The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been implicated as a site of dysfunction and abnormal morphology in major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, two illnesses that can be brought on by exposure to stress. In animal models, stress has long been shown to induce impairments in tasks known to be mediated by the mPFC, and recent work has demonstrated that chronic stress can ...

Previous studies have shown that the metabotropic glutamate receptor (mGluR)2/3 agonist LY354740 attenuated glutamate release in medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) induced by the non-competitive N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist phencyclidine. In the present study we examined the effects of the more potent mGluR2/3 selective agonist LY379268 on ketamine-evoked glutamate and dopamine ...

Systemic administration of nicotine increases dopaminergic (DA) neuron firing in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), which is thought to underlie nicotine reward. Here, we report that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) plays a critical role in nicotine-induced excitation of VTA DA neurons. In chloral hydrate-anesthetized rats, extracellular single-unit recordings showed that VTA DA neurons exhib...

Long-range synchrony between medial prefrontal cortex, thalamus and hippocampus underlies working memory behavior in mice. Pia-Kelsey O’Neill Presently, there are no antipsychotic drugs capable of treating the cognitive dysfunctions of schizophrenia. In order to inform the development of better therapies, it is essential to understand the mechanism behind dysfunctional cognition, which requires...

In rats, naturally occurring variations in maternal care contribute to the development of individual differences in the behavioral and neuroendocrine responses to stress during adulthood. The dopamine (DA) projection to the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) plays an important role in mediating stress responsivity and is thought to be involved also in regulating sensorimotor gating. In the present...

Dopamine (DA) transmission plays a critical role in the processing of emotionally salient information and in associative learning and memory processes. Within the mammalian brain, neurons within the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) are involved critically in the encoding, expression, and extinction of emotionally salient learned information. Within the mPFC, dopaminergic transmission is involved...

The ability to properly adjust behavioral responses to cues in a changing environment is crucial for survival. Activity in the medial Prefrontal Cortex (mPFC) is thought to both represent rules to guide behavior as well as detect and resolve conflicts between rules in changing contingencies. However, while lesion and pharmacological studies have supported a crucial role for mPFC in this type of...

The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is a key brain region for the control of consummatory behavior. Neuronal activity in this area is modulated when rats initiate consummatory licking and reversible inactivations eliminate reward contrast effects and reduce a measure of palatability, the duration of licking bouts. Together, these data suggest the hypothesis that rhythmic neuronal activity in th...

The ability to produce appropriate physiological and psychological responses to stressful situations depends on accurate recognition and appraisal of such situations. Such ability is also important for proper emotion regulation. A number of studies have suggested that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) plays a significant role in emotion regulation, as well as in the control of physiological e...

Medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) activation has been observed in studies of many types related to emotion regulation, self and familiar other-knowledge, mentalizing, morality, reward, and uncertainty. Furthermore, the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and the lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC), which have reciprocal connections with MPFC, are considered necessary for cognitive regulation. Based on t...