Project description
A very sharp look at the sensitivity versus speed trade-off
Our visual perception of the environment begins when light impinges on the light-sensitive receptors in the retina. Nature has provided us with two types, called rods and cones. Rods are highly sensitive and activated in dim light, have low spatial acuity and are not colour-sensitive, whereas cones are activated at higher light levels (hence lower sensitivity needed) and give colour to our lives with great spatial resolution. Rod responses are also slow, whereas cone responses are fast. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the ConeOpsinsToPercept project will investigate the theoretical trade-off between sensitivity and speed throughout the visual system with the sensitivity of single amino acid mutations.
Objective
Vision operates across a billion-fold range of light intensities from a moonless night to a sunny beach. One mechanism contributing to this outstanding performance is the division of labor between two types of light-sensitive receptor cells, rods and cones. In dim light, vision is mediated by slow but highly sensitive rods. In brighter light, cones mediate vision with fast signal kinetics but lower sensitivity. It has been hypothesized that this division of labor corresponds to a fundamental tradeoff between sensitivity and speed common to any (man-made or biological) sensory system. However, the precise nature of this trade-off has remained unresolved, partly because changes in light levels involve fundamental changes in the neural circuits that read out and process rod and cone signals. This research plan proposes to resolve the trade-off between sensitivity and speed end-to-end from photoreceptor signal kinetics to retinal output and to visually-guided behavior with the resolution of single amino acid mutations.
To address this ambitious goal, I will contribute my expertise in cone physiology and a battery of genetically modified mice in which single amino acid mutagenesis speeds-up or slows-down cone responses. The Ala-Laurila laboratory will provide the expertise and infrastructure required to causally link opsin biophysics to photoreceptor signaling, photoreceptor signaling to neural processing by the retina, and neural processing to mouse behavior and human perception. This combination of technologies and expertise is unique. As the grandson of Holocaust survivors, this proposal will enable my dream of returning to Europe to take on my first academic faculty job. Professionally, it will empower me to bridge the skills acquired during my Ph.D. to an integrative approach in neuroscience, and will allow me to form my own niche in the international scientific community.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences neurobiology cognitive neuroscience
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- natural sciences biological sciences biophysics
- natural sciences chemical sciences organic chemistry amines
- natural sciences biological sciences molecular biology molecular neuroscience
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2020
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
02150 Espoo
Finland
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.