Cell Reports
Volume 9, Issue 5, 11 December 2014, Pages 1654-1660
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Cholinergic Signals in Mouse Barrel Cortex during Active Whisker Sensing

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2014.11.005Get rights and content
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open access

Highlights

  • Cholinergic axons in the barrel cortex increase activity during whisking

  • After thalamic inactivation, cholinergic antagonists block whisking cortical state

  • Optogenetic stimulation of cholinergic neurons mimics the whisking cortical state

  • Acetylcholine release during whisking acts to suppress slow cortical activity

Summary

Internal brain states affect sensory perception, cognition, and learning. Many neocortical areas exhibit changes in the pattern and synchrony of neuronal activity during quiet versus active behaviors. Active behaviors are typically associated with desynchronized cortical dynamics. Increased thalamic firing contributes importantly to desynchronize mouse barrel cortex during active whisker sensing. However, a whisking-related cortical state change persists after thalamic inactivation, which is mediated at least in part by acetylcholine, as we show here by using whole-cell recordings, local pharmacology, axonal calcium imaging, and optogenetic stimulation. During whisking, we find prominent cholinergic signals in the barrel cortex, which suppress spontaneous cortical activity. The desynchronized state of barrel cortex during whisking is therefore driven by at least two distinct signals with opposing functions: increased thalamic activity driving glutamatergic excitation of the cortex and increased cholinergic input suppressing spontaneous cortical activity.

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This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

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Co-senior author

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Present address: Department of Neuroscience, University of Geneva, Geneva 1211, Switzerland