Abstract
The basal ganglia (BG) are an evolutionarily conserved and phylogenetically old set of sub-cortical nuclei that guide action selection, evaluation, and reinforcement. The entopeduncular nucleus (EP) is a major BG output nucleus that contains a population of GABA/glutamate cotransmitting neurons (EPSst+) that specifically target the lateral habenula (LHb) and whose function in behavior remains mysterious. Here we use a probabilistic switching task that requires an animal to maintain flexible relationships between action selection and evaluation to examine when and how GABA/glutamate cotransmitting neurons contribute to behavior. We find that EPSst+neurons are strongly engaged during this task and show bidirectional changes in activity during the choice and outcome periods of a trial. We then tested the effects of either permanently blocking cotransmission or modifying the GABA/glutamate ratio on behavior in well-trained animals. Neither manipulation produced detectable changes in behavior despite significant changes in synaptic transmission in the LHb, demonstrating that the outputs of these neurons are not required for on-going action-outcome updating in a probabilistic switching task.
Julianna Locantore, Yijun Liu, Jesse White, Janet Berrios Wallace, Celia C. Beron, Bernardo L. Sabatini, ProfileMichael L. Wallace. Mixed representations of choice and outcome by GABA/glutamate cotransmitting neurons in the entopeduncular nucleus. bioRxiv, 2024-6. [LINK]
Speaker: Shufei Wang
Time: 9:00 am, 2024/06/24
Location: CIBR A622
