Grant: Project Grant

As we move about in our environment during regular everyday activities (e.g., walking to work), we constantly rely on signals sent from our inner ear to our brain. Indeed, vestibular afferents there are activated by head movements (e.g., rotating the head from side to side). Their signals are then processed by the brain, which gives us our sense of balance and perception of our body's orientation in space. Unfortunately, patients suffering from vestibular disorders experience dizziness, imbalance, and an increased risk of falls - all symptoms that profoundly impair quality of life, which imposes a substantial burden on the economy in the form of increased medical costs, work-related absenteeism, and reduced productivity. Unfortunately, almost all previous studies of vestibular processing have used low amplitude sinusoidal head movements that have nothing to do with the signals experience during our everyday lives (e.g., when walking). Here we will instead investigate how single and multiple vestibular neurons encode self-motion signals experienced naturally. Our results will yield new knowledge that will revolutionize our understanding of how the brain processes vestibular input that is experienced during natural everyday activities (e.g., walking), which will yield better treatment options for patients suffering from vestibular disorders.