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This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact

Brainstem monoamine neurons --- locus coeruleus --- emotion --- pain --- morphometry --- amphetamine derivatives --- sleep --- gaze --- trigeminal nerve --- microglia.

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This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact

Science: general issues --- Neurosciences --- Brainstem monoamine neurons --- locus coeruleus --- emotion --- pain --- morphometry --- amphetamine derivatives --- sleep --- gaze --- trigeminal nerve --- microglia. --- Brainstem monoamine neurons --- locus coeruleus --- emotion --- pain --- morphometry --- amphetamine derivatives --- sleep --- gaze --- trigeminal nerve --- microglia.

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Decades of research have identified a role for dopamine neurotransmission in prefrontal cortical function and flexible cognition. Abnormal dopamine neurotransmission underlies many cases of cognitive dysfunction. New techniques using optogenetics have allowed for ever more precise functional segregation of areas within the prefrontal cortex, which underlie separate cognitive functions. Learning theory predictions have provided a very useful framework for interpreting the neural activity of dopamine neurons, yet even dopamine neurons present a range of responses, from salience to prediction error signaling. The functions of areas like the Lateral Habenula have been recently described, and its role, presumed to be substantial, is largely unknown. Many other neural systems interact with the dopamine system, like cortical GABAergic interneurons, making it critical to understand those systems and their interactions with dopamine in order to fully appreciate dopamine's role in flexible behavior. Advances in human clinical research, like exome sequencing, are driving experimental hypotheses which will lead to fruitful new research directions, but how do (or should?) these clinical findings inform basic research? Following new information from these techniques, we may begin to develop a fresh understanding of human disease states which will inform novel treatment possibilities. However, we need an operational framework with which to interpret these new findings. Therefore, the purpose of this Research Topic is to integrate what we know of dopamine, the prefrontal cortex and flexible behavior into a clear framework, which will illuminate clear, testable directions for future research.

behavioral flexibility --- Dopamine --- medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) --- Attentional set-shifting --- basal forebrain --- anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) --- endocannabinoid system --- lateral habenula (LHb) --- Locus coeruleus (LC) --- motivational salience

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Sleeping is a fundamental behavior that occupies almost a third of our lives. Its physiological importance is therefore easily understood. Scientific evidence of the role of quality sleep for healthy cognitive aging is accumulating. Many studies have shown the association between sleep dysfunction and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Interestingly, a significant aspect of AD is that its primary pathophysiological sign is detected post-mortem before the age of 35 years in the locus coeruleus (LC) which is a small brainstem nucleus essential for sleep regulation. Thus, there are some reasons to establish early associations between sleep and AD via the LC. However, the link between variability in sleep quality and variability in LC characteristics remains poorly understood in humans. Therefore, it seems appropriate to first study the link between sleep and LC characteristics such as its reactivity. In this context, we postulate that a greater LC reactivity during wakefulness is associated with a better sleep, during youth as well as throughout the aging process. To test this hypothesis, young (18-29 years, n = 13) and older subjects (53-69 years, n = 14) were recruited. On the one hand, we worked with electroencephalography to characterize sleep, on the other hand, we used ultra-high field MRI (7 Tesla) to assess LC reactivity. The aim of this thesis was to highlight a link between sleep and LC reactivity during an auditory oddball task. Our results suggested for the first time in humans, a link which seems to change over the life course. Thus, in the youth, sleep seems to be more stable when the LC is more reactive, at least when this reactivity is assessed via an auditory oddball task.

Sleep, Alzheimer’s Disease, Locus Coeruleus Reactivity, Auditory Oddball Task, EEG, 7T MRI --- Sciences de la santé humaine > Neurologie --- Sciences sociales & comportementales, psychologie > Neurosciences & comportement

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Decades of research have identified a role for dopamine neurotransmission in prefrontal cortical function and flexible cognition. Abnormal dopamine neurotransmission underlies many cases of cognitive dysfunction. New techniques using optogenetics have allowed for ever more precise functional segregation of areas within the prefrontal cortex, which underlie separate cognitive functions. Learning theory predictions have provided a very useful framework for interpreting the neural activity of dopamine neurons, yet even dopamine neurons present a range of responses, from salience to prediction error signaling. The functions of areas like the Lateral Habenula have been recently described, and its role, presumed to be substantial, is largely unknown. Many other neural systems interact with the dopamine system, like cortical GABAergic interneurons, making it critical to understand those systems and their interactions with dopamine in order to fully appreciate dopamine's role in flexible behavior. Advances in human clinical research, like exome sequencing, are driving experimental hypotheses which will lead to fruitful new research directions, but how do (or should?) these clinical findings inform basic research? Following new information from these techniques, we may begin to develop a fresh understanding of human disease states which will inform novel treatment possibilities. However, we need an operational framework with which to interpret these new findings. Therefore, the purpose of this Research Topic is to integrate what we know of dopamine, the prefrontal cortex and flexible behavior into a clear framework, which will illuminate clear, testable directions for future research.

behavioral flexibility --- Dopamine --- medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) --- Attentional set-shifting --- basal forebrain --- anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) --- endocannabinoid system --- lateral habenula (LHb) --- Locus coeruleus (LC) --- motivational salience --- behavioral flexibility --- Dopamine --- medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) --- Attentional set-shifting --- basal forebrain --- anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) --- endocannabinoid system --- lateral habenula (LHb) --- Locus coeruleus (LC) --- motivational salience