Location: Children's Nutrition Research Center
Project Number: 3092-10700-069-020-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Apr 1, 2019
End Date: Mar 31, 2024
Objective:
Objective 1: No longer pursued due to investigator departure (DM)
Objective 2: No longer pursued due to investigator departure (DM)
Objective 3: No longer pursued due to investigator departure (LF)
Objective 4: No longer pursued due to investigator departure (LF)
Objective 5: Determine if cholinergic basal forebrain circuits differentially respond to appetitive and aversive stimuli to drive feeding and food avoidance behaviors. (BA)
Approach:
We aim to identify the downstream cellular components and circuit mechanisms that mediate processing of sensory stimuli to govern appetitive versus aversive feeding behaviors. We hypothesize that cholinergic basal forebrain circuits differentially respond to appetitive and aversive stimuli to drive feeding and food avoidance behaviors. Using wildtype and genetically engineered mice, in vivo electrophysiological and imaging analysis, metabolic profiling, and feeding behavior assays, we will elucidate the downstream circuit targets of the cholinergic basal forebrain that mediate feeding related actions to drive or suppress food seeking and/or consumption. Identifying such downstream circuit nodes and/or cellular substrates will provide new therapeutic avenues to bypass altered sensory processing systems to treat eating disorders.
