Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been associated with diverse functions including attentional processes, visceromotor activity, decision making, goal directed behavior, and working memory. Using retrograde tracing techniques, we examined, compared, and contrasted afferent projections to the four divisions of the mPFC in the rat: the medial (frontal) agranular (AGm), anterior cingulate (AC), prelimbic (PL), and infralimbic (IL) cortices. Each division of the mPFC receives a unique set of afferent projections. There is a shift dorsoventrally along the mPFC from predominantly sensorimotor input to the dorsal mPFC (AGm and dorsal AC) to primarily ‘limbic’ input to the ventral mPFC (PL and IL). The AGm and dorsal AC receive afferent projections from widespread areas of the cortex (and associated thalamic nuclei) representing all sensory modalities. This information is presumably integrated at, and utilized by, the dorsal mPFC in goal directed actions. In contrast with the dorsal mPFC, the ventral mPFC receives significantly less cortical input overall and afferents from limbic as opposed to sensorimotor regions of cortex. The main sources of afferent projections to PL/IL are from the orbitomedial prefrontal, agranular insular, perirhinal and entorhinal cortices, the hippocampus, the claustrum, the medial basal forebrain, the basal nuclei of amygdala, the midline thalamus and monoaminergic nuclei of the brainstem. With a few exceptions, there are few projections from the hypothalamus to the dorsal or ventral mPFC. Accordingly, subcortical limbic information mainly reaches the mPFC via the midline thalamus and basal nuclei of amygdala. As discussed herein, based on patterns of afferent (as well as efferent) projections, PL is positioned to serve a direct role in cognitive functions homologous to dorsolateral PFC of primates, whereas IL appears to represent a visceromotor center homologous to the orbitomedial PFC of primates.
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Abbreviations
- AA:
-
Anterior area of amygdala
- AC:
-
Anterior cingulate cortex
- ACC:
-
Nucleus accumbens
- AD:
-
Anterodorsal nucleus of thalamus
- AGm:
-
Medial agranular (frontal) cortex
- AGl:
-
Lateral agranular (frontal) cortex
- AH:
-
Anterior nucleus of hypothalamus
- AI,d,p,v:
-
Agranular insular cortex, dorsal, posterior, ventral divisions
- AM,d:
-
Anteromedial nucleus of thalamus, dorsal division
- AON, m,v:
-
Anterior olfactory nucleus, medial, ventral parts
- AQ:
-
Cerebral aqueduct
- APN:
-
Anterior pretectal nucleus
- AUD:
-
Auditory cortex
- AV:
-
Anteroventral nucleus of thalamus
- BF:
-
Basal forebrain
- BLA:
-
Basolateral nucleus of amygdala
- BMA,p:
-
Basomedial nucleus of amygdala, posterior part
- BST:
-
Bed nucleus of stria terminalis
- CA1,3:
-
Field CA1 and CA3 of Ammon’s horn
- CB:
-
Cinguum bundle
- CC:
-
Corpus callosum
- CEA:
-
Central nucleus of amygdala
- CL:
-
Central lateral nucleus of the thalamus
- CLA:
-
Claustrum
- CLi:
-
Central linear nucleus
- CM:
-
Central medial nucleus of thalamus
- COA:
-
Cortical nucleus of amygdala
- CP:
-
Caudate-putamen
- CUN:
-
Cuneiform nucleus
- DBh:
-
Nucleus of diagonal band, horizontal limb
- DG:
-
Dentate gyrus of hippocampus
- DI:
-
Dysgranular insular cortex
- DR:
-
Dorsal raphe nucleus
- EC,l,m:
-
Entorhinal cortex, lateral, medial divisions
- ECT:
-
Ectorhinal cortex
- EN:
-
Endopiriform nucleus
- FP,l,m:
-
Frontal polar cortex, lateral, medial divisions
- FR:
-
Fasciculus retroflexus
- FS:
-
Fundus of the striatum
- GI:
-
