 the thalamic reticular nucleus ( trn ) is hypothesized to regulate neocortical rhythms and behavioral state . using optogenetics and multi - electrode recording in behaving mice 
 , we found that brief selective drive of trn switched thalamocortical firing mode from tonic to bursting and generated state - dependent neocortical spindles . 
 these findings provide causal support for the trn in state - regulation in vivo and introduce a new model for addressing the role of this structure in behavior . 
Supplementary Material