| First Author | Scheggia D | Year | 2020 |
| Journal | Nat Neurosci | Volume | 23 |
| Issue | 1 | Pages | 47-60 |
| PubMed ID | 31844317 | Mgi Jnum | J:350596 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:6391748 | Doi | 10.1038/s41593-019-0551-8 |
| Citation | Scheggia D, et al. (2020) Somatostatin interneurons in the prefrontal cortex control affective state discrimination in mice. Nat Neurosci 23(1):47-60 |
| abstractText | The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is implicated in processing of the affective state of others through non-verbal communication. This social cognitive function is thought to rely on an intact cortical neuronal excitatory and inhibitory balance. Here combining in vivo electrophysiology with a behavioral task for affective state discrimination in mice, we show a differential activation of medial PFC (mPFC) neurons during social exploration that depends on the affective state of the conspecific. Optogenetic manipulations revealed a double dissociation between the role of interneurons in social cognition. Specifically, inhibition of mPFC somatostatin (SOM(+)), but not of parvalbumin (PV(+)) interneurons, abolishes affective state discrimination. Accordingly, synchronized activation of mPFC SOM(+) interneurons selectively induces social discrimination. As visualized by in vivo single-cell microendoscopic Ca(2+) imaging, an increased synchronous activity of mPFC SOM(+) interneurons, guiding inhibition of pyramidal neurons, is associated with affective state discrimination. Our findings provide new insights into the neurobiological mechanisms of affective state discrimination. |
