Key result
VNS enhances long-term learning and induces correlated vascular oscillations in mice.
Why the study?
Vagus nerve stimulation is primarily understood through neuromodulatory pathways, leaving the potential contribution of vascular dynamics largely unexplored.
Does vagus nerve stimulation enhance long-term learning and induce vascular oscillations in freely moving mice?
Does vagus nerve stimulation enhance long-term learning and induce vascular oscillations in freely moving mice?
Vagus nerve stimulation induces vascular oscillations that correlate with enhanced multi-day learning in mice, suggesting a vascular component to peripheral modulation of brain function.
Despite its rapid emergence as a powerful approach for probing peripheral modulation of brain function, vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is primarily understood through neuromodulatory pathways, leaving the potential contribution of vascular dynamics largely unexplored. Here, we examined whether VNS influences learning performance and its relationship with cerebrovascular dynamics using a chronic cuff-electrode system in freely moving mice. Using a cerebellum-dependent horizontal optokinetic response (HOKR) paradigm, we show that post-training VNS selectively enhances long-term learning. In parallel, in vivo fiber photometry reveals that VNS induces transient vascular fluctuations that evolve into oscillatory dynamics across repeated stimulation. The magnitude of these oscillations is increased by VNS and correlates with multi-day learning performance. These findings suggest that, in addition to neuromodulatory mechanisms, vascular dynamics may represent an underappreciated component of learning-related brain function. VNS-induced vascular oscillations are associated with multi-day learning, providing a new perspective on how peripheral signals influence central brain function.
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Chen et al. (2026) studied Learning performance and cerebrovascular dynamics. Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) was evaluated on Long-term learning and vascular oscillations. Vagus nerve stimulation selectively enhanced long-term learning and induced vascular oscillations that correlated with multi-day learning performance in freely moving mice.
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