Development of hemispheric specialization pattern, a model of ontogenetic plasticity

半球特化模式的发展，个体发生可塑性模型

• 批准号: 247871126
• 负责人: Professorin Dr. Martina Manns
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Klinik für Psychiatrie, Psychotherapie und Präventivmedizin
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 德国
• 起止时间: 2013-12-31 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/247871126?language=en
• 关键词: Development; hemispheric; specialization; pattern; model

Cerebral lateralization, the dominance of one brain side for a specific function, is a core feature of neuronal information processing in the animal kingdom indicating a profound fitness advantage when brains display a division of labour between the two brain halves. Lateralized processing is based on complex intra- and interhemispheric mechanisms enabling independent, hemispheric-specific encoding but also exchange, integration, or suppression of information. The underlying functional organization of cooperative or independent processing as well as its development is only poorly understood. It is therefore the aim of this project proposal to understand how two specialized brain halves communicate generating adaptive decisions and behavioural control and how gene-environment interactions during development shape the underlying intra- and interhemispheric processes. We use the asymmetrically organized visual system of pigeons as a model to investigate the impact of the environmental factor light since the emergence of visual asymmetries depend on biased visual stimulation during embryonic development. Especially tasks investigating response selection in conflict situations (metacontrol) enable us to probe the relevance of intra- and interhemispheric processes facilitating a dynamic use of hemispheric-specific specialized neuronal circuits. We want to address this topic by three sets of experiments comparing metacontrol pattern of pigeons with and without embryonic light experience:Experiment I investigates in how far the emergence of hemispheric dominance in conflict choices depends on embryonic light stimulation. Experiment II addresses the question in how far a lateralized mode of stimulus analysis depends on ontogenetic light experience and explores the dynamics and flexibility of metacontrol in relation to hemispheric processing specializations. Experiment III aims for unravelling the neuronal mechanisms underlying hemispheric dominance in conflict decisions by means of optogenetics.Our studies can provide important hints how ontogenetic sensory experience impacts efficient interactions between the two brain halves. This may crucially improve our understanding the cognitive advantages of a lateralized brain but also impairments in developmental and psychiatric disorders.

大脑偏侧化，即一侧大脑对特定功能的主导地位，是动物界神经元信息处理的核心特征，表明当大脑在两个半脑之间表现出分工时，具有深远的适应性优势。侧化处理基于复杂的半球内和半球间机制，不仅可以实现独立的、特定于半球的编码，还可以交换、集成或抑制信息。人们对合作或独立处理的基本功能组织及其发展知之甚少。因此，该项目提案的目的是了解两个专门的大脑半球如何进行交流以产生适应性决策和行为控制，以及发育过程中基因与环境的相互作用如何塑造潜在的半球内和半球间过程。我们使用鸽子的不对称组织视觉系统作为模型来研究环境因素光的影响，因为视觉不对称的出现取决于胚胎发育过程中的偏见视觉刺激。特别是研究冲突情况下的反应选择（元控制）的任务使我们能够探究半球内和半球间过程的相关性，促进半球特定的专门神经元回路的动态使用。我们想通过三组实验来解决这个话题，比较有和没有胚胎光体验的鸽子的元控制模式：实验一研究冲突选择中半球优势的出现在多大程度上取决于胚胎光刺激。实验二解决了刺激分析的侧化模式在多大程度上依赖于个体发生光体验的问题，并探索了与半球处理专业化相关的元控制的动态性和灵活性。实验三旨在通过光遗传学揭示冲突决策中半球优势的神经元机制。我们的研究可以提供重要的线索，即个体发生的感觉体验如何影响两个半脑之间的有效互动。这可能会极大地提高我们对偏侧大脑的认知优势以及发育和精神疾病损伤的理解。