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Selecting danger signals: dissociable roles of nucleus accumbens shell and core glutamate in predictive fear learning
Author(s) -
Li Susan S. Y.,
McNally Gavan P.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
european journal of neuroscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.346
H-Index - 206
eISSN - 1460-9568
pISSN - 0953-816X
DOI - 10.1111/ejn.12892
Subject(s) - ampa receptor , nbqx , nucleus accumbens , glutamate receptor , neuroscience , chemistry , psychology , stimulus (psychology) , nmda receptor , receptor , cognitive psychology , biochemistry , central nervous system
Conditioned stimuli ( CS s) vary in their reliability as predictors of danger. Animals must therefore select among CS s those that are appropriate to enter into an association with the aversive unconditioned stimulus ( US ). The actions of prediction error instruct this stimulus selection so that when prediction error is large, attention to the CS is maintained and learning occurs but when prediction is small attention to the CS is withdrawn and learning is prevented. Here we studied the role of glutamate acting at rat nucleus accumbens shell (AcbSh) and core (AcbC) α‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methyl‐4‐isoxazolepropionic acid ( AMPA ) receptors in this selection of danger signals. Using associative blocking and unblocking designs in rats, we show that antagonizing AcbSh AMPA receptors via infusions of 2,3‐dihydroxy‐6‐nitro‐7‐sulphamoyl‐benzo[f]quinoxaline‐2,3‐dione ( NBQX ; 0.5 μg) prevents the unblocking of fear learning, whereas antagonizing AcbC AMPA receptors via infusions of NBQX (0.5 μg) prevents both the blocking and unblocking of fear learning. These results identify dissociable but complementary roles for AcbSh and AcbC glutamate acting at AMPA receptors in selecting danger signals: AcbSh AMPA receptors upregulate attention and learning to CS s that signal surprising US s, whereas AcbC AMPA receptors encode the predicted outcome of each trial.