Activity of a direct VTA to ventral pallidum GABA pathway encodes unconditioned reward value and sustains motivation for reward.

ABSTRACT: Dopamine signaling from the ventral tegmental area (VTA) plays critical roles in reward-related behaviors, but less is known about the functions of neighboring VTA GABAergic neurons. We show here that a primary target of VTA GABA projection neurons is the ventral pallidum (VP). Activity of VTA-to-VP-projecting GABA neurons correlates consistently with size and palatability of the reward and does not change following cue learning, providing a direct measure of reward value. Chemogenetic stimulation of this GABA projection increased activity of a subset of VP neurons that were active while mice were seeking reward. Optogenetic stimulation of this pathway improved performance in a cue-reward task and maintained motivation to work for reward over days. This VTA GABA projection provides informa

SUBMITTER: Zhou WL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9581470 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature