Posterior Parietal Contributions to Spatial and Social Cognition

后顶叶对空间和社会认知的贡献

• 批准号: 10610128
• 负责人: Taylor Blaine Wise
• 金额: $ 4.78万
• 依托单位: BROWN UNIVERSITY
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2022-09-15 至 2024-09-14
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10610128
• 关键词: Address; Advisory Committees; Animal Model; Animals; Appointment; Area; Attention; Behavior; Behavioral; Behavioral Paradigm; Biological Sciences; Brain; Calcium; Callithrix; Cognition; Cognitive; Complex; Control Animal; Data; Discrimination; Distant; Electrophysiology (science); Environment; Evolution; Human; Image; Impairment; Institution; Investigation; Knowledge; Learning; Light; Literature; Mentors; Methodology; Modeling; Neurosciences; Parietal; Parietal Lobe; Performance; Phase; Postdoctoral Fellow; Primates; Process; Rattus; Research; Rodent; Rodent Model; Role; Social Distance; Social support; Stimulus; Technical Expertise; Techniques; Technology; Testing; Time; Training; Work; base; career; cognitive function; cognitive neuroscience; cognitive process; comparative; design; experience; frontier; in vivo; information processing; interest; multisensory; neuromechanism; neurotoxic; nonhuman primate; novel; optogenetics; pressure; programs; recruit; relating to nervous system; skills; social; social cognition; social relationships; spatial integration; statistics; theories; tool

PROJECT SUMMARY Abstract cognition is defined as the ability to process information not observed in the physical world, such as time, number, and social relationships. Evolutionary theories posit that selective pressures shaped the mammalian brain to manage increasingly abstract representations by co-opting cortical regions initially required for more concrete cognitive processes — such as spatial cognition — to also support more complex processes — such as social cognition. Research focused on similarities across spatial and social cognition is growing, yet few have investigated the neural bases of these similarities and whether they are similar mechanistically. The posterior parietal cortex (PPC) is implicated in both spatial and social cognition, but there are open questions about 1) how the PPC supports spatial and social cognition, and 2) whether and how the PPC is involved in the integration of information across domains. This proposal exploits an underutilized approach in cognitive neuroscience — the ability to study higher cognition using the powerful tools available in rodents. Indeed, as social animals and expert navigators, rats provide an ideal model to expand our knowledge of PPC function and its role in spatial and social cognition. The candidate, Taylor Wise, proposes to build on prior research in the sponsor’s lab by comparing the PPC’s role in spatial cognition with its role in social cognition. Completed dissertation work examined PPC function in spatial information processing and sociality through permanent (neurotoxic) and transient (chemogenetic) inactivation techniques. Rats with compromised PPC function showed spared performance on tasks using simple spatial environments and on tests of social exploration, but showed modest deficits in recognizing complex, context-dependent spatial configurations. This suggests the PPC is selectively recruited in tasks that require processing of information at a higher level of abstraction. Planned dissertation work will shed light on the PPC’s role in spatial and social information processing using a novel behavioral paradigm and cutting-edge technologies for manipulating PPC function. In her resubmission, Taylor provides new data demonstrating rats ability to discriminate spatial distances, a critical piece of her dissertation. Taylor will also receive training in advanced statistics and computation in the F99 phase, paving the way for further training in her K00. This proposal includes a thorough plan for finding a postdoctoral mentor that shares an interest in higher-order cognition, which will help to refine Taylor’s current graduate work. One avenue for postdoctoral research is to identify primate models, possibly marmosets, that are appropriate for neural manipulation of social cognition, and can build upon the Taylor’s rodent expertise. Under the guidance of the sponsor and scientific advisory committee, this training plan will enhance Taylor’s current skills and identify a postdoctoral appointment best prepared to propel her into an independent career in comparative behavioral neuroscience at an academic research institution.

项目摘要 抽象认知被定义为处理物理世界中无法观察到的信息的能力，例如 时间、数字和社会关系。进化论认为，选择性压力塑造了 哺乳动物的大脑通过挑选最初需要的皮层区域来管理越来越抽象的表征， 更具体的认知过程--如空间认知--也支持更复杂的过程 - 比如社会认知。针对空间和社会认知相似性的研究正在不断增加，但 很少有人研究这些相似性的神经基础以及它们是否在机制上相似。的 后顶叶皮层（PPC）与空间认知和社会认知都有关系，但仍存在一些问题 关于1）PPC如何支持空间和社会认知，以及2）PPC是否以及如何参与 跨域信息集成。这个提议利用了认知科学中一种未被充分利用的方法， 神经科学-使用啮齿动物中可用的强大工具研究高级认知的能力。确实如 社会动物和专家导航员，大鼠提供了一个理想的模型，以扩大我们的知识PPC的功能， 它在空间和社会认知中的作用。候选人泰勒·怀斯建议在以前的研究基础上， 通过比较PPC在空间认知中的作用和它在社会认知中的作用，赞助商的实验室。完成 论文工作通过对PPC在空间信息处理和社会性中的作用的研究， （神经毒性）和瞬时（化学发生）灭活技术。PPC功能受损的大鼠显示， 在使用简单空间环境的任务和社会探索测试中， 在识别复杂的、依赖于上下文的空间配置方面存在适度的缺陷。这表明PPC是 在需要在更高抽象层次上处理信息的任务中有选择地招募。计划 论文工作将阐明PPC的作用，在空间和社会信息处理使用一种新的 行为范例和尖端技术来操纵PPC功能。在重新提交的材料中，泰勒 提供了新的数据，证明老鼠有能力区分空间距离，这是她论文的一个关键部分。 泰勒还将在F99阶段接受高级统计和计算方面的培训， 在她的K 00中进行进一步的训练。该提案包括一个寻找博士后导师的全面计划， 对高阶认知的兴趣，这将有助于完善泰勒目前的研究生工作。一个途径， 博士后研究是为了确定灵长类动物模型，可能是绒猴，适合神经 操纵社会认知，并可以建立在泰勒的啮齿动物的专业知识。指导下 该培训计划将提高泰勒目前技能， 博士后任命最好准备推动她进入一个独立的职业生涯在比较行为 神经科学在学术研究机构。