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Dynamic representations of valence in anterior cingulate cortex in mice
Priyodarshan Goswamee1,2, Nilanjana Saferin1, Radha Shah3
1Department of Neuroscience and Psychiatry, University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Toledo, OH, United States.
Cerebral Cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
|May 22, 2026
Summary
The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) dynamically represents cue salience during fear memory recall. Its neural activity reorganizes, showing flexible hub-like properties in fear memory processing.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Systems Neuroscience
Background:
- The hippocampus and amygdala are crucial for fear memory.
- The anterior cingulate cortex's (ACC) role in recent fear memory recall is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural activity of the ACC during fear memory recall.
- To understand how ACC neural responses change over time and with stimulus repetition.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal single-photon calcium imaging in male mice.
- Auditory fear conditioning and conditioned stimulus (CS) presentation.
- Ensemble analysis of neural activity and synchrony.
Main Results:
- ACC neural responses to the CS were strongest to novel presentations and declined with repetition.
- Distinct neuronal subpopulations ('freezing on' and 'freezing off') were identified.
- ACC neural activity reorganized within and across sessions, reflecting dynamic changes in cue salience.
Conclusions:
- The ACC exhibits dynamic changes in population activity, recruitment, and synchrony during fear memory recall.
- These changes mirror the shifting salience of cues relative to novelty and negative valence.
- The ACC functions as a flexible hub, dynamically representing cue salience in fear memory.
