We are investigating the neural correlates of pitch perception. When a complex sound is perceived, two questions can be asked: What is a precise characterization of the brain's response to it, and what determines the perceived pitch? The literature is currently ambiguous regarding whether the perception can be deduced from a measured neural response. We are combining two imaging modalities, structural MRI and EEG, to address these questions. We will record the brain's evoked EEG response to auditory stimuli, called the frequency following response (FFR), using a high-density electrode cap to boost the signal to noise ratio of the FFR. Next, using each individual participant's MRI scan, along with modern signal processing algorithms, we will localize the response to its neural sources. With this newly-detailed picture of the FFR, we will be able to describe the relationship between the brain's auditory signal processing and previously-collected pitch perception data more accurately than has previously been possible.

Our project is a multi-disciplinary effort to understand the origins of structure and behavior in multi-agent collectives. Collective behavior and large-scale group dynamics have become especially hot topics of research in the physical, biological, and cognitive sciences. Recent efforts suggest a physical principle of energy dissipation may be fundamental in driving to coordination of both living and non-living collectives. Here, we work to advance this idea by developing models of collective motion that identify and highlight similarities between the emergent coordination of collections of chemical particles and the emergent coordination of teams of professional soccer players.

Dr. Trakhtenberg (lead PI) and Dr. Crocker (co-PI) were awarded a seed grant that will fund an exploratory research project aimed at testing a novel hypothesis regarding why axonal connections, through which neurons in the brain communicate with each other over long distances, do not regenerate after traumatic or stroke injury.

When placing objects into categories, preschool children organize objects by functional associations (banana with monkey). At around 6 years of age, this changes to organization by similarity (banana with other kinds of fruit). This shift is thought to be influenced by advanced language abilities. Children with language impairments are delayed in language development, therefore, this study intends to determine if their organization of objects is different from their typically developing peers.

Including Deaf individuals as partners in research has advanced our understanding of sign language and Deaf culture; however, tensions remain between the Deaf community and researchers. Similar issues arise in the domain of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Are ASD and Deafness medical conditions in need of medical solutions (e.g., a cochlear implant, behavioral therapy), or cultural identities? This IBaCS Seed Grant will support a workshop aimed at promoting dialogue among stakeholders and researchers.

The goal of this project is to develop a three-dimensional cell culture system for growing cerebral organoids (sometimes referred to as “mini-brains”) from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). The human iPSC lines are derived from peripheral tissue or blood samples from individual subjects. Our long-term goal is to use this culture system to study molecular and cellular pathophysiology underlying autism and related neurodevelopmental disorders, with the hope of identifying novel targets for therapeutic intervention.

Learning remains one of the core mysteries in cognitive science. Why do living systems learn? And how could learning be instantiated in such different ways across so many different types of creatures? We propose to investigate the hypothesis that learning is actually the result of thermodynamic law expressed across the complex (and varied) media of living things. We plan to develop physical, analog networks that self-organize their own connections (and perhaps even their own nodes). These systems exhibit very complex behavior, but also have tractable thermodynamics. Thus, we can evaluate and manipulate key thermodynamic variables as the system behaves and learns. The project has implications for grounding a theory of adaptive behavior in thermodynamic principles.

Neuronal networks constantly adapt to changing inputs during learning and memory. Network dynamics is extremely challenging to study with human or animals. Our lab has developed a neuronal circuit of cultured neurons with external electric control. We will introduce to the bioengineered circuit human patient-derived neurons and computational network analysis. We aim to forge a functional human neuronal circuit as a testbed for the next generation of neuromodulation prostheses and brain disorder therapies.

The lateral hypothalamus (LHA) is a linchpin in the coordination of many aspects of behavior and cognitive function, including arousal, attention, stress and reward. Disruption of neural circuits in this region is associated with disorders of sleep, feeding and motivated behavior, which profoundly affect our well-being and mental health. We propose to use new and informative cellular and molecular techniques to dissect the cells and circuits in the LHA that help to shape these behaviors.

In prior work, we showed that some individuals show clear Autism Spectrum Disorder prior to age 5, but later lose all symptoms; they seem to use unique brain networks to achieve this “optimal outcome” (OO).

We will study OO in two cohorts: individuals with an OO who are now young adults, allowing us to evaluate how they navigate the difficult transition into independence and young adulthood; and children who were diagnosed by us, who are now in their teens, allowing us to identify early childhood predictors of OO. An MRI study will investigate functional connectivity and integration of task-engaged networks.

The UConn Logic Group is an active interdisciplinary research hub with over forty faculty and graduate student members from mathematics, philosophy, linguistics, psychology, and law. Logic is a subject that concerns language, computation, reasoning and problem-solving. As such, it is an important area of interest in many disciplines. This project aims to enhance the Groups' profile and activities, furthering UConn's reputation as a center for excellence in research and scholarship in logic and formal methods.

With over 50 participants, the workshop “What’s in a Word?” brought together linguists, psychologists, and philosophers of language from UConn, Yale, Harvard, MIT, Duke, and Shanghai Jiao Tong University for a two-day collaborative investigation of the status of words: the contrast between words and mere labels, word meanings and their relations to concepts, and words as potential points of entry into language (both in language acquisition and in trying to teach language to nonhuman animals).

Urinary control problems are often due to abnormal sensations about bladder content rather than disorders of bladder pressure. Bladder wall tension determines the bladder’s sensitivity to volume. The brain controls this tension via the sympathetic nervous system, allowing integration of information about bladder content with other physiologic processes. Urinary disorders can be understood as adaptive failures, rather than bladder disease. In this project we will examine the mechanism by which bladder tensions are created and regulated by brain control signals.

In fetal development stem cells generate an ependymal lining, which covers the ventricle surface of the brain and functions as a barrier and transport system for cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) exchange. Hydrocephalus, an abnormal buildup of CSF, results in expansion of the ventricles and places extraordinary demands on the stem cell population. In the proposed experiments, we will map stem cell activity in normal and hydrocephalic brain tissue with an aim to identify neurodevelopmental consequences.

Our project is developing and testing new ways to study how children identify the grammatical rules of their native language. For example, several new techniques are based on tracking the moment-by-moment direction of a child's eye-gaze while listening to sentences. A key question is the precise nature of native-speaker grammatical knowledge. This information will have applications in early childhood education and the treatment of language disorders.

This research project will analyze animal behavior following an induced loss of a specific glial cell population in the brain, known as NG2 cells.  The major goal of this effort is to determine whether these cells have a direct, functional effect on brain activity or have a more indirect, supportive role.  A better understanding of this important cell type will provide valuable insight into how brain activity is regulated.

Fatigue/loss of energy is a very common psychiatric symptom. Anergia and reduced exertion of effort are debilitating features of depression and other disorders. Common antidepressants (e.g. SSRIs like PROZAC) are relatively ineffective at treating motivational dysfunction, and can induce or exacerbate these symptoms. Recent evidence implicates the neurotransmitter dopamine in effort-related symptoms, and this project will use pharmacogenetic methods to specifically activate dopamine neurons, which is expected to improve exertion of effort in rat models.