# Regulation of nucleus accumbens reward processing by diverse input signals

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · 2020 · $344,557

## Abstract

Project Summary
The nucleus accumbens (NAc) plays an important role in the acquisition and expression of many stimulus-
reward associations, a process which can be co-opted by drugs of abuse. Information processing in the NAc is
thought to be regulated by incoming glutamatergic signals from multiple areas, but the dynamic properties of
these different signals are not well understood. This project will focus on the role of three prominent inputs
arising from the medial prefrontal cortex, basolateral amygdala, and ventral hippocampus. Studies have begun
to reveal the role of these pathways in mediating behavior guided by both natural rewards and drugs of abuse.
However, it is still largely unknown to what extent the coordination of NAc neural dynamics with each of those
inputs is modulated by experience, dopaminergic signaling, or reward type. The goal of this project is to
address these issues using innovative approaches that combine large-scale neural recordings, optogenetics,
and reward conditioning in mice. The first aim is to use large-scale neural recordings to determine whether
synchrony between the NAc and the three designated inputs is differentially modified during associative reward
learning. Additionally, this aim will determine the role of midbrain dopaminergic signaling in input selection, by
using transient optogenetic suppression of dopamine neuron activity to modulate synchrony between the NAc
and its inputs. The second aim is to combine neural recordings and transient optogenetic suppression of
individual input signals to the NAc, to deconstruct the role of specific inputs in shaping neural coding and task
performance at different stages of training. The goal in the third aim is to determine how, during periods of
reward abstinence, neural synchrony between the NAc and its inputs is differentially modulated by cues
previously associated with cocaine or food. Together, this study will greatly advance our understanding of how
reward-related information processing in the nucleus accumbens is influenced by signals from three important
and functionally diverse input sources.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9977144
- **Project number:** 5R01DA042739-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES
- **Principal Investigator:** Sotiris Masmanidis
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $344,557
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-08-01 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9977144

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9977144, Regulation of nucleus accumbens reward processing by diverse input signals (5R01DA042739-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9977144. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*