Collaborative Research: Excitatory Interneurons in the Mouse Locomotor Pattern Generator

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This collaborative project aims to study the neurons in the spinal cord that regulate how animals walk. A genetic marker for a small group of neurons has recently been identified. This marker gene has allowed the use genetic manipulations in the mice to test the function(s) of identified neurons. A series of mice have been generated using gene targeting. Preliminary studies suggest that these neurons are critical for controlling the movement of left and right legs as the mice walk. This project will investigate how these neurons function and explore the nature of the neuronal circuit that controls walking in mice. These basic questions will be addressed using transgenic mice that have been generated. Analysis of these mice will include a variety of anatomical and functional assays. The anatomical studies will reveal how these neurons connect to motor circuits in the spinal cord. The functional assays are designed to test the physiological significance of these neurons for motor control. This collaboration will involve students at both institutions, and will help both groups learn to combine molecular genetics and electrophysiological approaches to the study of neural circuits.