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. 2019 Jul 12;1(3):319–331. doi: 10.3390/clockssleep1030027

Figure 2.

Figure 2

ipRGC pathways for mood regulation in mice. (A) Schematic presentation of mammalian retina, with six subtypes of ipRGCs (M1–M6). (B) Brain areas involved in the regulation of mood and behavioral state were shown to have increased activity (measured upregulation of c-Fos, an early marker of neural activation) following the acute activation of ipRGCs using chemogenetics (ipRGCs expressing Gq-coupled chemogenetic hM3Dq receptor, depicted by a red star), in pink. Nuclei labelled in blue showed no c-Fos increase. Figure adapted from [63]. (C) Two identified pathways by which ipRGCs are involved in light-induced regulation of depressive-like behavior. The M1 Brn3b+ ipRGCs project directly to PHb (perihabenular nucleus) and are involved in depressive-like behaviors in mice triggered by chronic aberrant light exposure (T7 cycle). M4 ipRGCs innervate the vLGN/IGL-LHb (ventral lateral geniculate nucleus/intergeniculate leaflet-lateral habenula) pathway and are responsible for short-term light effects in decreasing depressive-like behavior. (D) Nuclei involved in the regulation of mood and behavioral state that receive direct projections from ipRGCs. Paraventrical hypothalamic nucleus (PVN), the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH), lateral hypothalamus (LH), ventrolateral preoptic nucleus (VLPO); amygdala (Amg), intralaminar thalamic nuclei (ITL), paraventricular thalamus (PVT), lateral habenula (LHb), nucleus accumbens (NAc), Bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) and periaqueductal gray (PAG).