Predation risk reweights reward preference through coordinated amygdala-prelimbic dynamics
A fundamental challenge for animals and humans is resolving competing survival demands under naturalistic threat, yet circuit-level mechanisms remain poorly understood. We developed a paradigm recapitulating a predator-prey encounter: Long-Evans rats emerged from a nest to forage in an open arena, choosing between preferred and standard reward locations while facing a robotic predator. We…
A groundbreaking study reveals how threat triggers a shift in reward preference through intricate coordination between two brain regions in rats. Researchers designed an experiment where Long-Evans rats foraged in an open arena, selecting between high-reward and standard locations while facing a robotic predator. By simultaneously monitoring neural activity in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) and the prelimbic cortex (PL), scientists observed a clear pattern of behavior.
In the presence of threat, rats consistently chose the safer option. BLA neurons showed a strong response to the predator, while PL neurons encoded information about reward value, threat context, and the animal's behavioral state. Population decoding analysis demonstrated that BLA primarily encoded threat, whereas PL represented multiplexed signals integrating reward, threat, and behavior.
Crucially, the study found that threat-responsive BLA neurons were preferentially synchronized with PL neurons before rats made safe choices. Moreover, predator attacks led to a biased flow of information from BLA to PL, indicating that threat cues reweighted reward-guided decision-making. These findings suggest that coordinated dynamics between the corticolimbic circuit, specifically through the BLA-PL pathway, serve as a potential mechanism by which threat modifies reward preferences under ecological risk.
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