Cerebellar Coordination of Neuronal and Behavioral Rhythms

<p>Long known for its role in motor control, it is increasingly clear that the cerebellum is also involved in numerous cognitive and affective behaviors. Though the neuronal mechanism for the role of the cerebellum in cognition is still unclear, there is a consensus that it involves cerebellar interactions with the cerebral cortex. Recent studies suggest that the cerebellum monitors, and possibly coordinates, the precise phase alignment or coherence of neuronal oscillations in cerebral cortical areas. Here, we asked how loss of cerebellar function affects respiratory rhythms and the interactions of local field potential (LFP) oscillations between the lobulus simplex (LS) in the cerebellum, medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), and dorsal CA1 (dCA1) using multisite in vivo extracellular recordings in freely moving mice. We compared a mouse model of cerebellar ataxia and their littermate controls. The ataxic mice were designed to have a genetically induced loss of Purkinje cell neurotransmission, resulting in an expected repertoire of cerebellar motor deficits. Here we asked whether these mice also have neurophysiological defects that are indicative of cognitive circuit dysfunction. We quantified respiratory interval regularity and rhythmicity, power spectra of LFP oscillations in each structure, the magnitudes of coherence of oscillations and Granger causality between each pair of structures using a nonparametric spectral method, and the phase amplitude coupling (PAC) of LFP oscillations within and between each structure. Resting-state coherence of gamma oscillations between LS and mPFC was significantly increased in ataxic mice relative to their controls. Ataxic animals also showed significantly larger Granger causality from the mPFC to cerebellar LS in gamma frequencies compared to littermate controls. Significant PAC within LS was observed at very high gamma frequencies. Our findings reveal that Purkinje cell neurotransmission is required for normal functional interactions between the cerebellum and cerebral cortex and between cerebral cortical areas involved in cognitive functions, suggesting an involvement of the cerebellum in the modulation or coordination of functional communication between brain areas.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Biomedical Sciences

Year dc:date.available

2022

Author dc:creator

• Chapman, Brittany Correia

Contributors dc:contributor

• Detlef H. Heck, PhD

• Cerebellum; Coherence
• Oscillations
• Phase Amplitude Coupling
• Respiration
• Medical Neurobiology
• Medical Sciences
• Medicine and Health Sciences
• Nervous System Diseases
• Neurosciences

Repository record dc:identifier

https://dc.uthsc.edu/dissertations/618

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:dc.uthsc.edu:dissertations-1618