Stimulation of VTA dopamine inputs to LH upregulates orexin neuronal activity in a DRD2-dependent manner.

ABSTRACT: Dopamine and orexins (hypocretins) play important roles in regulating reward-seeking behaviors. It is known that hypothalamic orexinergic neurons project to dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), where they can stimulate dopaminergic neuronal activity. Although there are reciprocal connections between dopaminergic and orexinergic systems, whether and how dopamine regulates the activity of orexin neurons is currently not known. Here we implemented an opto-Pavlovian task in which mice learn to associate a sensory cue with optogenetic dopamine neuron stimulation to investigate the relationship between dopamine release and orexin neuron activity in the lateral hypothalamus (LH). We found that dopamine release can be evoked in LH upon optogenetic stimulation of VTA dopamine neuro

SUBMITTER: Harada M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10990487 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature