Neuronal basis of reward-biased visual perception

描述（由申请人提供）：这个独立之路奖龙丁博士的目标，是扩大候选人的专业知识领域的视觉感知决策，并建立一个新的实验模型，以填补知识空白的视觉感知是如何影响奖励诱导的内部偏好。实现第一个目标将补充候选人之前在与学习和奖励的神经表征相关的基底神经节生理学方面的培训。实现第二个目标将为候选人提供一个启动点，以发展独立的研究生涯，朝着更好地了解基底神经节在感知的奖励调制中的功能的长期目标。这些目标将分两个阶段实现。在为期2年的指导阶段，候选人将在宾夕法尼亚大学约书亚戈尔德博士的实验室进行监督研究，以确定基底神经节和额叶皮层中基于外部证据的感知决策的神经相关性，使用猴子执行视觉运动辨别任务（目标1）的单单位记录。Gold博士在视觉感知决策方面的专业知识、训练有素的猴子的即时可用性以及宾夕法尼亚大学以视觉和感知研究而闻名的智力资源，使这种培训环境非常适合。在接下来的3年阶段，候选人的独立研究将确定决策的神经相关性，将奖励诱导的内部偏好和基底神经节和额叶皮层的外部证据整合在一起（目标2）。本研究将基于单个单元 记录在猴子执行一种新的视觉运动辨别任务，也包括奖励偏见。拟议的研究旨在测试中心假设，即外部证据和奖励诱导的内部偏好的神经表征是共同定位的，并纳入基底神经节和额叶皮层的单个神经元。它代表了一个创新的融合既定的研究路线，并将促进我们的理解神经机制的基础上正常的视觉感知。与公共卫生的相关性：拟议的研究代表了视觉感知的一个重要研究领域，并将有助于未来识别神经靶点，以更好地治疗感知障碍患者。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The objectives of this Pathway to Independence Award for Long Ding, Ph.D., are to expand the candidate's expertise in the field of visual perceptual decision-making and to establish a novel experimental model to fill the knowledge gap on how visual perception is affected by reward-induced internal preferences. Achieving the first objective will complement the candidate's previous training in basal ganglia physiology related to learning and neural representation of reward. Achieving the second objective will provide a launching point for the candidate to develop an independent research career, toward a long-term goal of gaining a better understanding of the basal ganglia functions in reward modulation of perception. These objectives will be accomplished in two phases. In the 2-year mentored phase, the candidate will conduct supervised research in Dr. Joshua Gold's lab at the University of Pennsylvania to identify neural correlates of external evidence-based perceptual decisions in the basal ganglia and frontal cortex, using single-unit recordings in monkeys performing a visual motion discrimination task (Aim 1). This training environment is uniquely suitable because of Dr. Gold's expertise in visual perceptual decision-making, the immediate availability of well-trained monkeys and the intellectual resources available at Penn, which is renowned for its research on vision and perception. In the next 3-year phase, the candidate's independent research will identify neural correlates of decision-making that integrates reward-induced internal preference and external evidence in the basal ganglia and frontal cortex (Aim 2). This research will be based on single unit recordings in monkeys performing a novel visual motion discrimination task that also incorporates reward bias. The proposed research is designed to test the central hypothesis that the neural representations of external evidence and reward-induced internal preference are co-localized and incorporated in individual neurons in the basal ganglia and frontal cortex. It represents an innovative merging of established lines of research and will advance our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying normal visual perception. Relevance to public health: The proposed research represents an important research area of visual perception and will facilitate future identification of neural targets for better treatment of patients with perceptual impairment.