Astrocytes in the External Globus Pallidus Selectively Represent Routine Formation During Repeated Reward-Seeking in Mice.

Abstract

The external globus pallidus (GPe) is a central part of the basal ganglia indirect pathway implicated in movement and decision-making. As a hub connecting the dorsal striatum and subthalamic nucleus (STN), the GPe guides repetitive and routine behaviors. However, it remains unknown how diverse GPe cells engage in routine formation while learning action sequences in repetitive reward-seeking conditioning. Here, in male mice, we investigated the Ca²⁺ dynamics of two GPe cell types, astrocytes and parvalbumin-expressing neurons, during routine formation. Our findings show that the dynamics of GPe astrocytes may be involved in action sequence refinement, a characteristic potentially contributing to more efficient reward-seeking behavior.