bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.01.15.426914; this version posted January 16, 2021. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under aCC-BY 4.0 International license. Tonic activity in lateral habenula neurons promotes disengagement from reward-seeking behavior 5 Brianna J. Sleezer1,3, Ryan J. Post1,2,3, David A. Bulkin1,2,3, R. Becket Ebitz4, Vladlena Lee1, Kasey Han1, Melissa R. Warden1,2,5,* 1Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA 2Cornell Neurotech, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA 10 3These authors contributed equally 4Department oF Neuroscience, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada 5Lead Contact *Correspondence:
[email protected] 15 Sleezer*, Post*, Bulkin* et al. 1 of 38 bioRxiv preprint doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2021.01.15.426914; this version posted January 16, 2021. The copyright holder for this preprint (which was not certified by peer review) is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under aCC-BY 4.0 International license. SUMMARY Survival requires both the ability to persistently pursue goals and the ability to determine when it is time to stop, an adaptive balance of perseverance and disengagement. Neural activity in the 5 lateral habenula (LHb) has been linked to aversion and negative valence, but its role in regulating the balance between reward-seeking and disengaged behavioral states remains unclear.