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Abstract
The basal ganglia are a group of forebrain nuclei integral to movement, decision making, and motivation. They consist of the striatum, the globus pallidus internal (GPi) and external segments (GPe), the subthalamic nucleus (STN), and the substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr). The basal ganglia receive inputs from nearly all of the cerebral cortex, as well as the thalamus, the hippocampal formation, the amygdala, and several brainstem nuclei. The work presented in this dissertation details the comprehensive and three-dimensional convergence patterns for all excitatory inputs to the mouse striatum, as well as communication routes between input types. To compare this information to the existing literature and place the analyses in historical context, the current understanding of excitatory input distributions in the striatum, as well as the information they are thought to convey are reviewed. Additionally, to explore the possible functional implications of this dataset, the known mechanisms of striatal input processing and current theories of striatal input integration are discussed.