The O Donnell Brain Institute helps the United States to study the neural circuits at the origin of learning, memory

The U. Donnell Brain Institute of UT Southwestern will participate in a national effort to understand the neural circuits behind learning, memory and behavior.

Four neuroscientists at UT's Southwestern Medical Center received a combined $ 1.6 million award as part of the federal initiative BRAIN, a program launched in 2013 to accelerate research and develop potential therapies for brain disorders. The program funds scientific projects across the country on topics ranging from mental health to opioid addiction.

The contribution of UT Southwestern will include studying how neurons enable memory formation and memory, how the mammalian brain decodes the sense of smell and translates it into behavior, in addition to studying songbirds for better understand how the brain controls behavior. A fourth project will develop a technology that will monitor brain circuits to understand how specific wiring and rewiring of the brain contribute to learning and memory.

"These NIH awards highlight the outstanding talent of UT Southwestern in the field of neuroscience, especially the expertise of these scientists in studying the learning and memorizing of the memory by the brain, "said Dr. Joseph Takahashi, chairman of the neuroscience committee of UT Southwestern. "By better understanding the fundamentals of speech and memory disorders, we hope to solve the many mysteries of the brain and develop effective treatments for a number of neurological problems."

The National Institutes of Health announced the award of scholarships to the following scientists from UT Southwestern:

Todd Roberts (Grant # NS108424): The way the brain routinely plans and produces certain skilled behaviors is poorly understood. In his research, Dr. Roberts will use an innovative combination of optical and closed-loop methods in songbirds to document the neuronal activity involved in the preparation and performance of a complex motor skill, thereby providing insight of how the brain controls behavior.

Brad Pfeiffer (Grant NS104829): Cognitive function and successful memory recovery require the expression of precisely programmed activity sequences on large populations of neurons. These internally generated sequences are disrupted in several models of neuropsychiatric disease, highlighting their importance for the proper functioning of the brain. Dr. Pfeiffer's research will identify how internally generated sequences interact with experience to enable memory training and recovery.

Wei Xu (Grant NS104828): Human behavior, habits, emotions and thoughts stem from the flow of information along brain circuits made up of neurons connected by synapses, the junction of nerve cells where the neurons connect. information is transmitted. However, it is technically difficult to determine how different types of neurons are wired and whether the cabling changes with brain behavior or disease. Dr. Xu's team is responsible for developing technology to track, monitor, and control brain circuits that have multiple synapses, and to reveal how specific cabling in the brain network contributes to learning and development. Memory.

Julian Meeks (Grant NS104826): The olfactory system, which underlies the sense of smell, can significantly alter moods, emotions and other behavioral states. The cerebral mechanisms underlying this mysterious sensory function are poorly understood. Dr. Meeks' team will identify how the mammalian brain decodes the chemosensory information of the environment and translates it into behavior.

Dr. Meeks is an badociate professor of neuroscience at Peter O Donnell Jr. Brain Institute. Drs. Pfeiffer, Roberts and Xu are adjunct professors of neuroscience at the O Donnell Brain Institute. Dr. Pfeiffer is also a biomedical researcher at the Southwestern Medical Foundation, Dr. Roberts is a Thomas O. Hicks Fellow in Medical Research, and Dr. Xu is a Louise W. Kahn Fellow in Biomedical Research. Dr. Takahashi is a researcher at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and holds the Loyd B. Sands Distinguished Chair in Neuroscience at UT Southwestern.

The NIH BRAIN initiative^®is managed by 10 institutes whose missions and current research portfolios complement the objectives of the BRAIN initiative: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, National Eye Institute, National Institute of Aging, National Institute of fight against alcohol abuse and alcoholism, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institute for Combating Alcohol and Drug Abuse Drug Abuse, National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institute of Mental Health and National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.