title: A cortical circuit for gain control by behavioral state.
abstract: The brain's response to sensory input is strikingly modulated by behavioral state. Notably, the visual response of mouse primary visual cortex (V1) is enhanced by locomotion, a tractable and accessible example of a time-locked change in cortical state. The neural circuits that transmit behavioral state to sensory cortex to produce this modulation are unknown. In vivo calcium imaging of behaving animals revealed that locomotion activates vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP)-positive neurons in mouse V1 independent of visual stimulation and largely through nicotinic inputs from basal forebrain. Optogenetic activation of VIP neurons increased V1 visual responses in stationary awake mice, artificially mimicking the effect of locomotion, and photolytic damage of VIP neurons abolished the enhancement of V1 responses by locomotion. These findings establish a cortical circuit for the enhancement of visual response by locomotion and provide a potential common circuit for the modulation of sensory processing by behavioral state.
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Neuroscience, Department of Physiology, University of California, 675 Nelson Rising Road, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA. Electronic address: yufu@phy.ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA; MSTP/Neuroscience graduate Program, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11790, USA.
authors.forename: Jason M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Tucciarone
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Neuroscience, Department of Physiology, University of California, 675 Nelson Rising Road, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA.
authors.forename: J Sebastian
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Espinosa
authors.affiliation: Departments of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA.
authors.forename: Nengyin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sheng
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Neuroscience, Department of Physiology, University of California, 675 Nelson Rising Road, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Darcy
authors.affiliation: Departments of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA.
authors.forename: Roger A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Nicoll
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA.
authors.forename: Z Josh
authors.initials: ZJ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Neuroscience, Department of Physiology, University of California, 675 Nelson Rising Road, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA. Electronic address: stryker@phy.ucsf.edu.
authors.forename: Michael P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Stryker
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D059330:GABAergic Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D019579:Neocortex / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism*; D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic / Q000378:metabolism; D012420:Running; D014660:Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide / Q000378:metabolism; D014795:Visual Pathways; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D011978:Receptors, Nicotinic; D014660:Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid