Effects of arousal and movement on secondary somatosensory and visual thalamus

Neocortical sensory areas have associated primary and secondary thalamic nuclei. While primary nuclei transmit sensory information to cortex, secondary nuclei remain poorly understood. We recorded juxtasomally from secondary somatosensory (POm) and visual (LP) nuclei of awake mice while tracking whisking and pupil size. POm activity correlated with whisking, but not precise whisker kinematics. This coarse movement modulation persisted after facial paralysis and thus was not due to sensory reafference. This phenomenon also continued during optogenetic silencing of somatosensory and motor cortex and after lesion of superior colliculus, ruling out a motor efference copy mechanism. Whisking and pupil dilation were strongly correlated, possibly reflecting arousal. Indeed LP, which is not part of the whisker system, tracked whisking equally well, further indicating that POm activity does not encode whisker movement per se. The semblance of movement-related activity is likely instead a global effect of arousal on both nuclei. We conclude that secondary thalamus monitors behavioral state, rather than movement, and may exist to alter cortical activity accordingly.

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Effects of arousal and movement on secondary somatosensory and visual thalamus

10.1101/2020.03.04.977348 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Gordon H. Petty ◽

Amanda K. Kinnischtzke ◽

Y. Kate Hong ◽

Randy M. Bruno

Keyword(s):

Thalamic Nucleus ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Efference Copy ◽

Strongly Correlated ◽

Thalamic Nuclei ◽

Visual Thalamus ◽

Cortical Motor ◽

Whisker Pad ◽

Per Se ◽

Arousal Effect

SummaryAll neocortical sensory areas have an associated primary and secondary thalamic nucleus. While the primary nuclei encode sensory information and relay it to cortex, the information encoded by the activity of secondary nuclei is poorly understood. We recorded juxtasomally from neurons in secondary somatosensory (POm) and visual (LP) thalamic nuclei of awake head-fixed mice with simultaneous whisker tracking and pupilometry. POm activity correlated with whether or not a mouse was whisking, but not fast precise whisking kinematics. This coarse movement modulation persisted after unilateral paralysis of the whisker pad and thus was not due to sensory reafference. POm continued to track whisking even after optogenetic silencing of primary somatosensory and motor cortex, indicating that cortical motor efference copy cannot explain the correlation between movement and POm activity. Whisking and pupil dilation were strongly correlated, raising the possibility that POm tracks arousal rather than whisker movement. LP, being part of the visual system, is not expected to encode whisker movement. However, we discovered that LP and POm track whisking equally well, suggesting a global arousal effect on both nuclei. We conclude that arousal, rather than movement per se, strongly alters activity in secondary thalamic nuclei.

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High-fidelity transmission of high-frequency burst stimuli from peripheral nerve to thalamic nuclei in children with dystonia

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-88114-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Estefanía Hernandez-Martin ◽

Enrique Arguelles ◽

Yifei Zheng ◽

Ruta Deshpande ◽

Terence D. Sanger

Keyword(s):

Deep Brain Stimulation ◽

Peripheral Nerve ◽

Brain Stimulation ◽

High Frequency ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Brain Structures ◽

High Fidelity ◽

Thalamic Nuclei ◽

Frequency Burst ◽

Deep Brain

AbstractHigh-frequency peripheral nerve stimulation has emerged as a noninvasive alternative to thalamic deep brain stimulation for some patients with essential tremor. It is not known whether such techniques might be effective for movement disorders in children, nor is the mechanism and transmission of the peripheral stimuli to central brain structures understood. This study was designed to investigate the fidelity of transmission from peripheral nerves to thalamic nuclei in children with dystonia undergoing deep brain stimulation surgery. The ventralis intermediate (VIM) thalamus nuclei showed a robust evoked response to peripheral high-frequency burst stimulation, with a greatest response magnitude to intra-burst frequencies between 50 and 100 Hz, and reliable but smaller responses up to 170 Hz. The earliest response occurred at 12–15 ms following stimulation onset, suggesting rapid high-fidelity transmission between peripheral nerve and thalamic nuclei. A high-bandwidth, low-latency transmission path from peripheral nerve to VIM thalamus is consistent with the importance of rapid and accurate sensory information for the control of coordination and movement via the cerebello-thalamo-cortical pathway. Our results suggest the possibility of non-invasive modulation of thalamic activity in children with dystonia, and therefore the possibility that a subset of children could have beneficial clinical response without the need for invasive deep brain stimulation.

