Central mechanisms for integrating distinct retinal inputs during the optokinetic reflex in mice

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PROJECT SUMMARY The optokinetic reflex (OKR) is an innate, visually-driven behavior that is critical to normal vision. During OKR, compensatory eye movements stabilize vision in response to slow, global image motion that often results from changes in head position. While OKR is robust across diverse species, its underlying mechanisms are unknown. This project aims to understand how distinct retinal output streams that collectively encode OKR-inducing stimuli are centrally integrated to drive eye movements. To achieve this goal, a combination of physiology and behavioral techniques will be used to measure functional readouts from three stages along the OKR pathway of the mouse in response to a common stimulus set: 1) The population activity of retinal ganglion cells that are responsible for detecting and encoding OKR-inducing stimuli, 2) Downstream neurons in the medial terminal nucleus – a primary central hub for OKR processing, and 3) The eye movements of awake animals as they perform OKR. This novel approach to describing signal transformation along the entirety of a visual pathway will provide a mapping of retinal activity onto behavior and offer insight into how and where information from distinct retinal output streams is centrally integrated. Broadly, such findings are important for revealing general strategies by which elements of the central nervous system integrate competing inputs from distinct sources. Further, revealing fundamental features of eye movement pathways will make progress towards understanding the mechanisms behind a variety of common eye movement disorders including nystagmus, strabismus, and amblyopia. This work will be complemented by a rigorous training plan that involves tailored mentorship, coursework, presentation opportunities, and career development. Along with the institutional, intellectual, and training resources available in the highly collaborative scientific environment at the University of California, San Francisco, these research and training plans will jointly facilitate the applicant’s development into an independent sensory neuroscientist.