The rewarding crunch: A brainstem circuit links incisor mechanosensation to motivated gnawing.

内容摘要

Gnawing maintains ever-growing rodent incisors, yet the underlying circuit has remained unknown. In this issue of Neuron, Su et al.1 identify brainstem Sst⁺ neurons linking incisor mechanosensation to jaw motoneurons and mesolimbic reward, thereby revealing a self-reinforcing sensorimotor circuit for gnawing.