Investigating the role of Zona Incerta RXFP3+ cells in learning and memory

学习和记忆是人类和动物行为的基础。我们在大脑的不确定带中确定了一组特定的细胞，在那里激活抑制了记忆的表达，并促进了新学习的获得。除了我们的观察，目前对这些细胞的解剖和功能一无所知。该项目旨在绘制它们与大脑其他部分的联系图，观察这些联系在学习和记忆过程中是如何被招募的，然后通过实验测试它们的功能。结果将扩展已知的神经回路，通过定义这些未探索的通路如何以及在哪里适合学习，来控制学习；从而促进关于神经行为调节的知识。

Learning and memory are fundamental to human and animal behaviour. We identified a specific population of cells in the zona incerta of the brain, where activation inhibits expression of memory, and facilitates the acquisition of new learning. Aside from our observations, nothing is currently known about the anatomy and function of these cells. This project aims to map how they connect to the rest of the brain, to observe how these connections are recruited during learning and memory, and then to test their function experimentally. The outcomes will extend the known neural circuitry that controls learning by defining how and where these unexplored pathways fit within it; thus advancing knowledge regarding neural regulation of behaviour.