Sensory responses in dorsolateral striatum are modulated by motor activity in a dopamine-dependent manner

Abstract

The dorsolateral striatum (DLS) receives excitatory inputs from both sensory and motor cortical regions and is involved in sensory and motor functions. In cortical regions, sensory responses are altered by motor activity, however, it is not known if such sensorimotor interactions also occur in the striatum and how they are modulated by dopamine (DA). To determine the impact of motor activity on striatal sensory processing, we performed in vivo whole-cell recordings in the DLS of awake mice during the presentation of tactile stimuli. Striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs) were activated by both whisker stimulation and spontaneous whisking, however, responses to whisker deflection during ongoing whisking were attenuated. DA depletion reduced the representation of whisking in direct-pathway MSNs, but not in those of the indirect-pathway. Furthermore, DA depletion impaired the discrimination between ipsi- and contralateral sensory stimulation in both direct- and indirect- pathway MSNs. Our results show that sensory responses in basal ganglia circuits are modulated by motor activity and that both processes are dopamine- and cell type-dependent.