H2020Индивидуална стипендия2019–2021

NeuroSens · Neuromodulation of Sensory Processing

„Хоризонт 2020“ — Действия „Мария Склодовска-Кюри“

Период: 2019-05-01 → 2021-07-31
Финансиране от ЕС: 212 934 €
Участници: 1
Схема: MSCA-IF-EF-ST

Линиите свързват координатора с партньорите.

Накратко на български

Холинергичната невромодулация регулира начина, по който мозъкът обработва сетивна информация, като например допира на мустаците при мишките. По-доброто разбиране на тези механизми помага при изучаването на невроразвиващи се разстройства и заболявания като болестта Алцхаймер.

Този кратък обзор е генериран от изкуствен интелект

Кратко обяснение, генерирано от езиков модел по текста на CORDIS. Оригиналът е по-долу.

Резултати накратко

Neuromodulation of Sensory Processing

Cholinergic neuromodulation regulates arousal, learning and attention. Thereby it can modulate the way our brains interpret our sensory experiences. How our neural circuitry integrates and processes incoming sensory input to generate a meaningful output as well as how this is regulated by neuromodulation remains to be fully deciphered. This project aims to gain insights into neuromodulation of sensory processing by using the mouse primary somatosensory cortex (S1) as an experimental model. Mice use their whiskers for explorative behaviour and spatial navigation in a manner analogous to our use of fingers in somatosensory discrimination. Almost a third of the mouse neocortex is represented by S1 and a large portion of it processes sensory inputs from whiskers. The cellular mechanistic insights gained from the project will contribute to answering neurocomputational questions on the role and function of cortical microcircuit in sensory information processing. A greater understanding of sensory processing and its neuromodulation will also advance our understanding of neuropathology associated with several brain disorders that typify health burdens of today’s society. For example, deficits in sensory processing is found in many neurodevelopmental disorders, and drugs that are most effective in treating patients afflicted with Alzheimer’s are those that modulate actions of acetylcholine (ACh), the neuromodulator secreted by cholinergic neurons. The overall goal of the project is to understand cholinergic neuromodulation of sensory processing and the cellular mechanisms that govern it. Specifically, the neuromodulation of whisker-evoked responses in layer 2/3 pyramidal neurons of adult S1. To this end, its main objectives are 1) to characterise whisker-evoked responses in layer(L) 2/3 pyramidal neurons and 2) to examine the effects of ACh on these responses, and its mechanism. The whisker-evoked responses are cortical state dependent, and preliminary findings suggest that enhancement of cholinergic tone leads to a desynchronised cortical state. Current experiments underway involving pharmacological and optogenetic manipulation of cholinergic tone aim to further elucidate the cellular mechanisms that underlie this cortical desynchronisation and its effects on whisker-evoked responses.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз

Цел на проекта

Neuromodulation, such as that associated with paying attention, changes the way our brains interpret our sensory experiences. Understanding the neuromodulation of neural circuitry that integrates and processes incoming sensory input to generate a meaningful output remains a fundamental question in neuroscience. While the neuromodulator acetylcholine is shown to enhance sensory responses, the cellular mechanisms by which it mediates these effects are still poorly understood. Recent evidence suggests that the local subthreshold dendritic potentials, dendritic spikes, which are important in synaptic input integration, also play a key role in encoding feature selectivity, the ability of neurons in sensory cortices to be tuned to specific features of a stimulus. Interestingly, ion channels, such as potassium channels that regulate dendritic spikes are also shown to be modulated by cholinergic inputs. Here, I propose that acetylcholine modulates sensory processing via modulation of dendritic spikes. I will use a combination of state-of-the-art in vivo imaging, electrophysiology, pharmacology and optogenetics to test the novel hypothesis that acetylcholine modulates sensory processing by regulating dendritic spikes and thereby feature selectivity in mouse somatosensory cortex. The project will provide new cellular insights into a long-standing question on the mechanisms of neuromodulation of sensory processing. It builds on my expertise in neuroanatomy and physiology and will give me the opportunity to master advanced in vivo techniques in a host environment that is well known for their in vivo expertise and research into neuromodulation. Given my strong background in neurodevelopmental disorders, the project will push the knowledge frontier on neuronal processing and will provide a framework for research into basic mechanisms of sensory perception and their alterations in neurological disorders.

Оригинален текст от CORDIS (на английски).

Участници

UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL · BRISTOLКоординаторОбединеното кралство