Project description
The role of astrocytes in spatial information processing
The brain encodes information about the world through networks of neurons, but other cells, such as astrocytes, also play important roles. Astrocytes interact with neurons and influence how neural networks process information. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the ASTRONET project will investigate how astrocytes contribute to the representation of space in the mouse hippocampus during navigation. Using computer models guided by dual imaging of neurons and astrocytes, the research will examine how astrocytic calcium activity complements neural signals. The research team aims to reveal the causal role of these two cell types in shaping spatial coding and healthy brain function.
Objective
Information about the external world is encoded in the brain through the dynamical activity of neuronal ensembles, so-called neural population codes. Neurons, however, are not the only cell types making up the nervous tissue. Astrocytes interact with neurons at the synaptic and network level. Astrocytic intracellular calcium dynamics integrates and modulates surrounding neural activity over a wide range of spatial and temporal scales. Recent studies showed that these calcium transients encode information about external stimuli, and that this information is complementary to that encoded in neural activity, suggesting that astrocytes may play an active role in computations carried out in neural circuits. Here, I will investigate the role of astrocytes in shaping neural population, focusing on representations of space in the mouse the hippocampus during navigation. By using biophysically plausible network modeling and information theory I will characterize how the dynamics and information coding properties of networks of neurons are enhanced when they interact with astrocytes. The model will be constrained and guided by analysis of simultaneous dual-imaging recordings of neurons and astrocytes. Then I will consider new data, provided by the secondment lab, of longitudinal neural recordings during which astrocytic calcium dynamics was chemogenetically manipulated during the exploration of familiar and new environments over days. I will determine the causal role of astrocytes in neural information processing by using information theory and machine learning to analyze neural information coding when astrocytes are or are not perturbed. Then, I will use the data to construct biophysically plausible models of astrocytes contribute to the evolution of neural codes across days. These major advances in modelling and understanding how astrocytes support an complement neural networks will contribute to understanding how glial cells contribute to healthy brain function.
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.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
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.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
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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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
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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.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2023-PF-01
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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.
20251 Hamburg
Germany
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