christianson lab @ bc
The primary goal of the lab is to understand what the insular cortex contributes to social decision making.
To achieve our main goal we use a combination of behavioral and systems neuroscience approaches. Machine learning allows us to quantify and understand the social behavior or rats.
The advent of optogenetics has introduced many new engineering challenges. With the Naughton group we are developing a state of the art optrode architecture that would permit isolated local field potential recordings simultaneous to optical wave guiding at a spatial resolution that would allow recording and control of individual dendritic spines.
The primary goal of the lab is to understand what the insular cortex contributes to social decision making.
Insular cortex and social decision making
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The insular cortex is anatomically positioned to integrate internal and external sensory representations with the brain systems that control social behavior. We discovered that the insular cortex is necessary for normal social interactions between stressed rats. Prospective graduate students will most likely develop projects that further our understanding of how information about stress reaches the insular cortex, what neuromodulators affect insula function, and which projections of the insula contribute to social approach and avoidance behavior.
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Neural Mechanisms of Safety
An older interest in the lab has to do with fear discrimination. Determining what is safe from danger in our environment is critical. We seek to delineate the neural circuits involved in learning about and recalling safety signals and the cellular changes that occur in these regions as a result of learning or stress.
Stress Resilience
We all experience stressors--unfortunately some are traumatic and chronic which increases the likelihood of PTSD and depression. Coping strategies help mitigate stress. We study the mechanisms of neural plasticity within the prefrontal cortex which are critical to successful coping.
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