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Involvement of NMDA receptors containing the GluN2C subunit in the psychotomimetic and antidepressant-like effects of ketamine

Translational Psychiatry ◽

10.1038/s41398-020-01110-y ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Mireia Tarrés-Gatius ◽

Lluís Miquel-Rio ◽

Leticia Campa ◽

Francesc Artigas ◽

Anna Castañé

Keyword(s):

Motor Coordination ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Wild Type ◽

Thalamic Nuclei ◽

Treatment Resistant ◽

Cortical Networks ◽

Male And Female ◽

Female Mice ◽

Antidepressant Effects ◽

The Brain

AbstractAcute ketamine administration evokes rapid and sustained antidepressant effects in treatment-resistant patients. However, ketamine also produces transient perceptual disturbances similarly to those evoked by other non-competitive NMDA-R antagonists like phencyclidine (PCP). Although the brain networks involved in both ketamine actions are not fully understood, PCP and ketamine activate thalamo-cortical networks after NMDA-R blockade in GABAergic neurons of the reticular thalamic nucleus (RtN). Given the involvement of thalamo-cortical networks in processing sensory information, these networks may underlie psychotomimetic action. Since the GluN2C subunit is densely expressed in the thalamus, including the RtN, we examined the dependence of psychotomimetic and antidepressant-like actions of ketamine on the presence of GluN2C subunits, using wild-type and GluN2C knockout (GluN2CKO) mice. Likewise, since few studies have investigated ketamine’s effects in females, we used mice of both sexes. GluN2C deletion dramatically reduced stereotyped (circling) behavior induced by ketamine in male and female mice, while the antidepressant-like effect was fully preserved in both genotypes and sexes. Despite ketamine appeared to induce similar effects in both sexes, some neurobiological differences were observed between male and female mice regarding c-fos expression in thalamic nuclei and cerebellum, and glutamate surge in prefrontal cortex. In conclusion, the GluN2C subunit may discriminate between antidepressant-like and psychotomimetic actions of ketamine. Further, the abundant presence of GluN2C subunits in the cerebellum and the improved motor coordination of GluN2CKO mice after ketamine treatment suggest the involvement of cerebellar NMDA-Rs in some behavioral actions of ketamine.

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Comparison of Oculomotor Neuronal Activity in Paralaminar and Mediodorsal Thalamus in the Rhesus Monkey

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.00969.2003 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 93 (1) ◽

pp. 614-619 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Ikuo Tanibuchi ◽

Patricia S. Goldman-Rakic

Keyword(s):

Thalamic Nucleus ◽

Delayed Response ◽

Thalamic Nuclei ◽

Related Activity ◽

Dorsal Thalamus ◽

Mediodorsal Thalamic Nucleus ◽

Picture Stimuli ◽

Fixation Task ◽

Response Task ◽

Lateral Nucleus

We previously reported that neurons in the mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD) are topographically organized and express spatial and nonspatial coding properties similar to those of the prefrontal areas with which they are connected. In the course of mapping the dorsal thalamus, we also studied neurons in a subset of thalamic nuclei (the caudal part of the ventral lateral nucleus (VLc), the oral part of the ventral posterior lateral nucleus (VPLo), the parvocellular part of the ventral anterior nucleus (VApc)) lateral to the MD and just across the internal medullary lamina. We compared these “paralaminar” neurons to MD neurons by having monkeys perform the same spatial and nonspatial cognitive tasks as those used to investigate the MD; these included two saccadic tasks—one requiring delayed and the other immediate responses—and one picture fixation task. Of the paralaminar thalamic neurons modulated by the saccadic tasks, a majority had saccade-related activity, and this was nearly always spatially tuned. Also, for about half of these neurons, the saccade-related activity occurred exclusively during the delayed-response task. No neurons with event-related activity in the saccadic tasks were preferentially modulated by specific picture stimuli, although other neurons were. All of these results were similar to what we had found for MD neurons. However, in contrast to the high proportion of presaccadic responses observed in the MD, the majority of saccade-related neurons in paralaminar thalamus exhibited mid- or postsaccadic activity, i.e., that started during or after the saccade. Our findings suggest that neurons in the paralaminar thalamus may be possible conduits of oculomotor feedback signals, especially during memory-guided saccades.

