The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity
Abstract The cerebral cortex is vital for the processing and perception of sensory stimuli. In the somatosensory axis, information is received primarily by two distinct regions, the primary (S1) and secondary (S2) somatosensory cortices. Top-down circuits stemming from S1 can modulate mechanical and...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2024-02-01
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| Series: | Nature Communications |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45729-7 |
| _version_ | 1797274114058092544 |
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| author | Daniel G. Taub Qiufen Jiang Francesca Pietrafesa Junfeng Su Aloe Carroll Caitlin Greene Michael R. Blanchard Aakanksha Jain Mahmoud El-Rifai Alexis Callen Katherine Yager Clara Chung Zhigang He Chinfei Chen Clifford J. Woolf |
| author_facet | Daniel G. Taub Qiufen Jiang Francesca Pietrafesa Junfeng Su Aloe Carroll Caitlin Greene Michael R. Blanchard Aakanksha Jain Mahmoud El-Rifai Alexis Callen Katherine Yager Clara Chung Zhigang He Chinfei Chen Clifford J. Woolf |
| author_sort | Daniel G. Taub |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The cerebral cortex is vital for the processing and perception of sensory stimuli. In the somatosensory axis, information is received primarily by two distinct regions, the primary (S1) and secondary (S2) somatosensory cortices. Top-down circuits stemming from S1 can modulate mechanical and cooling but not heat stimuli such that circuit inhibition causes blunted perception. This suggests that responsiveness to particular somatosensory stimuli occurs in a modality specific fashion and we sought to determine additional cortical substrates. In this work, we identify in a mouse model that inhibition of S2 output increases mechanical and heat, but not cooling sensitivity, in contrast to S1. Combining 2-photon anatomical reconstruction with chemogenetic inhibition of specific S2 circuits, we discover that S2 projections to the secondary motor cortex (M2) govern mechanical and heat sensitivity without affecting motor performance or anxiety. Taken together, we show that S2 is an essential cortical structure that governs mechanical and heat sensitivity. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T14:53:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9e073c85d0df4663aabacd3520049eed |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2041-1723 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T14:53:43Z |
| publishDate | 2024-02-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nature Communications |
| spelling | doaj.art-9e073c85d0df4663aabacd3520049eed2024-03-05T19:34:26ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232024-02-0115111510.1038/s41467-024-45729-7The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivityDaniel G. Taub0Qiufen Jiang1Francesca Pietrafesa2Junfeng Su3Aloe Carroll4Caitlin Greene5Michael R. Blanchard6Aakanksha Jain7Mahmoud El-Rifai8Alexis Callen9Katherine Yager10Clara Chung11Zhigang He12Chinfei Chen13Clifford J. Woolf14F. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalCollege of Sciences, Northeastern UniversityF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalDepartment of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical SchoolF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalDepartment of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical SchoolMorrissey College of Arts and Sciences, Boston CollegeMorrissey College of Arts and Sciences, Boston CollegeDepartment of Neuroscience, Boston UniversityF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalF. M. Kirby Neurobiology Center and Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s HospitalAbstract The cerebral cortex is vital for the processing and perception of sensory stimuli. In the somatosensory axis, information is received primarily by two distinct regions, the primary (S1) and secondary (S2) somatosensory cortices. Top-down circuits stemming from S1 can modulate mechanical and cooling but not heat stimuli such that circuit inhibition causes blunted perception. This suggests that responsiveness to particular somatosensory stimuli occurs in a modality specific fashion and we sought to determine additional cortical substrates. In this work, we identify in a mouse model that inhibition of S2 output increases mechanical and heat, but not cooling sensitivity, in contrast to S1. Combining 2-photon anatomical reconstruction with chemogenetic inhibition of specific S2 circuits, we discover that S2 projections to the secondary motor cortex (M2) govern mechanical and heat sensitivity without affecting motor performance or anxiety. Taken together, we show that S2 is an essential cortical structure that governs mechanical and heat sensitivity.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45729-7 |
| spellingShingle | Daniel G. Taub Qiufen Jiang Francesca Pietrafesa Junfeng Su Aloe Carroll Caitlin Greene Michael R. Blanchard Aakanksha Jain Mahmoud El-Rifai Alexis Callen Katherine Yager Clara Chung Zhigang He Chinfei Chen Clifford J. Woolf The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity Nature Communications |
| title | The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity |
| title_full | The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity |
| title_fullStr | The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity |
| title_full_unstemmed | The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity |
| title_short | The secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity |
| title_sort | secondary somatosensory cortex gates mechanical and heat sensitivity |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-45729-7 |
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