarizing phase of slow (1-2 Hz) waves in PFC field potentials during sleep and anesthesia suggests that LC drives cortical state transition. Reciprocal LC-PFC connectivity should also allow interactions in the opposing (top-down) direction, but prior work has only studied prefrontal control over LC activity using electrical or optogenetic stimulation. Here, we describe the physiological characteristics of spontaneously occurring top-down LC-PFC interactions. We recorded LC multiunit activity (MUA) simultaneously with PFC single-unit and local field potential (LFP) activity in urethane-anesthetized rats. We observed cross-regional coupling between the phase of 5-Hz oscillations in LC-MUA and the power of PFC LFP 60-200 Hz high γ (hγ). Transient increases in PFC hγ power preceded peaks in the 5-Hz LC-MUA oscillation. Analysis of cross-regional transfer entropy demonstrated that the PFC hγ transients were predictive of a transient increase in LC-MUA. An ∼29 ms delay between these signals was consistent with the conduction velocity from the PFC to the LC. Finally, we showed that PFC hγ transients are associated with synchronized spiking of a subset (27%) of PFC single units. Our data suggest that PFC hγ transients may indicate the timing of the top-down excitatory input to LC, at least under conditions when LC neuronal population activity fluctuates rhythmically at 5 Hz. Synchronized PFC neuronal spiking that occurs during hγ transients may provide a previously unknown mode of top-down control over the LC.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is thought to control activity in the noradrenergic locus coeruleus (LC). Prior anatomical and prefrontal stimulation studies demonstrated the potential for PFC-LC interactions; however, it is unknown what types of PFC activity affect the LC. Here, we show that transient increases in PFC high γ power and associated changes in PFC unit-pair synchrony are a potential sign of top-down control over the LC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nelson K Totah
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany.,Helsinki Institute of Life Science, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.,Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Nikos K Logothetis
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany.,Division of Imaging Science and Biomedical Engineering, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Oxana Eschenko
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany
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Chandler DJ, Jensen P, McCall JG, Pickering AE, Schwarz LA, Totah NK. Redefining Noradrenergic Neuromodulation of Behavior: Impacts of a Modular Locus Coeruleus Architecture. J Neurosci 2019; 39:8239-8249. [PMID: 31619493 PMCID: PMC6794927 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1164-19.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2019] [Revised: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 08/03/2019] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The locus coeruleus (LC) is a seemingly singular and compact neuromodulatory nucleus that is a prominent component of disparate theories of brain function due to its broad noradrenergic projections throughout the CNS. As a diffuse neuromodulatory system, noradrenaline affects learning and decision making, control of sleep and wakefulness, sensory salience including pain, and the physiology of correlated forebrain activity (ensembles and networks) and brain hemodynamic responses. However, our understanding of the LC is undergoing a dramatic shift due to the application of state-of-the-art methods that reveal a nucleus of many modules that provide targeted neuromodulation. Here, we review the evidence supporting a modular LC based on multiple levels of observation (developmental, genetic, molecular, anatomical, and neurophysiological). We suggest that the concept of the LC as a singular nucleus and, alongside it, the role of the LC in diverse theories of brain function must be reconsidered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan J Chandler
- Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine, Stratford, New Jersey 08084
| | - Patricia Jensen
- Neurobiology Laboratory, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina 27709
| | - Jordan G McCall
- Department of Anesthesiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, Department of Pharmaceutical and Administrative Sciences, St. Louis College of Pharmacy, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, Center for Clinical Pharmacology, St. Louis College of Pharmacy and Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, and Washington University Pain Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63110
| | - Anthony E Pickering
- School of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TD, United Kingdom
- Bristol Anaesthesia, Pain and Critical Care Sciences, Translational Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, Bristol Royal Infirmary, Bristol, BS2 8HW, United Kingdom
| | | | - Nelson K Totah
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany 72076,
- Helsinki Institute of Life Science, Helsinki 00014, Finland, and
- School of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki, Helsinki 00014, Finland
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Totah NK, Neves RM, Panzeri S, Logothetis NK, Eschenko O. The Locus Coeruleus Is a Complex and Differentiated Neuromodulatory System. Neuron 2018; 99:1055-1068.e6. [PMID: 30122373 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.07.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2017] [Revised: 03/25/2018] [Accepted: 07/20/2018] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Diffuse projections of locus coeruleus (LC) neurons and evidence of synchronous spiking have long been perceived as features of global neuromodulation. Recent studies demonstrated the possibility of targeted modulation by subsets of LC neurons. Non-global neuromodulation depends on target specificity and the differentiated spatiotemporal dynamics within LC. Here, we characterized interactions between 3,164 LC cell pairs in the rat LC under urethane anesthesia. Spike count correlations were near zero and only a small proportion of unit pairs had synchronized spontaneous (15%) or evoked (16%) discharge. We identified infra-slow (0.01-1 Hz) fluctuations of LC unit spike rate, which were also asynchronous across the population. Despite overall sparse population synchrony, we report the existence of LC ensembles and relate them to forebrain projection targets. We also show that spike waveform width was related to ensemble membership, propensity for synchronization, and interactions with cortex. Our findings suggest a partly differentiated and target-specific noradrenergic signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nelson K Totah
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Max-Planck-Ring 8, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany.
| | - Ricardo M Neves
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Max-Planck-Ring 8, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany
| | - Stefano Panzeri
- Laboratory of Neural Computation, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068 Rovereto, Italy
| | - Nikos K Logothetis
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Max-Planck-Ring 8, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany; Division of Imaging Science and Biomedical Engineering, University of Manchester, M13 9PT Manchester, UK
| | - Oxana Eschenko
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Max-Planck-Ring 8, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany.
