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An Implicit Plan Overrides an Explicit Strategy during Visuomotor Adaptation

Pietro Mazzoni
Apr 5, 2006; 26:3642-3645
BRIEF COMMUNICATION




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On the relations between the direction of two-dimensional arm movements and cell discharge in primate motor cortex

AP Georgopoulos
Nov 1, 1982; 2:1527-1537
Articles




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Explicit and Implicit Contributions to Learning in a Sensorimotor Adaptation Task

Jordan A. Taylor
Feb 19, 2014; 34:3023-3032
BehavioralSystemsCognitive




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Topographic Mapping of a Hierarchy of Temporal Receptive Windows Using a Narrated Story

Yulia Lerner
Feb 23, 2011; 31:2906-2915
BehavioralSystemsCognitive




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Intraneuronal beta-Amyloid Aggregates, Neurodegeneration, and Neuron Loss in Transgenic Mice with Five Familial Alzheimer's Disease Mutations: Potential Factors in Amyloid Plaque Formation

Holly Oakley
Oct 4, 2006; 26:10129-10140
Neurobiology of Disease




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A Systematic Structure-Function Characterization of a Human Mutation in Neurexin-3{alpha} Reveals an Extracellular Modulatory Sequence That Stabilizes Neuroligin-1 Binding to Enhance the Postsynaptic Properties of Excitatory Synapses

α-Neurexins are essential and highly expressed presynaptic cell-adhesion molecules that are frequently linked to neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders. Despite their importance, how the elaborate extracellular sequences of α-neurexins contribute to synapse function is poorly understood. We recently characterized the presynaptic gain-of-function phenotype caused by a missense mutation in an evolutionarily conserved extracellular sequence of neurexin-3α (A687T) that we identified in a patient diagnosed with profound intellectual disability and epilepsy. The striking A687T gain-of-function mutation on neurexin-3α prompted us to systematically test using mutants whether the presynaptic gain-of-function phenotype is a consequence of the addition of side-chain bulk (i.e., A687V) or polar/hydrophilic properties (i.e., A687S). We used multidisciplinary approaches in mixed-sex primary hippocampal cultures to assess the impact of the neurexin-3αA687 residue on synapse morphology, function and ligand binding. Unexpectedly, neither A687V nor A687S recapitulated the neurexin-3α A687T phenotype. Instead, distinct from A687T, molecular replacement with A687S significantly enhanced postsynaptic properties exclusively at excitatory synapses and selectively increased binding to neuroligin-1 and neuroligin-3 without changing binding to neuroligin-2 or LRRTM2. Importantly, we provide the first experimental evidence supporting the notion that the position A687 of neurexin-3α and the N-terminal sequences of neuroligins may contribute to the stability of α-neurexin–neuroligin-1 trans-synaptic interactions and that these interactions may specifically regulate the postsynaptic strength of excitatory synapses.




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The Role of the Hippocampus in Consolidating Motor Learning during Wakefulness




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{gamma}1 GABAA Receptors in Spinal Nociceptive Circuits

GABAergic neurons and GABAA receptors (GABAARs) are critical elements of almost all neuronal circuits. Most GABAARs of the CNS are heteropentameric ion channels composed of two α, two β, and one subunits. These receptors serve as important drug targets for benzodiazepine (BDZ) site agonists, which potentiate the action of GABA at GABAARs. Most GABAAR classifications rely on the heterogeneity of the α subunit (α1–α6) included in the receptor complex. Heterogeneity of the subunits (1–3), which mediate synaptic clustering of GABAARs and contribute, together with α subunits, to the benzodiazepine (BDZ) binding site, has gained less attention, mainly because 2 subunits greatly outnumber the other subunits in most brain regions. Here, we have investigated a potential role of non-2 GABAARs in neural circuits of the spinal dorsal horn, a key site of nociceptive processing. Female and male mice were studied. We demonstrate that besides 2 subunits, 1 subunits are significantly expressed in the spinal dorsal horn, especially in its superficial layers. Unlike global 2 subunit deletion, which is lethal, spinal cord-specific loss of 2 subunits was well tolerated. GABAAR clustering in the superficial dorsal horn remained largely unaffected and antihyperalgesic actions of HZ-166, a nonsedative BDZ site agonist, were partially retained. Our results thus suggest that the superficial dorsal horn harbors functionally relevant amounts of 1 subunits that support the synaptic clustering of GABAARs in this site. They further suggest that 1 containing GABAARs contribute to the spinal control of nociceptive information flow.




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Neuritin Controls Axonal Branching in Serotonin Neurons: A Possible Mediator Involved in the Regulation of Depressive and Anxiety Behaviors via FGF Signaling

Abnormal neuronal morphological features, such as dendrite branching, axonal branching, and spine density, are thought to contribute to the symptoms of depression and anxiety. However, the role and molecular mechanisms of aberrant neuronal morphology in the regulation of mood disorders remain poorly characterized. Here, we show that neuritin, an activity-dependent protein, regulates the axonal morphology of serotonin neurons. Male neuritin knock-out (KO) mice harbored impaired axonal branches of serotonin neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex and basolateral region of the amygdala (BLA), and male neuritin KO mice exhibited depressive and anxiety-like behaviors. We also observed that the expression of neuritin was decreased by unpredictable chronic stress in the male mouse brain and that decreased expression of neuritin was associated with reduced axonal branching of serotonin neurons in the brain and with depressive and anxiety behaviors in mice. Furthermore, the stress-mediated impairments in axonal branching and depressive behaviors were reversed by the overexpression of neuritin in the BLA. The ability of neuritin to increase axonal branching in serotonin neurons involves fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling, and neuritin contributes to FGF-2-mediated axonal branching regulation in vitro. Finally, the oral administration of an FGF inhibitor reduced the axonal branching of serotonin neurons in the brain and caused depressive and anxiety behaviors in male mice. Our results support the involvement of neuritin in models of stress-induced depression and suggest that neuronal morphological plasticity may play a role in controlling animal behavior.




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GluN3A and Excitatory Glycine Receptors in the Adult Hippocampus

The GluN3A subunit of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) plays an established role in synapse development, but its contribution to neural circuits in the adult brain is less clear. Recent work has demonstrated that in select cell populations, GluN3A assembles with GluN1 to form GluN1/GluN3A receptors that are insensitive to glutamate and instead serve as functional excitatory glycine receptors (eGlyRs). Our understanding of these eGlyRs, and how they contribute to intrinsic excitability and synaptic communication within relevant networks of the developing and the mature brain, is only beginning to be uncovered. Here, using male and female mice, we demonstrate that GluN3A subunits are enriched in the adult ventral hippocampus (VH), where they localize to synaptic and extrasynaptic sites and can assemble as functional eGlyRs on CA1 pyramidal cells. GluN3A expression was barely detectable in the adult dorsal hippocampus (DH). We also observed a high GluN2B content in the adult VH, characterized by slow NMDAR current decay kinetics and a high sensitivity to the GluN2B-containing NMDAR antagonist ifenprodil. Interestingly, the GluN2B enrichment in the adult VH was dependent on GluN3A as GluN3A deletion accelerated NMDAR decay and reduced ifenprodil sensitivity in the VH, suggesting that GluN3A expression can regulate the balance of conventional NMDAR subunit composition at synaptic sites. Lastly, we found that GluN3A knock-out also enhanced both NMDAR-dependent calcium influx and NMDAR-dependent long-term potentiation in the VH. Together, these data reveal a novel role for GluN3A and eGlyRs in the control of ventral hippocampal circuits in the mature brain.




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Mu-Opioid Receptor (MOR) Dependence of Pain in Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy

We recently demonstrated that transient attenuation of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons, can both prevent and reverse pain associated with chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), a severe side effect of cancer chemotherapy, for which treatment options are limited. Given the reduced efficacy of opioid analgesics to treat neuropathic, compared with inflammatory pain, the cross talk between nociceptor TLR4 and mu-opioid receptors (MORs), and that MOR and TLR4 agonists induce hyperalgesic priming (priming), which also occurs in CIPN, we determined, using male rats, whether (1) antisense knockdown of nociceptor MOR attenuates CIPN, (2) and attenuates the priming associated with CIPN, and (3) CIPN also produces opioid-induced hyperalgesia (OIH). We found that intrathecal MOR antisense prevents and reverses hyperalgesia induced by oxaliplatin and paclitaxel, two common clinical chemotherapy agents. Oxaliplatin-induced priming was also markedly attenuated by MOR antisense. Additionally, intradermal morphine, at a dose that does not affect nociceptive threshold in controls, exacerbates mechanical hyperalgesia (OIH) in rats with CIPN, suggesting the presence of OIH. This OIH associated with CIPN is inhibited by interventions that reverse Type II priming [the combination of an inhibitor of Src and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)], an MOR antagonist, as well as a TLR4 antagonist. Our findings support a role of nociceptor MOR in oxaliplatin-induced pain and priming. We propose that priming and OIH are central to the symptom burden in CIPN, contributing to its chronicity and the limited efficacy of opioid analgesics to treat neuropathic pain.




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Beyond Glycolysis: Aldolase A Is a Novel Effector in Reelin-Mediated Dendritic Development

Reelin, a secreted glycoprotein, plays a crucial role in guiding neocortical neuronal migration, dendritic outgrowth and arborization, and synaptic plasticity in the adult brain. Reelin primarily operates through the canonical lipoprotein receptors apolipoprotein E receptor 2 (Apoer2) and very low-density lipoprotein receptor (Vldlr). Reelin also engages with noncanonical receptors and unidentified coreceptors; however, the effects of which are less understood. Using high-throughput tandem mass tag (TMT) liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)-based proteomics and gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), we identified both shared and unique intracellular pathways activated by Reelin through its canonical and noncanonical signaling in primary murine neurons of either sex during dendritic growth and arborization. We observed pathway cross talk related to regulation of cytoskeleton, neuron projection development, protein transport, and actin filament-based process. We also found enriched gene sets exclusively by the noncanonical Reelin pathway including protein translation, mRNA metabolic process, and ribonucleoprotein complex biogenesis suggesting Reelin fine-tunes neuronal structure through distinct signaling pathways. A key discovery is the identification of aldolase A, a glycolytic enzyme and actin-binding protein, as a novel effector of Reelin signaling. Reelin induced de novo translation and mobilization of aldolase A from the actin cytoskeleton. We demonstrated that aldolase A is necessary for Reelin-mediated dendrite growth and arborization in primary murine neurons and mouse brain cortical neurons. Interestingly, the function of aldolase A in dendrite development is independent of its known role in glycolysis. Altogether, our findings provide new insights into the Reelin-dependent signaling pathways and effector proteins that are crucial for dendritic development.




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{mu}-Opioid Receptor Modulation of the Glutamatergic/GABAergic Midbrain Inputs to the Mouse Dorsal Hippocampus

We used virus-mediated anterograde and retrograde tracing, optogenetic modulation, immunostaining, in situ hybridization, and patch-clamp recordings in acute brain slices to study the release mechanism and μ-opioid modulation of the dual glutamatergic/GABAergic inputs from the ventral tegmental area and supramammillary nucleus to the granule cells of the dorsal hippocampus of male and female mice. In keeping with previous reports showing that the two transmitters are released by separate active zones within the same terminals, we found that the short-term plasticity and pharmacological modulation of the glutamatergic and GABAergic currents are indistinguishable. We further found that glutamate and GABA release at these synapses are both virtually completely mediated by N- and P/Q-type calcium channels. We then investigated μ-opioid modulation of these synapses and found that activation of μ-opioid receptors (MORs) strongly inhibits the glutamate and GABA release, mostly through inhibition of presynaptic N-type channels. However, the modulation by MORs of these dual synapses is complex, as it likely includes also a disinhibition due to downmodulation of local GABAergic interneurons which make direct axo-axonic contacts with the dual glutamatergic/GABAergic terminals. We discuss how this opioid modulation may enhance LTP at the perforant path inputs, potentially contributing to reinforce memories of drug-associated contexts.




