Touchscreen system for visual cognition in rats.

用于大鼠视觉认知的触摸屏系统。

• 批准号: 439975-2013
• 负责人: Howland, John
• 金额: $ 3.31万
• 依托单位: University of Saskatchewan
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)
• 财政年份: 2012
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2012-01-01 至 2013-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=506208
• 关键词: Touchscreen; system; visual; cognition; rats.

Understanding the electrophysiological changes that occur in the brain during the rapid integration and storage of information is a critical challenge for behavioral neuroscientists. Given the invasive techniques typically needed to understand these changes, the rodent nervous system is commonly used as a model for such experiments. The equipment requested in the present application is highly specialized to allow for behavioral assessments of rodents on a large variety of tasks. Critically, the equipment will enable simultaneous recording of neural activity from discrete brain areas of rodents while they are engaged in the tasks. Experiments performed with this equipment will provide direct insights into brain-behavior relationships. The equipment requested includes four fully automated, computer controlled testing chambers with touchscreens. The touchscreens enable a variety of behavioral paradigms closely modeled after those used in human neuropsychology to be administered. Rats respond to visual cues presented on a screen according to the specifics of the task to receive food reward. During performance of the tasks, rats will be chronically implanted with electrodes and neural activity will be directly recorded from discrete brain areas while the animal is engaged in different parts of the tasks. While this equipment has a broad range of applications in neuroscience, it will initially be used in experiments designed to address the mechanisms through which the exposure to acute stress alters patterns of activity in the brain circuits critical for learning and memory. It is expected that these experiments will have significant implications for understanding how experiential factors, such as acute stress, affect cognitive processes such as learning and memory in a range of mammalian species including humans.

理解大脑在信息快速整合和存储过程中发生的电生理变化是行为神经科学家面临的一个关键挑战。考虑到了解这些变化通常需要侵入性技术，啮齿动物的神经系统通常被用作此类实验的模型。本申请所要求的设备是高度专业化的，以允许对啮齿类动物进行多种任务的行为评估。至关重要的是，该设备将能够同时记录啮齿类动物在执行任务时不同大脑区域的神经活动。用这种设备进行的实验将为大脑-行为关系提供直接的见解。所要求的设备包括四个完全自动化的、带有触摸屏的计算机控制测试室。触屏使各种行为范式紧密模仿人类神经心理学中的行为范式得以实施。老鼠对屏幕上显示的视觉线索的反应是根据任务的具体情况来获得食物奖励的。在执行任务的过程中，老鼠将被长期植入电极，当动物从事任务的不同部分时，神经活动将直接从离散的大脑区域记录下来。虽然这种设备在神经科学中有广泛的应用，但它最初将用于旨在解决暴露在急性压力下改变大脑回路中对学习和记忆至关重要的活动模式的机制的实验中。预计这些实验将对理解经验因素（如急性压力）如何影响包括人类在内的一系列哺乳动物物种的学习和记忆等认知过程具有重要意义。