EARLY CINGULATE-STRIATAL COUPLING MODULATES NEONATAL ULTRASONIC VOCALIZATIONS

The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is a central hub for cognitive processing. Compared to other brain regions, the PFC exhibits protracted development, which has led to the assumption that early in life, interactions between the neonatal PFC and its downstream targets, such as the striatum (Str), are largely irrelevant for behavior. Contrary to this assumption, we found that neonatal PFC-Str pathways are not only functional but also critical for regulating ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), a survival-relevant innate behavior of mouse pups. We performed multi-site in vivo recordings from mouse pups of postnatal day 5 – 12 and showed that neuronal and network activity in both PFC and Str as well as the communication between the two regions significantly increased shortly before USV onsets. USVs often occurred in bursts that became longer and more complex across neonatal development. Optogenetic activation of the prefrontal-striatal pathways induced USVs with more mature characteristics, further supporting the hypothesis that this network modulates neonatal vocal behavior. Thus, neonatal PFC–Str projections are functionally active and regulate neonatal vocalizations, demonstrating early top-down control by the PFC before experience-dependent circuit maturation.