Investigating the functional role of the pulvinar-postrhinal circuit in visuospatial attention

项目摘要/摘要 注意力，或选择信息进行进一步处理的能力，对生存至关重要。当你有能力 注意力被打乱，如注意力缺陷障碍或空间忽视，注意力质量下降 生活可能是毁灭性的。有几个大脑区域的损伤或可识别的活动发生变化。 与注意力障碍有关。这些脑区包括海马区旁皮质，称为纹状体后皮质。 啮齿类动物的丘脑枕核，有时称为外侧后核。 啮齿动物的大脑。这些区域的破坏与神经精神疾病有关，包括 精神分裂症和抑郁症，以及与注意力相关的缺陷，包括注意力缺陷障碍， 帕金森氏症和阿尔茨海默氏症。解剖工作证实枕骨和枕骨是 牢固而又相互联系。到目前为止，枕骨为POR提供了最强的皮质下输入， 与其他任何新皮质相比，POR为枕骨尾侧内侧区域提供了更多的输入 结构。鉴于这两个区域是在关注的背景下单独研究的， 枕叶环路在注意方面尚未被研究过。PI建议使用活体电生理学， 用计算模型和光遗传学研究POR-枕骨的组织和功能 巡回赛。目标1将包括同时记录来自POR的单个单元和局部场势数据 当大鼠执行视觉空间注意任务时，使用四极管记录方法记录枕骨。私人侦探将 分析单个单元和场电位数据，以确定两个区域之间的相关性，重点是场 在theta(6-10赫兹)和快速伽马(65-100赫兹)频段内的潜在振荡。在目标2中，PI将 使用在目标1中收集的数据来拟合考虑观测相关的一般线性模型网络 视觉空间注意任务的活动和表现。此模型将用于探讨POR如何- 枕部回路的功能，以及回路中的中断可能如何影响行为。在目标3中，PI将使用 POR投射神经元和枕区投射POR神经元的光发生抑制， 以检验模型的预测和POR-枕部回路在任务中的参与。除了……之外 这些研究阐明了注意力背后的回路，将提供有关组织的新信息 以及大脑中丘脑皮质和皮质丘脑回路的功能。这项研究将为未来 旨在了解和治疗注意力障碍的研究。

Project Summary / Abstract Attention, or the ability to select information for further processing, is critical for survival. When the ability to focus attention is disrupted, such as in attention deficit disorder or spatial neglect, the decrease in quality of life can be devastating. There are several brain areas in which damage or identifiable activity changes correlate with attentional dysfunction. These include the parahippocampal cortex, called the postrhinal cortex (POR) in rodents, and the pulvinar nucleus of the thalamus, sometimes called the lateral posterior nucleus in the rodent brain. Disruption of these regions is implicated in neuropsychiatric conditions, including schizophrenia and depression, as well as attention-related deficits, including attention deficit disorder, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. Anatomical work confirms that the pulvinar and the POR are robustly and reciprocally connected. The pulvinar provides, by far, the strongest subcortical input to the POR, and the POR provides more input to the caudomedial region of the pulvinar than any other neocortical structure. Whereas these two regions have been studied individually in the context of attention, the role of the POR-pulvinar circuit in attention has not been investigated. The PI proposes to use in vivo electrophysiology, computational modeling, and optogenetics to investigate the organization and function of the POR-pulvinar circuit. Aim 1 will consist of simultaneously recording single unit and local field potential data from the POR and the pulvinar using tetrode recording methods while rats perform a visuospatial attention task. The PI will analyze both single unit and field potential data for correlations between the two regions with a focus on field potential oscillations in the theta (6-10 Hz) and fast gamma (65-100 Hz) frequency bands. In aim 2, the PI will use the data collected in Aim 1 to fit a General Linear Model network that accounts for observed correlated activity and performance on the visuospatial attention task. This model will be used to explore how the POR- pulvinar circuit functions and how disruptions in the circuit might affect behavior. In aim 3, the PI will use optogenetic inhibition of the POR-projecting pulvinar neurons, as well as the pulvinar-projecting POR neurons, to test the predictions of the model and the involvement of the POR-pulvinar circuit in the task. In addition to elucidating the circuits underlying attention, these studies will provide new information about the organization and function of thalamocortical and corticothalamic circuits in the brain. This research will inform future research aimed at understanding and treating attentional dysfunction.