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Investigating Ventral CA1 Neural Representations of Anxiety-Like Behavior

Award Number: F30MH124424
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: FELLOWSHIP/SCHOLARSHIP/STUDENT LOANS
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 07/01/2020
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 06/30/2024

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Investigating Ventral CA1 Neural Representations of Anxiety-Like Behavior - PROJECT SUMMARY The ability to detect and appropriately respond to potentially threatening situations is critical for survival. Dysregulation of the neural systems which mediate these functions can lead to pathological avoidance of ordinary environments and persistent feelings of imminent threat, key components of the negative emotional state characteristic of anxiety disorders. Many studies have begun to reveal the brain regions and neural circuits that control avoidance behavior and encode states of anxiety. Specifically, the ventral hippocampus has emerged as a critical node for emotional behaviors including those evoked by anxiogenic environments. Our lab and others have found that subpopulations of single neurons in ventral CA1 are activated by aversive environments, but this selectivity does not generalize across different tasks used to assay anxiety-like behavior. Moreover, it is unclear which inputs to the ventral hippocampus provide the emotional information that drives this anxiety-related neural activity. The mechanism by which the ventral hippocampus encodes anxiety states is still unknown and investigating how this brain region represents these emotional states is an essential step towards understanding the neural substrates of anxiety disorders. In this proposal, I will utilize pose estimation algorithms and unsupervised behavioral segmentation (Aim 1), in vivo calcium imaging and neural population analyses (Aim 2), along with simultaneous input-specific optogenetic inhibition and calcium imaging (Aim 3) to characterize the behavioral manifestations of anxiety-like emotional states and determine how they are encoded in the ventral hippocampus. Successful completion of this study will help to elucidate the role of the ventral hippocampus in anxiety, potentially opening new research avenues for the development of neural circuit based therapeutics to treat anxiety disorders. These data along with the research and scientific expertise developed through this Kirschstein-NRSA F30 Fellowship Award will support my long-term goal of becoming an independent physician-scientist.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = -$5 )
2025	2023	THE TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK	630 W 168TH ST FL 4	NEW YORK	NY	10032	NEW YORK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	4	4/24/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	-$5
														Subtotal = -$5

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $52,694 )
2023	2023	TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE	630 W 168TH ST FL 4	NEW YORK	NY	10032	NEW YORK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	4	6/14/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$52,694
														Subtotal = $52,694

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $51,752 )
2022	2022	TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE	630 W 168TH ST FL 4	NEW YORK	NY	10032	NEW YORK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	3	6/13/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$51,752
														Subtotal = $51,752

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $46,521 )
2021	2021	TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK, THE	630 W 168TH ST FL 4	NEW YORK	NY	10032	NEW YORK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	2	6/8/2021	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$46,521
														Subtotal = $46,521

Issue Date FY: 2020 ( Subtotal = $45,525 )
2020	2020	TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK	630 W 168TH ST FL 4	NEW YORK	NY	10032	NEW YORK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	001	1	6/15/2020	NEW	$0
2020	2020	TRUSTEES OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY IN THE CITY OF NEW YORK	630 W 168TH ST FL 4	NEW YORK	NY	10032	NEW YORK	USA	Mental Health Research Grants	000	1	6/15/2020	NEW	$45,525
														Subtotal = $45,525

Grand Total All Awards = $196,487

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Investigating Ventral CA1 Neural Representations of Anxiety-Like Behavior

Award Number: F30MH124424

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: FELLOWSHIP/SCHOLARSHIP/STUDENT LOANS

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 07/01/2020

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 06/30/2024

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