Neural mechanisms for landmark-based navigation

基于地标的导航的神经机制

• 批准号: 8437704
• 负责人: RUSSELL A EPSTEIN
• 金额: $ 40万
• 依托单位: UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2013
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2013-03-01 至 2016-02-29
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8437704
• 关键词: Address; Alzheimer' s Disease; Animals; Area; Biological Preservation; Brain region; Code; Cognition; Cognitive; Communications aid for the blind; Complex; Development; Diagnosis; Disease; Environment; Exhibits; Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Goals; Health; Hippocampus (Brain); Human; Individual; Individual Differences; Knowledge; Laboratories; Location; Maps; Nature; Neurodegenerative Disorders; Pattern; Performance; Positioning Attribute; Recovery; Relative (related person); Research; Retrieval; Route; Signal Transduction; Space Perception; Stimulus; Structure; System; Testing; Vision; Visual; Work; base; behavior test; indexing; innovation; neuroimaging; neuromechanism; neuropsychological; programs; public health relevance; rehabilitation strategy; relating to nervous system; theories; way finding

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A fundamental aspect of our existence is the fact that we move through space. We do not do so randomly~ rather, we use a variety of different strategies to efficiently reach our navigational goals. One such strategy is landmark-based piloting, which is the use of stable topological features to determine one's location and orientation relative to the enduring spatial structure of the world. The current proposal describes a research program in which functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and cognitive behavioral testing are used to understand the neural mechanisms that underlie landmark-based piloting. Previous neuroimaging and neuropsychological studies, including several from our laboratory, have identified a network of brain regions that might be critical. These include the parahippocampal place area (PPA), the retrosplenial complex (RSC), and the hippocampus. However, the precise way in which this network implements this function remains unclear. We will use recent technical innovations for the study of neural representation-multi-voxel pattern analyses (MVPA) and fMRI adaptation (fMRIa) - to test the idea that this network can be fractionated into functional subsystems tied to three cognitive mechanisms: a landmark-recognition mechanism, a spatial orientation mechanism, and a cognitive map. More specifically, Aim 1 will test the hypothesis that the PPA encodes fixed landmarks and local spatial coordinate frames that are anchored to these landmarks. Aim 2 will test the hypothesis that RSC supports recovery of location and facing direction relative to global (beyond-the-horizon) coordinate frames. Aim 3 will test the idea that the hippocampus encodes a cognitive map, by characterizing the spatial code indexed by a recently-discovered hippocampal distance signal. If successful, this research will result in a detailed theory of the neural basis of landmak-based piloting. This knowledge will have important health implications in two domains. First, understanding the mechanisms that underlie landmark-based piloting is critical for the development of rehabilitation strategies and navigational aids for the blind. Second, because the brain regions investigated are often impacted early in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's dementia, the knowledge gained about these systems will be useful for diagnosing and managing these diseases.

描述（由申请人提供）：我们存在的一个基本方面是我们在太空中移动。我们并不是随机地这样做，而是使用各种不同的策略来有效地达到我们的导航目标。其中一种策略是基于地标的导航，它使用稳定的拓扑特征来确定一个人相对于世界持久空间结构的位置和方向。目前的提案描述了 一项研究计划，其中使用功能磁共振成像（fMRI）和认知行为测试来了解基于地标的驾驶的神经机制。之前的神经影像学和神经心理学研究，包括我们实验室的几项研究，已经确定了可能至关重要的大脑区域网络。这些包括海马旁区 (PPA)、压后复合体 (RSC) 和海马。然而，该网络实现该功能的具体方式仍不清楚。我们将利用最新的技术创新来研究神经表示——多体素模式分析（MVPA）和功能磁共振成像适应（fMRIa）——来测试这个网络可以分解为与三个认知机制相关的功能子系统的想法：识别机制、空间定向机制和认知地图。更具体地说，目标 1 将测试以下假设：PPA 对固定地标和锚定到这些地标的局部空间坐标系进行编码。目标 2 将测试 RSC 支持恢复相对于全局（超视距）坐标系的位置和面向方向的假设。目标 3 将通过表征由最近发现的海马距离信号索引的空间代码来测试海马编码认知图的想法。如果成功，这项研究将产生基于陆地飞行的神经基础的详细理论。这些知识将在两个领域产生重要的健康影响。首先，了解基于地标的试点的机制对于制定盲人康复策略和导航辅助设备至关重要。其次，由于所研究的大脑区域通常在阿尔茨海默氏痴呆等神经退行性疾病的早期受到影响，因此获得的有关这些系统的知识将有助于诊断和治疗这些疾病。