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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2023.11.01.565073

Neuropeptide Signaling Is Required To Implement A Line Attractor Encoding A Persistent Internal Behavioral State

Mountoufaris, G.·Nair, A.·Yang, B.·Kim, D.-W.·Anderson, D. J.
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Abstract

Internal states drive survival behaviors, but their neural implementation is not well understood. Recently we identified a line attractor in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) that represents an internal state of aggressiveness. Line attractors can be implemented by recurrent connectivity and/or neuromodulatory signaling, but evidence for the latter is scant. Here we show that neuropeptidergic signaling is necessary for line attractor dynamics in this system, using a novel approach that integrates cell type-specific, anatomically restricted CRISPR/Cas9-based gene editing with microendoscopic calcium imaging. Co-disruption of receptors for oxytocin and vasopressin in adult VMH Esr1+ neurons that control aggression suppressed attack, reduced persistent neural activity and eliminated line attractor dynamics, while only modestly impacting neural activity and sex- or behavior-tuning. These data identify a requisite role for neuropeptidergic signaling in implementing a behaviorally relevant line attractor. Our approach should facilitate mechanistic studies in neuroscience that bridge different levels of biological function and abstraction.

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Mountoufaris, G., Nair, A., Yang, B., Kim, D.-W., Anderson, D. J.. 2023-11-02. Neuropeptide Signaling Is Required To Implement A Line Attractor Encoding A Persistent Internal Behavioral State. https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.11.01.565073

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