| First Author | Beier KT | Year | 2015 |
| Journal | Cell | Volume | 162 |
| Issue | 3 | Pages | 622-34 |
| PubMed ID | 26232228 | Mgi Jnum | J:224591 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5688402 | Doi | 10.1016/j.cell.2015.07.015 |
| Citation | Beier KT, et al. (2015) Circuit Architecture of VTA Dopamine Neurons Revealed by Systematic Input-Output Mapping. Cell 162(3):622-34 |
| abstractText | Dopamine (DA) neurons in the midbrain ventral tegmental area (VTA) integrate complex inputs to encode multiple signals that influence motivated behaviors via diverse projections. Here, we combine axon-initiated viral transduction with rabies-mediated trans-synaptic tracing and Cre-based cell-type-specific targeting to systematically map input-output relationships of VTA-DA neurons. We found that VTA-DA (and VTA-GABA) neurons receive excitatory, inhibitory, and modulatory input from diverse sources. VTA-DA neurons projecting to different forebrain regions exhibit specific biases in their input selection. VTA-DA neurons projecting to lateral and medial nucleus accumbens innervate largely non-overlapping striatal targets, with the latter also sending extensive extra-striatal axon collaterals. Using electrophysiology and behavior, we validated new circuits identified in our tracing studies, including a previously unappreciated top-down reinforcing circuit from anterior cortex to lateral nucleus accumbens via VTA-DA neurons. This study highlights the utility of our viral-genetic tracing strategies to elucidate the complex neural substrates that underlie motivated behaviors. |
