Aversive stimuli bias corticothalamic responses to motivationally significant cues

Lucantonio, Federica; Kim, Eun Young; Su, Zhixiao; Chang, Anna J.; Bari, Bilal A.; Cohen, Jeremiah Y.

doi:10.7554/elife.57634

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 112 publications

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“…Separate studies found that mPFC projections to VTA and thalamus both encode learned information about predictive cues during adaptive decision making. While mPFC-VTA neurons can compare predictions with outcomes encoded by VTA dopamine neurons 57 , mPFC neurons projecting to the paraventricular thalamus, part of MTN, can bias decision making towards predicting negative outcomes 58 . Another PL-VTA collateral site, MD thalamus, also plays a key role in decision making 59 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Brain-wide projections and differential encoding of prefrontal neuronal classes underlying learned and innate threat avoidance

Gongwer

Klune

Enos

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Long-range axonal projections provide the foundation for functional connectivity between brain regions and are critical in the modulation of behavior. Descending projections from medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) to various target regions regulate critical behavioral functions including decision making, social behavior and mood. While specific mPFC projections have distinct behavioral roles, individual mPFC projection neurons can also innervate multiple target regions. Yet how mPFC projection neurons divide their axons across the brain is poorly understood. In this study, we mapped the axon collaterals of mPFC neurons that project to nucleus accumbens (NAc), ventral tegmental area (VTA), or contralateral mPFC (cmPFC) in mice. We used tissue clearing and light sheet fluorescence microscopy to visualize the 3-D structure of axonal arbors across the intact brain. While machine learning can automate analysis of axons in images of cleared tissue, it is challenging to train a model that generalizes to all axonal structures because the appearance of axons varies by target region. In this study, we present DeepTraCE (Deep learning-based image Tracing with Combined-model Enhancement), a new strategy for axon segmentation and quantification in images of cleared tissue. DeepTraCE is based on the deep-learning framework TRAILMAP; it achieves highly accurate axon detection by combining multiple machine learning models that are each applied to different brain regions. Using DeepTraCE, we find that cmPFC, NAc, and VTA-projecting mPFC neurons represent largely separable classes with unique axon collaterals in cortical, olfactory, and thalamic regions, respectively.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Brain-wide projections and differential encoding of prefrontal neuronal classes underlying learned and innate threat avoidance

Gongwer

Klune

Enos

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Affective neuroscience: applications for sexual medicine research and clinical practice

Mills-Finnerty,

Staggs,

Bittoni

et al. 2024

Sexual Medicine Reviews

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Introduction Affective neuroscience is the study of the brain substrates of emotional, embodied experiences. Affective neuroscience theory (ANT) is based on experimental evidence that all mammals are hardwired with 7 primary subcortical emotional operating systems, or “core emotions,” that have overlapping but distinct circuits buried in the deep, ancient parts of the brain. Imbalances in the 7 core emotions can affect multiple aspects of the individual’s psychosocial well-being (eg, depression, anxiety, substance abuse). Here, we propose that core emotions can also influence sexual function and, specifically, that imbalances in core emotions are the bridge connecting psychiatric symptoms (eg, anhedonia) to sexual dysfunction (eg, anorgasmia). Objectives In this targeted review and commentary, we outline potential connections between ANT and sexual medicine research and clinical practice. We summarize ANT by defining the 3-level BrainMind and core emotions; examining how they relate to personality, behavior, and mental health; and determining the implications for sexual health research and clinical practice. Methods A targeted literature review was conducted. Case studies were adapted from client files and clinician interviews and then anonymized. Results We propose a novel organizational schema for implementing affective balance therapies for sexual dysfunction, which integrate psychoeducational, somatic, and cognitive therapeutic approaches under the ANT framework. We provide 3 patient case studies (anorgasmia, hypersexuality, spinal cord injury) outlining the implementation of this approach and patient outcomes. Conclusion ANT has practical translational applications in sexual health research and clinical practice. By integrating our understanding of the role of core emotions in human sexuality, clinicians can better tailor treatments to address sexual dysfunction.

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Quantitative Fluorescence Analysis Reveals Dendrite-Specific Thalamocortical Plasticity in L5 Pyramidal Neurons during Learning

et al. 2022

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High-throughput anatomic data can stimulate and constrain new hypotheses about how neural circuits change in response to experience. Here, we use fluorescence-based reagents for presynaptic and postsynaptic labeling to monitor changes in thalamocortical synapses onto different compartments of layer 5 (L5) pyramidal (Pyr) neurons in somatosensory (barrel) cortex from mixed-sex mice during whisker-dependent learning (Audette et al., 2019). Using axonal fills and molecular-genetic tags for synapse identification in fixed tissue from Rbp4-Cre transgenic mice, we found that thalamocortical synapses from the higher-order posterior medial thalamic nucleus showed rapid morphologic changes in both presynaptic and postsynaptic structures at the earliest stages of sensory association training. Detected increases in thalamocortical synaptic size were compartment specific, occurring selectively in the proximal dendrites onto L5 Pyr and not at inputs onto their apical tufts in L1. Both axonal and dendritic changes were transient, normalizing back to baseline as animals became expert in the task. Anatomical measurements were corroborated by electrophysiological recordings at different stages of training. Thus, fluorescence-based analysis of input- and target-specific synapses can reveal compartment-specific changes in synapse properties during learning.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTSynaptic changes underlie the cellular basis of learning, experience, and neurologic diseases. Neuroanatomical methods to assess synaptic plasticity can provide critical spatial information necessary for building models of neuronal computations during learning and experience but are technically and fiscally intensive. Here, we describe a confocal fluorescence microscopy–based analytical method to assess input, cell type, and dendritic location-specific synaptic plasticity in a sensory learning assay. Our method not only confirms prior electrophysiological measurements but allows us to predict functional strength of synapses in a pathway-specific manner. Our findings also indicate that changes in primary sensory cortices are transient, occurring during early learning. Fluorescence-based synapse identification can be an efficient and easily adopted approach to study synaptic changes in a variety of experimental paradigms.

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Aversive stimuli bias corticothalamic responses to motivationally significant cues

Cited by 4 publications

References 112 publications

Brain-wide projections and differential encoding of prefrontal neuronal classes underlying learned and innate threat avoidance

Brain-wide projections and differential encoding of prefrontal neuronal classes underlying learned and innate threat avoidance

Affective neuroscience: applications for sexual medicine research and clinical practice

Quantitative Fluorescence Analysis Reveals Dendrite-Specific Thalamocortical Plasticity in L5 Pyramidal Neurons during Learning

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