Predation is considered a major selective pressure in the evolution of fear, but the neurophysiology of predator-induced fear is unknown. We simultaneously recorded lateral amygdala (LA) and prelimbic (PL) area neuronal activities as rats exited a safe nest to search for food in an open space before, during, and after encountering a "predator" robot programmed to surge from afar. Distinct populations of LA neurons transiently increased spiking as rats either advanced or fled the robot, whereas PL neurons showed longer-lasting spike trains that preceded and persisted beyond LA activity. Moreover, discrete LA-PL cell pairs displayed correlated firings only when the animals either approached or fled the robot. These results suggest a general fear function of the LA-PL circuit where the PL participates in the initial detection of potential threats, the LA signals the occurrence of real threats, and the dynamic LA-PL interaction optimizes defensive readiness for action.

中文翻译：

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觅食大鼠前边缘皮质和外侧杏仁核之间捕食信息的动态编码。


捕食被认为是恐惧进化中的主要选择压力，但捕食者引起的恐惧的神经生理学尚不清楚。我们同时记录了老鼠离开安全巢穴到开放空间寻找食物时，在遇到被编程为从远处涌来的“捕食者”机器人之前、期间和之后，外侧杏仁核（LA）和前边缘（PL）区域的神经元活动。当大鼠前进或逃离机器人时，不同的 LA 神经元群体的尖峰脉冲会短暂增加，而 PL 神经元则显示出在 LA 活动之前并持续存在的更持久的尖峰序列。此外，只有当动物接近或逃离机器人时，离散的 LA-PL 细胞对才会显示相关的放电。这些结果表明 LA-PL 回路具有一般的恐惧功能，其中 PL 参与潜在威胁的初始检测，LA 发出真实威胁发生的信号，而动态 LA-PL 交互优化了行动的防御准备。