The basolateral amygdala (BLA) is a temporal lobe structure that contributes to a host of behaviors. In particular, it is a central player in learning about aversive events and thus assigning emotional valence to sensory events. It is a cortical-like structure and contains glutamatergic pyramidal neurons and GABAergic interneurons. It is divided into the lateral (LA) and basal (BA) nuclei that have distinct cell types and connections. Interneurons in the BLA are a heterogenous population, some of which have been implicated in specific functional roles. Here we use optogenetics and slice electrophysiology to investigate the innervation, postsynaptic receptor stoichiometry, and plasticity of excitatory inputs onto interneurons within the BLA. Interneurons were divided into six groups based on their discharge properties, each of which received input from the auditory thalamus (AT) and auditory cortex (AC). Auditory innervation was concentrated in the LA, and optogenetic stimulation evoked robust synaptic responses in nearly all interneurons, drove many cells to threshold, and evoked disynaptic inhibition in most interneurons. Auditory input to the BA was sparse, innervated fewer interneurons, and evoked smaller synaptic responses. Biophysically, the subunit composition and distribution of AMPAR and NMDAR also differed between the two nuclei, with fewer BA IN expressing calcium permeable AMPAR, and a higher proportion expressing GluN2B-containing NMDAR. Finally, unlike LA interneurons, LTP could not be induced in the BA. These findings show that interneurons in the LA and BA are physiologically distinct populations and suggest they may have differing roles during associative learning.

基底外侧杏仁核（BLA）是一种颞叶结构，有助于多种行为。特别是，它是学习厌恶事件并因此将感觉价分配给感官事件的中心参与者。它是一种皮质状结构，包含谷氨酸能锥体神经元和GABA能神经元。它分为具有不同细胞类型和连接的外侧核（LA）和基底核（BA）。BLA中的中间神经元是异质种群，其中一些与特定的功能角色有关。在这里，我们使用光遗传学和切片电生理学来研究神经支配，BLA内神经元的兴奋性输入的神经支配，突触后受体化学计量和可塑性。中间神经元根据其放电特性分为六类，每个接收来自听觉丘脑（AT）和听觉皮层（AC）的输入。听觉神经支配集中在洛杉矶，并且光遗传学刺激在几乎所有中间神经元中引起强烈的突触反应，驱使许多细胞达到阈值，并且在大多数中间神经元中引起去突触抑制。向BA的听觉输入稀疏，神经中枢神经支配较少，并且引起的突触反应较小。从生物学上讲，两个核之间的AMPAR和NMDAR的亚基组成和分布也有所不同，表达钙可渗透AMPAR的BA IN较少，表达含GluN2B的NMDAR的比例更高。最后，与LA中间神经元不同，BA无法诱导LTP。