I’m excited to share a new paper from the lab. The study led by Xiaowei Gu reveals how the mPFC encodes complex emotional memories, using an internal model to infer emotional associations and memories via projections to the amygdala. a🧵(1/8) rdcu.be/el19t - ThreadSky

jojolab.bsky.social • 19 days ago

I’m excited to share a new paper from the lab. The study led by Xiaowei Gu reveals how the mPFC encodes complex emotional memories, using an internal model to infer emotional associations and memories via projections to the amygdala. a🧵(1/8)

https://rdcu.be/el19t

Comments

twbredy.bsky.social•19 days ago

Congrats Josh, very cool. Only two authors. A throwback to better days in science.

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks Tim! The good old days are now:)

davidweinshenker.bsky.social•19 days ago

Congrats Josh and team!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks David!

labpapaleo.bsky.social•18 days ago

Congrats Josh and Xiaowei, looking forward to dig into it well!! It seems very relevant to our recent findings on mPFC CRF neurons holding emotional memories when exposed to others' same emotional state! I would love to hear your opinion https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-024-01816-y

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks Francesco! Yes, there is definitely synergy of ideas here. I'd love to talk more about it.

martinowk.bsky.social•19 days ago

Congrats to you and Xiaowei - this is great!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks Keri!

neuroendoawf.bsky.social•19 days ago

So, so cool. Congrats team for this fantastic work!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks!

zhenggang.bsky.social•19 days ago

Congrats, Josh and Xiaowei!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks!

superkash.bsky.social•19 days ago

congratulations Josh and Xiaowei! I need to dive in!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks Tom!

jojolab.bsky.social•19 days ago

Emotions are rich and complex, often arising from internal brain models which evaluate situations in the context of our life experience. While we understand simple forms of emotional learning involving areas like amygdala, the mechanisms of complex emotions are unclear. (2/8)

jojolab.bsky.social•19 days ago

We used longitudinal miniscope calcium imaging and optogenetics to examine whether and, if so, how prelimbic mPFC neurons encode internal models of emotion which reflect sensory-sensory associations and their direct or indirect relationship with an aversive experience (3/8)

jojolab.bsky.social•19 days ago

We found that mPFC neurons encode a flexible internal model of emotional associations, boosting and linking mPFC representations of aversive events with representations of stimuli which were directly or indirectly associated with them. (4/8)

jojolab.bsky.social•19 days ago

Unlike areas like the hippocampus and orbitofrontal cortex, mPFC population activity did not encode sensory-sensory associations alone. Dramatic changes in mPFC representational structure were only apparent following aversive learning (5/8)

jojolab.bsky.social•19 days ago

We also identified a novel coding/plasticity mechanism for forming these types of internal models. While sensory-sensory learning doesn't affect population coding, it tags a specific population of mPFC neurons which are then captured during aversive learning and used for inferred memory recall.(6/8)

labpapaleo.bsky.social•18 days ago

Do you know the identity of these specific population of mPFC neurons? It might be relevant to our recent work: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-024-01816-y

jojolab.bsky.social•19 days ago

Finally, we discovered that a specific population of mPFC neurons which project to the amygdala specifically encode and are required for recall of inferred emotional memories, but not memories for stimuli which were directly associated with aversive events (7/8)

macaskillaf.bsky.social•18 days ago

Congrats Josh! Really cool!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks Andrew!

aliciaizquierdo.bsky.social•19 days ago

Congrats Josh, looking forward to reading this!

jojolab.bsky.social•18 days ago

Thanks Alicia! Would love to hear what you think

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