小柯机器人

美国加州大学伯克利分校Stephan Lammel团队发现，疼痛通过脊柱-臂旁-中脑回路调控多巴胺神经元。相关论文于2021年8月9日在线发表在《自然—神经科学》杂志上。

研究人员表明，臂旁外侧（LPB）神经元的一个亚群对于从脊髓向黑质网状结构（SNR）传递痛觉信号至关重要。SNR投射的LPB神经元被有害刺激激活，在两种不同的疼痛模型中，沉默它们会阻断疼痛反应。以LPB为靶标的和接受痛觉的SNR神经元通过前馈抑制直接调节腹侧被盖区（VTA）多巴胺（DA）神经元活动，并通过抑制VTA投射LPB神经元的不同亚群而间接调节VTA DA神经元的兴奋性驱动。

相应地，敲除投射SNR的LPB神经元足以减少体内疼痛介导DA释放的抑制。确定向DA神经元传递痛觉输入的神经回路对于理解疼痛如何影响学习和行为至关重要。

据悉，疼痛降低了许多VTA DA神经元的活动，但连接痛觉和DA系统的基本神经回路却不为人所知。

附：英文原文

Title: Pain modulates dopamine neurons via a spinal–parabrachial–mesencephalic circuit

Author: Yang, Hongbin, de Jong, Johannes W., Cerniauskas, Ignas, Peck, James R., Lim, Byung Kook, Gong, Hui, Fields, Howard L., Lammel, Stephan

Issue&Volume: 2021-08-09

Abstract: Pain decreases the activity of many ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine (DA) neurons, yet the underlying neural circuitry connecting nociception and the DA system is not understood. Here we show that a subpopulation of lateral parabrachial (LPB) neurons is critical for relaying nociceptive signals from the spinal cord to the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNR). SNR-projecting LPB neurons are activated by noxious stimuli and silencing them blocks pain responses in two different models of pain. LPB-targeted and nociception-recipient SNR neurons regulate VTA DA activity directly through feed-forward inhibition and indirectly by inhibiting a distinct subpopulation of VTA-projecting LPB neurons thereby reducing excitatory drive onto VTA DA neurons. Correspondingly, ablation of SNR-projecting LPB neurons is sufficient to reduce pain-mediated inhibition of DA release in vivo. The identification of a neural circuit conveying nociceptive input to DA neurons is critical to our understanding of how pain influences learning and behavior.

DOI: 10.1038/s41593-021-00903-8

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-021-00903-8

Nature Neuroscience：《自然—神经科学》，创刊于1998年。隶属于施普林格·自然出版集团，最新IF：28.771
官方网址：https://www.nature.com/neuro/
投稿链接：https://mts-nn.nature.com/cgi-bin/main.plex