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Target Interneuron Preference in Thalamocortical Pathways Determines the Temporal Structure of Cortical Responses

Cerebral Cortex ◽

10.1093/cercor/bhy148 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 29 (7) ◽

pp. 2815-2831 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Y Audrey Hay ◽

Jérémie Naudé ◽

Philippe Faure ◽

Bertrand Lambolez

Keyword(s):

Temporal Structure ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Response Duration ◽

Cortical Response ◽

Inhibitory Neurons ◽

Thalamic Nuclei ◽

Response Dynamics ◽

Mean Field Model ◽

Local Circuits ◽

Feedforward Inhibition

Abstract Sensory processing relies on fast detection of changes in environment, as well as integration of contextual cues over time. The mechanisms by which local circuits of the cerebral cortex simultaneously perform these opposite processes remain obscure. Thalamic “specific” nuclei relay sensory information, whereas “nonspecific” nuclei convey information on the environmental and behavioral contexts. We expressed channelrhodopsin in the ventrobasal specific (sensory) or the rhomboid nonspecific (contextual) thalamic nuclei. By selectively activating each thalamic pathway, we found that nonspecific inputs powerfully activate adapting (slow-responding) interneurons but weakly connect fast-spiking interneurons, whereas specific inputs exhibit opposite interneuron preference. Specific inputs thereby induce rapid feedforward inhibition that limits response duration, whereas, in the same cortical area, nonspecific inputs elicit delayed feedforward inhibition that enables lasting recurrent excitation. Using a mean field model, we confirm that cortical response dynamics depends on the type of interneuron targeted by thalamocortical inputs and show that efficient recruitment of adapting interneurons prolongs the cortical response and allows the summation of sensory and contextual inputs. Hence, target choice between slow- and fast-responding inhibitory neurons endows cortical networks with a simple computational solution to perform both sensory detection and integration.

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Neural Mechanisms of Spatial Attention in the Visual Thalamus

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199675111.013.013 ◽

2014 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Yuri B. Saalmann ◽

Sabine Kastner

Keyword(s):

Selective Attention ◽

Visual Information ◽

Thalamic Nucleus ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Relevant Information ◽

Neural Mechanisms ◽

First Order ◽

Visual Thalamus ◽

Cortical Areas ◽

Visual Cortical

Neural mechanisms of selective attention route behaviourally relevant information through brain networks for detailed processing. These attention mechanisms are classically viewed as being solely implemented in the cortex, relegating the thalamus to a passive relay of sensory information. However, this passive view of the thalamus is being revised in light of recent studies supporting an important role for the thalamus in selective attention. Evidence suggests that the first-order thalamic nucleus, the lateral geniculate nucleus, regulates the visual information transmitted from the retina to visual cortex, while the higher-order thalamic nucleus, the pulvinar, regulates information transmission between visual cortical areas, according to attentional demands. This chapter discusses how modulation of thalamic responses, switching the response mode of thalamic neurons, and changes in neural synchrony across thalamo-cortical networks contribute to selective attention.

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Individualism/Collectivism and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: An Integrative Framework

Social Behavior and Personality An International Journal ◽

10.2224/sbp.2012.40.10.1633 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 40 (10) ◽

pp. 1633-1643 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Marcia A. Finkelstein

Keyword(s):

Organizational Citizenship ◽

Organizational Citizenship Behavior ◽

Well Being ◽

Role Identity ◽

Citizenship Behavior ◽

Strongly Correlated ◽

Integrative Framework ◽

Individualism And Collectivism ◽

Per Se ◽

First Time

In this study individualism and collectivism are, for the first time, incorporated into a conceptual model of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). I asked whether individualism and collectivism show systematic differences in their relationships with OCB, its motives, and the development of a citizen role identity. Collectivism most strongly correlated with OCB motivated by concern for coworkers. A concept of self as one who helps others at work was also associated with collectivism. Individualism was associated more with a commitment to the well-being of the institution per se rather than to its employees. Individualism and collectivism were related positively, suggesting that these seemingly opposing attributes are complementary; which of these traits predominates may depend on which citizenship behavior is needed at a given time. Overall, the findings suggest that it is not in amount of citizenship that individualists and collectivists differ, but in why they serve and how they perceive the experience.

