Single basolateral amygdala neurons in macaques exhibit distinct connectional motifs with frontal cortex

Abstract

Basolateral amygdala (BLA) projects widely across the macaque frontal cortex, and amygdalo-frontal projections are critical for appropriate emotional responding and decision making. While it is appreciated that single BLA neurons branch and project to multiple areas in frontal cortex, the organization and frequency of this branching has yet to be fully characterized. Here, we determined the projection patterns of more than 3,000 macaque BLA neurons. We found that one-third of BLA neurons had two or more distinct projection targets in frontal cortex and subcortical structures. The patterns of single BLA neuron projections to multiple areas were organized into repeating motifs that targeted distinct sets of areas in medial and ventral frontal cortex, indicative of separable BLA networks. Our findings begin to reveal the rich structure of single-neuron connections in the non-human primate brain, providing a neuroanatomical basis for the role of BLA in coordinating brain-wide responses to valent stimuli.

Keywords: amygdala; collaterals; connectivity; connectomics; mRNA; macaque; sequencing; tract tracing.