Ranier Gutiérrez

The Crunchometer: A Low-Cost, Open-Source Acoustic Analysis of Feeding Microstructure

The paper introduces the Crunchometer, an open-source acoustic system for high-resolution feeding analysis, and shows it detects changes in feeding behavior and identifies meal-related neurons in mice.

Sex-specific effects of appetite suppressants and stereotypy in rats

This study examines sex-specific effects of appetite suppressants on weight and motor side effects in rats, finding differential weight loss and stereotypy patterns between males and females.

The effect of chronic stress and chronic alcohol intake on behavior, brain structure, and functional connectivity in a rat model

This study examines the combined effects of chronic stress and ethanol intake on brain structure, function, and behavior in rats, finding sex-dependent impacts on brain volume and connectivity.

Nucleus accumbens D2-expressing neurons: Balancing reward and licking disruption through rhythmic optogenetic stimulation

This study investigates the role of NAc D2-expressing neurons in reward processing using optogenetic stimulation, finding that activation has rewarding effects but disrupts licking behavior, while inhibition induces a negative hedonic state.

Sequential and dynamic coding of water-sucrose categorization in rat gustatory cortices

The paper investigates how rats categorize sucrose solutions from water using neural activity in the anterior insular cortex and orbitofrontal cortex, finding dynamic and sequential coding rather than static representations.

The flow of reward information through neuronal ensembles in the accumbens

The paper investigates how reward information flows through neuronal ensembles in the nucleus accumbens shell during reinforcement learning in rats.

Tesofensine, a novel antiobesity drug, silences GABAergic hypothalamic neurons

This study investigates tesofensine's effects on weight loss and neuronal mechanisms in mice and rats, finding it suppresses appetite and prevents weight rebound.

Optoception: perception of optogenetic brain stimulation

The paper demonstrates that mice can perceive optogenetic stimulation as a cue, termed optoception, and use it to learn behaviors based on laser frequency.

Lateral Hypothalamic GABAergic neurons encode and potentiate sucrose palatability

This study identifies LHAVgat+ GABAergic neurons in mice that encode and potentiate sucrose palatability by modulating licking responses and consumption behavior.

Sucrose intensity coding and decision-making in rat gustatory cortices

The paper investigates how sucrose intensity is encoded and used for decision-making in rat gustatory cortices, finding that a few intensity-selective neurons convey most of the information.