The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is implicated in processing of the affective state of others through non-verbal communication. This social cognitive function is thought to rely on an intact cortical neuronal excitatory and inhibitory balance. Here combining in vivo electrophysiology with a behavioral task for affective state discrimination in mice, we show a differential activation of medial PFC (mPFC) neurons during social exploration that depends on the affective state of the conspecific. Optogenetic manipulations revealed a double dissociation between the role of interneurons in social cognition. Specifically, inhibition of mPFC somatostatin (SOM+), but not of parvalbumin (PV+) interneurons, abolishes affective state discrimination. Accordingly, synchronized activation of mPFC SOM+ interneurons selectively induces social discrimination. As visualized by in vivo single-cell microendoscopic Ca2+ imaging, an increased synchronous activity of mPFC SOM+ interneurons, guiding inhibition of pyramidal neurons, is associated with affective state discrimination. Our findings provide new insights into the neurobiological mechanisms of affective state discrimination.

中文翻译：

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前额叶皮层中的生长抑素中间神经元控制小鼠的情感状态辨别。

前额叶皮层 (PFC) 通过非语言交流参与处理他人的情感状态。这种社会认知功能被认为依赖于完整的皮质神经元兴奋和抑制平衡。在这里，将体内电生理学与小鼠情感状态辨别的行为任务相结合，我们展示了在社会探索过程​​中内侧 PFC (mPFC) 神经元的差异激活，这取决于同种的情感状态。光遗传学操作揭示了中间神经元在社会认知中的作用之间的双重分离。具体来说，抑制 mPFC 生长抑素 (SOM+)，但不抑制小白蛋白 (PV+) 中间神经元，消除了情感状态歧视。因此，mPFC SOM+ 中间神经元的同步激活选择性地诱导了社会歧视。正如体内单细胞显微内窥镜 Ca2+ 成像所显示的，mPFC SOM+ 中间神经元的同步活动增加，指导锥体神经元的抑制，与情感状态辨别有关。我们的研究结果为情感状态歧视的神经生物学机制提供了新的见解。