Brain States and Flexible Behavior

摘要 为了在动态环境中生存，神经系统必须能够产生灵活的行为- 将过去的经验与现在的环境无缝地编织在一起，以实现未来的目标。我们的团队 行为神经回路的专家将合作揭示神经机制 小鼠根据任务需求对一种感觉通道和另一种感觉通道进行特定的处理。我们 假设这些类型的上下文相关行为通过灵活的耦合和 基于增益调制的神经动力学变化所介导的神经网络的解耦， 类似于参与大脑状态调节的机制。在清醒状态下，觉醒时， 注意力和任务参与度不断变化，并与正在进行的和巨大的变化相关联 神经调节系统(如去甲肾上腺素和乙酰胆碱)以及皮质内的活性 反馈通路，其作用是特定地调节神经网络的相互作用。穿过 可识别和精确的机制，这些途径控制活动的模式 新皮质，灵活地增加或减少特定神经网络之间的信息流。通过 通过一系列尖端的实验、分析和建模来定义这些精确的机制， 我们将阐明神经系统是如何产生上下文相关行为的。通过理解 皮质如何灵活地重新配置其功能交互，以产生与上下文相适应的 行为，以及性唤醒和参与如何调节这种灵活性，我们将提供对广泛的 人类疾病的范围，从注意力和知觉，到社会互动。

Abstract To survive in dynamic environments, the nervous system must be able to generate flexible behavior — seamlessly weaving together past experience with the present context to achieve future goals. Our team of experts on the neural circuits of behavior will collaborate to reveal the neural mechanisms by which a mouse engages in specific processing of one sensory modality versus another based on task demands. We hypothesize that these types of context-dependent behaviors operate through a flexible coupling and decoupling of neural networks mediated by changes in neural dynamics based on gain modulation, similar to mechanisms that are engaged in brain state regulation. During the waking state, arousal, attention, and task engagement constantly vary and are associated with ongoing and large changes in the activity of neuromodulatory (e.g., norepinephrine and acetylcholine) systems as well as intracortical feedback pathways whose role is to specifically modulate neural network interactions. Through identifiable and precise mechanisms, these pathways control the patterns of activity generated by the neocortex, flexibly increasing or decreasing the information flow between specific neuronal networks. By defining these precise mechanisms through a series of cutting-edge experiments, analysis and modelling, we will shed light onto how the nervous system generates context-dependent behavior. By understanding how the cortex flexibly reconfigures its functional interactions to produce contextually-appropriate behavior, and how arousal and engagement modulate this flexibility, we will provide insight into a broad range of human disorders, from those of attention and perception, to social interactions.