Translating striatal activity from brain slice to whole animal neurophysiology: A guide for neuroscience research integrating diverse levels of analysis

AbstractAn important goal of this review is highlighting research in neuroscience as examples of multilevel functional and anatomical analyses addressing basic science issues and applying results to the understanding of diverse disorders. The research of Dr. Michael Levine, a leader in neuroscience, exemplifies this approach by uncovering fundamental properties of basal ganglia function and translating these findings to clinical applications. The review focuses on neurophysiological research connecting results from in vitro and in vivo recordings. A second goal is to utilize these research connections to produce novel, accurate descriptions for corticostriatal processing involved in varied, complex functions. Medium spiny neurons in striatum act as integrators combining input with baseline activity creating motivational “events.” Basic research on corticostriatal synapses is described and links developed to issues with clinical relevance such as inhibitory gating, self‐injurious behavior, and relative reward valuation. Work is highlighted on dopamine–glutamate interactions. Individual medium spiny neurons express both D1 and D2 receptors and encode information in a bivalent manner