Nature Neuroscience 2013-12-01

Independent hypothalamic circuits for social and predator fear.

Bianca A Silva, Camilla Mattucci, Piotr Krzywkowski, Emanuele Murana, Anna Illarionova, Valery Grinevich, Newton S Canteras, Davide Ragozzino, Cornelius T Gross

Index: Nat. Neurosci. 16(12) , 1731-3, (2013)

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Abstract

The neural circuits mediating fear to naturalistic threats are poorly understood. We found that functionally independent populations of neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH), a region that has been implicated in feeding, sex and aggression, are essential for predator and social fear in mice. Our results establish a critical role for VMH in fear and have implications for selective intervention in pathological fear in humans.