MATURATION AND PLASTICITY IN THE OLFACTORY SYSTEM

嗅觉系统的成熟和可塑性

基本信息

批准号：
3406357
负责人：
PETER C BRUNJES
金额：
$ 6.56万
依托单位：
UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
财政年份：
1987
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
1987-04-01 至 1990-03-31
项目状态：
已结题

项目摘要

Olfactory sensitivity has been demonstrated to be important for directing a number of early behaviors in many mammalian species. While the role of chemosensitivity in behavioral development has been well studied, relatively little is known about the ontogeny of the principal relay in the olfactory system, the olfactory bulb. One purpose of the proposed research is to begin thorough anatomical, neurochemical and biochemical studies of bulb development in order to better understand maturation in this important sensory modality. A second purpose of the studies is to use the olfactory bulb to examine how experiential factors regulate brain development. While it has been demonstrated repeatedly that environmental input is important in shaping patterns of neural maturation, relatively little research has examined the cellular events through which the shaping occurs. The present grant is designed to pursue these issues by examining the effects of unilateral deprivation on the development of the olfactory bulb. Two specific problems will be addressed. First, the proposed studies will examine the sequence of postsynaptic events resulting from decreased airflow over the olfactory receptors. These studies will lead to an enhanced understanding of the mechanisms of experience-induced change. Second, the proposed studies will help to define which aspects of bulb development are experientially sensitive and which are independent in order to determine why experience has such important effects on neural growth at some stages in life and little at others. Quantitative neuroanatomical, neurochemical and biochemical techniques will also be used in these studies. The proposed experiments will help define normal and experientially modified growth in a primary sensory nucleus which has received relatively little attention. The findings will have important implications for our conceptions of early brain function, normal brain development and the cellular interactions through which environmental events control the patterning of brain growth.

嗅觉灵敏度已被证明对在许多哺乳动物中指导许多早期行为物种。而化学敏感在行为中的作用开发已经进行了充分的研究，相对较少已知关于嗅觉系统中主要继电器的个体发育，嗅球。拟议研究的目的是开始彻底解剖，神经化学和生化研究灯泡开发以更好地理解在这种重要的感官方式中成熟。研究的第二个目的是使用嗅球检查体验因素如何调节大脑发育。虽然反复证明了环境输入在塑造神经成熟模式中很重要，相对较少的研究通过塑形发生。目前的赠款旨在追求这些问题通过检查单方面剥夺对嗅球的发展。两个具体问题将被解决。首先，拟议的研究将检查气流减少引起的突触后事件的顺序在嗅觉受体上。这些研究将导致增强对经验引起的机制的理解改变。其次，拟议的研究将有助于定义哪个灯泡发育的各个方面对经验敏感，并且为了确定体验为什么有独立的独立在生活的某些阶段，对神经增长的重要影响别人。定量神经解剖学，神经化学这些研究也将使用生化技术。拟议的实验将有助于定义正常和经验修改的原发性感觉核的生长受到相对较少的关注。调查结果将有对我们早期大脑概念的重要意义功能，正常的大脑发育和细胞相互作用通过哪些环境事件控制大脑生长。