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Coupling of Slow Oscillations in the Prefrontal and Motor Cortex Predicts Onset of Spindle Trains and Persistent Memory Reactivations

Sleep is known to drive the consolidation of motor memories. During nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, the close temporal proximity between slow oscillations (SOs) and spindles ("nesting" of SO-spindles) is known to be essential for consolidation, likely because it is closely associated with the reactivation of awake task activity. Interestingly, recent work has found that spindles can occur in temporal clusters or "trains." However, it remains unclear how spindle trains are related to the nesting phenomenon. Here, we hypothesized that spindle trains are more likely when SOs co-occur in the prefrontal and motor cortex. We conducted simultaneous neural recordings in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and primary motor cortex (M1) of male rats training on the reach-to-grasp motor task. We found that intracortically recorded M1 spindles are organized into distinct temporal clusters. Notably, the occurrence of temporally precise SOs between mPFC and M1 was a strong predictor of spindle trains. Moreover, reactivation of awake task patterns is much more persistent during spindle trains in comparison with that during isolated spindles. Together, our work suggests that the precise coupling of SOs across mPFC and M1 may be a potential driver of spindle trains and persistent reactivation of motor memory during NREM sleep.




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Distinct Neuron Types Contribute to Hybrid Auditory Spatial Coding

Neural decoding is a tool for understanding how activities from a population of neurons inside the brain relate to the outside world and for engineering applications such as brain–machine interfaces. However, neural decoding studies mainly focused on different decoding algorithms rather than different neuron types which could use different coding strategies. In this study, we used two-photon calcium imaging to assess three auditory spatial decoders (space map, opponent channel, and population pattern) in excitatory and inhibitory neurons in the dorsal inferior colliculus of male and female mice. Our findings revealed a clustering of excitatory neurons that prefer similar interaural level difference (ILD), the primary spatial cues in mice, while inhibitory neurons showed random local ILD organization. We found that inhibitory neurons displayed lower decoding variability under the opponent channel decoder, while excitatory neurons achieved higher decoding accuracy under the space map and population pattern decoders. Further analysis revealed that the inhibitory neurons’ preference for ILD off the midline and the excitatory neurons’ heterogeneous ILD tuning account for their decoding differences. Additionally, we discovered a sharper ILD tuning in the inhibitory neurons. Our computational model, linking this to increased presynaptic inhibitory inputs, was corroborated using monaural and binaural stimuli. Overall, this study provides experimental and computational insight into how excitatory and inhibitory neurons uniquely contribute to the coding of sound locations.




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Cortically Disparate Visual Features Evoke Content-Independent Load Signals during Storage in Working Memory

It is well established that holding information in working memory (WM) elicits sustained stimulus-specific patterns of neural activity. Nevertheless, here we provide evidence for a distinct class of neural activity that tracks the number of individuated items in working memory, independent of the type of visual features stored. We present two EEG studies of young adults of both sexes that provide robust evidence for a signal tracking the number of individuated representations in working memory, regardless of the specific feature values stored. In Study 1, subjects maintained either colors or orientations across separate blocks in a single session. We found near-perfect generalization of the load signal between these two conditions, despite being able to simultaneously decode which feature had been voluntarily stored. In Study 2, participants attended to two features with very distinct cortical representations: color and motion coherence. We again found evidence for a neural load signal that robustly generalized across these distinct visual features, even though cortically disparate regions process color and motion coherence. Moreover, representational similarity analysis provided converging evidence for a content-independent load signal, while simultaneously showing that unique variance in EEG activity tracked the specific features that were stored. We posit that this load signal reflects a content-independent "pointer" operation that binds objects to the current context while parallel but distinct neural signals represent the features that are stored for each item in memory.




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Differential Encoding of Two-Tone Harmonics in the Male and Female Mouse Auditory Cortex

Harmonics are an integral part of music, speech, and vocalizations of animals. Since the rest of the auditory environment is primarily made up of nonharmonic sounds, the auditory system needs to perceptually separate the above two kinds of sounds. In mice, harmonics, generally with two-tone components (two-tone harmonic complexes, TTHCs), form an important component of vocal communication. Communication by pups during isolation from the mother and by adult males during courtship elicits typical behaviors in female mice—dams and adult courting females, respectively. Our study shows that the processing of TTHC is specialized in mice providing neural basis for perceptual differences between tones and TTHCs and also nonharmonic sounds. Investigation of responses in the primary auditory cortex (Au1) from in vivo extracellular recordings and two-photon Ca2+ imaging of excitatory and inhibitory neurons to TTHCs exhibit enhancement, suppression, or no-effect with respect to tones. Irrespective of neuron type, harmonic enhancement is maximized, and suppression is minimized when the fundamental frequencies (F0) match the neuron's best fundamental frequency (BF0). Sex-specific processing of TTHC is evident from differences in the distributions of neurons’ best frequency (BF) and best fundamental frequency (BF0) in single units, differences in harmonic suppressed cases re-BF0, independent of neuron types, and from pairwise noise correlations among excitatory and parvalbumin inhibitory interneurons. Furthermore, TTHCs elicit a higher response compared with two-tone nonharmonics in females, but not in males. Thus, our study shows specialized neural processing of TTHCs over tones and nonharmonics, highlighting local network specialization among different neuronal types.




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Anterior Olfactory Cortices Differentially Transform Bottom-Up Odor Signals to Produce Inverse Top-Down Outputs

Odor information arrives first in the main olfactory bulb and is then broadcasted to the olfactory cortices and striatum. Downstream regions have unique cellular and connectivity architectures that may generate different coding patterns to the same odors. To reveal region-specific response features, tuning and decoding of single-unit populations, we recorded responses to the same odors under the same conditions across regions, namely, the main olfactory bulb (MOB), the anterior olfactory nucleus (AON), the anterior piriform cortex (aPC), and the olfactory tubercle of the ventral striatum (OT), of awake male mice. We focused on chemically closely related aldehydes that still create distinct percepts. The MOB had the highest decoding accuracy for aldehydes and was the only region encoding chemical similarity. The MOB had the highest fraction of inhibited responses and narrowly tuned odor-excited responses in terms of timing and odor selectivity. Downstream, the interconnected AON and aPC differed in their response patterns to the same stimuli. While odor-excited responses dominated the AON, the aPC had a comparably high fraction of odor-inhibited responses. Both cortices share a main output target that is the MOB. This prompted us to test if the two regions convey also different net outputs. Aldehydes activated AON terminals in the MOB as a bulk signal but inhibited those from the aPC. The differential cortical projection responses generalized to complex odors. In summary, olfactory regions reveal specialized features in their encoding with AON and aPC differing in their local computations, thereby generating inverse net centrifugal and intercortical outputs.




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The Effect of Congruent versus Incongruent Distractor Positioning on Electrophysiological Signals during Perceptual Decision-Making

Key event-related potentials (ERPs) of perceptual decision-making such as centroparietal positivity (CPP) elucidate how evidence is accumulated toward a given choice. Furthermore, this accumulation can be impacted by visual target selection signals such as the N2 contralateral (N2c). How these underlying neural mechanisms of perceptual decision-making are influenced by the spatial congruence of distractors relative to target stimuli remains unclear. Here, we used electroencephalography (EEG) in humans of both sexes to investigate the effect of distractor spatial congruency (same vs different hemifield relative to targets) on perceptual decision-making. We confirmed that responses for perceptual decisions were slower for spatially incongruent versus congruent distractors of high salience. Similarly, markers of target selection (N2c peak amplitude) and evidence accumulation (CPP slope) were found to be lower when distractors were spatially incongruent versus congruent. To evaluate the effects of congruency further, we applied drift diffusion modeling to participant responses, which showed that larger amplitudes of both ERPs were correlated with shorter nondecision times when considering the effect of congruency. The modeling also suggested that congruency's effect on behavior occurred prior to and during evidence accumulation when considering the effects of the N2c peak and CPP slope. These findings point to spatially incongruent distractors, relative to congruent distractors, influencing decisions as early as the initial sensory processing phase and then continuing to exert an effect as evidence is accumulated throughout the decision-making process. Overall, our findings highlight how key electrophysiological signals of perceptual decision-making are influenced by the spatial congruence of target and distractor.




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Selective Vulnerability of GABAergic Inhibitory Interneurons to Bilirubin Neurotoxicity in the Neonatal Brain

Hyperbilirubinemia (HB) is a key risk factor for hearing loss in neonates, particularly premature infants. Here, we report that bilirubin (BIL)-dependent cell death in the auditory brainstem of neonatal mice of both sexes is significantly attenuated by ZD7288, a blocker for hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channel-mediated current (Ih), or by genetic deletion of HCN1. GABAergic inhibitory interneurons predominantly express HCN1, on which BIL selectively acts to increase their intrinsic excitability and mortality by enhancing HCN1 activity and Ca2+-dependent membrane targeting. Chronic BIL elevation in neonatal mice in vivo increases the fraction of spontaneously active interneurons and their firing frequency, Ih, and death, compromising audition at the young adult stage in HCN1+/+, but not in HCN1–/– genotype. We conclude that HB preferentially targets HCN1 to injure inhibitory interneurons, fueling a feedforward loop in which lessening inhibition cascades hyperexcitability, Ca2+ overload, neuronal death, and auditory impairments. These findings rationalize HCN1 as a potential target for managing HB encephalopathy.




