SIGNAL INTEGRATION IN THE MITRAL NEURON

描述（改编自申请人摘要）：本研究的主要目的 建议通过直接测量来研究个体二尖瓣 神经元在功能上是有组织的， 二尖瓣神经细胞的房室模型。 长期目标是利用 关于单个神经细胞的信息作为一个 了解互联神经元网络如何控制 行为 从长远来看，我们所获得的关于正常 行为的产生将帮助我们理解精神障碍， 抑郁症、毒瘾或精神分裂症。 了解如何单身 神经元处理信息是理解大脑 工程. 对任何单个细胞功能的完整理解 尚未获得。 由于线性和非线性膜， 分支过程的电特性是复杂的，不可能 在没有空间分辨测量的情况下进行预测。 实验 将进行详细描述一个范例神经元， 大鼠嗅球中的二尖瓣神经元。 我们将尝试看看 兴奋性（来自嗅觉神经）和抑制性输入（来自 颗粒细胞），以最直接的方式，通过膜的光学监测 通过使用细胞内电压敏感性， 染料。 我们计划确定触发区的数量和位置， 确定树突是否能够产生尖峰。 我们将 为了通过实验来验证这一假设，除了顶端（原发性） 枝晶的反向传播，也发生在簇状和次级枝晶中 影响突触可塑性。 我们还计划验证一个假设， 单个神经元可以在功能上被细分。 如果是真的， 将对生物体的功能复杂性 单个神经元。

DESCRIPTION (Adapted from applicant's abstract): The main objective of this proposal is to investigate by direct measurement how individual mitral neurons are functionally organized and incorporate the results in a compartmental model of the mitral nerve cell. The long-term goal is to use the information about individual nerve cells as the basis for an understanding of how networks of interconnected neurons operate to control behavior. In the long run, the knowledge we obtain about how normal behavior is generated will help us understand mental disorders such as depression, drug addiction or schizophrenia. Understanding how single neurons process information is fundamental to understanding how the brain works. A complete understanding of any individual cell's function has not yet been obtained. Due to linear and nonlinear membranes, the regional electrical properties of branching processes are complex and impossible to predict in the absence of spatially resolved measurements. The experiments will be carried out to characterize in detail one exemplar neuron, the mitral neuron in the rat olfactory bulb. We will try to look at the processing of excitatory (from olfactory nerve) and inhibitory inputs (from granule cells), in the most direct way, by optical monitoring of membrane potential transients at many sites by using intracellular voltage sensitive dyes. We plan to determine the number and locations of trigger zones and to determine whether dendrites are capable of generating spikes. We are going to test experimentally the hypothesis that besides the apical (primary) dendrite the back propagation, also occurs in tuft and secondary dendrites to influence synaptic plasticity. We also plan to test the hypothesis that individual neurons can be functionally subdivided. If true, this postulate would have important implications for the functional complexity of individual neurons.