Abstract
Early-life experiences influence a broad spectrum of behaviors throughout the lifespan that contribute to resilience or vulnerability to mental health disorders. Yet, how emotionally salient experiences early in life are encoded, stored, and processed and the mechanisms by which they influence future behaviors remain poorly understood. The paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) is a key structure in modulating positive and negative experiences and behaviors in adults. However, little is known of the PVT’s role in encoding and integrating emotionally salient experiences that occur during neonatal, infancy, and childhood periods. In this review, we (1) describe the functions and connections of the PVT and its regulation of behavior, (2) introduce novel technical approaches to elucidating the role of the PVT in mediating enduring changes in adult behaviors resulting from early-life experiences, and (3) conclude that PVT neurons of neonatal rodents are engaged by both positive and negative emotionally salient experiences, and their activation may enduringly govern future behavior-modulating PVT activity during emotionally salient contexts.
Highlights
Positive and negative experiences during sensitive developmental periods influence brain maturation to induce lasting alterations to cognitive and emotional behaviors (Fagiolini and Hensch, 2000; Barkat et al, 2011; Callaghan and Richardson, 2011; Danese and Lewis, 2017; Short and Baram, 2019; Levis et al, 2021)
The paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT) influences responses to stress in the context of the occurrence of a prior stress The role of the PVT in encoding memories of remote stress has been further addressed by Do-Monte et al (2015), who found that PVT inhibition 7 or 28 days after conditioning to an auditory tone associated with a foot shock impaired freezing behavior
These findings suggest that the PVT influences responses to stress in a timedependent manner, modulating responses only to old or remote aversive experiences
Summary
Positive and negative experiences during sensitive developmental periods influence brain maturation to induce lasting alterations to cognitive and emotional behaviors (Fagiolini and Hensch, 2000; Barkat et al, 2011; Callaghan and Richardson, 2011; Danese and Lewis, 2017; Short and Baram, 2019; Levis et al, 2021). It is well established that genetics and early-life experiences interact to influence the development of key brain circuits (Klengel et al, 2013; Kundakovic et al, 2013; Di Segni et al, 2016; McIlwrick et al, 2016). The mechanisms by which early-life experiences influence future behavior remain unclear. We discuss the role of the paraventricular nucleus of the thalamus (PVT), a dorsal midline thalamic nucleus, as a sensor and integrator of salient adult experiences, mediating the influence of early-life experiences on future behavior
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