Topic: motivated behaviors

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) are complex neurodevelopmental conditions characterized by deficits in social interaction, communication and cognitive flexibility. In the search of possible etiopathological mechanisms of ASDs, multiple studies linked aberrant mesolimbic reward pathway to dysfunction in sociability and restricted behaviors. However, the lateral habenula (LHb), representing the anti-reward center of the central nervous system, has been neglected so far. LHb activity encodes aversive responses and inhibits the physiological dynamics of ventral tegmental area (VTA), interfering w

To fully understand how information is processed in complex cell circuits, we need techniques able to specifically target and control the activity of the elements involved, including astrocytes. Currently available tools like optogenetics and chemogenetics affect the entire astrocytic population, making it difficult to target specific subsets. This lack of specificity hinders our understanding of the role of astrocytes in behavior.We present a tool to translate the activity-mediated calcium signals of astrocytes into gene expression in a light-dependent manner, i.e. AstroLight. Using AstroLigh

Motivated behaviors such as feeding, drinking, and social behaviors, and the ability to efficiently switch between them, are essential for survival. The lateral hypothalamus (LH) plays a central role in orchestrating motivated behaviors. As there is minimal local synaptic communication within the LH, long-range synaptic input is critical to LH neural computations. In particular, the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), which integrates complex information about the environment, projects to the LH. However, it is unknown when mPFC to LH projection neurons are active. In this study, we combine in vi