A novel apparatus/protocol designed for optogenetic manipulation and recording of individual neurons during a motivation and working memory task in the rodent

<p>Innovative molecular tools allow neuroscientists to study neural circuitry associated with specific behaviors. Consequently, behavioral methods must be developed to interface with these new molecular tools in order for neuroscientists to identify the causal elements underlying behavior and decision-making processes. Here we present an apparatus and protocol for a novel Go/No-Go behavioral paradigm to study the brain attention and motivation/reward circuitry in awake, head-restrained rodents. This experimental setup allows: (1) Painless and stable restraint of the head and body; (2) Rapid acquisition to simple or complex operant tasks; (3) Repeated electrophysiological single and multiple unit recordings during ongoing behavior; (4) Pharmacological and viral manipulation of various brain regions via targeted guide cannula, and; (5) Optogenetic cell-type specific activation and silencing with simultaneous electrophysiological recording. In addition to the experimental advantages, the head-restraint system is relatively inexpensive and training parameters can be easily modulated to the specifications of the experimenter. The system runs on custom LabView software. In summary, our novel apparatus and protocol allows researchers to study and manipulate components of behavior, such as motivation, impulsivity, and reward-related working memory during an ongoing operant behavioral task without interference from non task-related behaviors. For more information on the custom apparatus, software or to collaborate please visit www.neuro-cloud.net/nature-precedings/dolzani.</p

Photoinhibition of NpHR-transduced PL neuron activity

<p>This dataset includes the results of photoinhibition of spontaneous activity of NpHR-transduced PL neuron using 10-s continuous green laser illumination. Raw data includes the neural signal and TTL signal for generating continuous light illumination. Timestamp data of spike events were used for calculating the averaged firing rates and the autocorrelation histograms.</p

Repeated photoactivation of a ChR2-transduced PL neuron

<p>This dataset is the results of 2-hr recording of ChR2-transduced PL neuron activity in response to repeated (2 min interval, 61 total) 20-Hz blue-light (100 pulses total) stimulation. The dataset includes some representative raw signal and timestamp of spike events for all repetitions. The raw data also includes TTL signal for generating the light pulse.</p

Photoactivation of a ChR2-transduced PL neuron at various frequencies

<p>This dataset includes raw data of ChR2-transduced PL neuron activity in response to blue-light pulse train (10 pulses) at various frequencies (1, 5, 10 and 20 Hz) for each neuron (n=8). The data also includes TTL signal for generating the light pulse.</p

Kinesin Spindle Protein Inhibitors with Diaryl Amine Scaffolds: Crystal Packing Analysis for Improved Aqueous Solubility

Diaryl amine derivatives have been designed and synthesized as novel kinesin spindle protein (KSP) inhibitors based on planar carbazole-type KSP inhibitors with poor aqueous solubility. The new generation of inhibitors was found to show comparable inhibitory activity and high selectivity for KSP, and this was accompanied with improved solubility. Kinetic analysis and molecular modeling studies suggested that these inhibitors work in an ATP-competitive manner via binding to the secondary allosteric site formed by α4 and α6 helices of KSP. Comparative structural investigations on a series of compounds revealed that the higher solubility of diaryl amine-type inhibitors was attributed to fewer van der Waals interactions in the crystal packing and the hydrogen-bond acceptor nitrogen of the aniline moiety for favorable solvation

Cocaine infusions earned before and during the dose-response challenge

<p>This data set represents the number of cocaine infusions each subject earned for the last two days preceding (2a), and for the two consecutive sessions during (2b), the dose-response challenge for mice of each genotype. TRPC5 +/+ = wild-type; TRPC5 -/- = knock-down; "-2" = second to last day leading up to dose-response challenge; "-1" = last day leading up to dose-response challenge; S(0.05) = session with dose 0.05 mg/kg/infusion; S(0.1) = session with dose 0.1 mg/kg/infusion; S(0.75) = session with dose 0.75 mg/kg/infusion; S(2.0) = session with does 2.0 mg/kg/infusion; S1 = first daily session with respective dose; S2 = second daily session with respective dose</p