mPFC spindle cycles organize sparse thalamic activation and recently active CA1 cells during non-REM sleep

Sleep oscillations in the neocortex and hippocampus are critical for the integration of new memories into stable generalized representations in neocortex. However, the role of the thalamus in this process is poorly understood. To determine the thalamic contribution to non-REM oscillations (sharp-wav...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:eLife 2020-06, Vol.9
Main Authors: Varela, Carmen, Wilson, Matthew A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Action Potentials - physiology
Animals
CA1 Region, Hippocampal - cytology
CA1 Region, Hippocampal - physiopathology
Cell activation
Electrodes, Implanted
hippocampus
Integration
Male
Memory
Memory - physiology
memory consolidation
Neocortex
Neurons - physiology
Neuroscience
NREM sleep
Oscillations
Prefrontal Cortex - cytology
Prefrontal Cortex - physiology
Rats
Rats, Long-Evans
Recording sessions
REM sleep
ripples
Sleep
Sleep - physiology
spindles
Thalamus
Thalamus - physiology
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Summary:Sleep oscillations in the neocortex and hippocampus are critical for the integration of new memories into stable generalized representations in neocortex. However, the role of the thalamus in this process is poorly understood. To determine the thalamic contribution to non-REM oscillations (sharp-wave ripples, SWRs; slow/delta; spindles), we recorded units and local field potentials (LFPs) simultaneously in the limbic thalamus, mPFC, and CA1 in rats. We report that the cycles of neocortical spindles provide a key temporal window that coordinates CA1 SWRs with sparse but consistent activation of thalamic units. Thalamic units were phase-locked to delta and spindles in mPFC, and fired at consistent lags with other thalamic units within spindles, while CA1 units that were active during spatial exploration were engaged in SWR-coupled spindles after behavior. The sparse thalamic firing could promote an incremental integration of recently acquired memory traces into neocortical schemas through the interleaved activation of thalamocortical cells.
ISSN:2050-084X
2050-084X
DOI:10.7554/eLife.48881