Grant: Operating Grant

Reductions in blood flow to the brain of sufficient duration and extent lead to stroke, which results in damage to neuronal networks and impairment of sensation, movement, or cognition. Although stroke damage can be devastating, many patients survive the initial event and undergo some spontaneous recovery which that can be further augmented by rehabilitative therapy. It becoming clear that the ability of patients to recover is in part mediated by the ability of the brain circuits to adapt in a process called plasticity. My lab will apply new light-based techniques to address how the brain's sensory and motor circuits adapt in response to stroke. The brain is organized much like a circuit diagram within a computer with discrete wires or connections. However, none of the brain circuits or cells have color-coding or labels which enable technicians to service them. Here, using new genetic technologies we will employ strategies, which label select mouse neurons with fluorescent proteins, which enable them to glow under particular wavelengths of light. Not only can the glowing neurons be found by light, but they can also be controlled by light using new light-sensitive protein ion channels, which transmit light energy into excitation or inhibition. Using these fluorescing neurons, which can be controlled by light, we plan to unravel how the brains sensory and motor system adapt following damage due to stroke. We hope that by understanding how the brain can partially cope with stroke damage that this knowledge can be exploited to help patients through innovative brain stimulation or rehabilitative strategies. We have now devised new strategies for both exciting and inhibiting the brains of mouse models of stroke damage to aid these studies. Overall, our goal is that through insight into natural sensory and motor system adaptation novel treatments will ensue, permitting better lives for those affected by diseases such as stroke.