Integrating Electrical VTA Stimulation with Multimodal In Vivo Brain Recording

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the ventral tegmental area (VTA) has emerged as a potential strategy for modulating mesolimbic circuits implicated in neuropsychiatric disorders, yet the neurochemical and network mechanisms linking VTA stimulation to nucleus accumbens (NAc) circuit dynamics remain poorly understood. We investigated how phasic dopamine (DA) release elicited by brief high-frequency electrical stimulation of the ventral tegmental area (VTA; 2 s, 60 Hz) modulates oscillatory activity in the ventral striatum. To examine how dopamine-driven changes in local NAc network activity relate to large-scale brain dynamics, we evaluated the feasibility of integrating fast-scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV), local field potentials (LFP), and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) within a multimodal recording framework. Using FSCV and LFP recordings in vivo, we examined how phasic DA release elicited by electrical stimulation of the VTA alters oscillatory activity in the ventral striatum. VTA stimulation produced a redistribution of spectral power characterized by a reduction in slower-band power (0.1-1 Hz) and increases in delta (1-4 Hz) and theta (5-8Hz) oscillations. These changes were transient and slow oscillations gradually returned to baseline. Pharmacological blockade of D1 receptors weakened stimulation-induced oscillatory redistribution, suggesting receptor-specific contributions to DA-dependent network modulation. Although MRI-compatible recordings were feasible, switching artifacts were introduced, and recordings within the MRI bore remained susceptible to environmental electromagnetic noise. These findings all indicate that phasic DA release transiently reorganizes striatal network dynamics and support the considered development of multimodal in vivo approaches for linking stimulation, neurochemical signaling, and circuit-level activity.