How Brains Build Navigational Variables and Use them to Guide Behavior

大脑如何构建导航变量并利用它们来指导行为

基本信息

批准号：
10665382
负责人：
GABY MAIMON
金额：
$ 59.33万
依托单位：
ROCKEFELLER UNIVERSITY
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
财政年份：
2023
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2023-05-01 至 2031-04-30
项目状态：
未结题

项目摘要

Project Summary / Abstract Our brain provides us with a sense of where we are in space. The importance of this sense is clear when we become spatially disoriented, like when one is confused about one’s orientation after exiting a subway station. Central to the understanding of how brains give rise to spatial cognition has been the discovery of place cells in the 1970’s (i.e., neurons that are active when animals are in one location in space), head-direction cells in the 1980’s (i.e., neurons that are active when animals face one compass direction), and grid cells in the early 2000’s (i.e., neurons that are active when animals are in a grid of locations in space). A fundamental next step in our understanding of spatial cognition would be to describe the circuit-level interactions that give rise to such physiological activity patterns and to understand how such signals ultimately influence navigational behavior. We wish to leverage the advanced genetic, behavioral, anatomical and physiological tools in Drosophila, to achieve three broad goals. First, we wish to rigorously characterize neural circuits that explain how navigational signals are built. Second, we wish to improve the tasks that flies perform while we record from their brain, which will allow us to isolate cells and circuits required for the formation of spatial working memories. Third, we aim to reveal molecular, cellular and circuit mechanisms by which such memories are formed and guide behavior. This work should allow us to more rigorously link molecular factors, through their effects on cells and circuits, to their function in spatial-cognition. Our discoveries should ultimately help to inform how humans perform navigational tasks like driving home from work or finding a car in a parking lot, alongside how to approach neurological conditions in which such abilities are impaired, like in Alzheimer’s disease.

项目摘要 /摘要我们的大脑为我们提供了我们在太空中的位置的感觉。当我们在空间上迷失方向，就像一个人在离开地铁站后对自己的方向感到困惑时。了解大脑如何产生空间认知的核心是发现了位置细胞中的位置细胞 1970年代（即动物在空间中一个位置的一个位置时具有活性的神经元） 1980年代（即动物面对一个指南方向时具有活性的神经元），并在早期网格细胞 2000年代（即动物在太空中的位置网格时具有活性的神经元）。下一步的基本在我们对空间认知的理解中，将描述引起这种情况的电路级相互作用生理活动模式，并了解此类信号如何最终影响导航行为。我们希望利用果蝇中的先进遗传，行为，解剖和物理工具实现三个广泛的目标。首先，我们希望严格地描述神经回路，以解释如何构建导航信号。其次，我们希望改进飞行的任务，而我们从他们的大脑，这将使我们能够隔离空间工作所需的细胞和电路回忆。第三，我们旨在揭示这种记忆是的分子，细胞和电路机制形成并指导行为。这项工作应该使我们能够更严格地将分子因素链接对细胞和电路的影响，对它们在空间认知中的功能。我们的发现最终应该有助于告知人类如何执行导航任务，例如开车回家或在停车场找到汽车，除了如何处理这种能力受损的神经系统状况，例如在阿尔茨海默氏症中疾病。