RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Control of neocortical memory by long-range inhibition in layer 1
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2022.02.07.479360
DO 10.1101/2022.02.07.479360
A1 Anna Schroeder
A1 M. Belén Pardi
A1 Joram Keijser
A1 Tamas Dalmay
A1 Erin M. Schuman
A1 Henning Sprekeler
A1 Johannes J. Letzkus
YR 2022
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2022/02/08/2022.02.07.479360.abstract
AB Mounting evidence identifies layer 1 (L1) as a central site of memory in sensory neocortex. While this work revealed plasticity in several excitatory brain-wide afferent systems, the existence, connectivity and memory-related signaling of long-range inhibitory input to L1 remains elusive. We report that inhibitory afferents from zona incerta project specifically to auditory cortex L1, where they connect selectively to interneurons to disinhibit the cortical circuit and facilitate behavioral memory. Chronic calcium imaging of these synapses identifies a balanced form of plasticity that develops rapidly during threat learning and is characterized by the de novo appearance of negative stimulus responses which transmit most information. Our results therefore pinpoint malleability of long-range (dis)inhibitory afferents to L1 as a key factor for the exquisite computational flexibility of this unique layer.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.