Summary of basic electrophysiological properties, onset latencies, and durations of excitatory and inhibitory responses of BNST and VTA neurons to infralimbic cortex stimulation
| BNST neurons projecting to the VTA | BNST neurons not projecting to the VTA | VTA DA neurons | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No. of neurons | n = 32 | n = 175 | n = 41 |
| Spontaneously active neurons (%) | 44 | 51 | 100 |
| Spontaneous firing rate (Hz) | 10.5 ± 2.6 | 9.8 ± 1.1a | 2.8 ± 0.25 |
| Action potential width (ms) | 0.74 ± 0.04 | 0.82 ± 0.02a | 1.25 ± 0.04 |
| Neurons responsive to tail pinch (%) | 21.8 | 20.7 | ND |
| Excitatory response to ILCx stimulation (percentage of neurons) | 81.25 | 71.70 | 86.11 |
| Response magnitude of excitation for spontaneously active neurons (spikes) | 64.3 ± 12.9 | 55.8 ± 6.2a | 61.9 ± 10.1 |
| Response magnitude of excitation for silent neurons (spikes) | 58.6 ± 11.6 | 54.2 ± 7.5a | NA |
| Onset of excitation (ms) | 9.4 ± 0.7 | 11.5 ± 0.7a | 19.7 ± 1.2 |
| Duration of excitation (ms) | 10.5 ± 1.0 | 13.3 ± 1.7a | 19.3 ± 2.1 |
| Onset of inhibition (ms) | 10.9 ± 3.3 | 19.7 ± 3.6a | 44.3 ± 6.0 |
| Duration of inhibition (ms) | 85.0 ± 29.7 | 150.9 ± 20.4a | 99.8 ± 7.8 |
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All values are means ± SEM. Response magnitudes were calculated as described in Materials and Methods. BNST neurons projecting to the VTA are those antidromicaly driven by the VTA stimulation. A two-tailed unpaired Student's t test was performed to compare the basic electrophysiological properties between the two populations of BNST neurons.
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↵aNo significant differences between BNST neuronal populations. ND, Not determined; NA, not applicable.