Granular insular cortex
- GP:
-
Globus pallidus
- HF:
-
Hippocampal formation
- IAM:
-
Interanteromedial nucleus of thalamus
- IC:
-
Inferior colliculus
- IF:
-
Interfascicular nucleus
- IL:
-
Infralimbic cortex
- IMD:
-
Intermediodorsal necleus of thalamus
- INC:
-
Insular cortex
- IP:
-
Interpeduncular nucleus
- LA:
-
Lateral nucleus of amygdala
- LC:
-
Locus coeruleus
- LD:
-
Lateral dorsal nucleus of thalamus
- LDT:
-
Laterodorsal tegmental nucleus
- LG,d:
-
Lateral geniculate nucleus, dorsal division
- LH:
-
Lateral habenula
- LHy:
-
Lateral hypothalamus
- LM:
-
Lateral mammillary nucleus
- LO:
-
Lateral orbital cortex
- LP:
-
Lateral posterior nucleus of thalamus
- LPO:
-
Lateral preoptic area
- LS:
-
Lateral septum
- LV:
-
Lateral ventricle
- MA:
-
Magnocellular preoptic nucleus
- MB:
-
Mammillary bodies
- MD:
-
Mediodorsal nucleus of thalamus
- MEA:
-
Medial nucleus of the amygdala
- MFB:
-
Medial forebrain bundle
- MG,v:
-
Medial geniculate nucleus, ventral division
- MH:
-
Medial habenula
- MO:
-
Medial orbital cortex
- mPFC:
-
Medial prefrontal cortex
- MPO:
-
Medial preoptic area
- MR:
-
Median raphe nucleus
- MRF:
-
Mesencephalic reticular formation
- MS:
-
Medial septum
- MT:
-
Mammillothalamic tract
- NI:
-
Nucleus incertus
- NLL:
-
Nucleus of lateral lemniscus
- NP:
-
Nucleus of pons
- OC,1,2:
-
Occipital cortex, primary and secondary divisions
- OT:
-
Olfactory tubercle
- PA:
-
Posterior nucleus of amygdala
- PAG:
-
Periaqueductal gray
- PAp:
-
Posterior parietal cortex
- PARA:
-
Parasubiculum of HF
- PB, l, m:
-
Parabrachial nucleus, lateral, medial divisions
- PC:
-
Paracentral nucleus of thalamus
- PF:
-
Parafascicular nucleus
- PH:
-
Posterior nucleus of hypothalamus
- PIR:
-
Piriform cortex
- PL:
-
Prelimbic cortex
- PN5:
-
Principal sensory nucleus of trigeminal nerve
- PO:
-
Posterior nucleus of thalamus
- POST:
-
Postsubiculum of HF
- PPT:
-
Pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus
- PRC:
-
Perirhinal cortex
- PRE:
-
Presubiculum of HF
- PT:
-
Paratenial nucleus of thalamus
- PV:
-
Paraventricular nucleus of thalamus
- RAM:
-
Radial arm maze
- RE:
-
Nucleus reuniens of thalamus
- RF:
-
Rhinal fissue
- RH:
-
Rhomboid nucleus of thalamus
- RLi:
-
Rostral linear nucleus
- RM:
-
Raphe magnus
- RN:
-
Red nucleus
- RPC:
-
Nucleus pontis caudalis
- RPO:
-
Nucleus pontis oralis
- RSC:
-
Retrosplenial cortex
- RR:
-
Retrorubral area
- RT:
-
Reticular nucleus of thalamus
- SC:
-
Superior colliculus
- SF:
-
Septofimbrial nucleus
- SI:
-
Substantia innominata
- sm:
-
Stria medullaris
- SM:
-
Submedial nucleus of thalamus
- SN,c,r:
-
Substantia nigra, pars compacta, pars reticulata
- SSI:
-
Primary somatosensory cortex
- SSII:
-
Secondary somatosensory cortex
- SUB,d,v:
-
Subiculum, dorsal, ventral parts
- SUM:
-
Supramammillary nucleus
- TE:
-
Temporal cortex
- TR:
-
Amygdalo-piriform transition zone
- TT,d,v:
-
Taenia tecta, dorsal, ventral parts
- V3:
-
Third ventricle
- V4:
-
Forth ventricle
- VAL:
-
Ventral anterior-lateral complex of thalamus
- VB:
-
Ventrobasal complex of thalamus
- VLO:
-
Ventrolateral orbital cortex
- VM:
-
Ventral medial nucleus of thalamus
- VO:
-
Ventral orbital cortex
- VTA:
-
Ventral tegmental area
- ZI:
-
Zona incerta
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Hoover, W.B., Vertes, R.P. Anatomical analysis of afferent projections to the medial prefrontal cortex in the rat. Brain Struct Funct 212, 149–179 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-007-0150-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-007-0150-4