研究人员发现，在大鼠心率生物反馈模型中，新皮层和内侧前脑束分别作为反馈和奖励受到刺激。大鼠在30分钟内降低了心率，经过5天零3小时的反馈后，心率降低了约50%。心率降低的现象在训练后至少持续了10天，同时大鼠表现出抗焦虑行为，血液中的红细胞计数升高。通过使投射到丘脑腹内侧核（VMT）的前扣带回皮层（ACC）神经元失活，可以防止心动过缓。
对ACC到VMT通路的θ节律刺激复制了心动过缓。VMT神经元投射到背内侧下丘脑（DMH），DMH神经元投射到疑核，而疑核支配心脏的副交感神经元。
据悉，当个体接收到实时反馈时，心率（HR）可进行自愿调节。
附：英文原文
Title: Top-down brain circuits for operant bradycardia
Author: Airi Yoshimoto, Shota Morikawa, Eriko Kato, Haruki Takeuchi, Yuji Ikegaya
Issue&Volume: 2024-06-21
Abstract: Heart rate (HR) can be voluntarily regulated when individuals receive real-time feedback. In a rat model of HR biofeedback, the neocortex and medial forebrain bundle were stimulated as feedback and reward, respectively. The rats reduced their HR within 30 minutes, achieving a reduction of approximately 50% after 5 days of 3-hour feedback. The reduced HR persisted for at least 10 days after training while the rats exhibited anxiolytic behavior and an elevation in blood erythrocyte count. This bradycardia was prevented by inactivating anterior cingulate cortical (ACC) neurons projecting to the ventromedial thalamic nucleus (VMT). Theta-rhythm stimulation of the ACC-to-VMT pathway replicated the bradycardia. VMT neurons projected to the dorsomedial hypothalamus (DMH) and DMH neurons projected to the nucleus ambiguus, which innervates parasympathetic neurons in the heart.
DOI: adl3353
Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adl3353