Descripción del proyecto
La adaptación de redes flexibles «multiuso» puede ayudar a restaurar la función perdida del cerebro
Muchas regiones y tipos de células del cerebro procesan y responden a tipos específicos de información de forma selectiva. Por contra, de forma parecida a como sucede con las habilidades transferibles en el mercado del trabajo, las redes de dominio general del cerebro participan en distintas tareas cognitivas exigentes. El proyecto FLEXBRAIN, financiado con fondos europeos, estudia la capacidad de estas redes generales de dominio para compensar las interrupciones de las redes de conocimiento semántico, que permiten usar, manipular y generalizar el conocimiento. Además, el equipo del proyecto evaluará la capacidad de las redes generales de dominio para facilitar la adaptación flexible a las lesiones de forma más general, e incluso compensar las deficiencias del cerebro a medida que envejece, mediante experimentos de estimulación neuronal en cerebros jóvenes y en envejecimiento.
Objetivo
The human brain is flexible. Neural networks adapt to cognitive demands by flexibly recruiting different regions and connections. Flexible network adaptation enables cognitive functions such as semantic cognition: the ability to use, manipulate, and generalize knowledge. When key nodes suffer damage, networks can adapt to recover function. Yet, brain lesions often severely impair semantic cognition. How the semantic network adapts to lesions is poorly understood. My hypothesis is that disruption of the semantic network can be compensated for by recruitment of domain-general networks. This notion is based on findings that disruption of semantic nodes inhibits semantic activity but increases activity in domain-general nodes. Yet, the behavioral relevance of domain-general recruitment is unclear. Compensation means that behavior can be preserved as other nodes work harder. Can domain-general networks effectively compensate for disruption of specialized nodes? Is this a common principle of flexible adaptation in the healthy young, aging, and lesioned brain? Unprecedented inhibitory and facilitatory neurostimulation will be used to unbalance and rebalance network adaptation in semantic cognition. Importantly, a novel network stimulation approach will target multiple nodes simultaneously. I ask three questions. (i) Can domain-general networks compensate for semantic network disruption? (ii) Is domain-general recruitment in the aging brain adaptive? (iii) Do domain-general networks drive flexible adaptation to lesions? Perturbing young brains will elucidate the relevance of network adaptation. Perturbing aging brains will probe compensatory reorganization. Facilitating lesioned brains will reshape flexible adaptation. Benefitting from my strong neurostimulation experience, we will elucidate the way the brain compensates for disruption. The potential impact of the project on current conceptions of brain plasticity, and for rehabilitative medicine in particular, is immense.
Palabras clave
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Convocatoria de propuestas
(se abrirá en una nueva ventana) ERC-2021-COG
Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoriaRégimen de financiación
HORIZON-ERC -Institución de acogida
04109 Leipzig
Alemania