Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Seewiesen, Germany.
Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Nat Commun. 2024 Aug 31;15(1):7565. doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-51818-4.
The efficiency of motor skill acquisition is age-dependent, making it increasingly challenging to learn complex manoeuvres later in life. Zebra finches, for instance, acquire a complex vocal motor programme during a developmental critical period after which the learned song is essentially impervious to modification. Although inhibitory interneurons are implicated in critical period closure, it is unclear whether manipulating them can reopen heightened motor plasticity windows. Using pharmacology and a cell-type specific optogenetic approach, we manipulated inhibitory neuron activity in a premotor area of adult zebra finches beyond their critical period. When exposed to auditory stimulation in the form of novel songs, manipulated birds added new vocal syllables to their stable song sequence. By lifting inhibition in a premotor area during sensory experience, we reintroduced vocal plasticity, promoting an expansion of the syllable repertoire without compromising pre-existing song production. Our findings provide insights into motor skill learning capacities, offer potential for motor recovery after injury, and suggest avenues for treating neurodevelopmental disorders involving inhibitory dysfunctions.
运动技能习得的效率与年龄有关，这使得人们在以后的生活中学习复杂的动作变得越来越具有挑战性。例如，斑胸草雀在发育关键期后获得了复杂的发声运动程序，此后所学的歌曲基本上无法修改。尽管抑制性中间神经元与关键期的关闭有关，但尚不清楚操纵它们是否可以重新打开高度的运动可塑性窗口。我们使用药理学和细胞类型特异性光遗传学方法，在成年斑胸草雀的关键期后操纵其前运动区的抑制性神经元活动。当以新歌曲的形式暴露于听觉刺激时，经过操纵的鸟类会在其稳定的歌曲序列中添加新的发声音节。通过在感觉体验过程中解除前运动区的抑制作用，我们重新引入了发声可塑性，在不损害预先存在的歌曲产生的情况下促进了音节 repertoire 的扩展。我们的研究结果为运动技能学习能力提供了新的见解，为受伤后的运动康复提供了潜力，并为涉及抑制功能障碍的神经发育障碍的治疗提供了途径。
