Central mechanisms for integrating distinct retinal inputs during the optokinetic reflex in mice

项目总结 视动反射(OKR)是一种与生俱来的视觉驱动行为，对正常视力至关重要。在OKR期间， 补偿性眼球运动稳定视力，以响应缓慢的全球图像运动，这通常是由 头部位置的变化。虽然OKR在不同的物种中都很健壮，但其潜在的机制尚不清楚。 这个项目旨在了解不同的视网膜输出流是如何共同编码OKR诱导刺激的 是中央集成的，以驱动眼球运动。为了实现这一目标，生理学和 行为技术将被用来测量OKR通路上三个阶段的功能读数 小鼠对一组常见刺激的反应：1)视网膜神经节细胞的群体活动 负责检测和编码OKR诱发刺激，2)内侧终末的下游神经元 核-OKR处理的主要中心枢纽，以及3)清醒动物的眼球运动 执行OKR。这种描述沿整个视觉路径的信号转换的新方法将 提供视网膜活动与行为的对应关系图，并从不同的角度洞察信息的方式和位置 视网膜输出流是集中集成的。总的来说，这样的发现对于揭示总体战略很重要。 中枢神经系统的元素通过它来整合来自不同来源的相互竞争的输入。此外， 揭示眼动通路的基本特征将有助于理解 各种常见眼球运动障碍背后的机制，包括眼球震颤、斜视和 弱视。这项工作将得到一项严格的培训计划的补充，其中包括量身定做的指导， 课程、演讲机会和职业发展。以及机构、智力和 加州大学旧金山分校在高度协作的科学环境中提供的培训资源 弗朗西斯科，这些研究和培训计划将共同促进申请人发展成为独立的 感官神经学家。

PROJECT SUMMARY The optokinetic reflex (OKR) is an innate, visually-driven behavior that is critical to normal vision. During OKR, compensatory eye movements stabilize vision in response to slow, global image motion that often results from changes in head position. While OKR is robust across diverse species, its underlying mechanisms are unknown. This project aims to understand how distinct retinal output streams that collectively encode OKR-inducing stimuli are centrally integrated to drive eye movements. To achieve this goal, a combination of physiology and behavioral techniques will be used to measure functional readouts from three stages along the OKR pathway of the mouse in response to a common stimulus set: 1) The population activity of retinal ganglion cells that are responsible for detecting and encoding OKR-inducing stimuli, 2) Downstream neurons in the medial terminal nucleus – a primary central hub for OKR processing, and 3) The eye movements of awake animals as they perform OKR. This novel approach to describing signal transformation along the entirety of a visual pathway will provide a mapping of retinal activity onto behavior and offer insight into how and where information from distinct retinal output streams is centrally integrated. Broadly, such findings are important for revealing general strategies by which elements of the central nervous system integrate competing inputs from distinct sources. Further, revealing fundamental features of eye movement pathways will make progress towards understanding the mechanisms behind a variety of common eye movement disorders including nystagmus, strabismus, and amblyopia. This work will be complemented by a rigorous training plan that involves tailored mentorship, coursework, presentation opportunities, and career development. Along with the institutional, intellectual, and training resources available in the highly collaborative scientific environment at the University of California, San Francisco, these research and training plans will jointly facilitate the applicant’s development into an independent sensory neuroscientist.