1,721,100 research outputs found
Altruism and social rewards
No full textScheggia et al.1
have established a behavioral
paradigm to explore preferences for ‘altruistic’
or ‘selfsh’ choice behavior in mice. The results
suggest that altruistic behavior develops
through reinforcement learning driven
by social rewards, which is controlled by
interactions between the basolateral amygdala
and prelimbic cortex.11Nsciescopu
The role of mediodorsal thalamic nucleus in fear extinction
Get PDFUnderstanding the neural mechanism underlying the formation and extinction of fear memory would guide the development of advanced strategies for treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a generalized anxiety disorder. The mediodorsal thalamic nucleus (MD) is reciprocally connected with limbic circuitry including the prefrontal cortex and amygdala, key structures for fear formation, and extinction. In addition to the distinctive anatomical relationships, the MD participates in learning and memory process in fear extinction through thalamic dual firing modes: tonic and burst. This review will briefly describe neural mechanisms of fear extinction and highlight the role of MD in modulation of fear extinction. We suggest that excitability of the MD neurons may modulate fear circuits and can be a novel target for treatment of anxiety disorders.© 2016 Lee and Shin. Open Access11Nscopu
T-type Ca2+ channels in normal and abnormal brain functions.
No full textLow-voltage-
activated T-type Ca2 channels are widely expressed in various types of neurons.
Once deinactivated by hyperpolarization, T-type channels are ready to be activated by a
small depolarization near the resting membrane potential and, therefore, are optimal
for regulating the excitability and electroresponsiveness of neurons under physiological conditions
near resting states. Ca2 influx through T-type channels engenders low-threshold Ca2 spikes,
which in turn trigger a burst of action potentials. Low-threshold burst firing has been implicated in
the synchronization of the thalamocortical circuit during sleep and in absence seizures. It also has
been suggested that T-type channels play an important role in pain signal transmission, based on
their abundant expression in pain-processing pathways in peripheral and central neurons. In this
review, we will describe studies on the role of T-type Ca2 channels in the physiological as well as
pathological generation of brain rhythms in sleep, absence epilepsy, and pain signal transmission.
Recent advances in studies of T-type channels in the control of cognition will also be briefly
discussed.148521sciescopu
Genetic factors associated with empathy in humans and mice
Get PDF© 2019The neurocognitive ability to recognize and share the mental states of others is crucial for our emotional experience and social interaction. Extensive human studies have informed our understanding of the psychobehavioral and neurochemical bases of empathy. Recent evidence shows that simple forms of empathy are conserved from rodents to humans, and rodent models have become particularly useful for understanding the neurobiological correlates of empathy. In this review, we first summarize aspects of empathy at the behavioral and neural circuit levels, and describe recent developments in rodent model behavioral paradigms. We then highlight different neurobiological pathways involved in empathic abilities, with special emphasis on genetic polymorphisms associated with individual differences in empathy. By directly assessing various neurochemical correlates at molecular and neural circuit levels using relevant animal models, we conclude with the suggestion that rodent research can significantly advance our understanding of the neural basis of empathy. This article is part of the Special Issue entitled ‘The neuropharmacology of social behavior: from bench to bedside’.11Nsci
Rodent models for studying empathy
No full textEmpathy is the important capacity to recognize and share emotions with others. Recent evidence shows that rodents possess a remarkable affective sensitivity to the emotional state of others and that primitive forms of empathy exist in social lives of rodents. However, due to the ambiguous definitional boundaries between empathy, emotional contagion and other related terms, distinct components of empathic behaviors in rodents need to be clarified. Hence, we review recent experimental studies demonstrating that rodents are able to share emotions with others. Specifically, we highlight several behavioral models that examine different aspects of rodent empathic behaviors in response to the various distress of con specifics. Experimental approaches using rodent behavioral models will help elucidate the neural circuitry of empathy and its neurochemical association. Integrating these findings with corresponding experiments in humans will ultimately provide novel insights into therapeutic interventions for mental disorders associated with empathy. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.1691sciessciscopu
Neural Basis of Observational Fear Learning: A Potential Model of Affective Empathy
Get PDFCopyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Observational fear learning in rodents is a type of context-dependent fear conditioning in which an unconditioned stimulus (US) is provided vicariously by observing conspecific others receiving foot shocks. This suggests the involvement of affective empathy, with several recent studies showing many similarities between this behavior and human empathy. Neurobiologically, it is important to understand the neural mechanisms by which the vicarious US activates the fear circuit via the affective pain system, obviating the sensory pain pathway and eventually leading to fear memory formation. This paper reviews current studies on the neural mechanisms underlying observational fear learning and provides a perspective on future research on this subject11Nsci
