Project Summary

Christopher P. Fall, Ph.D (Young Investigator 2006) of the University of Illinois, Chicago, is using a novel approach to explore chemicals in the brain related to working memory in schizophrenia. Specifically, he will investigate the hypothesis that modulatory neurotransmitters (related to persistent activity, including working memory and attention) influence the ability of cortical microcircuits to sustain patterns of activity that persist after stimulatory inputs have ceased or changed. To date, it has been difficult to measure microcircuit activity resembling persistent patterns predicted by microcircuit models of working memory with functional MRI or electrophysiology. Nor is it clear how modulatory neurotransmitters, which alter the integration and firing properties of individual neurons, might change the dynamics of the neuronal ensembles to produce persistent patterns of activity. These questions represent an ideal problem for a novel approach. Using optical recordings, electrophysiology, and parallel theoretical and computational studies, Dr. Fall will investigate whether the modulatory neurotransmitters related to working memory alter ensemble dynamics by changing the excitability or signal-to-noise ratio in individual neurons to promote maintenance of persistent states, or allow transition between states in cortical circuits.

Program Area: SCHIZOPHRENIA/PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS\Schizophrenia

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