Anterior cingulate cortex and its input to the basolateral amygdala control innate fear response

ACA (Anterior cingulate area) MBA:31 functionally connects to BLA (Basolateral amygdalar nucleus) MBA:295 · Mouse

Light activation of ChR2-expressing ACC axons in slices evoked short-latency PSPs in BLA neurons. The PSPs persisted in TTX plus 4-AP, consistent with a monosynaptic input, and were abolished by NBQX plus APV, showing they are glutamatergic. Results were replicated in wild-type mice with CaMKIIa-ChR2 in the ACC.

Fig. 5i-n; Supplementary Fig. 5a-i

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ACA (Anterior cingulate area) MBA:31 functionally connects to CEA (Central amygdalar nucleus) MBA:536 · Mouse

Optogenetic stimulation of ACC terminals produced no detectable PSPs in any of the CeA cells recorded, including CeA cells in the same slices where BLA cells responded.

Supplementary Fig. 5a-e, g, i

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ACA (Anterior cingulate area) MBA:31 synapses onto CEA (Central amygdalar nucleus) MBA:536 · Mouse

After AAV1-hSyn-Cre anterograde transneuronal labelling from the ACC, only a handful of tdTomato-positive cells were found in the CeA: 8 and 3 cells in the two mice. The authors call this a very sparse input.

Fig. 5p-q

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ACA (Anterior cingulate area) MBA:31 synapses onto BLA (Basolateral amygdalar nucleus) MBA:295 · Mouse

Anterograde transneuronal AAV1-hSyn-Cre injected into the ACC of Ai9 mice produced many tdTomato-labelled postsynaptic neurons in the BLA: 204 and 77 cells in the two mice. The authors describe this as the predominant, major ACC input in the amygdala.

Fig. 5j, o-q

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ACA (Anterior cingulate area) MBA:31 projects to BLA (Basolateral amygdalar nucleus) MBA:295 · Mouse

CAV2-Cre injected into the BLA, combined with Cre-dependent eYFP in the ACC, labelled ACC neurons mainly in layer V on the same side, with fewer labelled neurons in the opposite ACC, in all five mice.

Fig. 5d-f; Fig. 6b

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ACA (Anterior cingulate area) MBA:31 projects to BLA (Basolateral amygdalar nucleus) MBA:295 · Mouse

Expressing the presynaptic marker eGFP-Syb2 in caudal ACC neurons gave strong labelled terminals in the BLA in all three mice, making it the main amygdala target. Most Syb2 puncta in the BLA co-localized with VGLUT1 rather than VGAT.

Fig. 5a-c, g-h

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