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Inactivating the activated: identifying functions of specific neural networks

Nature Neuroscience volume 12, pages 965–966 (2009)Cite this article

Manipulation of the neurons required for a specific behavior can be difficult, but is required for proof of causality. A clever technique now allows inactivation of only the subset of neurons that have been recently active.

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Figure 1: Koya et al.1 developed the Daun02-inactivation method to demonstrate that a specific subset of activated neurons in nucleus accumbens is involved in context-specific cocaine-induced locomotor sensitization.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA. smithrac@musc.edu or astong@musc.edu,

    Rachel J Smith & Gary Aston-Jones

Authors
  1. Rachel J Smith
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  2. Gary Aston-Jones
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Smith, R., Aston-Jones, G. Inactivating the activated: identifying functions of specific neural networks. Nat Neurosci 12, 965–966 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn0809-965

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