Physiological needs bias perception and attention to relevant sensory cues. This process is ‘hijacked’ by drug addiction, causing cue-induced cravings and relapse. Similarly, its dysregulation contributes to failed diets, obesity, and eating disorders. Neuroimaging studies in humans have implicated insular cortex in these phenomena. However, it remains unclear how ‘cognitive’ cortical representations of motivationally relevant cues are biased by subcortical circuits that drive specific motivational states. Here we develop a microprism-based cellular imaging approach to monitor visual cue responses in the insular cortex of behaving mice across hunger states. Insular cortex neurons demonstrate food- cue-biased responses that are abolished during satiety. Unexpectedly, while multiple satiety-related visceral signals converge in insular cortex, chemogenetic activation of hypothalamic ‘hunger neurons’ (expressing agouti-related peptide (AgRP)) bypasses these signals to restore hunger-like response patterns in insular cortex. Circuit mapping and pathway-specific manipulations uncover a pathway from AgRP neurons to insular cortex via the paraventricular thalamus and basolateral amygdala. These results reveal a neural basis for state-specific biased processing of motivationally relevant cues.

Arcuate nucleus (ARC) neurons sense the fed/fasted state and regulate hunger. Agouti-related protein (ARCAgRP) neurons are stimulated by fasting, and once activated, they rapidly (within minutes) drive hunger. Pro-opiomelanocortin (ARCPOMC) neurons are viewed as the counterpoint to ARCAgRP neurons. They are regulated in an opposite fashion and decrease hunger. However, unlike ARCAgRP neurons, ARCPOMC neurons are extremely slow in affecting hunger (many hours). Thus, a temporally analogous, rapid ARC satiety pathway does not exist or is presently unidentified. Here, we show that glutamate-releasing ARC neurons expressing oxytocin receptor, unlike ARCPOMC neurons, rapidly cause satiety when chemo- or optogenetically manipulated. These glutamatergic ARC projections synaptically converge with GABAergic ARCAgRP projections on melanocortin-4 receptor (MC4R)-expressing satiety neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamus (PVHMC4R neurons). Importantly, transmission across the ARCGlutamatergic→PVHMC4R synapse is potentiated by the ARCPOMC neuron-derived MC4R agonist, α-MSH. This excitatory ARC→PVH satiety circuit, and its modulation by α-MSH, provides new insight into regulation of hunger/satiety.

Highlights d InsCtx ongoing activity patterns reflect current bodily state, not behavioral state d Hypothalamic hunger/thirst neurons gate InsCtx responses to food/water cues d Hypothalamic hunger/thirst neurons do not gate InsCtx ongoing activity d Food/water cues drive transient ''simulations'' of future bodily states in InsCtx