Journal
JOURNAL OF NEUROPHYSIOLOGY
Volume 107, Issue 7, Pages 2008-2019Publisher
AMER PHYSIOLOGICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1152/jn.00870.2011
Keywords
nucleus basalis; basal forebrain; acetylcholine
Categories
Funding
- National Institute of Mental Health [5T32MH067564-08, 5R21MH085117-02]
- Brain Research Foundation (BRF) [SG 2010-13]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Kalmbach A, Hedrick T, Waters J. Selective optogenetic stimulation of cholinergic axons in neocortex. J Neurophysiol 107: 2008-2019, 2012. First published January 11, 2012; doi: 10.1152/jn.00870.2011.Acetylcholine profoundly affects neocortical function, being involved in arousal, attention, learning, memory, sensory and motor function, and plasticity. The majority of cholinergic afferents to neocortex are from neurons in nucleus basalis. Nucleus basalis also contains projecting neurons that release other transmitters, including GABA and possibly glutamate. Hence, electrical stimulation of nucleus basalis evokes the release of a mixture of neurotransmitters in neocortex, and this lack of selectivity has impeded research on cholinergic signaling in neocortex. We describe a method for the selective stimulation of cholinergic axons in neocortex. We used the Cre-lox system and a viral vector to express the light-activated protein channelrhodopsin-2 in cholinergic neurons in nucleus basalis and their axons in neocortex. Labeled neurons depolarized on illumination with blue light but were otherwise unchanged. In anesthetized mice, illumination of neocortex desynchronized the local field potential, indicating that light evoked release of ACh. This novel technique will enable many new studies of the cellular, network, and behavioral physiology of ACh in neocortex.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available