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The role of mediodorsal thalamus in taste

Award Number: R21DC016714
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DEAFNESS AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DISORDERS
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 10/01/2018
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2021

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The role of mediodorsal thalamus in taste - PROJECT SUMMARY Neurons in the gustatory portion of the insula cortex (gustatory cortex; GC) integrate information related to the sensory and emotional dimensions associated with the experience of eating. Recent experimental evidence led to the proposal that GC achieves this level of integration by processing sensory afferents from the gustatory thalamus (VPMpc) and limbic afferents from the basolateral amygdala (BLA). However other brain areas may contribute to the integrative properties of GC. One of these areas is the mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus (MD). MD is a higher order thalamic nucleus often studied in relation to its connection with frontal cortices and for its involvement in processing multisensory and reward-related information. From a neuroanatomical point of view, MD is also well suited to process gustatory information: it receives afferents from the parabrachial nucleus (PBN), a key gustatory nucleus in the brainstem and projects axonal efferents to the insula cortex. Despite this information, no data is available on the potential role of MD in taste. The proposed research relies on multiple experimental approaches to test the general hypothesis that MD provides fundamental reward-related information to GC. Neuroanatomical tracers will characterize the neural pathway connecting MD to GC. Multielectrode recordings in behaving mice will unveil how MD neurons represent the different facets of a gustatory stimuli. Chemogenetics silencing combined with electrophysiology in behaving mice will test the causal role of MD in shaping GC taste processing and taste-related behaviors. Altogether, the experiments outlined in this proposal will lay the foundation for an in depth understanding of the interaction between higher order thalamic nuclei and sensory cortical areas. If successful, the proposed research, will unveil the role of MD in affecting taste processing and its involvement in modulating taste-related behaviors.


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: 2022 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2022	2020	FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY	874 TRADITIONS WAY	TALLAHASSEE	FL	32306	LEON	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	4	5/11/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2020 ( Subtotal = $154,000 )
2020	2020	FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY	874 TRADITIONS WAY	TALLAHASSEE	FL	32306	LEON	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	001	4	1/17/2020	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$15,400
2020	2020	FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY	874 TRADITIONS WAY	TALLAHASSEE	FL	32306	LEON	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	4	11/21/2019	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$138,600
														Subtotal = $154,000

Issue Date FY: 2019 ( Subtotal = $153,416 )
2019	2019	FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY	874 TRADITIONS WAY	TALLAHASSEE	FL	32306	LEON	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	3	11/8/2018	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$153,416
2019	2018	RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK, THE	WEST 5510 FRANKS MELVILLE MEMORIAL LIBRARY	STONY BROOK	NY	11794	SUFFOLK	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	001	1	4/19/2019	NEW	-$4,296
2019	2018	FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY	874 TRADITIONS WAY	TALLAHASSEE	FL	32306	LEON	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	002	2	4/19/2019	CHANGE OF GRANTEE / TRAINING INSTITUTION / AWARDING INSTITUTION	$4,296
														Subtotal = $153,416

Issue Date FY: 2018 ( Subtotal = $158,063 )
2018	2018	RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK, THE	WEST 5510 FRANKS MELVILLE MEMORIAL LIBRARY	STONY BROOK	NY	11794	SUFFOLK	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	1	10/30/2017	NEW	$159,083
2018	2018	FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY	874 TRADITIONS WAY	TALLAHASSEE	FL	32306	LEON	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	002	2	9/12/2018	CHANGE OF GRANTEE / TRAINING INSTITUTION / AWARDING INSTITUTION	$26,010
2018	2018	RESEARCH FOUNDATION FOR THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK, THE	WEST 5510 FRANKS MELVILLE MEMORIAL LIBRARY	STONY BROOK	NY	11794	SUFFOLK	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	001	1	9/12/2018	NEW	-$27,030
														Subtotal = $158,063

Grand Total All Awards = $465,479

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The role of mediodorsal thalamus in taste

Award Number: R21DC016714

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DEAFNESS AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DISORDERS

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

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

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 10/01/2018

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2021

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