Neural connectivity and animal behaviour

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My long-term research program is to understand the interplay between neural circuit connectivity and its ability to govern animal behaviour. The communication among distinct regions of the nervous system, or connectivity, is fundamental to its function. Structural connectivity represents anatomical connections between different regions. Functional connectivity is the temporal dependency of neural activation patterns between distinct regions. Together, they ensure proper behavioural response to the environment. This includes social behaviour, fundamental to the survival of social species. However, the mechanisms of the interaction between neural connectivity and animal behaviour are not well understood. The amygdala and its cortical connections have long been implicated in mediating emotional and social behaviours, as well as their maturation processes during development from adolescence to adulthood. Recent studies have shown that infralimbic cortex (IL) and basolateral amygdala (BLA) connect with each other through direct projections and perturbing these projections affect certain social behaviours. However, the relation between social behaviour development and IL-BLA functional connectivity is largely unknown. In addition, social behaviours are sex-dependent in many species, including mice, yet little is known about the IL-BLA circuit in female animals. In the next 5 years, my objectives are to mechanistically investigate structural and functional IL-BLA connectivity in relation to social behaviour development in both female and male mice. My overarching hypothesis is that IL-BLA connectivity plays a critical role in the differential development and expression of social behaviours between female and male mice. Using a variety of anatomical, genetic, behavioural, and electrophysiological approaches that I have expertise in, my team will pursue the following objectives: Objective 1 will determine development of IL-BLA connectivity in adolescent versus adult C57BL/6J mice, in the social contexts where the subject is exposed to either social odors or social subjects. Objective 2 will determine the relationship between IL-BLA functional connectivity and social behaviours in both juvenile and adult mice, by modulating individual components of this circuit using chemogenetic methods. Objective 3 will determine the effects of social experience, such as social isolation, on the development of IL-BLA connectivity. My NSERC DG program will provide novel insights into the relationship between neural connectivity and social behaviour development in both sexes, and the mechanisms of increased susceptibility to social experience during adolescence.