NeuroTick · The neuroscience of tickling: cerebellar mechanisms and sensory prediction
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2019-09-01 → 2022-08-31
- EU contribution
- €246,669
- Participants
- 3
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
The neuroscience of tickling: cerebellar mechanisms and sensory prediction
The cerebellum (‘the little brain’, a region in the back of the brain containing more than half of all brain cells) plays an important role in the coordination of movement as well as cognitive functions. In humans, damage to the cerebellum around birth is associated with a higher risk of developing autism spectrum disorder. However, how exactly the cerebellum coordinates cognitive functions is still unclear. The first aim of this project was to get a better understanding of the neuronal mechanisms by which the cerebellum plays a role in cognition. Our work will have important implications for both our understanding of cerebellar control of neocortical brain regions during sensory and cognitive processing, as well as for our understanding of autism spectrum disorder. The second aim of this project was to develop a tool to improve analysis of recordings from the cerebellar cortex, and provide this tool open-access to the cerebellar community. Currently, high-density silicon probes are commonly used to record brain activity. The advantage of these probes is that hundreds of cells can be recorded simultaneously. However, the downside is that it is currently not possible to determine the exact cell type these cells belong to. For this project, we aimed to address that issue by providing automatic cell-type classification in the cerebellar cortex. Third, we had a less conventional and more creative approach to study the brain. We aimed to address the question of how humans are able to recognize kin, and how preserved kin-recognition is in the most severe criminals of our society. Our assumption was that many mental faculties will be disrupted in offenders of cannibalistic homicides. Knowing whether kin recognition is disrupted or preserved, as in other cannibalistic animal species, helps us to understand how important and evolutionary preserved kin recognition is for humans. Going forward, ultimately we aim to combine cerebellar mechanisms of cognition and social behaviour such as kin-recognition by studying tickling in rats. The cerebellum is the reason you cannot tickle yourself: it already predicts your movements, removing the element of surprise which is essential for tickling. Play-fight behaviour such as tickling is naturalistic behaviour in rats. By combining all three previous aims, we can better understand the neuronal mechanisms by which the cerebellum controls cognitive and social behaviours.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Detecting surprising events, such as the sudden approach of a predator or an unexpected touch, is crucial for the survival of all species. We aim to study neuronal mechanisms underlying surprising events. In order to predict upcoming events, mental models of future actions are essential. Where in the brain are such predictions and mental models created? The somatosensory cortex might contain a body model, in which superficial layers provide context and sensory memories, and inputs from deeper layers allow for simulating body movements. In rats, the somatosensory cortex is activated by tickling, which is a special form of unexpected touch containing elements of both sensory and social surprise. However, self-touch induces signals which prevent activation of the somatosensory cortex and prevent self-tickle. Where do these self-touch induced inhibitory signals come from? We hypothesize that the cerebellum is the source of self-touch induced signals. The cerebellum has reciprocal connections with key forebrain areas, including the somatosensory cortex. Combined with its known role in adapting action to sensory and internally generated events, the cerebellum seems well placed to aid in the processing of surprising events. We will test in mice and rats the hypothesis that the cerebellum plays a key role in processing unexpected events to modulate representations in somatosensory cortex. By combining the applicant’s experience in recordings from awake behaving mice, the expertise of the lab of Prof. Wang at Princeton University in cerebellar research with a focus on motor and non-motor function, and the expertise of the lab of Prof. Michael Häusser at University College London in naturalistic systems neuroscience, we are well placed to study the cerebellar signals for sensory prediction. This study can help us to understand how we make sense of the complex environment around us by combining different inputs to form predictions and signal unexpected events during surprising situations.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON · LondonCoordinatorUnited Kingdom
- HUMBOLDT-UNIVERSITAET ZU BERLIN · BerlinGermany
- TRUSTEES OF PRINCETON UNIVERSITY · Princeton, NjUnited States
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union