Anatomy of Experience-Dependent Plasticity in the Cerebral Cortex

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My laboratory is fully engaged in research that elucidates the network, cellular and molecular mechanisms that underlie plasticity in the mammalian cerebral cortex. We utilize model systems, mostly mice, to study the processes of change in the brain that result from day-to-day experiences. We study the behaviour, and the molecular and cellular changes that occur in neurons and glia in the cerebral cortex, especially in regions that process somatosensory and visual information, as well as the hippocampus, which is essentially involved in memory processing. In order to visualize these changes in the brain, we utilize anatomical, molecular biological and physiological techniques. In order to evaluate many of the anatomical and molecular changes, we need to prepare histological sections of the brains of mice that have been exposed to different experiences. This requires us to slice the brain into very thin sections that can then be processed histologically. We require, and rely upon, a specialized piece of equipment - a cryotstat - that allows us to cut brain sections at a thickness of 20 microns, or less, in order to be able to visualize structural, chemical and molecular changes. The cryostat that I have been using for the past 18 years has required multiple repairs, with increasing frequency, over the past 5 years. In the past year, alone, it was broken more often than it was operating. It recently was diagnosed by the manufacturers technical staff as being unrepairable. I am asking for funds to purchase a new, replacement instrument.