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EphB2 Signaling Is Implicated in Astrocyte-Mediated Parvalbumin Inhibitory Synapse Development

Impaired inhibitory synapse development is suggested to drive neuronal hyperactivity in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and epilepsy. We propose a novel mechanism by which astrocytes control the development of parvalbumin (PV)-specific inhibitory synapses in the hippocampus, implicating ephrin-B/EphB signaling. Here, we utilize genetic approaches to assess functional and structural connectivity between PV and pyramidal cells (PCs) through whole-cell patch–clamp electrophysiology, optogenetics, immunohistochemical analysis, and behaviors in male and female mice. While inhibitory synapse development is adversely affected by PV-specific expression of EphB2, a strong candidate ASD risk gene, astrocytic ephrin-B1 facilitates PV->PC connectivity through a mechanism involving EphB signaling in PV boutons. In contrast, the loss of astrocytic ephrin-B1 reduces PV->PC connectivity and inhibition, resulting in increased seizure susceptibility and an ASD-like phenotype. Our findings underscore the crucial role of astrocytes in regulating inhibitory circuit development and discover a new role of EphB2 receptors in PV-specific inhibitory synapse development.




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Pre- and Postsynaptic MEF2C Promotes Experience-Dependent, Input-Specific Development of Cortical Layer 4 to Layer 2/3 Excitatory Synapses and Regulates Activity-Dependent Expression of Synaptic Cell Adhesion Molecules

Experience- and activity-dependent transcription is a candidate mechanism to mediate development and refinement of specific cortical circuits. Here, we demonstrate that the activity-dependent transcription factor myocyte enhancer factor 2C (MEF2C) is required in both presynaptic layer (L) 4 and postsynaptic L2/3 mouse (male and female) somatosensory (S1) cortical neurons for development of this specific synaptic connection. While postsynaptic deletion of Mef2c weakens L4 synaptic inputs, it has no effect on inputs from local L2/3, contralateral S1, or the ipsilateral frontal/motor cortex. Similarly, homozygous or heterozygous deletion of Mef2c in presynaptic L4 neurons weakens L4 to L2/3 excitatory synaptic inputs by decreasing presynaptic release probability. Postsynaptic MEF2C is specifically required during an early postnatal, experience-dependent, period for L4 to L2/3 synapse function, and expression of transcriptionally active MEF2C (MEF2C-VP16) rescues weak L4 to L2/3 synaptic strength in sensory-deprived mice. Together, these results suggest that experience- and/or activity-dependent transcriptional activation of MEF2C promotes development of L4 to L2/3 synapses. Additionally, MEF2C regulates the expression of many pre- and postsynaptic genes in postnatal cortical neurons. Interestingly, MEF2C was necessary for activity-dependent expression of many presynaptic genes, including those that function in transsynaptic adhesion and neurotransmitter release. This work provides mechanistic insight into the experience-dependent development of specific cortical circuits.




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How Century-Old Paintings Reveal the Indigenous Roots and Natural History of New England Landscapes

Seven guest collaborators bring new eyes to a Smithsonian museum founder’s collection of American art




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What the Long History of Mail-In Voting in the U.S. Reveals About the Election Process

A recent exhibition shows how soldiers sent in votes during the Civil War and World War II, as many Americans would in 2020 following the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic




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These 17 Pictures Tell the Stories of Black Athletes in America

A new book from the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture shows the images and impacts of athletes on and off the playing field




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From Candy to Lightbulbs, Felix Gonzalez-Torres Showed Life and Loss Through Everyday Objects

A new exhibition co-presented by the National Portrait Gallery and the Archives of American Art explores the seminal artist’s work




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Why the Creator of One of the First ‘Lie Detectors’ Lived to Regret His Invention

The early polygraph machine was considered the most scientific way to detect deception—but that was a myth




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This Captivating Guide Uncovers the History and Mystery of Dinosaurs in 50 Fossils

A paleontologist at the Natural History Museum in London chronicles the age of the famous and fascinating massive reptiles




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See a Film That Reimagines History on the Malaysian Island That Served as a Refugee Site After the Vietnam War

The work, now on view at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, tells the story of two characters on the island—the last people alive in the world




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FAO Director-General applauds UN Secretary-General's stance on hunger

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva today praised UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon for his support in the fight against hunger at a meeting with FAO member countries, the Committee [...]




