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Principal Investigator: Cory Matthew Root
Organization: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
Fiscal Year: 2024
Award: $395,000
Funding agency: National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
Project Summary
The brain translates internal representations of the external world into appropriate behaviors. Elucidation of
how sensory information is propagated through hierarchical systems is an important step towards
understanding how the brain instructs behavior. The sense of smell is a tractable model because the pathways
from the nose to associational cortex and emotional structures in the amygdala are relatively concise. Innate
behaviors are stereotypical between animals and likely result from genetically determined and conserved
circuits, making them a tractable model. Our past work has revealed circuits in the cortical amygdala (plCoA)
that mediate innate attraction and aversion to odor. Understanding how the sense organ is wired to the brain to
produce behaviors of different valence is an important biological problem and may provide insight into
emotional responses to sensory stimulation. We have combined anatomical tracing with functional
manipulations to reveal two outputs of the plCoA, the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and medial amygdala (MeA),
that are capable of eliciting approach and avoidance responses, respectively. Further, we have evidence to
suggest that there is a topographic organization to the plCoA circuitry. Thus, we hypothesize that the plCoA
contains topographically organized labeled lines to impart valence on odor-evoked behaviors.
The goal of this proposal is decipher the plCoA circuitry and its connections to the NAc and MeA. We
have demonstrated that the cortical amygdala projections to NAc and MeA are able to generate approach and
avoidance behaviors. Moreover, these projection neurons appear to be distinct from each other. We propose a
model whereby the plCoA sends projections to the NAc to signal positive valence, and to medial amygdala to
signal aversion. We will employ a combination of behavioral experiments, viral tracing, genetics and
endoscopic imaging of neuronal activity to answer three fundamental questions: 1) Do the plCoA projections to
NAc and MeA mediate odor-evoked behaviors? 2) How are the plCoA projection neurons anatomically
organized? 3) Do these projection neurons and their downstream targets exhibit odor tuning for valence? The
answers to these questions will fill a knowledge gab about the representation of odor in the innate pathway and
extend this pathway deeper into the brain towards behavioral output.
Terms: <2-photon><Address><Amygdala><Amygdaloid Body><Amygdaloid Nucleus><Amygdaloid structure><Anatomic Sites><Anatomic structures><Anatomy><Animals><Anterior><Appetite><Appetitive Behavior><Automobile Driving><Behavior><Behavioral><Biological><Brain><Brain Nervous System><Brain region><Calcium><Cell Communication and Signaling><Cell Signaling><Code><Coding System><Data><Desire for food><Disease><Disorder><Emotional><Encephalon><Endoscopy><Esthesia><Exhibits><Genetic><Goals><Higher Order Chromatin Folding><Higher Order Chromatin Structure><Higher Order Structure><Innate Behavior><Instinct><Intracellular Communication and Signaling><Knowledge><Label><Lateral><Measures><Medial><Mediating><Mice><Mice Mammals><Modeling><Motor output><Murine><Mus><Nasal><Nasal Passages Nose><Nerve Cells><Nerve Unit><Nervous System Diseases><Nervous System Disorder><Neural Cell><Neurobiology><Neurocyte><Neurologic Disorders><Neurological Disorders><Neurons><Neurosciences><Nose><Nucleus Accumbens><Odors><Olfaction><Olfactory Pathways><Olfactory system><Optics><Organization Charts><Output><Pathway interactions><Perception><Play><Population><Positive Valence><Respiratory System, Nose, Nasal Passages><Role><Sensation><Sense Organs><Sensory><Series><Signal Transduction><Signal Transduction Systems><Signaling><Smell><Smell Perception><Stereotyping><Stimulus><Structure><System><Testing><Translating><Viral><Volatilization><Work><amygdaloid nuclear complex><anatomical tracing><approach behavior><avoidance behavior><biologic><biological signal transduction><driving><endomicroscopy><endoscopic imaging><experiment><experimental research><experimental study><experiments><gain of function><imaging approach><imaging based approach><insight><loss of function><microendoscopy><neural circuit><neural circuitry><neurobiological><neurocircuitry><neurological disease><neuronal><odor perception><olfactory bulb><olfactory circuitry><olfactory circuits><olfactory perception><optical><optogenetics><organizational structure><pathway><piriform cortex><response><sensory system><social role><synaptic circuit><synaptic circuitry><tool><two-photon>