title: ErbB4 regulation of a thalamic reticular nucleus circuit for sensory selection.
abstract: Selective processing of behaviorally relevant sensory inputs against irrelevant ones is a fundamental cognitive function whose impairment has been implicated in major psychiatric disorders. It is known that the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) gates sensory information en route to the cortex, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here we show in mice that deficiency of the Erbb4 gene in somatostatin-expressing TRN neurons markedly alters behaviors that are dependent on sensory selection. Whereas the performance of the Erbb4-deficient mice in identifying targets from distractors was improved, their ability to switch attention between conflicting sensory cues was impaired. These behavioral changes were mediated by an enhanced cortical drive onto the TRN that promotes the TRN-mediated cortical feedback inhibition of thalamic neurons. Our results uncover a previously unknown role of ErbB4 in regulating cortico-TRN-thalamic circuit function. We propose that ErbB4 sets the sensitivity of the TRN to cortical inputs at levels that can support sensory selection while allowing behavioral flexibility.
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ahrens
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Santiago
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jaramillo
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Sanchari
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Ga-Ram
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Raehum
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Paik
authors.affiliation: Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, USA.
authors.forename: Cary
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Miao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Z Josh
authors.initials: ZJ
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.affiliation: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, USA.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology; D002755:Choice Behavior; D004192:Discrimination, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D066247:Receptor, ErbB-4 / Q000502:physiology*; D012677:Sensation / Q000502:physiology*; D055139:Sensory Gating / Q000502:physiology*; D013569:Synapses / Q000502:physiology; D013787:Thalamic Nuclei / Q000502:physiology*; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: C587690:Erbb4 protein, mouse; D066247:Receptor, ErbB-4