Sensorimotor Processing of Social Signals

描述（由申请人提供）：尽管社会信号功能障碍对许多疾病（如抑郁、焦虑、自闭症、精神分裂症）的人类成本有重要影响，但对社会评估和反应的回路水平神经机制仍知之甚少。健康的社会行为是在个体和环境之间复杂的发展相互作用中出现的，但我们对使我们在社会中茁壮成长的回路水平机制知之甚少。本项目旨在研究社会信号加工的神经机制，包括信号的感知和产生，特别是研究颞叶前部和前扣带区域在评估和适当响应社会刺激中的作用。颞叶前部的神经活动

DESCRIPTION (as provided by applicant): Though social signaling dysfunction contributes significantly to the human costs of many disorders (e.g. depression, anxiety, autism, schizophrenia), circuit-level neural mechanisms for social evaluation and responsiveness remain poorly understood. Healthy social behavior emerges during complex developmental interactions between individual and environment, but little is known about the circuit-level mechanisms which enable us to thrive in our societies. This project aims to study neural mechanisms of social signal processing, including both signal perception and production, and specifically investigating the role of anterior temporal and anterior cingulate regions in evaluating and responding appropriately to social stimuli. Neural activity in the anterior temporal lobes is associated with social signal perception, and in the anterior cingulate is associated with reward monitoring, behavioral control and spontaneous production of communication signals, but little is known about their interaction during social behavior. The combination of imaging-guided electrophysiology and new multi-electrode recording analysis methods are well-suited to determining the structure and function of these large-scale neural circuits. By monitoring gaze, facial behavior, and neural responses in anterior temporal lobe and anterior cingulate during social signal exchange, this project will relate neural mechanisms of social signal perception to those that govern signal production in real-world interactions. This project will support the grantee in his transition from mentored to independent research on neural mechanisms of social interaction through research training at the Rockefeller University on imaging- guided electrophysiology and network analysis methods. The grantee's career development will be overseen by a committee comprising both the primary mentor and other well-established neuroscience faculty at the home institution and neighboring research facilities. This training plan is designed to meet the need for postgraduate training to integrate neuroscientific, ethological, and psychological approaches to bio behavioral function and development.