WHOLE BRAIN MAPPING OF NEURONAL ENSEMBLES RESPONSIVE TO POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE STIMULI

Many brain regions have been associated with positive and negative valence encoding, this is, the attribution of subjective value to sensory stimuli which determines subsequent appropriate behavior. Since dysfunction occurring in one or several of these brain regions is associated with mental disord...

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Published inActa neurobiologiae experimentalis Vol. 82; p. XIII
Main Authors Olga, Wezik Marcelina, Barbara, Coimbra, Raquel, Correia, Rita, Gaspar, Natacha, Vieitas‑Gaspar, Ricardo, Goncalves, Claire, Terrier, Carina, Soares‑Cunha, Joao, Rodrigues Ana
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Warsaw Polish Academy of Sciences 01.01.2022
Subjects
Addictions
Amygdala
Brain
Brain mapping
Circuits
Cocaine
Data analysis
Drug abuse
Gene mapping
Mental disorders
Narcotics
Nucleus accumbens
Reinforcement
Sensory stimuli
Stimuli
Three dimensional models
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Summary:Many brain regions have been associated with positive and negative valence encoding, this is, the attribution of subjective value to sensory stimuli which determines subsequent appropriate behavior. Since dysfunction occurring in one or several of these brain regions is associated with mental disorders such as addiction or depression, it is essential to understand in detail what are all the components of this circuitry and what is their contribution for valence encoding. The main aim of this work was to perform a brain-wide identification of neuronal ensembles responsive to positive (cocaine) or negative (foothshock) valence stimuli. Taking advantage of permanent genetic access to transiently active neurons via TRAP, the recruited neuronal ensembles for valence-specific stimuli were quantified using a semi-automatized histological data analysis and generation of 3 dimensional models of the whole brain. Our data shows that brain regions of the reward circuit, such as the basolateral amygdala, the nucleus accumbens and the laterodorsal tegmental area, among other limbic and non-limbic regions, are particularly involved in positive and/or negative valence encoding. In conclusion, here we describe a brain-wide and region-specific involvement in valence encoding, with unprecedented detail.
ISSN:0065-1400
1689-0035