CRCNS Dynamical Principles: Neuronal Motor Microcircuits

描述(申请人提供)：神经科学的一个中心目标是了解神经系统复杂的连贯活动的规律和机制，通过这些规律和机制，神经系统可以从许多相对简单的动力元素，即神经元和突触的合作活动中产生。由于神经元和突触在不同微电路(MC)中的排列不同，所有这些微电路中的任何通用原则都需要一个通用的理论框架。动力系统理论(DST)就是这样一个框架。DST提供了行为的结构元素的几何视图，如吸引子、盆地和分离线，并解决了神经系统光谱中常见的活动的问题。通过使用小的无脊椎动物MC，这是中央模式生成器(CPG)，几乎所有的突触连接和细胞属性都可以确定。通过这些准备，可以找到有助于确定脊椎动物MC的动力学特性的原理，其中现有技术不允许细胞到细胞电路的详细映射。为了测量MC的动力学特性，特别是与稳健性和灵活性的竞争需求有关的特性，我们将使用电子神经元、突触、改进的动态钳制技术和混合电路来改变组成神经元、突触和MC结构的固有特性。我们将与龙虾、螃蟹和悬铃木的CPG以及模型MC合作。这项拟议的研究提供了获得基本的动力学原理的机会，这些原理支配着广泛的神经系统中神经回路的运行。控制小神经电路活动的动力学原理的表述不仅对于理解稳健性、敏感性、灵活性和同步机制非常重要，更重要的是，它使我们能够在不需要详细了解生物电路的情况下，基于这些一般原理来构建人工系统。这种人工系统在假体设备的设计中将具有极其重要的临床意义。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A central goal of Neuroscience is to understand the laws and mechanisms by which complex coherent activity of the nervous system can emerge from the cooperative activities of many relatively simple dynamical elements i.e., neurons and synapses. Because the arrangement of neurons and synapses in different microcircuits (MCs) vary, any general principles common to all of them will require a general theoretical framework. Dynamical System Theory (DST) is such a framework. DST gives a geometrical view of a behavior's structural elements, such as attractors, basins, and separatrices and also addresses the question of what activity is common across the spectrum of neural systems. By using small invertebrate MCs, which are central pattern generators (CPGs), virtually all synaptic connections and cellular properties can be determined. With these preparations, principles may be found which can help determine the dynamical properties of vertebrate MCs where present techniques do not allow the detailed mapping of cell to cell circuitry. To measure the dynamical properties of the MCs, particularly in relation to the competing demands of robustness and flexibility, we will change the intrinsic properties of constituent neurons, synapses and MC architecture using electronic neurons, synapses, an improved dynamic clamp technique and hybrid circuits. We will work with CPGs of lobster, crab and Clione as well as with model MCs. The proposed research provides the opportunity of obtaining fundamental dynamical principles which govern the operation of neural circuits in a wide range of nervous systems. The formulation of the dynamical principles that govern the activity of small neural circuits is important not only for the understanding of robustness, sensitivity, flexibility, and synchronization mechanisms but, even more importantly, gives us the ability to build artificial systems based on such general principles without a detailed knowledge of the biological circuits. Such artificial systems would be extremely important clinically in the design of prosthetic devices.