Anterior cingulate cortex and insomnia: A cingulate-striatum connection

Insomnia is an important comorbidity of chronic pain. In this issue of Neuron, Li et al. report that chronic-pain-induced insomnia is mediated by the pyramidal neurons in the anterior cingulate cortex and their dopaminergic projections to the dorsal medial striatum. Insomnia is an important comorbidity of chronic pain. In this issue of Neuron, Li et al. report that chronic-pain-induced insomnia is mediated by the pyramidal neurons in the anterior cingulate cortex and their dopaminergic projections to the dorsal medial striatum. Anterior cingulate cortex projections to the dorsal medial striatum underlie insomnia associated with chronic painLi et al.NeuronFebruary 13, 2024In BriefOver 50% of chronic pain patients experience insomnia. Li et al. reveal that heightened activity of anterior cingulate cortex excitatory neurons precisely governs chronic-pain-induced insomnia via the dorsal medial striatum pathway. This effect relies on enhanced plasticity in dopamine D1-receptor-positive medium spiny neurons. Full-Text PDF