Decoding the hidden variabilities in mPFC descending pathways across emotional states

Published: March 19, 2025

Effective emotional regulation, crucial for adaptive behavior, is mediated by the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) via connections to basolateral amygdala (BLA) and nucleus accumbens (NAc), traditionally considered functionally similar in modulating reward aversion responses. However, how mPFC balances these descending pathways control behavioral outcomes remains unclear. We found that while overall firing patterns appeared consistent across states, deeper analysis revealed distinct variabilities. Specifically, mPFC→BLA neurons, especially “center-ON” exhibited heightened activity during anxiety-related behaviors, highlighting their role anxiety encoding. Conversely, mPFC→NAc neurons were more active exploratory implicating them processing positive states. Notably, showed significant pattern decorrelation social interactions, suggesting a pivotal encoding preference. Additionally, chronic states affected differently: enhanced activity, negative boosted activity. These findings challenge assumed functional similarity highlight contributions new avenues therapeutic interventions.

Language: Английский

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Arc controls alcohol cue relapse by a central amygdala mechanism

Molecular Psychiatry, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 28(2), P. 733 - 745

Published: Nov. 10, 2022

Language: Английский

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An Honest Reckoning With the Amygdala and Mental Illness

American Journal of Psychiatry, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 181(12), P. 1059 - 1075

Published: Dec. 1, 2024

Anxiety disorders are a leading source of human misery, morbidity, and premature mortality. Existing treatments far from curative for many, underscoring the need to clarify underlying neural mechanisms. Although many brain regions contribute, amygdala has received most intense scientific attention. Over past several decades, this scrutiny yielded detailed understanding function, but it failed produce new clinical assays, biomarkers, or cures. Rising urgent public health challenge demands an honest reckoning with functional-neuroanatomical complexity shift theories anchored on "the amygdala" models centered specific nuclei cell types. This review begins by examining evidence studies rodents, monkeys, humans "canonical model," idea that plays central role in fear- anxiety-related states, traits, disorders. Next, authors selectively highlight work indicating canonical model, while true, is overly simplistic fails adequately capture actual state evidentiary record, breadth amygdala-associated functions illnesses, amygdala's functional architecture. The describe implications these facts basic neuroimaging research. concludes some general recommendations grappling accelerating efforts understand more effectively treat amygdala-related psychopathology.

Language: Английский

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“Liking” as an early and editable draft of long-run affective value

PLoS Biology, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 20(1), P. e3001476 - e3001476

Published: Jan. 5, 2022

Psychological and neural distinctions between the technical concepts of “liking” “wanting” pose important problems for motivated choice goods. Why could we “want” something that do not “like,” or “like” but be unwilling to exert effort acquire it? Here, suggest a framework answering these questions through medium reinforcement learning. We consider provide immediate, preliminary ultimately cancellable, information about true, long-run worth good. Such initial estimates, viewed lens what is known as potential-based shaping, help solve temporally complex learning faced by animals.

Language: Английский

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Linking drug and food addiction: an overview of the shared neural circuits and behavioral phenotype

Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 17

Published: Sept. 12, 2023

Despite a lack of agreement on its definition and inclusion as specific diagnosable disturbance, the food addiction construct is supported by several neurobiological behavioral clinical preclinical findings. Recognizing critical to understanding how why it manifests. In this overview, we focused those follows: 1. hyperpalatable effects in development; 2. brain regions involved both drug addiction; 3. animal models highlighting commonalities between substance use disorders addiction. Although results collected through studies emerged from protocols differing ways, they clearly highlight manifestations alterations characteristics. To develop improved models, heterogeneity should be acknowledged embraced so that research can systematically investigate role variables development different features addiction-like behavior models.

Language: Английский

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