The bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) plays a critical role in regulating anxiety, yet the involved specific cell types and their connections functioning in anxiety-related behaviors remains elusive. Here we identified two cell subpopulations—corticotropin-releasing hormone-positive (CRH+) and protein kinase C-δ-positive (PKC-δ+) neurons—each displayed discrete emotionally valenced behaviors in the anterior-dorsal BNST (adBNST). Using whole-cell patch-clamp recordings and virus-assisted circuit tracing techniques, we delineated the local and long-range connectivity networks in a cell-type-specific manner. The results show that the CRH+ and PKC-δ+ neurons received inputs from similar brain regions and exhibited significant differences in the downstream projection density. In addition, in vivo calcium imaging as well as gain- and loss-of-function studies characterized the physiological response properties and the functional heterogeneities in modulating anxiety, further suggesting the similarity and individuality between the two adBNST cell types. These results provide novel insights into the circuit architecture of adBNST neurons underlying the functionally specific neural pathways that relate to anxiety disorders.

终纹床核 (BNST) 在调节焦虑中起着关键作用，但所涉及的特定细胞类型及其在焦虑相关行为中起作用的连接仍然难以捉摸。在这里，我们确定了两个细胞亚群——促肾上腺皮质激素释放激素阳性 (CRH+) 和蛋白激酶 C - δ阳性 (PKC- δ +) 神经元——每个细胞亚群在前背侧 BNST (adBNST) 中都表现出离散的情绪效价行为。使用全细胞膜片钳记录和病毒辅助电路追踪技术，我们以特定于细胞类型的方式描述了本地和远程连接网络。结果表明，CRH+和PKC- δ+ 神经元从相似的大脑区域接收输入，并在下游投射密度方面表现出显着差异。此外，体内钙成像以及功能获得和丧失研究表征了调节焦虑的生理反应特性和功能异质性，进一步表明两种 adBNST 细胞类型之间的相似性和个性。这些结果为 adBNST 神经元的电路结构提供了新的见解，这些神经元是与焦虑症相关的功能特异性神经通路的基础。