Glutamatergic neurons in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus regulate isoflurane anesthesia in mice

Abstract The glutamatergic–mediated excitatory system in the brain is vital for the regulation of sleep–wake and general anesthesia. Specifically, the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVH), which contains mainly glutamatergic neurons, has been shown to play a critical role in sleep–wake. Here, we sought to explore whether the PVH glutamatergic neurons have an important effect on the process of general anesthesia. We used c‐fos staining and in vivo calcium signal recording to observe the activity changes of the PVH glutamatergic neurons during isoflurane anesthesia and found that both c‐fos expression in the PVH and the calcium activity of PVH glutamatergic neurons decreased in isoflurane anesthesia and significantly increased during the recovery process. Chemogenetic activation of PVH glutamatergic neurons prolonged induction time and shortened emergence time from anesthesia by decreasing the depth of anesthesia. Using chemogenetic inhibition of PVH glutamatergic neurons under isoflurane anesthesia, we found that inhibition of PVH glutamatergic neurons facilitated the induction process and delayed the emergence accompanied by deepening the depth of anesthesia. Together, these results identify a crucial role for PVH glutamatergic neurons in modulating isoflurane anesthesia.