# Voltage imaging of striatal neuron activity during movement

> **NIH NIH F31** · BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS) · 2022 · $23,120

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The basal ganglia circuit has long been recognized as an important regulator for movement in the brain.
Dysfunction of this circuit can result in motor disorders such as Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease. The
striatum, the largest nucleus of the basal ganglia, is critical for normal motor control and is implicated in the
pathology of various movement disorders. The vast majority (~95%) of striatal neurons are inhibitory medium
spiny projection neurons (MSNs), which are often classified into two groups based on their dopamine receptor
expression (D1-MSNs and D2-MSNs). The remaining 5% are GABAergic and cholinergic interneurons, thought
to modulate striatal function by regulating the output projecting MSNs. Recently, it has been reported that both
striatal MSNs and interneurons are modulated during movement and that cholinergic interneurons (ChIs) in
particular promote movement termination by synchronizing MSN activities. ChIs are also thought to contribute
to oscillatory dynamics in normal and pathological striatal circuits, with ChI stimulation resulting in increased beta
frequency (~15-30Hz) oscillations in striatal local field potential (LFP) recordings, as well as decreased
locomotion akin to deficits observed in Parkinson’s disease. Current techniques fall short of demonstrating how
ChIs can coordinate their activity to influence MSNs and subsequent motor output, due to the inability to record
both spiking and subthreshold activity from multiple cells simultaneously during movement. The goal of this
proposal is to use a novel genetically-encoded voltage sensor to probe the spiking and subthreshold
activity of striatal neurons during locomotion. Using our recently developed genetically-encoded voltage
sensor, SomArchon, I will first investigate the spiking and subthreshold activity of striatal neurons in wild-type
mice during voluntary movement (Aim 1). To determine the contributions of ChIs to movement, ChI activity will
next be probed using Cre-dependent SomArchon in ChAT-Cre transgenic mice during voluntary movement (Aim
2). Finally, to investigate how ChIs influence MSN activity, I will optogenetically stimulate ChIs while monitoring
MSN activity with SomArchon during movement (Aim 3). At the conclusion of this study, we hope to better
understand how striatal neurons, particularly ChIs, coordinate motor activity. Such an understanding could
provide valuable insight into the basis of cholinergic signaling in the brain, as well as strategies for intervention
in basal ganglia circuit disorders. Additionally, I expect the novel voltage imaging techniques deployed here to
have a broad impact on systems neuroscience, motivating future voltage imaging analysis of a variety of neural
circuits involved in behavioral and pathological paradigms.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10295757
- **Project number:** 5F31NS115421-03
- **Recipient organization:** BOSTON UNIVERSITY (CHARLES RIVER CAMPUS)
- **Principal Investigator:** Sanaya Ness Shroff
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $23,120
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-10-19 → 2022-05-27

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10295757

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10295757, Voltage imaging of striatal neuron activity during movement (5F31NS115421-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10295757. Licensed CC0.

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