Tag: Linda Wilbrecht
-
Early maternal separation impacts cognitive flexibility at the age of first independence in mice
Early life adversity is associated with increased risk for mental and physical health problems, including substance abuse. Changes in neural development caused by early life insults could cause or complicate these conditions. Maternal separation (MS) is a model of early adversity for rodents. Clear effects of MS have been shown on behavioral flexibility in rats,…
-
The BDNF Val68 to Met Polymorphism Increases Compulsive Alcohol Drinking In Mice Which Is Reversed By TrkB Activation
Background The Val66 to Met polymorphism within the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) sequence reduces activity-dependent BDNF release, and is associated with psychiatric disorders in humans. Alcoholism is one of the most prevalent psychiatric diseases. Here, we tested the hypothesis that this polymorphism increases the severity of alcohol abuse disorders. Methods We generated transgenic mice carrying…
-
Brief cognitive training interventions in young adulthood promote long-term resilience to drug-seeking behavior
Environmental stress and deprivation increase vulnerability to substance use disorders in humans and promote drug-seeking behavior in animal models. In contrast, experiences of mastery and stability may shape neural circuitry in ways that build resilience to future challenges. Cognitive training offers a potential intervention for reducing vulnerability in the face of environmental stress or deprivation.…
-
Adolescent maturation of inhibitory inputs onto cingulate cortex neurons is cell-type specific and TrkB dependent
The maturation of inhibitory circuits during adolescence may be tied to the onset of mental health disorders such as schizophrenia. Neurotrophin signaling likely plays a critical role in supporting inhibitory circuit development and is also implicated in psychiatric disease. Within the neocortex, subcircuits may mature at different times and show differential sensitivity to neurotrophin signaling.…
-
Review: Between the Primate and “Reptilian” Brain: Rodent Models Demonstrate the Role of the Corticostriatal Circuits in Decision Making
Decision making can be defined as the flexible integration and transformation of information from the external world into action. Recently, the development of novel genetic tools and new behavioral paradigms has made it attractive to study behavior of all kinds in rodents. By some perspectives, rodents are not an acceptable model for the study of…
-
Identification of a Brainstem Circuit Regulating Visual Cortical State in Parallel with Locomotion
Sensory processing is dependent upon behavioral state. In mice, locomotion is accompanied by changes in cortical state and enhanced visual re- sponses. Although recent studies have begun to elucidate intrinsic cortical mechanisms underlying this effect, the neural circuits that initially couple locomotion to cortical processing are unknown. The mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) has been shown…
-
Cocaine-induced structural plasticity in frontal cortex correlates with conditioned place preference
Contextual cues associated with previous drug exposure can trigger drug craving and seeking, and form a substantial obstacle in substance use recovery. Using in vivo imaging in mice, we found that cocaine administration induced a rapid increase in the formation and accumulation of new dendritic spines, and that measures of new persistent spine gain correlated…
-
Transient stimulation of distinct subpopulations of striatal neurons mimics changes in action value
In changing environments, animals must adaptively select actions to achieve their goals. In tasks involving goal-directed action selection, striatal neural activity has been shown to represent the value of competing actions. Striatal representations of action value could potentially bias responses toward actions of higher value. However, no study to date has demonstrated the direct effect…
-
Juvenile mice show greater flexibility in multiple choice reversal learning than adults
We hypothesized that decision-making strategies in juvenile animals, rather than being immature, are optimized to navigate the uncertainty and instability likely to be encountered in the environment at the time of the animal’s transition to independence. We tested juvenile and young adult mice on discrimination and reversal of a 4-choice and 2-choice odor-based foraging task.…
-
Neuroscience: Illuminating the brain
Lizzie Buchen, Neuroscience: Illuminating the brain Systems neuroscientists are pushing aside their electrophysiology rigs to make room for the tools of ‘optogenetics.‘ Nature, 465, 26-28 (May 5, 2010).