Social isolation recruits amygdala-cortical circuitry to escalate alcohol drinking.

How do social factors impact the brain and contribute to increased alcohol drinking? We found that social rank predicts alcohol drinking, where subordinates drink more than dominants. Furthermore, social isolation escalates alcohol drinking, particularly impacting subordinates who display a greater increase in alcohol drinking compared to dominants. Using cellular resolution calcium imaging, we show that the basolateral amygdala-medial prefrontal cortex (BLA-mPFC) circuit predicts alcohol drinking in a rank-dependent manner, unlike non-specific BLA activity.

Thalamus sends information about arousal but not valence to the amygdala.

Rationale: The basolateral amygdala (BLA) and medial geniculate nucleus of the thalamus (MGN) have both been shown to be necessary for the formation of associative learning. While the role that the BLA plays in this process has long been emphasized, the MGN has been less well-studied and surrounded by debate regarding whether the relay of sensory information is active or passive.

Objectives: We seek to understand the role the MGN has within the thalamoamgydala circuit in the formation of associative learning.

Neurotensin orchestrates valence assignment in the amygdala.

The ability to associate temporally segregated information and assign positive or negative valence to environmental cues is paramount for survival. Studies have shown that different projections from the basolateral amygdala (BLA) are potentiated following reward or punishment learning. However, we do not yet understand how valence-specific information is routed to the BLA neurons with the appropriate downstream projections, nor do we understand how to reconcile the sub-second timescales of synaptic plasticity with the longer timescales separating the predictive cues from their outcomes.

Cortical ensembles orchestrate social competition through hypothalamic outputs.

Most social species self-organize into dominance hierarchies, which decreases aggression and conserves energy, but it is not clear how individuals know their social rank. We have only begun to learn how the brain represents social rank and guides behaviour on the basis of this representation. The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is involved in social dominance in rodents and humans.

Correcting B inhomogeneity-induced distortions in whole-body diffusion MRI of bone.

Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DWI) of the musculoskeletal system has various applications, including visualization of bone tumors. However, DWI acquired with echo-planar imaging is susceptible to distortions due to static magnetic field inhomogeneities. This study aimed to estimate spatial displacements of bone and to examine whether distortion corrected DWI images more accurately reflect underlying anatomy.

Voxel-level Classification of Prostate Cancer on Magnetic Resonance Imaging: Improving Accuracy Using Four-Compartment Restriction Spectrum Imaging.

Background: Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is integral to detection of prostate cancer (PCa), but conventional apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) cannot capture the complexity of prostate tissues and tends to yield noisy images that do not distinctly highlight cancer. A four-compartment restriction spectrum imaging (RSI ) model was recently found to optimally characterize pelvic diffusion signals, and the model coefficient for the slowest diffusion compartment, RSI -C , yielded greatest tumor conspicuity.

Purpose: To evaluate the slowest diffusion compartment of a four-compartment spectrum imaging model (RSI -C ) as a quantitative voxel-level classifier of PCa.