# Neural population dynamics underlying flexibility in natural communication behaviors

> **NIH NIH F99** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO · 2024 · $43,032

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
A central problem in neuroscience is to understand how the brain controls innate behaviors. While reductionist
experiments have been invaluable in isolating specific neural functions and their links to behaviors, they may
not capture the full complexity of the brain performing ecologically relevant tasks; natural signals and natural
behaviors are inherently complex, context-dependent, and continuous. Like other complex behaviors, vocal
communication is facilitated by the coordination of networks of neurons that integrate auditory perception and
motor planning for goal-directed decision-making. Linking neural signaling to the production of flexible vocal
communication behaviors therefore requires characterization of the properties of network level neural
interactions across multiple contexts. This proposal meets this challenge by leveraging a well-developed model
for vocal communication, songbirds, a species that produces and relies on complex acoustic signals. The
overarching goal of this proposal is to investigate how context in the form of acoustic cue, internal states, and
behavioral motivations affect neural population dynamics during vocal communication behaviors. The central
hypothesis of this proposal is that context-dependent interactions shift neural population dynamics to allow
auditory and motor regions to affect different perceptual experiences or behavioral goals. This hypothesis will
be tested through the following two phases: With my dissertation, I will determine how neural population
dynamics in an auditory region are differentially structured and coordinated across internal and acoustic
contexts during auditory perception. Preliminary data demonstrate significant alteration in temporal processing
of auditory information as a function of context during perceptual categorization. In the F99 phase, I leverage
innovative latent space models and state-of-the-art dynamical systems theory to asses network-level
interactions across predictive cue conditions in addition to active and passive auditory perception. Primary
results will enable novel insight into the mechanisms that allow populations of neurons to create different
perceptual experiences across acoustic and internal contexts. In the K00 phase, I utilize advanced
electrophysiological methods to assess neural population dynamics, recording activity from large populations
of single neurons within a pre-motor area during vocal production (singing) in various behavioral contexts. I will
employ the same analytical framework to measure neural dynamics across behaviors in order to characterize
the links between neural dynamics and context. These findings will provide a mechanism for how neural
interactions across the network coordinate to produce vocal gestures across behavioral contexts.
 The carefully designed training plan integrates scientific and professional development activities to
support my goal of becoming an independent neuroscience researcher leading an ac...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11074379
- **Project number:** 1F99NS141305-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
- **Principal Investigator:** Julia C Gorman
- **Activity code:** F99 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $43,032
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-09-10 → 2026-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11074379

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11074379, Neural population dynamics underlying flexibility in natural communication behaviors (1F99NS141305-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11074379. Licensed CC0.

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