Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences, Life Sciences Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States.
Elife. 2020 Sep 1;9:e59003. doi: 10.7554/eLife.59003.
The basolateral amygdala complex (BLA), extensively connected with both local amygdalar nuclei as well as long-range circuits, is involved in a diverse array of functional roles. Understanding the mechanisms of such functional diversity will be greatly informed by understanding the cell-type-specific landscape of the BLA. Here, beginning with single-cell RNA sequencing, we identified both discrete and graded continuous gene-expression differences within the mouse BLA. Via in situ hybridization, we next mapped this discrete transcriptomic heterogeneity onto a sharp spatial border between the basal and lateral amygdala nuclei, and identified continuous spatial gene-expression gradients within each of these regions. These discrete and continuous spatial transformations of transcriptomic cell-type identity were recapitulated by local morphology as well as long-range connectivity. Thus, BLA excitatory neurons are a highly heterogenous collection of neurons that spatially covary in molecular, cellular, and circuit properties. This heterogeneity likely drives pronounced spatial variation in BLA computation and function.
外侧杏仁核复合体（BLA）与局部杏仁核核以及远距离回路广泛连接，参与了多种功能角色。通过了解 BLA 的细胞类型特异性景观，将极大地了解这种功能多样性的机制。在这里，我们从单细胞 RNA 测序开始，在小鼠 BLA 内鉴定了离散的和渐变的连续基因表达差异。通过原位杂交，我们将这种离散的转录组异质性映射到基底和外侧杏仁核核之间的明显空间边界上，并在每个区域内鉴定了连续的空间基因表达梯度。这些转录组细胞类型特征的离散和连续空间转换通过局部形态和远距离连接得到了重现。因此，BLA 兴奋性神经元是高度异质的神经元集合，其分子、细胞和电路特性在空间上具有相关性。这种异质性可能导致 BLA 计算和功能的显著空间变化。