Experience of a hierarchical relationship between a pair of mice specifically influences their affective empathy toward each other
No full text© 2022 The Authors. Genes, Brain and Behavior published by International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.Prior experience of social hierarchy is known to modulate emotional contagion, a basic form of affective empathy. However, it is not known whether this behavioral effect occurs through changes in an individual's traits due to their experience of social hierarchy or specific social interrelationships between the individuals. Groups of four mice with an established in-group hierarchy were used to address this in conjunction with a tube test. The rank-1 and rank-4 mice were designated as the dominant or subordinate groups, respectively. The two individuals in between were designated as the intermediate groups, which were then used as the observers in observational fear learning (OFL) experiments, an assay for emotional contagion. The intermediate observers showed greater OFL responses to the dominant demonstrator than the subordinate demonstrators recruited from the same home-cage. When the demonstrators were strangers from different cages, the intermediate observers did not distinguish between dominant and subordinate, displaying the same level of OFL. In a reverse setting in which the intermediate group was used as the demonstrator, the subordinate observers showed higher OFL responses than the dominant observers, and this occurred only when the demonstrators were cagemates of the observers. Furthermore, the bigger the rank difference between a pair, the higher the OFL level that the observer displayed. Altogether, these results demonstrate that the hierarchical interrelationship established between a given pair of animals is critical for expressing emotional contagion between them rather than any potential changes in intrinsic traits due to the experience of dominant/subordinate hierarchy.11Nsciescopu
Observational fear behavior in rodents as a model for empathy
No full textEmpathy enables social mammals to recognize and share emotion with others and is well-documented in non-human primates. During the past few years, systematic observations have showed that a primal form of empathy also exists in rodents, indicating that empathy has an evolutionary continuity. Now, using rodents exhibiting emotional empathy, the molecular and cellular study of empathy in animals has begun in earnest. In this article, we will review recent reports that indicate that rodents can share states of fear with others, and will try to highlight new understandings of the neural circuitry, biochemistry and genetics of empathic fear. We hope that the use of rodent models will enhance understanding of the mechanisms of human empathy and provide insights into how to treat social deficits in neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by empathy impairment. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society11Nsci
Affective empathy and prosocial behavior in rodents
No full text© 2021 Elsevier LtdEmpathy is an essential function for humans as social animals. Emotional contagion, the basic form of afffective empathy, comprises the cognitive process of perceiving and sharing the affective state of others. The observational fear assay, an animal model of emotional contagion, has enabled researchers to undertake molecular, cellular, and circuit mechanism of this behavior. Such studies have revealed that observational fear is mediated through neural circuits involved in processing the affective dimension of direct pain experiences. A mouse can also respond to milder social stimuli induced by either positive or negative emotional changes in another mouse, which seems not dependent on the affective pain circuits. Further studies should explore how different neural circuits contribute to integrating different dimensions of affective empathy.11Nsciescopu
Medial septal GABAergic projection neurons promote object exploration behavior and type 2 theta rhythm
No full textContributed by Hee-Sup Shin, April 20, 2016 (sent for review February 16, 2016; reviewed by Jan Born, György Buzsáki, and Alcino J. Silva) Exploratory drive is one of the most fundamental emotions, of all organisms, that are evoked by novelty stimulation. Exploratory behavior plays a fundamental role in motivation, learning, and well-being of organisms. Diverse exploratory behaviors have been described, although their heterogeneity is not certain because of the lack of solid experimental evidence for their distinction. Here we present results demonstrating that different neural mechanisms underlie different exploratory behaviors. Localized Cav3.1 knockdown in the medial septum (MS) selectively enhanced object exploration, whereas the null mutant (KO) mice showed enhancedobject exploration as well as open-field exploration. In MS knockdown mice, only type 2 hippocampal theta rhythm was enhanced, whereas both type 1 and type 2 theta rhythm were enhanced in KO mice. This selective effect was accompanied by markedly increased excitability of septo-hippocampal GABAergic projection neurons in the MS lacking T-type Ca2+ channels. Furthermore, optogenetic activation of the septo-hippocampal GABAergic pathway in WT mice also selectively enhanced object exploration behavior and type 2 theta rhythm, whereas inhibition of the same pathway decreased the behavior and the rhythm. These findings define object exploration distinguished from open-field exploration and reveal a critical role of T-type Ca2+ channels in the medial septal GABAergic projection neurons in this behavior.18101sciescopu
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