title: Thalamic Inhibition: Diverse Sources, Diverse Scales.
abstract: The thalamus is the major source of cortical inputs shaping sensation, action, and cognition. Thalamic circuits are targeted by two major inhibitory systems: the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) and extrathalamic inhibitory (ETI) inputs. A unifying framework of how these systems operate is currently lacking. Here, we propose that TRN circuits are specialized to exert thalamic control at different spatiotemporal scales. Local inhibition of thalamic spike rates prevails during attentional selection, whereas global inhibition more likely prevails during sleep. In contrast, the ETI (arising from basal ganglia, zona incerta (ZI), anterior pretectum, and pontine reticular formation) provides temporally precise and focal inhibition, impacting spike timing. Together, these inhibitory systems allow graded control of thalamic output, enabling thalamocortical operations to dynamically match ongoing behavioral demands.
authors: New York University Neuroscience Institute and the Departments of Psychiatry, Neuroscience and Physiology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, 10016, USA; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, 10016, USA. Electronic address: michael.halassa@nyumc.org.
authors: Michael M
authors: MM
authors: Halassa
authors: Laboratory of Thalamus Research, Institute of Experimental Medicine, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest, 1083 Hungary. Electronic address: acsady@koki.hu.
authors: László
authors: L
authors: Acsády
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001479:Basal Ganglia / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007266:Inhibition, Psychological; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000502:physiology*; D013787:Thalamic Nuclei / Q000502:physiology*; D013788:Thalamus / Q000502:physiology*
keywords: GABA; basal ganglia; reticular thalamic nucleus; thalamocortical