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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2013 Mar 22.
Published in final edited form as: Neuron. 2012 Mar 21;73(6):1184–1194. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2012.02.016

Figure 1. Optogenetic stimulation of VTA GABA neurons.

Figure 1

(A) Expression of ChR2-eYFP following injection of the viral construct unilaterally into the VTA shown in green. Midbrain DA neurons, as indicated by tyrosine hydroxylase immunoreactivity, are shown in red. (B) Confocal compressed z-stack showing that ChR2-eYFP expressed in VTA fibers co-localizes with immunoreactivity for the vesicular GABA transporter. (C – F) Targeted eGFP expression in Cre expressing GABA neurons revealed minimal co-expression of TH in these neurons (n = 6 sections from n = 3 mice). (G,H) Confocal compressed z-stack showing ChR2-eYFP (green) in the VTA and Sn. DAPI counterstain shown in blue. (I) The average eYFP fluorescence intensity was significantly higher in the VTA compared to the Sn (t(10) = 6.18, p = 0.0001, n = 6 images per brain region from n = 6 mice). (J,K) Activation of ChR2 in VTA GABA neurons resulted in sustained high frequency activation during the 5 s stimulation (n = 4 neurons).