# The Neural Basis of Spontaneous Action

> **NIH NIH R21** · CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY · 2020 · $457,875

## Abstract

Project Summary
Although behavior is largely structured by sensory cues, animals also benefit from random actions. Stochastic
actions and variability are important for many behaviors including motor learning, search, and predator evasion.
Furthermore, understanding the cellular basis of stochasticity may be pertinent to many neurological disorders
involving the inability to either suppress or generate involuntary actions, including Tourette's syndrome,
Huntington's chorea, and Parkinson's disease. Despite its importance, the mechanisms underlying the
generation of random actions at the molecular, cellular, or network levels are poorly understood. Understanding
spontaneous processes in the nervous system will benefit from research in a tractable genetic model in which
both its functional role and mechanistic basis could be studied vertically across phenomenological levels.
Recently, a genetically identified neuron has been identified cell (called DNa04) in the fruit fly, Drosophila that
serves as a command neuron for rapid spontaneous turns, called saccades. This is a rare case of a single
genetically identified neuron whose activity is necessary and sufficient for stochastic actions. Although it is
already possible to record from this command neuron using 2-photon imaging and in vivo patch clamp, the
primary goal of this proposal is to identify members of the upstream network that is responsible for generating
its stochastic activity. Toward these goals, Specific Aim 1 of this proposal will focus on screening a collection of
~20 selective split-GAL4 lines labeling interneurons in the Lateral Accessory Lobe (LAL), the upstream neuropil
region that is thought responsible for generating the spontaneous activity in the DNa04 cell. We will perform 2-
photon functional imaging in intact flying flies to record from LAL interneurons and use genetic tracing techniques
including trans-Tango to map the connectivity within the network. In Specific Aim 2 we will explore the function
of individual cells in generating the pattern of spontaneous activity by manipulating cell physiology using a variety
approaches including optogenetic activation and silencing. Specific Aim 3 will focus on psychophysical
experiments aimed at quantifying and modeling the influence of sensory stimuli that modulate the frequency of
spontaneous saccades. By mapping the network and experimentally manipulating the physiology of its member
cells, we will lay the foundation for developing a quantitative model of the cellular basis of spontaneous actions
in the brain.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10056793
- **Project number:** 1R21NS106471-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
- **Principal Investigator:** Michael H Dickinson
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $457,875
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-06-15 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10056793

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10056793, The Neural Basis of Spontaneous Action (1R21NS106471-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10056793. Licensed CC0.

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