Synaptic Modification in Visual Cortex: Physiological Foundations, Theory and Simulations in Realistic Environments

小库珀9319373 这项工作的目标是了解从新生儿到成人，大脑视觉皮层中神经细胞（称为突触）之间的连接如何变化。 库珀博士发展了一种理论，认为在发育的关键时期，大脑必须接受视觉输入才能正常发育，对正常发育至关重要的是大脑神经元回路的变化，而不是其他人提出的突触特性的变化。这个研究小组将要进行的实验将通过对体外脑切片中的神经元进行实验来验证这一理论，这些神经元来自发育过程中不同时间的大鼠视觉皮层和在不同视觉环境中长大的大鼠。 如果这一理论被证明是正确的，那么这一建议中概述的工作将显著改变我们看待大脑发育的方式。

9319373 Cooper The goal of this work is to understand how the connections between nerve cells (call synapses) in the visual cortex of the brain change during maturation from newborn to adult. Dr. Cooper has developed a theory that during the critical period in development when the brain must receive visual input to develop properly, it is a change in the neuronal circuits with the brain that is critical for proper development rather than changes in the properties of the synapses, as has been proposed by others. The experiments that will be done by this team of investigators will test this theory by doing experiments on neurons in in vitro brain slices from rat visual cortex at different times during development and from rats raised in different visual environments. If this theory is proven to be true, the work outlined in this proposal will change significantly the way in which we view the developing brain.