Fig. 7.

ACC predominantly projects to non-dopaminergic neurons in the VTA. A Schematic showing the timeline for virus injection and TH co-staining experiments. B Scheme for specific labeling of ACC-innervated VTA neurons with mCherry. C Representative images of mCherry co-staining with TH in the VTA. Scale bars, 200 μm (upper) and 50 μm (lower). D, E Numbers of TH⁺ (D) and mCherry⁺ (E) neurons in different sections of the VTA. n = 10 mice. F, G Numbers (F) and percentage (G) of TH⁺/mCherry⁺ neurons in different parts of the VTA. n = 10 mice. H Pie chart showing minimal expression of mCherry in TH⁺ neurons in the VTA.