Thursday, December 25, 2025 12/25/2025

Behavioral and pharmacological manipulation of time cell activity in the human mesial temporal lobe

Award Number: R01NS125250
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS AND STROKE
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 12/01/2021
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2026

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Behavioral and pharmacological manipulation of time cell activity in the human mesial temporal lobe - Project Summary Episodic memory describes our ability to weave temporally contiguous elements into recollections of rich and coherent experiences. Episodic memory formation is specifically degraded by degenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s Disease. The activity of ‘time cells’ in the mesial temporal lobe may provide a mechanism for the coding of temporal information that is necessary for the formation of these memories, and we recently published evidence of time cells in the human hippocampus using microelectrode recordings from epilepsy patients. The spike rate of these cells reliably increases at specific moments within a fixed interval, and groups (assemblies) of time cells can represent a ‘temporal space’ analogous to the manner in which hippocampal place cells are held to represent physical space, imposing temporal organization on event representations. In this proposal, we build on preliminary data to investigate the flexible participation of time cells in neuronal assemblies using established methods. We will test how time cells support serial memory by adjudicating between two models, one based on time cell activity (`time cell model’) versus a different proposed mechanism by which serial recall depends on the consistent phase offset of the spiking of hippocampal neurons relative to theta oscillations (‘phase offset model’). This experiment will test key unresolved questions about how time cells contribute to episodic memory. Finally, we will test the impact of cholinergic blockade on time cells and cell assemblies. This novel experiment builds on the preliminary data we present in our proposal showing the effects of scopolamine administration in 10 intracranial EEG subjects, which identify alterations in hippocampal theta and gamma oscillations in the setting of cholinergic blockade. Our experiments include a number of key innovations, including examining time cell activity during serial recall, assembly formation, and especially in the setting of modulation of cholinergic innervation. The data we propose to collect will fill key gaps in understanding related to time cell activity in humans and potentially establish cholinergic modulation in human intracranial EEG subjects as a method to elucidate physiological patterns during mnemonic processing and to model the effects of disorders such as Alzheimer’s Disease in this population.


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: 2026 ( Subtotal = $331,593 )
2026	2026	THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	5	12/10/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$331,593
														Subtotal = $331,593

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $331,593 )
2025	2025	THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	4	11/14/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$331,593
														Subtotal = $331,593

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $359,260 )
2024	2024	THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	001	3	5/3/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$25,926
2024	2024	UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER, THE	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	3	11/7/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$333,334
														Subtotal = $359,260

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $375,470 )
2023	2023	UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER, THE	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	2	11/16/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$337,924
2023	2023	UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER, THE	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	001	2	2/1/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$37,546
														Subtotal = $375,470

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $375,470 )
2022	2022	UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER, THE	5323 HARRY HINES BLVD	DALLAS	TX	75390	DALLAS	USA	Extramural Research Programs in the Neurosciences and Neurological Disorders	000	1	11/19/2021	NEW	$375,470
														Subtotal = $375,470

Grand Total All Awards = $1,773,386

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Behavioral and pharmacological manipulation of time cell activity in the human mesial temporal lobe

Award Number: R01NS125250

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS AND STROKE

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 12/01/2021

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2026

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