Experience-Dependent Plasticity of Thalamoprefrontal Circuitry Characterizes Learning Across Species

Learning is an adaptive process which is thought to require precise coordination among multiple brain regions over time. Thalamoprefrontal circuitry is central to multiple domains of cognitive control and executive function, yet its evolution during learning is not characterized. In this study, we explored thalamoprefrontal circuit signaling in mice and connectivity dynamics in humans over the course of learning a homologous psychomotor task. In mice, we targeted a genetically encoded Ca2+indicator to the mediodorsal-prefrontal (MdT-dmPFC) projection and used fiber photometry to record synaptic dorsomedial PFC (dmPFC) activity. As learning sessions progressed, all mice demonstrated a decrease in reaction time (RT) performance on successful trials (p 2). Overall, these findings may provide cross-species evidence of novel, conserved thalamoprefrontal circuit mechanisms of adaptive learning.