Figure 6.

Systemic chemogenetic activation of TrkC⁺ neurons leads to blood pressure and heart rate alterations

(A) Schematic showing circuit activated by C21 in vivo.

(B) Systemic injection of C21 in TrkC^CreERT2::Avil^hM3Dq mice leads to elevated blood pressure (red symbols, n = 6) compared with control mice (black symbols, n = 6). ^∗p < 0.01. This is reverted by co-administration of propranolol (yellow symbols, n = 6).

(C) TrkC^CreERT2::Avil^hM3Dq mice (red symbols, n = 6) treated systemically with C21 display increased average heart rate compared with mice co-treated with propranolol (yellow symbols, n = 6) or control mice (black and green symbols).

(D) Fluctuations in heart rate in individual mice are apparent in TrkC^CreERT2::Avil^hM3Dq mice treated with C21 (red lines) but not in mice co-treated with propranolol (yellow lines) or control animals (black and green lines).

(E) Long-term heart rate variability derived from the length of the major (SD2) axis of Poincaré plots in TrkC^CreERT2::Avil^hM3Dq mice treated with C21, C21 plus propranolol, or in control mice. ^∗p < 0.05.

(F) Short-term heart rate variability derived from the length of the minor (SD1) axis of Poincaré plots in TrkC^CreERT2::Avil^hM3Dq mice treated with C21, C21 plus propranolol, or in control mice.