Dopamine (DA) neurons are thought to encode reward prediction error (RPE), in addition to
other signals, such as salience. While RPE is known to support learning, the role of salience …

The ability to extinguish fear responses to stimuli that no longer predict danger is critical for
adaptive behavior and increases the likelihood of survival. During fear extinction, dopamine …

Extinction of fear responses is critical for adaptive behavior and deficits in this form of safety
learning are hallmark of anxiety disorders. However, the neuronal mechanisms that initiate …

Dopamine is thought to regulate learning from appetitive and aversive events. Here we
examined how optogenetically-identified dopamine neurons in the lateral ventral tegmental …

Overcoming aversive emotional memories requires neural systems that detect when fear
responses are no longer appropriate so that they can be extinguished. The midbrain ventral …

Dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) have been traditionally studied for
their roles in reward-related motivation or drug addiction. Here we study how the VTA …

Fear learning is a fundamental behavioral process that requires dopamine (DA) release.
Experience-dependent synaptic plasticity occurs on DA neurons while an organism is …

The amygdala is a brain area critical for the formation of fear memories. However, the nature
of the teaching signal (s) that drive plasticity in the amygdala are still under debate. Here, we …

The ability to extinguish fear memories when threats are no longer present is critical for
adaptive behavior. Fear extinction represents a new learning process that eventually leads …

Escaping aversive stimuli is essential for complex organisms, but prolonged exposure to
stress leads to maladaptive learning. Stress alters neuronal activity and neuromodulatory …