Testing a model of cortico-basal ganglia support for juvenile imitative learning in zebra finches

项目总结/摘要 青少年通过模仿熟练的成年人来获得关键的技能，就像婴儿模仿父母的说话声音一样。 有证据表明，皮质基底神经节（CBG）电路在一般情况下， 特别是当幼年斑胸草雀学习模仿成年导师时， 现象幼年斑胸草雀的皮层通路可以产生定型的歌曲， 在学习过程中类似于导师的歌曲。一个歌曲专用的CBG电路影响活动， 路径，急剧增加了歌曲音响效果从演奏到演奏的变化。我的初步数据 这表明，CBG电路也急剧引起方向性转变，在歌曲声学，相比歌曲 由皮质通路产生，无CBG影响。拟议的实验测试的想法， CBG驱动快速的声音转换，指向模仿目标，在下游马达中慢慢巩固 皮质结构为了验证这一假设，我开发了（1）小说歌曲分析和（2）小说 纵向实验设计，在该模型系统中使用（3）创新的光遗传技术。这些 实验有可能显着推进我们对CBG支持斑胸草雀鸣叫的理解 学习，并测试CBG强化学习模型在学习领域，不需要外部 加固.

Project Summary/Abstract Juveniles acquire crucial skills by imitating skilled adults, as when infants imitate their parents' speech sounds. Evidence suggests that cortico-basal ganglia (CBG) circuitry critically supports this process both in general and specifically when juvenile zebra finches learn to imitate an adult tutor, an experimentally tractable phenomenon. A cortical pathway in juvenile zebra finches can generate stereotyped song that becomes more similar to tutor song over the course of learning. A song-dedicated CBG circuit influences activity in this pathway, acutely increasing the variability of song acoustics from rendition to rendition. My preliminary data suggest that the CBG circuit also acutely induces a directional shift in song acoustics, compared to song generated by the cortical pathway without CBG influence. The proposed experiments test the idea that the CBG drives rapid acoustic shifts, directed at the imitation target, that slowly consolidate in downstream motor cortical structures. To test this hypothesis, I have developed a (1) novel song analysis and (2) a novel longitudinal experimental design that uses (3) innovative optogentic techniques in this model system. These experiments have the potential to significantly advance our understanding of CBG support for zebra finch song learning, and to test CBG reinforcement learning models in a learning domain that does not require external reinforcement.