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Abstract
RATIONALE Shifting to a new rule is a form of behavioral flexibility that is impaired in numerous psychiatric and neurological illnesses. Animal studies have revealed that this form of flexibility depends upon norepinephrine (NE) neurotransmission. Atomoxetine, a NE reuptake inhibitor, improves performance of humans in set shifting tasks. OBJECTIVE Our objective was to validate its effects in a rodent set shifting task. METHODS We tested the drug effect using an operant task that required a shift from a visual cue-guided behavior to a novel location-guided rule. RESULTS A 1.0-mg/kg dose significantly accelerated rule shifting without affecting learning strategies, such as win-stay or lose-shift. Fitting behavioral performance with a learning function provided a measure of learning rate. CONCLUSION This novel analysis revealed that atomoxetine accelerated shifting to the new rule without affecting learning rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nelson K Totah
- Department of Physiology of Cognitive Processes, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Spemannstr. 38, 72076, Tuebingen, Germany,
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Marzo A, Totah NK, Neves RM, Logothetis NK, Eschenko O. Unilateral electrical stimulation of rat locus coeruleus elicits bilateral response of norepinephrine neurons and sustained activation of medial prefrontal cortex. J Neurophysiol 2014; 111:2570-88. [DOI: 10.1152/jn.00920.2013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The brain stem nucleus locus coeruleus (LC) is thought to modulate cortical excitability by norepinephrine (NE) release in LC forebrain targets. The effects of LC burst discharge, typically evoked by a strong excitatory input, on cortical ongoing activity are poorly understood. To address this question, we combined direct electrical stimulation of LC (LC-DES) with extracellular recording in LC and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), an important cortical target of LC. LC-DES consisting of single pulses (0.1–0.5 ms, 0.01–0.05 mA) or pulse trains (20–50 Hz, 50–200 ms) evoked short-latency excitatory and inhibitory LC responses bilaterally as well as a delayed rebound excitation occurring ∼100 ms after stimulation offset. The pulse trains, but not single pulses, reliably elicited mPFC activity change, which was proportional to the stimulation strength. The firing rate of ∼50% of mPFC units was significantly modulated by the strongest LC-DES. Responses of mPFC putative pyramidal neurons included fast (∼100 ms), transient (∼100–200 ms) inhibition (10% of units) or excitation (13%) and delayed (∼500 ms), sustained (∼1 s) excitation (26%). The sustained spiking resembled NE-dependent mPFC activity during the delay period of working memory tasks. Concurrently, the low-frequency (0.1–8 Hz) power of the local field potential (LFP) decreased and high-frequency (>20 Hz) power increased. Overall, the DES-induced LC firing pattern resembled the naturalistic biphasic response of LC-NE neurons to alerting stimuli and was associated with a shift in cortical state that may optimize processing of behaviorally relevant events.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aude Marzo
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany; and
| | - Nelson K. Totah
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany; and
| | - Ricardo M. Neves
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany; and
| | - Nikos K. Logothetis
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany; and
- Centre for Imaging Sciences, Biomedical Imaging Institute, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Oxana Eschenko
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany; and
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Bondi CO, Taha AY, Tock JL, Totah NK, Cheon Y, Torres GE, Rapoport SI, Moghaddam B. Adolescent behavior and dopamine availability are uniquely sensitive to dietary omega-3 fatty acid deficiency. Biol Psychiatry 2014; 75:38-46. [PMID: 23890734 PMCID: PMC3858419 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2013] [Revised: 06/04/2013] [Accepted: 06/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding the nature of environmental factors that contribute to behavioral health is critical for successful prevention strategies in individuals at risk for psychiatric disorders. These factors are typically experiential in nature, such as stress and urbanicity, but nutrition--in particular dietary deficiency of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFAs)-has increasingly been implicated in the symptomatic onset of schizophrenia and mood disorders, which typically occurs during adolescence to early adulthood. Thus, adolescence might be the critical age range for the negative impact of diet as an environmental insult. METHODS A rat model involving consecutive generations of n-3 PUFA deficiency was developed on the basis of the assumption that dietary trends toward decreased consumption of these fats began 4-5 decades ago when the parents of current adolescents were born. Behavioral performance in a wide range of tasks as well as markers of dopamine-related neurotransmission was compared in adolescents and adults fed n-3 PUFA adequate and deficient diets. RESULTS In adolescents, dietary n-3 PUFA deficiency across consecutive generations produced a modality-selective and task-dependent impairment in cognitive and motivated behavior distinct from the deficits observed in adults. Although this dietary deficiency affected expression of dopamine-related proteins in both age groups in adolescents but not adults, there was an increase in tyrosine hydroxylase expression that was selective to the dorsal striatum. CONCLUSIONS These data support a nutritional contribution to optimal cognitive and affective functioning in adolescents. Furthermore, they suggest that n-3 PUFA deficiency disrupts adolescent behaviors through enhanced dorsal striatal dopamine availability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corina O. Bondi
- Department of Neuroscience, Univ. of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Ameer Y. Taha
- Brain Physiology and Metabolism Section, Laboratory of Neurosciences, National Institute on Aging, NIH, Bethesda, MD
| | - Jody L. Tock
- Department of Neuroscience, Univ. of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Nelson K. Totah
- Department of Neuroscience, Univ. of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Yewon Cheon
- Brain Physiology and Metabolism Section, Laboratory of Neurosciences, National Institute on Aging, NIH, Bethesda, MD
| | | | - Stanley I. Rapoport
- Brain Physiology and Metabolism Section, Laboratory of Neurosciences, National Institute on Aging, NIH, Bethesda, MD
| | - Bita Moghaddam
- Department of Neuroscience, Univ. of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
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