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Mentoring the next generation of neuroscientists from historically excluded backgrounds brings several challenges. Successful mentor-mentee relationships are critical for addressing these challenges. Rodriguez-Romaguera and Quirk reflect on lessons learned from their cross-racial mentor-mentee relationship that could apply to many mentors., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Motivational states consist of cognitive, emotional, and physiological components controlled by multiple brain regions. An integral component of this neural circuitry is the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST). Here, we identify that neurons within BNST that express the gene prepronociceptin (Pnoc BNST ) modulate rapid changes in physiological arousal that occur upon exposure to motivationally salient stimuli. Using in vivo two-photon calcium imaging, we find that Pnoc BNST neuronal responses directly correspond with rapid increases in pupillary size when mice are exposed to aversive and rewarding odors. Furthermore, optogenetic activation of these neurons increases pupillary size and anxiety-like behaviors but does not induce approach, avoidance, or locomotion. These findings suggest that excitatory responses in Pnoc BNST neurons encode rapid arousal responses that modulate anxiety states. Further histological, electrophysiological, and single-cell RNA sequencing data reveal that Pnoc BNST neurons are composed of genetically and anatomically identifiable subpopulations that may differentially tune rapid arousal responses to motivational stimuli., Competing Interests: Declaration of Interests The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2020 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The paraventricular thalamus (PVT) is an interface for brain reward circuits, with input signals arising from structures, such as prefrontal cortex and hypothalamus, that are broadcast to downstream limbic targets. However, the precise synaptic connectivity, activity, and function of PVT circuitry for reward processing are unclear. Here, using in vivo two-photon calcium imaging, we find that PVT neurons projecting to the nucleus accumbens (PVT-NAc) develop inhibitory responses to reward-predictive cues coding for both cue-reward associative information and behavior. The multiplexed activity in PVT-NAc neurons is directed by opposing activity patterns in prefrontal and lateral hypothalamic afferent axons. Further, we find that prefrontal cue encoding may maintain accurate cue-reward processing, as optogenetic disruption of this encoding induced long-lasting effects on downstream PVT-NAc cue responses and behavioral cue discrimination. Together, these data reveal that PVT-NAc neurons act as an interface for reward processing by integrating relevant inputs to accurately inform reward-seeking behavior., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Social isolation is a stressful condition that often leads to maladaptive behaviors. In this issue of Cell, Zelikowsky et al. find that chronic social isolation stress triggers an increase in neuronal tachykinin signaling across distinct brain regions that mediate fear and aggression, elucidating the neural basis of these maladaptive responses., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

The habenula is a tiny brain region the size of a pea in humans. This region is highly conserved across vertebrates and has been traditionally overlooked by neuroscientists. The name habenula is derived from the Latin word habena, meaning "little rein", because of its elongated shape. Originally its function was thought to be related to the regulation of the nearby pineal gland (which Rene Descartes described as the "principal seat of the soul"). More recent evidence, however, demonstrates that the habenula acts as a critical neuroanatomical hub that connects and regulates brain regions important for divergent motivational states and cognition. In this Primer, we will discuss the recent and converging evidence that points to the habenula as a key brain region for motivation and decision-making., (Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)