The participation of a neurocircuit from the paraventricular thalamus to amygdala in the depressive like behavior

Depression is a neuropsychological disease derived from genetic, biochemical, environmental, and psychological factors. However the neurocircuits involved in it are not clear. We introduced the forced swimming test (FST) as a model of the depressive like behavior. In our study, the participation of projections from paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) in FST was detected. The retrograde tracing combined with immunofluorescent detection of c-fos was used. Our results showed that the FST greatly increased the c-fos level in PVT and the central amygdale (CE) neurons. These populations of activated neurons in the PVT and the CE were also labeled by the retrograde tracer FG injected in the CE, suggesting that the activation of PVT was involved in this depressive like behavior by relaying information to the CE.

Research highlights▶ Research highlights ▶ Many brain areas send the projections to the CE, including PVT, mPFC, NAc and BNST. ▶ c-fos positive cells increased in the PVT and CE after the forced swimming. ▶ PVT-CE circuit was activated by the forced swimming.