# Bridging cellular and systems neuroscience: synaptic dynamics underlying behavior

> **NIH NIH DP1** · YALE UNIVERSITY · 2023 · $1,172,500

## Abstract

SUMMARY
 A major challenge to our progress in understanding the functional organization of the nervous system is
the practical schism between cellular/molecular and systems sub-fields within the broader neuroscience
community. For example, synaptic transmission is the fundamental mechanism by which activity propagates
between neurons. While we have a detailed understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying
this process, the dynamic range and operating regime of synapses in the intact, behaving animal is essentially
unknown. Based on recent data from our laboratory, our overall goal in this proposal is to investigate the
hypothesis that variations in behavior over multiple time scales are associated with fluctuations in the strength
of synaptic transmission within neuronal networks of the mammalian neocortex. With a groundbreaking
combination of conceptual and methodological innovations, we will specifically identify the modifications of
synaptic function that correspond to changes in behavioral state and perceptual learning. Specifically, we
propose to monitor variation in synaptic release probability, potency, and integration for targeted circuits within
the mouse visual cortex, relating these properties to behavioral state transitions and enhanced perceptual ability
associated with visuomotor learning. Overall, this ambitious paradigm will generate critical new insights into the
relationships between synapses, circuits, and behavior and open up new avenues of exploration that unite
diverse areas of the neuroscience community.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10706612
- **Project number:** 5DP1EY033975-03
- **Recipient organization:** YALE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Michael James Higley
- **Activity code:** DP1 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $1,172,500
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-30 → 2026-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10706612

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10706612, Bridging cellular and systems neuroscience: synaptic dynamics underlying behavior (5DP1EY033975-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10706612. Licensed CC0.

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