Plasticity of gastrointestinal vagal afferents. The aim of this project is to identify how leptin modulates specific subtypes of vagal afferent within the gut and the plasticity of this system under different dietary conditions. This proposed project will substantially increase understanding of the interactions between leptin, known to influence food intake, and vagal afferent satiety signals. It will also increase understanding of how these interactions alter in obesity and ultimately provide t ....Plasticity of gastrointestinal vagal afferents. The aim of this project is to identify how leptin modulates specific subtypes of vagal afferent within the gut and the plasticity of this system under different dietary conditions. This proposed project will substantially increase understanding of the interactions between leptin, known to influence food intake, and vagal afferent satiety signals. It will also increase understanding of how these interactions alter in obesity and ultimately provide targets and/or concepts for the pharmacotherapy of obesity.Read moreRead less
Central pathways regulating visceral pain. This project aims to investigate the neural pathways within the spinal cord and brain processing colorectal pain perception. The project aims to identify the spinal cord neurons relaying colorectal signalling into the brain and the influence of descending modulation from the brainstem upon these pathways. The outcomes will greatly benefit fundamental understanding of the central pathways processing visceral pain.
Life or death decisions: making fast, accurate choices in a complex world. This project aims to understand how hoverflies and honey bees, with tiny brains and sensory systems, excel at making fast and accurate decisions while on the fly in a complex world. The project will combine brain recordings with flight analyses and computational modelling to generate new knowledge on how animals may utilize movements to simplify information sampling. Expected outcomes are a novel, comprehensive understand ....Life or death decisions: making fast, accurate choices in a complex world. This project aims to understand how hoverflies and honey bees, with tiny brains and sensory systems, excel at making fast and accurate decisions while on the fly in a complex world. The project will combine brain recordings with flight analyses and computational modelling to generate new knowledge on how animals may utilize movements to simplify information sampling. Expected outcomes are a novel, comprehensive understanding of how animal movements could enhance decision speed and accuracy. This should provide substantial benefits for neuroscience, and for enhancing performance of autonomous robotic systems operating in challenging environments, such as disaster relief, mining and remote exploration. Read moreRead less
Understanding and Modelling Insect Motion Vision. The interdisciplinary project proposed will offer a stimulating environment for research/training into computational neuroscience, an attractive area for aspiring scientists. We have already demonstrated the feasibility of transferring physiology into applications, and expect this project to deliver functional motion vision models and devices. Our proposed work will have an impact beyond the advancement of neuro-physiology as knowledge gained is ....Understanding and Modelling Insect Motion Vision. The interdisciplinary project proposed will offer a stimulating environment for research/training into computational neuroscience, an attractive area for aspiring scientists. We have already demonstrated the feasibility of transferring physiology into applications, and expect this project to deliver functional motion vision models and devices. Our proposed work will have an impact beyond the advancement of neuro-physiology as knowledge gained is applicable in a range of areas, with applications in miniature unmanned vehicles and collision avoidance detectors in defence and civilian roles. Our project could also assist in the development of artificial intelligence and as a basis for designing implantable artificial eyes.Read moreRead less
Closing the loop between salience and brain activity. This project aims to understand how animals exposed to an abundance of highly complex information decide what to attend to, that is, how they determine visual saliency. The project will approach this question by systematically tracking visual decision-making in the smallest animal brains, in closed-loop virtual reality environment. This approach will uncover basic working principles applicable to any system that needs to pay attention in a vi ....Closing the loop between salience and brain activity. This project aims to understand how animals exposed to an abundance of highly complex information decide what to attend to, that is, how they determine visual saliency. The project will approach this question by systematically tracking visual decision-making in the smallest animal brains, in closed-loop virtual reality environment. This approach will uncover basic working principles applicable to any system that needs to pay attention in a visually cluttered world, from insects to humans or autonomous vehicles.Read moreRead less
Hierarchical information processing in the primate visual cortex. This project aims to understand how visual information is transformed across hierarchical levels in the brain. Neuroscientists have long recognised that the visual cortex can be conceptualised as a hierarchical processing network. This became apparent when learning algorithms based on hierarchical networks ("deep learning") changed artificial intelligence. This project will combine high-throughput electrophysiology with analytical ....Hierarchical information processing in the primate visual cortex. This project aims to understand how visual information is transformed across hierarchical levels in the brain. Neuroscientists have long recognised that the visual cortex can be conceptualised as a hierarchical processing network. This became apparent when learning algorithms based on hierarchical networks ("deep learning") changed artificial intelligence. This project will combine high-throughput electrophysiology with analytical tools adopted from deep learning. By explaining the physiological properties of higher-level neurons in terms of hierarchical networks, the project expects to address long standing questions in neuroscience, and provide insights on biological hierarchical computation.Read moreRead less