A5047309828- Neural dynamics and brain function
- Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
- Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Receptor Mechanisms and Signaling
- Photoreceptor and optogenetics research
- Memory and Neural Mechanisms
- Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Regulation of Appetite and Obesity
- Neuroscience and Neural Engineering
- Neuropeptides and Animal Physiology
- Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
- Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Sleep and Wakefulness Research
- Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies
- Circadian rhythm and melatonin
- Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Single-cell and spatial transcriptomics
- Hypothalamic control of reproductive hormones
- EEG and Brain-Computer Interfaces
- Neuroscience of respiration and sleep
- Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors Study
- Zebrafish Biomedical Research Applications
- Sexual function and dysfunction studies
- Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Biochemical Analysis and Sensing Techniques
University of Washington
2002-2025
Washington Center
2024
Seattle University
2022-2024
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
2011-2020
Tusculum College
2016-2020
Center for Alcohol Studies
2014-2019
University of North Carolina Health Care
2019
Center for Neurosciences
2014-2017
Institut des Sciences Cognitives Marc Jeannerod
2016
Indiana University School of Medicine
2011-2014
Rewarding Bursts of Dopamine Dopaminergic neurons are thought to be involved in the cognitive and hedonic underpinnings motivated behaviors. However, it is still unclear whether dopaminergic neuron activation sufficient elicit reward-related behavior which type neuronal activity pattern serves this purpose. Tsai et al. (p. 1080; published online 23 April) directly compared tonic versus phasic firing cells ventral tegmental area, effects on both dopamine release. Using a transgenic system...
The dopamine projection to the nucleus accumbens has been implicated in behaviors directed toward acquisition and consumption of natural rewards. neurochemical studies that established this link made time-averaged measurements over minutes, so precise temporal relationship between changes these is not known. To resolve this, we sampled every 100 msec using fast-scan cyclic voltammetry at carbon-fiber microelectrodes rats trained press a lever for sucrose. Cues signal opportunity respond...
In vivo calcium imaging through microendoscopic lenses enables of previously inaccessible neuronal populations deep within the brains freely moving animals. However, it is computationally challenging to extract single-neuronal activity from data, because very large background fluctuations and high spatial overlaps intrinsic this recording modality. Here, we describe a new constrained matrix factorization approach accurately separate then demix denoise signals interest. We compared proposed...
Coincident signaling by dopamine and glutamate is thought to be crucial for a variety of motivated behaviors. Previous work has suggested that some midbrain neurons are themselves capable corelease, but this phenomenon remains poorly understood. Here, we expressed the light-activated cation channel Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) in genetically defined stimulate exocytosis specifically from dopaminergic terminals both nucleus accumbens (NAc) shell dorsal striatum brain slices adult mice. Optical...
The growing prevalence of overeating disorders is a key contributor to the worldwide obesity epidemic. Dysfunction particular neural circuits may trigger deviations from adaptive feeding behaviors. lateral hypothalamus (LH) crucial substrate for motivated behavior, including feeding, but precise functional neurocircuitry that controls LH neuronal activity engage has not been defined. We observed inhibitory synaptic inputs extended amygdala preferentially innervate and suppress glutamatergic...
Phasic activation of dopaminergic neurons is associated with reward-predicting cues and supports learning during behavioral adaptation. While noncontingent in the ventral tegmental are (VTA) sufficient for passive conditioning, it remains unknown whether phasic signal truly reinforcing. In this study, we first targeted expression channelrhodopsin-2 to VTA optimized optogenetically evoked dopamine transients. Second, showed that freely moving mice causally enhances positive reinforcing...
Using sensory information for the prediction of future events is essential survival. Midbrain dopamine neurons are activated by environmental cues that predict rewards, but cellular mechanisms underlie this phenomenon remain elusive. We used in vivo voltammetry and vitro patch-clamp electrophysiology to show both release reward predictive enhanced synaptic strength onto develop over course cue-reward learning. Increased was not observed after stable behavioral responding. Thus, may act...
The overconsumption of calorically dense, highly palatable foods is thought to be a major contributor the worldwide obesity epidemic; however, precise neural circuits that directly regulate hedonic feeding remain elusive. Here, we show lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) glutamatergic neurons, and their projections habenula (LHb), negatively consumption food. Genetic ablation LHA neurons increased daily caloric intake produced weight gain in mice had access high-fat diet, while not altering...
Increased tonic activity of locus coeruleus noradrenergic (LC-NE) neurons induces anxiety-like and aversive behavior. While some information is known about the afferent circuitry that endogenously drives this neural behavior, downstream receptors anatomical projections mediate these acute risk behavioral states via LC-NE system remain unresolved. Here we use a combination retrograde tracing, fast-scan cyclic voltammetry, electrophysiology, in vivo optogenetics with localized pharmacology to...
Dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) are implicated affective functions. However, it is unclear to what extent dopamine substantia nigra pars compacta (SNc) play such roles. TH-Cre transgenic mice received adeno-associated viral vectors encoding channelrhodopsin2 (ChR2), halorhodopsin (NpHR), or control vector into VTA SNc, resulting selective expression of these opsins neurons. Mice with ChR2 learned instrumental responding deliver photostimulation SNc and also sought for...