The role of activity in synaptic development and plasticity in motor pathways: A multi-methodological dynamic imaging approach

This project addresses a major question in neuroscience: How activity in the nervous system regulates the organization of synaptic connections. It poses this question in the motor system, where activity-dependent regulation is less well understood than in sensory systems. To address this question in a way that can provide profound insight into the dynamic mechanisms of plasticity, the project will use cutting-edge imaging technology to follow synaptic changes both in vivo and in ex vivo preparations, in w hich activity patterns can be manipulated and synaptic structure and molecular composition can be assessed longitudinally at the same synapse. Cutting-edge imaging technologies to be used include in vivo imaging of activity in muscle and motor neurons wi th calcium-sensitive and voltage-sensitive probes The results obtained from this project will increase our understanding of the potential and limitations of motor plasticity in a clinical setting, most immediately in the context of functional recovery af ter spinal injury, but also with clear implications within the context of brain trauma that disrupts motor function, such as stroke, in which post-injury training is an important component of therapy. Lastly, the insight gained about synaptic plasticity i s expected to contribute to a better general understanding of plasticity in the brain.