Thalamic feedback shapes brain responses evoked by cortical stimulation in mice and humans
Cortical stimulation with single pulses is a common technique in clinical practice and research. However, we still do not understand the extent to which it engages subcortical circuits that may contribute to the associated evoked potentials (EPs). Here we show that cortical stimulation generates remarkably similar EPs in humans and mice, with a late component similarly modulated by the state of the targeted cortico-thalamic network. We then optogenetically dissect the underlying circuit in mice, demonstrating that the EPs late component is caused by a thalamic hyperpolarization and rebound. The magnitude of this late component correlates with bursting frequency and synchronicity of thalamic neurons, modulated by the subject's behavioral state. A simulation of the thalamo-cortical circuit highlights that both intrinsic thalamic currents as well as cortical and thalamic GABAergic neurons contribute to this response profile. We conclude that single pulse cortical stimulation engages cortico-thalamo-cortical circuits largely preserved across different species and stimulation modalities.
Authors
- Lydia C. Marks (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7270-2680)
- Irene Rembado (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7121-4442)
- Simone Russo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7762-1900)
- Piergiorgio d’Orio (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9757-2061)
- Ivana Sartori (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5659-0730)
- Marcello Massimini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2271-957X)
- Michela Solbiati (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-5470-0815)
- Mario Rosanova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7486-7617)
- Andrea Pigorini (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1856-3413)
- Giri P. Krishnan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3931-7633)
- Giulia Furregoni
- Maxim Bazhenov (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1936-0570)
- Flavia Maria Zauli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7328-6068)
- Gabriel Hassan
- Simone Sarasso (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9984-4710)
- Ezequiel Mikulan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7259-6120)
- Christof Koch (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6482-8067)
- Leslie D. Claar (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4030-9171)
Institutions
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CA)
- Università di Camerino (IT)
- University of Parma (IT)
- Georgia Institute of Technology (US)
- Allen Institute for Brain Science (US)
- University of Milan (IT)
- The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering (US)
- Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico (IT)
- University of California San Diego (US)
- Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda (IT)
- Don Carlo Gnocchi Foundation (IT)
- Allen Institute (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-04-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58717-2
- Citations
- 21
- Primary Topic
- Neural dynamics and brain function
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 30.05