Differential Encoding of Predator Fear in the Ventromedial Hypothalamus and Periaqueductal Grey.

ABSTRACT: The ventromedial hypothalamus is a central node of the mammalian predator defense network. Stimulation of this structure in rodents and primates elicits abrupt defensive responses, including flight, freezing, sympathetic activation, and panic, while inhibition reduces defensive responses to predators. The major efferent target of the ventromedial hypothalamus is the dorsal periaqueductal gray (dPAG), and stimulation of this structure also elicits flight, freezing, and sympathetic activation. However, reversible inhibition experiments suggest that the ventromedial hypothalamus and periaqueductal gray play distinct roles in the control of defensive behavior, with the former proposed to encode an internal state necessary for the motivation of defensive responses, while the latter serves as a

SUBMITTER: Esteban Masferrer M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7687061 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature