Equipment for studying fear memory and cognitive processing in kindled rats

成年哺乳动物的大脑是高度可塑的结构，能够重塑以应对动物外部世界的挑战。结构可塑性的一个引人注目的例子是新神经元不断添加到现有的回路中，这一过程称为成人神经发生。海马齿状回颗粒细胞是大脑中少数几种在整个成年期持续产生的神经元细胞类型之一。虽然海马神经发生的功能意义尚不清楚，但成人出生的神经元已被证明在情绪调节和某些形式的学习和记忆中很重要。 有趣的是，神经发生的改变或异常变化与许多与认知下降相关的神经病理学有关，如阿尔茨海默病、糖尿病、中风和癫痫。我们的工作重点是试图了解这些病理条件如何影响新神经元的发育，并影响它们成功融入周围神经回路的能力。 本提案中概述的设备对完成我们的研究至关重要。申请的资金将允许购买自动化系统和设备，使我们能够检查慢性癫痫啮齿动物的一系列复杂行为过程（如恐惧记忆形成，模式分离以及空间和背景学习），以确定神经发生的异常变化如何影响行为和认知。此外，我们还在研究新的治疗方法，这些方法可能能够逆转异常的神经发生，从而改善认知能力。

The adult mammalian brain is highly plastic structure, capable of remodeling in response to challenges imposed by an animal's outside world. One dramatic example of structural plasticity is the continual addition of new neurons to the existing circuitry, a process named adult neurogenesis. Hippocampal dentate granule cells are among the few neuronal cell types in the brain that are continuously generated throughout adulthood. Although the functional significance of hippocampal neurogenesis remains unclear, adult-born neurons have been shown to be important in mood regulation and in certain forms of learning and memory. Interestingly, altered or aberrant changes in neurogenesis have been implicated in a number of neurological pathologies associated with cognitive decline, such as Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, stroke, and epilepsy. Our work is focused on trying to understand how these pathological conditions impact the development of new neurons and affect their ability to integrate successfully into the surrounding neural circuitry. The equipment outlined in this proposal is essential for the completion of our research. The requested funds will allow for the purchase of an automated system and equipment that will allow us to examine a range of complex behavioral processes in chronically epileptic rodents (such as fear memory formation, pattern separation, and spatial and contextual learning) in order to determine how aberrant changes in neurogenesis impact behavior and cognition. In addition, we are also examining novel therapeutic approaches that may be capable of reversing abnormal neurogenesis, and hence improve cognitive performance.