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FAO Director-General to visit 7 countries and to attend 3 multilateral conferences in the next seven weeks

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva will be away from Rome during the next few weeks. During this period he will be involved in a range of [...]




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Senior FAO staff brief United States Senators

Senior staff at FAO yesterday briefed a delegation of five U.S. Senators on FAO’s work on resilience, nutrition, fisheries, climate change, [...]




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Food security tops agenda of FAO Director-General's meeting with India's Prime Minister Modi

The [...]




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FAO Director-General appoints Jacques Diouf as FAO Special Envoy for the Sahel and the Horn of Africa

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva today appointed Jacques Diouf as Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa and the Sahel.

In his new role, the former Director-General Jacques Diouf will [...]




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Director General opens FAO Council meeting

FAO Director-General Graziano da Silva today opened the 150th session of the FAO Council, highlighting the successful conclusion of the Second International Conference on Nutrition (ICN2), held last month in [...]




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FAO Council closure: Director-General urges Members to focus on implementation early in 2015

5 December 2014, Rome – At the closure of the FAO Council held today, the [...]




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FAO Director-General highlights International Year of Soils to Agriculture Ministers in Berlin

Berlin- FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva has highlighted some of the most important events on the organization’s 2015 calendar during meetings with agriculture ministers who attended the Global Forum [...]




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GRULAC endorses FAO Director-General's candidature for a second term

Just announced by the Group of Latin America and the Caribbean Countries (GRULAC)

The Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC) of FAO in Rome is pleased to endorse the [...]




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Incumbent Director-General only candidate for election

Rome - José Graziano da Silva, the [...]




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Africa Regional Group endorses FAO Director-General's candidature for a second term

Rome, The Africa Regional Group of Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives accredited  to the Rome based UN Agencies have announced the endorsement of the candidature of Dr. José Graziano da Silva [...]




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Near East Group endorses FAO Director-General's candidature for a second term

Rome, 02 March 2015 - In a letter addressed to the Director-General, the Chairperson of the Near East Regional Group has announced their endorsement of the candidature [...]




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Asia Regional Group endorses FAO Director-General's candidature for a second term

In a letter addressed to the Director-General, the Ambassador of Malaysia to FAO, on behalf of the Chair of the Asia Group, has announced the endorsement of the [...]




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FAO Director-General listed among the most influential Latin Americans

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva has been selected as one of the world's most influential Latin Americans for his work against hunger and malnutrition in the world. In its [...]




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Webinar: Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems and Ecosystem Restoration

Rome - The experience of farmers who manage agricultural heritage can help achieve the UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration's main goals: support and scale-up efforts [...]




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Follow the Director-General's meetings at the Pre-Summit

The Pre-Summit will bring together the global efforts to shape the transformation of agri-food systems.




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AMR Multi-Stakeholder Partnership Platform - Creating a movement for change through engaging multiple actors and voices

The Tripartite organizations (FAO, OIE, WHO) invite partners to join public discussion on the establishment of the AMR Multi-Stakeholder Partnership Platform.




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FAO Director-General addresses G7 Agriculture Ministers on Global Food Markets and Prices

Click here to access the presentation by QU Dongyu.

 




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Annual Report on Private Sector Engagement, 2021

This newly-released report highlights the progress made since FAO’s Strategy for Private Sector Engagement 2021-2025 was approved during the 165th session of the Council in December 2020. It discusses important [...]




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171st Session of the FAO Council Statement By Dr QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General

A statement by FAO Director-General QU Dongyu




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Candidates for the post of FAO Director-General announced

FAO member nations to choose head of the UN specialized agency in July during the 43rd session of the FAO Conference