Bidirectional synaptic changes in deep and superficial hippocampal neurons following in vivo activity.

Neuronal activity during experience is thought to induce plastic changes within the hippocampal network that underlie memory formation, although the extent and details of such changes in vivo remain unclear. Here, we employed a temporally precise marker of neuronal activity, CaMPARI2, to label active CA1 hippocampal neurons in vivo, followed by immediate acute slice preparation and electrophysiological quantification of synaptic properties. Recently active neurons in the superficial sublayer of stratum pyramidale displayed larger post-synaptic responses at excitatory synapses from area CA3, with no change in pre-synaptic release probability.

Neural circuits: How the songbird brain orchestrates courtship displays.

Volitional production of complex behaviors can be motivated by intrinsic rewards and also by extrinsic cues, like social engagement. A new study has revealed the neural circuit permitting social motivation to release multi-component courtship behaviors in a songbird, specifically the zebra finch.

Autism-linked gene FoxP1 selectively regulates the cultural transmission of learned vocalizations.

Autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are characterized by impaired learning of social skills and language. Memories of how parents and other social models behave are used to guide behavioral learning. How ASD-linked genes affect the intertwined aspects of observational learning and behavioral imitation is not known.

Stress undermines reward-guided cognitive performance through synaptic depression in the lateral habenula.

Weighing alternatives during reward pursuit is a vital cognitive computation that, when disrupted by stress, yields aspects of neuropsychiatric disorders. To examine the neural mechanisms underlying these phenomena, we employed a behavioral task in which mice were confronted by a reward and its omission (i.e.

Memory circuits for vocal imitation.

Many complex behaviors exhibited by social species are first learned by imitating the behavior of other more experienced individuals. Speech and language are the most widely appreciated behaviors learned in this way. Vocal imitation in songbirds is perhaps the best studied socially transmitted behavior, and research over the past few years has begun to crack the circuit mechanisms for how songbirds learn from vocal models.