CRCNS:US-lsrael Research Proposal: To Elucidate Fundamental Mechanisms of Transformed Saliency Map to

感官刺激选择的神经基础，是注意力和适应行为的基本功能，将通过 这个关于谷仓猫头鹰的合作项目，是一种专门的刺激定位物种。而相对的地形表示 在谷仓猫头鹰的视顶盖中，已经证实了刺激强度和跨越视觉和听觉空间的行为相关性 (OT)，信息如何传递到下游决策中心，以适当控制刺激驱动的行为 在谷仓猫头鹰和其他物种中都是未知的。拟议研究的主要目标是理解读出的内容 中脑-前脑上升通路的中脑图机制，沿着该通路，一种涉及 观察到取消了空间位置的地形表示。谷仓猫头鹰为调查提供了强大的优势 这些问题，因为他们健壮的和经过充分研究的跨大脑区域的视觉和听觉表征，以及因为 在谷仓猫头鹰身上已经显示出健壮的听觉显著图。这项研究旨在回答这样一个问题，即行为如何 相关的感觉信号被选择和编码以诱导刺激位置驱动的感知和行为反应，同时 其他人则被忽视了。通过同时记录中脑、丘脑和前脑区域，地形图的假说 显著刺激的表示被转换为视觉(目标1)和 听觉(目标2)显著刺激将在麻醉动物和行为动物中进行测试。计算建模描述 网络处理和编码将用于进一步验证假设和网络和编码的详细描述 刺激选择变化性编码的基础机制(目标3)。初步结果支持建议的可行性 接近了。此协作计算项目将贡献智力优势和更广泛的影响，扩大视野和 通过变换编码方案理解神经编码和神经网络机制在刺激选择中的基础 中脑到前脑，是跨物种选择性注意和感知显著刺激的基础。创新同步 麻醉和清醒动物的中脑和前脑区域的记录，以及跨学科的生理、行为和 将实施计算方法。此外，本科生的培养机会和出版目标， 研究生和博士后研究员将提高他们的知名度和职业规划。与多样性和包容性有关，该团队包括 成员来自代表性不足的性别和族裔群体，并将促进脑科学方面的国际合作。

The neural bases of sensory stimulus selection, an essential function for attentional and adaptive behavior, will be investigated by this collaborative project in barn owls, a specialized stimulus localizer species. While a topographic representation of relative stimulus strength and behavioral relevance across visual and auditory space has been demonstrated in the barn owl's optic tectum (OT), how the information is conveyed to downstream decision-making centers for proper control of stimulus driven behaviors is unknown in barn owls, as well as in other species. The main goal of the proposed research is to understand the read-out mechanisms of the midbrain map in the ascending midbrain-to-forebrain pathway, along which a transformation involving abolishment of a topographic representation of spatial location is observed. Barn owls offer a strong advantage for investigating these questions, because of their robust and well-studied visual and auditory representations across brain regions and because a robust auditory saliency map has been shown in the barn owl. This study aims at answering the question of how behaviorally relevant sensory signals are selected and encoded to induce stimulus location driven perceptual and behavioral responses while others are ignored. Through simultaneous recordings of midbrain, thalamic and forebrain regions, the hypothesis that topographic representation of salient stimuli is translated into a non-topographic representation of salient stimuli for both visual (Aim 1) and auditory (Aim 2) salient stimuli will be tested in both anesthetized and behaving animals. Computational modeling describing network processing and coding will be used for further testing hypothesis and detailed description of network and coding mechanisms underlying transformational coding of stimulus selection (Aim 3). Preliminary results support feasibility of proposed approaches. This collaborative computational project will contribute intellectual merits and broader impact of widening view and understanding of neural coding and network mechanisms underlying stimulus selection by a transformational coding scheme from midbrain to forebrain, fundamental for selective attention and perception of salient stimuli across species. Innovative simultaneous recordings of midbrain and forebrain regions of anesthetized and awake animals, and interdisciplinary physiological, behavioral and computational approaches will be implemented. In addition, training opportunities and publication goals for undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral fellows will enhance their visibility and career plans. Related to diversity and inclusion, the team includes members from underrepresented gender and ethnic groups and will promote international collaboration in brain sciences.