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An Associational Model of Birdsong Sensorimotor Learning I. Efference Copy and the Learning of Song Syllables

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.2000.84.3.1204 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 84 (3) ◽

pp. 1204-1223 ◽

Cited By ~ 78

Author(s):

Todd W. Troyer ◽

Allison J. Doupe

Keyword(s):

Auditory Feedback ◽

Motor Behavior ◽

Functional Anatomy ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Efference Copy ◽

Song Learning ◽

Sensorimotor Learning ◽

Feedback Signal ◽

Primary Role ◽

Motor Signals

Birdsong learning provides an ideal model system for studying temporally complex motor behavior. Guided by the well-characterized functional anatomy of the song system, we have constructed a computational model of the sensorimotor phase of song learning. Our model uses simple Hebbian and reinforcement learning rules and demonstrates the plausibility of a detailed set of hypotheses concerning sensory-motor interactions during song learning. The model focuses on the motor nuclei HVc and robust nucleus of the archistriatum (RA) of zebra finches and incorporates the long-standing hypothesis that a series of song nuclei, the Anterior Forebrain Pathway (AFP), plays an important role in comparing the bird's own vocalizations with a previously memorized song, or “template.” This “AFP comparison hypothesis” is challenged by the significant delay that would be experienced by presumptive auditory feedback signals processed in the AFP. We propose that the AFP does not directly evaluate auditory feedback, but instead, receives an internally generated prediction of the feedback signal corresponding to each vocal gesture, or song “syllable.” This prediction, or “efference copy,” is learned in HVc by associating premotor activity in RA-projecting HVc neurons with the resulting auditory feedback registered within AFP-projecting HVc neurons. We also demonstrate how negative feedback “adaptation” can be used to separate sensory and motor signals within HVc. The model predicts that motor signals recorded in the AFP during singing carry sensory information and that the primary role for auditory feedback during song learning is to maintain an accurate efference copy. The simplicity of the model suggests that associational efference copy learning may be a common strategy for overcoming feedback delay during sensorimotor learning.

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Pathway-, layer- and cell-type-specific thalamic input to mouse barrel cortex

eLife ◽

10.7554/elife.52665 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 8 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

B Semihcan Sermet ◽

Pavel Truschow ◽

Michael Feyerabend ◽

Johannes M Mayrhofer ◽

Tess B Oram ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thalamic Nucleus ◽

Barrel Cortex ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Cell Types ◽

Excitatory Input ◽

Higher Order ◽

Inhibitory Neurons ◽

Thalamic Nuclei ◽

Thalamic Input ◽

Layer 4

Mouse primary somatosensory barrel cortex (wS1) processes whisker sensory information, receiving input from two distinct thalamic nuclei. The first-order ventral posterior medial (VPM) somatosensory thalamic nucleus most densely innervates layer 4 (L4) barrels, whereas the higher-order posterior thalamic nucleus (medial part, POm) most densely innervates L1 and L5A. We optogenetically stimulated VPM or POm axons, and recorded evoked excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) in different cell-types across cortical layers in wS1. We found that excitatory neurons and parvalbumin-expressing inhibitory neurons received the largest EPSPs, dominated by VPM input to L4 and POm input to L5A. In contrast, somatostatin-expressing inhibitory neurons received very little input from either pathway in any layer. Vasoactive intestinal peptide-expressing inhibitory neurons received an intermediate level of excitatory input with less apparent layer-specificity. Our data help understand how wS1 neocortical microcircuits might process and integrate sensory and higher-order inputs.

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Monosomies, trisomies and segmental aneuploidies differentially affect chromosomal stability

10.1101/2021.08.31.458318 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Dorine C Hintzen ◽

Mar Soto ◽

Michael Schubert ◽

Bjorn Bakker ◽

Diana C. J. Spierings ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Chromosomal Instability ◽

Poor Prognosis ◽

Chromosome Breakage ◽

Therapy Resistance ◽

Complex Relationship ◽

Strongly Correlated ◽

Different Types ◽

Per Se ◽

The Impact ◽

Karyotype Heterogeneity

Aneuploidy and chromosomal instability are both commonly found in cancer. Chromosomal instability leads to karyotype heterogeneity in tumors and is associated with therapy resistance, metastasis and poor prognosis. It has been hypothesized that aneuploidy per se is sufficient to drive CIN, however due to limited models and heterogenous results, it has remained controversial which aspects of aneuploidy can drive CIN. In this study we systematically tested the impact of different types of aneuploidies on the induction of CIN. We generated a plethora of isogenic aneuploid clones harboring whole chromosome or segmental aneuploidies in human p53-deficient RPE-1 cells. We observed increased segregation errors in cells harboring trisomies that strongly correlated to the number of gained genes. Strikingly, we found that clones harboring only monosomies do not induce a CIN phenotype. Finally, we found that an initial chromosome breakage event and subsequent fusion can instigate breakage-fusion-bridge cycles in segmental aneuploidies. This suggests that monosomies, trisomies and segmental aneuploidies have fundamentally different effects on chromosomal instability and these results help us to decipher the complex relationship between aneuploidy and CIN.

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