Valence coding in amygdala circuits

• Published in: Current opinion in behavioral sciences Vol. 26; pp. 97 - 106
• Main Authors: Pignatelli, Michele, Beyeler, Anna
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2019
• ISSN: 2352-1546; 2352-1554
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2018.10.010

•Populations of the amygdala complex drive positive and negative valence.•Valence coding can be defined by neural responses to positive and negative stimuli.•Recordings of photoidentified populations revealed valence coding biases.•CeA populations have mainly been defined by gene markers.•BLA populations have mainly been defined by their projections targets. The neural mechanisms underlying emotional valence are at the interface between perception and action, integrating inputs from the external environment with past experiences to guide the behavior of an organism. Depending on the positive or negative valence assigned to an environmental stimulus, the organism will approach or avoid the source of the stimulus. Multiple convergent studies have demonstrated that the amygdala complex is a critical node of the circuits assigning valence. Here we examine the current progress in identifying valence coding properties of neural populations in different nuclei of the amygdala, based on their activity, connectivity, and gene expression profile.