---
OA_place: publisher
_id: '6825'
abstract:
- lang: eng
  text: "The solving of complex tasks requires the functions of more than one brain
    area and their interaction. Whilst spatial navigation and memory is dependent
    on the hippocampus, flexible behavior relies on the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC).
    To further examine the roles of the hippocampus and mPFC, we recorded their neural
    activity during a task that depends on both of these brain regions.\r\nWith tetrodes,
    we recorded the extracellular activity of dorsal hippocampal CA1 (HPC) and mPFC
    neurons in Long-Evans rats performing a rule-switching task on the plus-maze.
    The plus-maze task had a spatial component since it required navigation along
    one of the two start arms and at the maze center a choice between one of the two
    goal arms. Which goal contained a reward depended on the rule currently in place.
    After an uncued rule change the animal had to abandon the old strategy and switch
    to the new rule, testing cognitive flexibility. Investigating the coordination
    of activity between the HPC and mPFC allows determination during which task stages
    their interaction is required. Additionally, comparing neural activity patterns
    in these two brain regions allows delineation of the specialized functions of
    the HPC and mPFC in this task. We analyzed neural activity in the HPC and mPFC
    in terms of oscillatory interactions, rule coding and replay.\r\nWe found that
    theta coherence between the HPC and mPFC is increased at the center and goals
    of the maze, both when the rule was stable or has changed. Similar results were
    found for locking of HPC and mPFC neurons to HPC theta oscillations. However,
    no differences in HPC-mPFC theta coordination were observed between the spatially-
    and cue-guided rule. Phase locking of HPC and mPFC neurons to HPC gamma oscillations
    was not modulated by\r\nmaze position or rule type. We found that the HPC coded
    for the two different rules with cofiring relationships between\r\ncell pairs.
    However, we could not find conclusive evidence for rule coding in the mPFC. Spatially-selective
    firing in the mPFC generalized between the two start and two goal arms. With Bayesian
    positional decoding, we found that the mPFC reactivated non-local positions during
    awake immobility periods. Replay of these non-local positions could represent
    entire behavioral trajectories resembling trajectory replay of the HPC. Furthermore,
    mPFC\r\ntrajectory-replay at the goal positively correlated with rule-switching
    performance. \r\nFinally, HPC and mPFC trajectory replay occurred independently
    of each other. These results show that the mPFC can replay ordered patterns of
    activity during awake immobility, possibly underlying its role in flexible behavior. "
alternative_title:
- ISTA Thesis
article_processing_charge: No
author:
- first_name: Karola
  full_name: Käfer, Karola
  id: 2DAA49AA-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
  last_name: Käfer
citation:
  ama: Käfer K. The hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex during flexible behavior.
    2019. doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825">10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825</a>
  apa: Käfer, K. (2019). <i>The hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex during flexible
    behavior</i>. Institute of Science and Technology Austria. <a href="https://doi.org/10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825">https://doi.org/10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825</a>
  chicago: Käfer, Karola. “The Hippocampus and Medial Prefrontal Cortex during Flexible
    Behavior.” Institute of Science and Technology Austria, 2019. <a href="https://doi.org/10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825">https://doi.org/10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825</a>.
  ieee: K. Käfer, “The hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex during flexible behavior,”
    Institute of Science and Technology Austria, 2019.
  ista: Käfer K. 2019. The hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex during flexible
    behavior. Institute of Science and Technology Austria.
  mla: Käfer, Karola. <i>The Hippocampus and Medial Prefrontal Cortex during Flexible
    Behavior</i>. Institute of Science and Technology Austria, 2019, doi:<a href="https://doi.org/10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825">10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825</a>.
  short: K. Käfer, The Hippocampus and Medial Prefrontal Cortex during Flexible Behavior,
    Institute of Science and Technology Austria, 2019.
corr_author: '1'
date_created: 2019-08-21T15:00:57Z
date_published: 2019-08-24T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-04-08T13:56:14Z
day: '24'
ddc:
- '570'
degree_awarded: PhD
department:
- _id: JoCs
- _id: GradSch
doi: 10.15479/AT:ISTA:6825
file:
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  creator: kkaefer
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  date_updated: 2020-09-06T22:30:03Z
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file_date_updated: 2024-04-10T22:30:48Z
has_accepted_license: '1'
language:
- iso: eng
month: '08'
oa: 1
oa_version: Published Version
page: '89'
publication_identifier:
  issn:
  - 2663-337X
publication_status: published
publisher: Institute of Science and Technology Austria
related_material:
  record:
  - id: '5949'
    relation: part_of_dissertation
    status: public
status: public
supervisor:
- first_name: Jozsef L
  full_name: Csicsvari, Jozsef L
  id: 3FA14672-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
  last_name: Csicsvari
  orcid: 0000-0002-5193-4036
title: The hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex during flexible behavior
type: dissertation
user_id: ba8df636-2132-11f1-aed0-ed93e2281fdd
year: '2019'
...