# Circuit specializations of developing visual networks

> **NIH NIH R01** · GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $588,600

## Abstract

The visual pathways of the human fetal brain are highly active before birth. During this pre-visual period
spontaneous activity in the retina provides the primary input to visual brain and data from neonatal rodents
implicate this early activity in normal development and organization of visual pathways. While we understand
much about the specialized circuits that produce activity in the developing retina, and the consequences of
disruption of that activity for eye and brain outcomes, we know little of the brain activity that supports the
earliest stages of sensory development. Early retinal activity is not passively transmitted in the developing
brain. Rather, it is actively amplified and transformed by mechanisms unique to this developmental stage.
This proposal will use a rodent model of human fetal brain development to follow the propagation and
transformation of early retinal activity at each stage of the primary visual pathway in thalamus and visual
cortex, to understand the mechanisms of its transformation, the role of individual thalamic regions, and the
ultimate impact of this circuit on functional visual maps and responsiveness. This knowledge is important
because disruption of early retinal, thalamic, or cortical activity associated with preterm birth or hypoxic birth
complications can cause lasting visual impairment. Any treatment or early diagnosis (such as using EEG)
requires knowledge of the normal developmental circuitry, activity and function of thalamus and cortex, which
this project will provide.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10980919
- **Project number:** 2R01EY022730-11A1
- **Recipient organization:** GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Matthew Todd Colonnese
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $588,600
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2013-09-01 → 2028-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10980919

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10980919, Circuit specializations of developing visual networks (2R01EY022730-11A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10980919. Licensed CC0.

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