SC1:Functional Investigation of Neural Elements Located in a Key Brainstem Circuit that Controls Attention

 描述（由申请人提供）：本项目的目标是确定以前未调查的神经元元件和位于控制和调节前注意过程的关键脑干区域的电路的功能。前注意过程在许多神经障碍中受损，包括精神分裂症和强迫症，其影响全球人口的1-3%，在美国约有400万人。因此，更好地了解前注意过程的神经基础将对国家和国际的健康问题产生强大的影响。目前，没有治疗注意力处理功能障碍的方法，注意力处理是一种控制各种行为结果的认知任务。事实上，不能长时间集中注意力的人将不得不在学校学习，保住工作和参加社会活动。尽管科学家们做了很多努力，但即使在健康的受试者中，前注意过程的神经回路和机制仍然不清楚。我们将使用动物模型和最先进的神经元记录技术，以更好地了解脑干回路和机制控制前注意处理。这些神经通路和机制可以作为药物开发和治疗伴有前注意缺陷的疾病的策略的目标。

 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this project is to identify the function of previously uninvestigated neuronal elements and circuits located in key brain stem regions that control and regulate pre-attentive processes. Pre-attentive processes are impaired in many neurological disorders including schizophrenia and obsessive compulsive disorder which affect 1-3% of the worldwide population and about 4 million people in the United States. Therefore, better understanding the neuronal basis of pre-attentive processes will have a powerful impact on health concerns both nationally and internationally. At the present time, there is no treatment for dysfunction in attention processing, a cognitive task that governs a variety of behavioral outcomes. In fact, individuals unable to focus attention for prolonged periods of time will struggl to learn in school, to maintain a job and to participate in social activities. Despite much scientiic efforts, the neural circuits and mechanisms underlying pre-attentive processes are still ill defined, even in healthy subjects. We will use an animal model and state-of-the-art neuronal recording techniques to better understand brain stem circuits and mechanisms controlling pre-attentive processing. Such neuronal pathways and mechanisms could be targeted for drug development and therapeutic strategies for disorders accompanied with pre-attentive deficits.